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Faeroe Islands | |
|---|---|
| Anthem: "Tú alfagra land mítt" (Faroese) (English: "Thou, fairest land of mine") | |
 Location of the Faroe Islands (green) in Europe (green and dark grey) | |
.svg) Location of the Faroe Islands (red; circled) in the Kingdom of Denmark (yellow) | |
| Sovereign state | Kingdom of Denmark |
| Settlement | early 9th century |
| Union with Norway | c. 1035 |
| Kalmar Union | 1397–1523 |
| Denmark-Norway | 1523–1814 |
| Unification with Denmark | 14 January 1814 |
| Independence referendum | 14 September 1946 |
| Home rule | 30 March 1948 |
| Further autonomy | 29 July 2005[1] |
| Capital and largest city | Tórshavn 62°00′N 06°47′W / 62.000°N 6.783°W |
| Official languages | |
| Ethnic groups | Faroe Islanders |
| Religion | Christianity (Church of the Faroe Islands) |
| Demonym(s) |
|
| Government | Devolved government within a parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Frederik X |
| Mette Frederiksen | |
| Lene Moyell Johansen | |
| Aksel V. Johannesen | |
| Legislature | Folketinget (Realm legislature) Løgting (Local legislature) |
| National representation | |
| 2 members | |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,393[4] km2 (538 sq mi) (not ranked) |
• Water (%) | 0.5 |
| Highest elevation | 882 m (2,894 ft) |
| Population | |
• August 2024 estimate | 54,908[5] (214th) |
• 2011 census | 48,346 |
• Density | 38.6/km2 (100.0/sq mi) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2019 estimate |
• Total | US$3.126 billion[6] (not ranked) |
• Per capita | US$58,585 (not ranked) |
| Gini (2018) |  22.71[7]low · 1st place |
| HDI (2008) | 0.950[8] very high |
| Currency | (DKK) |
| Time zone | UTC±00:00 (WET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+01:00 (WEST) |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +298 |
| Postal code | FO-xxx |
| ISO 3166 code | FO |
| Internet TLD | .fo |
The Faroe or Faeroe Islands (/ˈfɛəroʊ/ FAIR-oh), or simply the Faroes (Faroese: Føroyar, pronounced [ˈfœɹjaɹ] ; Danish: Færøerne [ˈfeɐ̯ˌøˀɐnə]), are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. The official language of the country is Faroese, which is closely related to and partially mutually intelligible with Icelandic.
Located a similar distance from Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a total area of about 1,400 square kilometres (540 sq mi) with a population of 54,676 as of August 2023.[10] The terrain is rugged, and the subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc), is windy, wet, cloudy, and cool. Despite the northerly climate, the temperatures are moderated by the Gulf Stream and average above freezing throughout the year, hovering around 12 °C (54 °F) in summer and 5 °C (41 °F) in winter.[11] As a result of its northerly latitude and proximity to the Arctic Circle, the islands experience perpetual civil twilight during summer nights and very short winter days. The capital and largest city, Tórshavn, receives the fewest recorded hours of sunshine of any city in the world at only 840 per year.[12]
While archaeological evidence places the first known habitation as early as the 4th century, Færeyinga Saga and the writings of Dicuil place initial Norse settlement in the early 9th century.[13][14] As with the subsequent Settlement of Iceland, the islands were mainly settled by Norwegians and Norse-Gaels, who additionally brought thralls (i.e. slaves or serfs) of Gaelic origin. Following the introduction of Christianity by Sigmundur Brestisson, the islands came under Norwegian rule in the early 11th century. The Faroe Islands followed Norway's integration into the Kalmar Union in 1397, and came under de facto Danish rule following that union's dissolution in 1523. Following the introduction of Lutheranism in 1538, the usage of Faroese was banned in churches, schools and state institutions, and disappeared from writing for more than three centuries. The islands were formally ceded to Denmark in 1814 by the Treaty of Kiel along with Greenland and Iceland, and the Løgting was subsequently replaced by a Danish judiciary.
Following the re-establishment of the Løgting and an official Faroese orthography, the Faroese language conflict saw Danish being gradually displaced by Faroese as the language of the church, public education and law in the first half of the 20th century. The islands were occupied by the British during the Second World War, who refrained from governing Faroese internal affairs: inspired by this period of relative self-government and the declaration of Iceland as a republic in 1944, the islands held a referendum in 1946 that resulted in a narrow majority for independence. The results were annulled by Christian X, and subsequent negotiations led to the Faroe Islands being granted home rule in 1948.[15]
While remaining part of the Kingdom of Denmark to this day, the Faroe Islands have extensive autonomy and control most areas apart from military defence, policing, justice and currency, with partial control over its foreign affairs.[16] Because the Faroe Islands are not part of the same customs area as Denmark, they have an independent trade policy and are able to establish their own trade agreements with other states. The islands have an extensive bilateral free trade agreement with Iceland, known as the Hoyvík Agreement. In the Nordic Council, they are represented as part of the Danish delegation. In certain sports, the Faroe Islands field their own national teams. They did not become a part of the European Economic Community in 1973, instead keeping autonomy over their own fishing waters; as a result, the Faroe Islands are not a part of the European Union today. The Løgting, albeit suspended between 1816 and 1852, holds a claim as one of the oldest continuously running parliaments in the world.
- ^ "Den færøske selvstyreordning, about the Overtagelsesloven (Takeover Act)". Stm.dk. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ "The Language of the Faroe Islands". Visit Faroe Islands. Archived from the original on 3 December 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ "The Faroese Language". faroeislands.fo. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ "Faroe Islands". The CIA World Factbook. 6 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
- ^ "Heim | Hagstova Føroya". hagstova.fo.
- ^ "Faroe Islands | Data". World Bank Open Data. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
- ^ "PX-Web – Vel talvu". statbank.hagstova.fo.
- ^ "Filling Gaps in the Human Development Index" (PDF). United Nations ESCAP. February 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2011.
- ^ "[1]." visitfaroeislands.com. Retrieved on 26 July 2023. "Before you arrive in the Faroe Islands."
- ^ "Population | Statistics Faroe Islands". hagstova.fo. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "The unpredictable Faroe Islands weather". Guide to Faroe Islands. 19 December 2018.
- ^ TORSHAVN Climate Normals 1961–1990. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
- ^ "Viking history : 825 – Grímur Kamban arrived at Faroe islands". Viking history. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ Dahl, Sverri (1970). "The Norse Settlement Of The Faroe Islands" (PDF). Medieval Archaeology. 14: 60–62. doi:10.1080/00766097.1970.11735326 – via Archaeology Data Service.
- ^ "The Faroe Islands". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
Home Rule was established in 1948 [...]
- ^ "Lov om de færøske myndigheders overtagelse af sager og sagsområder (Also called: Overtagelsesloven)". Retsinformation.dk (in Danish).
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