Fårö is a small
Baltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
islandAn island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
north of the island of
GotlandGotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
, off
SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
's southeastern coast. It is the second-largest island in the province. It has a population of fewer than 600 and has become a popular summer resort. The island has no banks, post offices, medical services or police. It has its own dialect (a dialect of
Modern GutnishModern Gutnish is the native language of the Gotlandic people on the island of Gotland in present-day Sweden. It was both a spoken and written language until late medieval times. Today it exists as a spoken language, but is to some degree mixed with Swedish, Danish and German. It is an open issue...
), claimed to be the "oldest" language in Sweden.
Geography
The island is separated from Gotland by the Fårö-strait, but connected by two car ferries, operated by the Swedish National Road Administration. It has a total area of 111.35 square kilometers, of which 9.7 square kilometers are water areas or
isletAn islet is a very small island.- Types :As suggested by its origin as islette, an Old French diminutive of "isle", use of the term implies small size, but little attention is given to drawing an upper limit on its applicability....
s.
On the islands of Fårö and Gotland, rock formations called "Rauk" can be found. These were a result of erosion during the Ice Age and are unique to Gotland and Fårö.
Etymology
The name "Fårö" (in
GutnishModern Gutnish is the native language of the Gotlandic people on the island of Gotland in present-day Sweden. It was both a spoken and written language until late medieval times. Today it exists as a spoken language, but is to some degree mixed with Swedish, Danish and German. It is an open issue...
"Faroy") is derived from the words "ö", meaning island, and "får-", which is a word associated with travel like in the Swedish word "färled" (fairway). The word Fårö probably means the island you have to travel to or the traveler's island. Mainland Swedes might misinterpret the name Fårö to be derived from
får, the Swedish word for sheep, due to the many sheep on the island. However, the
GutnishModern Gutnish is the native language of the Gotlandic people on the island of Gotland in present-day Sweden. It was both a spoken and written language until late medieval times. Today it exists as a spoken language, but is to some degree mixed with Swedish, Danish and German. It is an open issue...
word for sheep is "lamm" (similar to the Swedish word "lamm", meaning "lamb").
Military past
Until the 1990s, Fårö and the North of Gotland were off limits to foreigners because of a government military installation there. There were large, multilingual signs at the side of the roads informing visitors of this and the prohibition was strictly enforced. After the
Cold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
ended, the installation (
Swedish coastal artilleryThe Swedish coastal artillery has its origin in the Archipelago Artillery that was raised in 1866. The Coastal Artillery was formed from the Archipelago Artillery, the Marine Regiment and parts of the Artillery in 1902...
division KA3) was mostly shut down. A relic of the island's military past is a 203-meter tall radio mast at Holmudden at 57°57'33" N and 19°20'46" E.
Cinematic heritage
Swedish filmmaker
Ingmar BergmanErnst Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director, writer and producer for film, stage and television. Described by Woody Allen as "probably the greatest film artist, all things considered, since the invention of the motion picture camera", he is recognized as one of the most accomplished and...
lived and died on Fårö and several of his films were filmed there, among them
Through a Glass DarklyThrough a Glass Darkly is a 1961 Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman, and produced by Allan Ekelund. The film is a three-act "chamber film", in which four family members act as mirrors for each other. It is the first of many Bergman films to be shot on the island of Fårö...
(1961),
PersonaPersona is a film by Swedish director Ingmar Bergman, released in 1966, and starring Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann. Bergman held this film to be one of his most important; in his book Images, he writes: "Today I feel that in Persona—and later in Cries and Whispers—I had gone as far as I could go...
(1966),
Hour of the WolfHour of the Wolf is a 1968 Swedish film directed by Ingmar Bergman and starring Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann. It combines elements of the film drama, surrealist film and horror film.-Plot:...
(1968),
Shame (1968),
The Passion of AnnaThe Passion of Anna is a 1969 Swedish drama film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. Bergman was awarded Best Director at the 1971 National Society of Film Critics Awards for the film.-Plot:...
(1969), and
Scenes From a MarriageScenes from a Marriage is a 1973 Swedish TV series written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. The story explores the disintegration of a marriage between Marianne, a lawyer, and Johan, a professor over a long period, using a restricted cast, a naturalist, hyper-realistic cinematic...
(1972). The Bergman Festival is a weeklong tribute to the filmmaker held on the island every June.
Andrei TarkovskyAndrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky was a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director, widely regarded as one of the finest filmmakers of the 20th century....
's
The SacrificeThe Sacrifice is a 1986 film, and the final film by Russian film director Andrei Tarkovsky, who died shortly after completing it.-Synopsis:...
was also filmed on Fårö.
Tourism
An annual event on Fårö is "Fårönatta" (Fårö Nights), held in September, during which restaurants and bars stay open all night, craft stands are set up and the church holds a midnight Mass.
Fårö Fyr (Fårö Lighthouse)
The
Fårö LighthouseFårö Lighthouse is a Swedish lighthouse located on the easternmost tip of Fårö. In the 19th century there had been many complaints from sea authorities that the coastlines on Gotland had very few lighthouses. So the decision was made to build one on the north side of Gotland...
lies on the island's northeastern point. It is 30-meters high and was built between 1846-47.
Langhammar
The Langhammar peninsula and the Langhammar nature reserve on north-western Fårö feature rocky beaches with the Ice Age stone monoliths known as rauks. Langhammar was the setting for Ingmar Bergman's film
Through a Glass DarklyThrough a Glass Darkly is a 1961 Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman, and produced by Allan Ekelund. The film is a three-act "chamber film", in which four family members act as mirrors for each other. It is the first of many Bergman films to be shot on the island of Fårö...
.
Digerhuvud
The Digerhuvud nature reserve features the Helgumannen fishing village. It is not suited for swimming due to its depth (up to 80 meters close to the shore) and strong currents. However, it is a popular diving and sport-fishing area.
Sudersand
The long, sandy Sudersand beach on north-eastern Fårö lies next to Sudersands Semesterby which rents cabins to tourists.
External links
- Gotland Tourist Accosiation — Fårö Fårö article from Nordisk Familjebok
Nordisk familjebok is a Swedish encyclopedia, published between 1876 and 1957.- History :The first edition was published in 20 volumes between 1876 and 1899. The first edition is known as the "Iðunn edition" because of the picture of Iðunn on the cover...