FAROE ISLANDS

LOCATION AND COMMUNICATION LINKS

The Faroe Islands are situated in the North Atlantic 430 km south-east of Iceland, 600 km west of Norway and a good 300 km north of Scotland. The Faroe Islands are in the same time zone as Britain. The distance to Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, with which the Faroe Islands have constitutional links, is about 1,300 km.

The islands are of volcanic origin and part of the North Atlantic basalt region stretching from Ireland to Greenland. The Ice Age glaciers formed an archipelago of mountains, deep valleys, narrow fords and straits. The basalt covers older geological strata which may contain oil and gas.

The climate is typical oceanic: humid, changeable and windy. In Tórshavn the temperature in the coldest month averages 3°C and in the warmest 11°C. The shortest day is 5 hours and the longest 19’/2 hours. There are no woods, but plenty of grass. A mere 6% of the land is under cultivation while the rest is reserved for the grazing of 70,000 sheep and some cattle and horses. Birds are plentiful, especially sea-birds, but other animal life is sparse. The sea around the Faroe Islands is influenced by the meeting of the warm Gulf Stream and cold northern currents, rich in nutritional matter. This guarantees rather stable ocean temperatures, between 5° and 10°C, favouring fish and animal life.

The geography and topography of the Faroe Islands make transport and communication difficult.

The Faroese have spent huge sums on the traffic and communications system. A road network consisting mainly of two-laned asphalt roads has been built and tunnels have been bored through the mountains. The two biggest islands are linked by an elevated bridge and three other islands by causeways. Commercial and fishing harbours have been constructed. There are ferry services to all islands. The most remote or inaccessible islands and villages are served by helicopters.

All year round daily air services and weekly cargo vessel services connect the Faroes with Denmark and other countries. In summer there are car ferry services to Denmark, Norway and Iceland and throughout the year to Scotland. All Faroese towns and villages have electricity, of which two-thirds is produced in thermal plants (oil) and one-third in hydroelectric plants. The telephone service is highly developed and everywhere in the Faroes it is possible to dial directly abroad. Telex, telefax and mobile telephones are also available. The Faroes are linked up with a transatlantic optic fibre cable.

GEOGRAPHY

The Faroes consist of 18 islands, of which 17 are inhabited. The total area is 1,399 sq km and the largest island is Streymoy (373.5 sq km) with the capital Tórshavn. The distance north-south is 113 km and east-west 75 km. The land averages 300m above sea level, the highest point is 882m.

POPULATION AND MAJOR CENTRES

The population on January 1st, 1995, was 43,700. The Faroes experienced a massive emigration in 1994 corresponding to 4.4% of the population, resulting in a population decline of 3.7%. The total decline in population 1990-94 was 8.7%. The Faroese pattern of settlement is characterised by a large number of densely populated communities differing greatly in size.

There are about 100 villages and towns, of which the largest is Tórshavn with its 15,000 inhabitants including the suburbs.

HISTORY

The Faroese descend from Norwegian settlers who (circa 800) replaced an Irish settlement. They established an assembly called the Althing (now Løgting). After the introduction of Christianity in the year 1000 AD, the Faroe Islands in 1035 came under the Crown of Norway, which in 1380 became united with Denmark. In the Middle Ages, the centre of power as well as of learning was the bishopric of Kirkjubøur. The Church accumulated great wealth and owned approximately half of all land, which was confiscated by the Crown when the Lutheran faith was introduced at the Reformation (circa 1540). This also led to the abolition of the bishopric and the priest school, and the introduction of Danish as the language of the Church.

After the introduction of absolute monarchy in Denmark in 1660 the Faroe Islands became more and more governed from Copenhagen. The external trade of the Faroe Islands was monopolised under the Crown. When the union between Denmark and Norway was dissolved in 1814, the Faroe Islands, together with Iceland and Greenland, remained under the Danish Crown. In 1816 the Løgting was abolished but was reestablished in 1852 as a county council with advisory powers after the Danish Constitution of 1849 had taken effect in the Faroe Islands. In 1856 the Royal Trade Monopoly was abolished and the Faroese experienced a period of significant expansion and transformation from a medieval subsistence type agricultural society into a modern society based upon export-orientated commercial fishery.

