The name Føroyar (Faroe Islands) is
derived from old Norse and means Sheep
Islands, a name given by the Viking age
settlers arriving from Norway in the 9th
century. The medieval culture and organisation
of the Faroe Islands was clearly Norse in origin
and form, and they established their Althing
(parliament), later named Løgting, at Tinganes in
Tórshavn. Tórshavn still is the capital city of
modern days Faroe Islands, and it claims to hold
the oldest parliament in the world.
The culture of the Faroe Islands has its roots
in the Nordic culture. The language spoken is
Faroese. It is one of three insular Scandinavian
languages descended from the Old Norse
language spoken in Scandinavia in the Viking
Age, the others being Icelandic and the extinct
Norn, which is thought to have been mutually
intelligible with Faroese.
The permanent exhibition at the National
Museum offers an experience of the geology,
botany, zoology, archeology, folk-life and history
of the Faroe Islands. Among the cultural treasu-res
in the exhibition, you will find the original
Faroese rowing boat, the full collection of the
legendary 15th century Kirkjubøur benches, a
variety of national costumes and interesting
findings from the Viking era. You can also
experience a journey through the natural and
geological history of the Faroe Islands with its
mammal and bird life and the volcanic geological
origin of the islands. The museum is both a
22 SUOMEN MERENKULKU J FINLANDS SJÖFART
cultural and natural history museum dedicated
to the national heritage of the Faroe Islands. The
Faroe Islands National Museum Tjóðsavnið has
created a modern look and feel with nods to the
Nordic origins with rune-like details in the
typography.
A runestone, the Kirkjubøur stone, was found
in 1832 in the Kirkjubøur church. Today it is in
the National Museum of the Faroe Islands. The
pew ends from the church were transferred in
1875, after the church was restored, to the
National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen
and were returned to Faroe Islands and exhibited
at the National Museum of the Faroe Islands in
2002. There are 14 pew ends, 11 depicting the
Apostles, and the three remaining ones depicting
other Biblical figures. •
SOURCE TEXT:
• https://www.faroeislands.fo/the-big-picture/history/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_the_
Faroe_Islands
• https://www.tjodsavnid.fo/english
• https://www.studiomikladal.co.uk/tjsavni
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki Category:Runestones_
on_the_Faroe_Islands
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirkjub%C3%B8ur
• https://www.nature.com/articles/5201578
” The
culture of the
Faroe Islands
has its roots
in the Nordic
culture.”
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