| Fugloy
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| Basic Facts
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Municipality
seat | Fugloyar
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| Area | 11.2 km² (rank 11)
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Population
- Density | 44 (rank 13) (2007)
3,9 persons/km²
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| Location | 62°20′N, 6°18′W
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 200px  Fugloy on Faroese stamp issued 1999 Fugloy is the eastern-most island in the Faroe Islands. The name means bird island, after the large number of birds that nest on the island\'s cliffs.
Geography
There are two settlements: Kirkja on the south-coast and HattarvÃk on the east-coast. The Eystelli cliffs, which are 448m are located on the east coast. Nearby there is also a lighthouse, a natural arch feature and what looks like the outline of an Egyptian Pharaoh (the Pharaoh\'s Face).
Mountains
There are three mountains on Fugloy:
Future for Fugloy
Because the harbour of Fugloy is not protected by breakwaters, it has stopped any form of economic growth since the early 20th century. The island\'s only income has been small agricultural and partly fishing, but also the famous catching birds such as Lundi
have been used a lot on Fugloy, up to today.
The Løtinget has tried to work out plans for the future of the island, such as the island getting electricity in the 1960s. In the 1980s a road from Kirkja to HattarvÃk was built and a helicopter route was made there as well.
When the population was at its peak, it was around 250-300 people, at the beginning of the 20th century.
People have moved away alongside a more modern lifestyle and norms of the world has changed and life as an islander was not very popular, also because a job as a farmer on a small island is not very profitable any more.
Today there are only five people living all year around in HattarvÃk and some 20 in Kirkja. There are few jobs on the islands; one shop and few jobs on the harbour are all that there is, therefore Fugloy is not heading for a bright future.
History
The island has been populated since the Viking age.
One of the most important stories of the island is that of the Floksmen. They were a flok (group) of rebels, in the middle ages, from Fugloy.
The most notorious of the separatists, (referred by the Danish governmental and officials in Thorshavn) were Høgni Nev, Rògvi Skel, Hálvdan Ulvsson from HattarvÃk and Sjúrður við kellingar, from Kirkja.
These men controlled and savaged the northern parts of the Faroe Islands for a long time.
This is one of the most important separatist myths of the Faroe islands.
The smarter Sjúrður við kellingar was forced to go the more militant way of rebellion by Høgni Nev and Hálvdan Ulvsson who were more criminally minded.
All the four men were later caught and sentenced to death. Sjúrður við kellingar was shown mercy and amnesty, but the story is that he could not live on with the crimes that the he and the others had commided under their "little" rebellion and asked to be executed with the other Floksmen.
Mythology
There are several myths connected to this island.
In old Faroese Culture trolls played a large part in the mythology of the Faroe Islands,
The Floating Island of Fugloy
It was said that Fugloy was once a floating island with trolls living on it. Men had tried several times to approach the island, but every time they tried, the trolls threw stones and curses at the men in the boats.
After a long time the men grew tired of trying and were close to leaving the trolls with the island. But one of the men, a priest, wanted to try one more time, before giving up. The men got in the boats again and rowed once more to Fugloy.
In the first boat to approach the island were the priest and some other men. When the trolls saw what was happening, they started to collect stones, and began throwing them at the men. All the men in the first boat were scared and wanted to sail home again at once, with the big stones flying through the air! They were about to turn round and sail home, when the priest got so angry and was in such great despair that he threw the bible that he had brought with him on the trip at the trolls. The bible landed right in front of the trolls, the ground started shaking, the island stopped floating, and in a split second all the trolls were transformed into little grassy hills, and now the men could at last settle Fugloy.
The little grassy hills are still located around the island, and particularly, close to the Bygd (Kirkja).
Tourism
As the name Fugloy Faroese Fugl means Bird so on Birds island, there is a Rich Fauna of different sea and Land birds, Specially Lundin (Faroese) Puffin (English) is on the island in the 100 of thausands pairs! and also the
Black Guillemot is in great numbers on Fugloy.
The Great wiew over to the Next islands Svinoy and Borðoy is excellent, an offcourse the sun downs out there is one of all these things that makes Fugloy to a site of the Traditional and Old Picture of the Faroe islands.
Másin the mail boat
It is a great experience, to see when the mail boat Másin lays too the pear in Kirkja.
Passengers has few minutes to jump ashore and get bags and there things with them. becourse oil to the electricity plant on Fugloy, are transported in Oil Barrels and garbage is transported with Másin in garbage wagons.
They also has to be landed at the same time, and there for, time is not what you have enogh of on Fugloy! when it comes to land a ship.
Wind and weather can chance fast, so they always want to land the passengers and any form of cargo fast and then Fill the ship up again and leave.
External links
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia
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