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The Faroe Islands

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The Faroe Islands (Føroyar) are an archipelago between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic approximately halfway between Norway and Iceland, 320 kilometres north-northwest of mainland Scotland with a population of roughly 50,000. The Faroese language is one of the smallest of the Germanic languages and it is one of three insular North Germanic 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. Norse settlers arrived in the middle of the 9th century, bringing their West Norse language with them.

The culture of the Faroe Islands has its roots in the Nordic culture. The Faroe Islands were long isolated from the main cultural phases and movements that swept across parts of Europe. This means that they have maintained a greater part of their traditional culture.

Although a rich spoken tradition survived, for 300 years the language was not written down. This means that all poems and stories were handed down orally. These works were split into the following divisions: sagnir (historical), ævintýr (stories) and kvæði (ballads), often set to music and the medieval chain dance. These were eventually written down in the 19th century.

The following description is by V. U. Hammershaimb, Færøsk Anthologi, 1891: "The storyline of the ballad is attended by everybody with great interest, and if something especially pleasant or moving occurs, you can see it in the look and movement of the dancers – when the rage of the battle is described, the hands are clenched together, and when victory is in hand, they make cheering movements."

Kappróður is the national sport of the Faroe Islands. There have been rowing competitions a long time back, at least as far back as to the 1930s, and now the competitions are still in a regular routine, held in seven different places during the weekends of June and July. The races are always part of a regional festival, called a stevna, with many other activities as well. The final regatta is always held in Tórshavn on the national day, or actually on the day before the national day, which is called Ólavsøka.
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Faroe Islands
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