The end of the 19th century saw the emergence of a Faroese national movement that sought to protect Faroese language and culture against a growing Danish influence. This national awakening led to the founding of two political parties in 1906: Sjálvstyrisflokkurin, which demanded a greater Faroese role in domestic affairs, and Sambandsflokkurin which preferred status quo.

In 1940 Denmark was occupied by Germany, and British Forces landed on the Faroes. The islands were cut off from Denmark, and became virtually self-governing in domestic matters. The Faroese flag was recognised by the Allies. When the war ended in 1945 a return to county status was ruled out. Following protracted negotiations, which led to a referendum in the islands in 1946 and a subsequent election to the Løgting, agreement was finally reached on the Home Rule system of 1948, which defines the Faroe Islands as a ‘self governing community within the Kingdom of Denmark’.

GOVERNMENT

In the Faroe Islands one will find both Home Government, municipal and Danish State authorities. The Løgting (Parliament) has the legislative power in separate Faroese affairs and appoints the Landsstyri

(Home Government) which administers both the separate affairs and those joint affairs the administration of which has been taken over by agreement with the Danish Government. The Løgting has 27 members chosen in seven constituencies plus up to five supplementary seats with a view to ensuring proportional representation, so that the total number may vary from 27 to 32. The Landsstyri has three to seven members headed by the Løgmaøur. Under the Home Government is a small central administration and a number of departments, directorates, councils and boards besides several institutions. The Rigsombudsmand or High Commissioner, is the highest representative of the Danish State in the Faroe Islands. He has a right to appear in the Løgting and to speak on joint affairs. The Danish judicial system is represented by a judge and a chief constable. The Danish defence has a naval station and runs a radar station for NATO.

The idea of Home Rule is to establish a balance between the desire, on the one hand, to emphasise a the national uniqueness of the Faroe Islands and, on the other, to maintain the union between the Faroe Islands and Denmark. The Faroese Home Rule authorities have the legal and administrative competence in those areas which have been taken over as separate Faroese affairs.

The areas that have completely taken over by the Faroese include communications, culture and industry. Education, health and social services are joint affairs for which the Home Government has assumed the administrative responsibility. Under the Home Rule Act the areas of justice, monetary affairs, defence and foreign relations cannot be taken over. Management of mineral resources was taken over as a Home Rule matter in 1992.

Danish legislation takes effect in the Faroe Islands only after having been submitted to the Home Rule Authorities. The penal code and civil law, including personal, family and inheritance law, company law, banking and insurance legislation, etc, are covered by Danish legislation.

LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

The Faroese language is a Nordic language closely related to Icelandic and to the dialects of Western Norway. Faroese is recognised as the official language, but Danish

may also be used in all official connections and shall be taught in schools. A rich oral literature is to be found in the form of stories and ballads, and sung with the traditional Faroese ring dance. There is a rich theatrical and musical life based upon amateur interest, but also supported by an increasing number of professional instructors.

The visual arts have a strong position. In Tórshavn the Museum of Art (Listaskálin) has a permanent collection of Faroese art. Many towns and villages have ‘community houses’ as centres for artistic, cultural and civic activities.

ECONOMY

The economy of the Faroe Islands is overwhelmingly dependent upon fisheries. Fishing, fish farming and fish processing account for a quarter of the gross factor income and almost 100% of exports. Other industries are to a great extent suppliers to the fishing industry. The remaining industries are, like the public sector, highly dependent on proceeds derived from the fishing industry. The Faroese economy is vulnerable to fluctuations in the size of the fish catch, fish prices, exchange rates and the prices of vital import products, for instance oil.

the Faroes. The ten Federations are ; Football, handball, rowing (in typical Faroese boats), volleyball, table-tennis, badminton, gymnastics, swimming, judo and the Federation for the Disabled. The following sports are without Federation status; Riding, athletics, cycling and shooting.

The Federations elect their own Boards, and the chairpersons of these Boards serve on the general executive committee along with the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Secretary of the I.S.F. The Federations arrange all fixtures in the Faroes, as well as Nordic and International matches. The I.S .F. administrative centre offers excellent facilities for its members and it means they can share office equipment and have access to modern communications systems.

The Faroe Islands have taken part in all the Island Games to date, and were one of the founder members when the Island Games Association was instituted in the Isle of Man during the First Games there in 1985. They also very successfully hosted the Third Games in 1989, which were very much enjoyed and appreciated by all those who attended this unique occasion.

John Kjaer