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Eskifjörður | |
|---|---|
Town | |
 Eskifjörður with cruise ship Prinsendam at its wharf, 2017 | |
 Location of the Municipality of Fjarðabyggð | |
  Eskifjörður Location in Iceland | |
| Coordinates: 65°04′17.48″N 14°00′55.4″W / 65.0715222°N 14.015389°W | |
| Country |  Iceland |
| Constituency | Northeast Constituency |
| Region | Eastern Region |
| Municipality | .svg){kind=small} Fjarðabyggð |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 1,043 |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (GMT) |
| Website | Official website |
Eskifjörður (in original spelling; Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈɛscɪˌfjœrðʏr̥] ), or Eskifjördur, is a town and port in eastern Iceland with a large fishing industry. With a population of 1,043 it is one of the most populous towns in the municipality of Fjarðabyggð.
History
[edit]Eskifjörður had 302 inhabitants in 1901, 425 in 1910, 619 in 1920, 758 in 1930, 671 in 1940, 673 in 1950, 1741 in 1960, 936 in 1970 and 1 084 in 1981.[1] It obtained the rights and privileges of an official trading place (verslunastaður) as early as 1786 und was awarded municipal status (kaupstðurréttindi) on 10 April 1974.[2] It developed into a booming community after Örum & Wulff, a powerful Danish trading company, had opened a trading post in 1798. In 1802 Kjartan Þórlaksson, the first Icelandic merchant who was not a Dane, settled down in Eskifjörður and started a successful business.[3]
Eskifjörður joined Neskaupstaður and Reyðarfjörður in 1998 to form the new municipality of Fjarðabyggð ("fjords-settlement").
Geography
[edit]The other villages composing the municipality are: Fáskrúðsfjörður (662 inh.), Mjóifjörður (35 inh.), Neskaupstaður (1,437 inh.),[4] Reyðarfjörður (1,102 inh.) and Stöðvarfjörður (203 inh.).[5]
Main sights
[edit]A sculpture by Ragnar Kjartansson is located along the main road in Eskifjördur, commemorating the mariners who drowned at sea.[6]
The Maritime Museum of East Iceland is located in a commercial building, "Gamla búđ", which was built in 1816. The museum displays artefacts that illustrate the fishing and seafaring history of East Iceland. It also displays various reminders of local trade, industry and medicine from times past.[7] The First Free Church in Iceland was built in Eskifjörður in 1884.[8]
Eskifjörður has one of the most beautiful rare stone collections in Iceland, with thousands of polished, cut and original stones from all over the island, privately owned but visitable.[9]
Notable people
[edit]- Aðalsteinn Jónsson, business man and former CEO of Hraðfrystihús Eskifjarðar
- Einar Bragi, poet
- Eggert Jónsson, footballer
- Þórólfur Guðnason, Chief Epidemiologist of the Icelandic Directorate of Health
References
[edit]- ^ Ewald Gläßer: Island, p. 179. Darmstadt 1986.
- ^ Vilhelm G. Kristinsson: Íslensk Samtíð, p. 131. Reykjavík 1990.
- ^ Vilhelm G. Kristinsson: Íslensk Samtíð, p. 132. Reykjavík 1990.
- ^ Located in the Reyðarfjörður
- ^ (in Icelandic) Infos on Fjarðabyggð municipal website Archived 2011-03-25 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Becker, Kathleen (1 May 2009). Iceland. Baedeker. p. 162. ISBN 978-3-8297-6616-6. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
- ^ "Maritime Museum". Retrieved 2017-08-22.
- ^ Vilhelm G. Kristinsson: Íslensk Samtíð, p. 130. Reykjavík 1990.
- ^ "Rare Stone Collection". Visit Eskifjörður. 2015-04-17. Retrieved 2015-04-17.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Eskifjörður at Wikimedia Commons
- (in English) Visit Eskifjordur tourist guide
- (in English) Visit Eskifjordur Facebook Fan page for tourist information around Eskifjordur
- (in Icelandic) Facebook Fan page about everything in Eskifjörður
- (in Icelandic) Eskifjörður page on Fjarðabyggð municipal website
- Images of Eskifjörður on Flickr
