Gásadalur
Gásadalur | |
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Village | |
View of Gásadalur from the west
View of Gásadalur from the west
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Location in the Faroe Islands | |
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. | |
State | Kingdom of Denmark |
Constituent country | Faroe Islands |
Island | Vágar |
Municipality | Sørvágs |
Population (1 January 2012) | |
• Total | 18 |
Time zone | GMT |
• Summer (DST) | EST (UTC+1) |
Postal code | FO 387 |
Gásadalur is located on the west-side of Vágar, Faroe Islands, and enjoys a panoramic view over the island of Mykines.
Gásadalur is located on the edge of Mykinesfjørður, surrounded by the highest mountains on Vágar. Árnafjall towers to a height of 722 metres to the north, and Eysturtindur to the east is 715 metres high. Here too, the view south to Tindhólmur and Gáshólmur is quite magnificent.
The landing site is very poor, because it is located somewhat higher than the seashore. So if the residents wanted to fish they were obliged to keep their boats near Bøur. In 1940, during the British occupation, a stairway was built from the beach up to the village.
In order to reach any of the other villages, they had to take the strenuous route over mountains more than 400 metres high. This explains why the village population has become smaller and smaller. In 2002 there were only sixteen people living in Gásadalur, and several of the houses stand empty today. It had a population of 18 in 2012.[1]
In 2004 a tunnel was blasted through the rock, and it is possible to drive through by car. The residents hope this will mean that the village population will increase again. There are good opportunities for farming, and the same number of fields as in Bøur, but here only a few are royal estate. Most of them are freehold land.
Gæsa or Goose?
There is a story that the village was named after a woman called Gæsa, who came from Kirkjubøur. She had eaten meat during the Lent fast, and for this unholy deed all her property was confiscated. She fled to the valley on Vágar, which was named after her. Most other village stories are about spirits and elves.
A more likely explanation is that Gásadalur (Goose Valley) is named after the wild geese, which from ancient times have travelled to the valley.
Gallery of images of Gásadalur
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Village idyll in Gasadalur, Faroe Islands.jpg
Village idyll
Photo: Erik Christensen -
A house in Gasadalur, Faroe Islands.jpg
House in Gásadalur
Photo: Erik Christensen -
Parish hall in gasadalur.jpg
Parish hall of Gásadalur
Photo: Erik Christensen -
Small house with turf roof in Gasadalur, Faroe Islands,.jpg
Small house with turf roof
Photo: Erik Christensen -
Basalt stacks at Gasadalur.jpg
Basalt stacks at Gásadalur
Photo: Erik Christensen -
Stream in gasadalur.jpg
Stream in Gásadalur
Photo: Erik Christensen -
Faroe stamp 453 gasadalur.jpg
Stamp FO 453 of the Faroe Islands, 2003
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Faroe stamp 506 vagar - gasadalur.jpg
Stamp FO 506 of the Faroe Islands, 2005
Artist: Eli Smith -
Gasadalur, Faroe Islands, October 2005 (2).jpg
Gásadalur, Faroe Islands, October 2005
See also
References
External links
- Faroestamps.fo (public domain)
- Faroeislands.dk: Gásadalur Images and description of all cities on the Faroe Islands.
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