Funningur is a village on the
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...
. It is located on the northwest coast of
Eysturoy
Eysturoy (, meaning 'East Island') is a region and the second-largest of the Faroe Islands, both in size and population.
Description
Eysturoy is separated by a narrow sound from the main island of Streymoy. Eysturoy is extremely rugged, with som ...
(). It was the only village in the municipality called ''Funnings kommuna'', which on 1 January 2009 became part of
Runavíkar kommuna.
To the west of the village rises the highest mountain in the Faroe Islands,
Slættaratindur
Slættaratindur ( English: ''Flat peak'') is the highest mountain in the Faroe Islands, at an elevation of 880 metres. It is located in the northern part of Eysturoy, between the villages of Eiði, Gjógv, and Funningur. Funningur lies at the fo ...
(880m), however, the summit itself is not visible from the village.
History
Tradition says that the first
viking
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...
who settled on the Faroe Islands,
Grímur Kamban
Grímr Kamban was, according to the ''Færeyinga saga'', the first Norse settler in the Faroe Islands. The modern Faroese form of the name is ''Grímur'', but it was ''Grímr'' in Old Norse and is often anglicised as ''Grim''.
Settlement of th ...
, settled in Funningur. He was a
Norwegian Viking escaping the tyranny of the Norse king
Haraldur Hárfagri. However, this is an error in the saga, because Harald's reign was in the late 9th century, while the first Norse settlers reached the Faroes after 825. (Actually,
Irish monks arrived much earlier ca. 625–650).
Population
About 70 people live in Funningur on both sides of a cascading stream in a compact cluster of houses around a small bay. The wooden turf-roofed
church in Funningur dates from 1847 and stands at the water's edge.
Mountains surrounding the village (counter-clockwise from the north):
*
Middagsfjall (601m) (due north)
*
Gráfelli (856m)
*
Slættaratindur
Slættaratindur ( English: ''Flat peak'') is the highest mountain in the Faroe Islands, at an elevation of 880 metres. It is located in the northern part of Eysturoy, between the villages of Eiði, Gjógv, and Funningur. Funningur lies at the fo ...
(882m) (due west)
*
Vaðhorn (780m)
*
Blámansfjall (792m) with outcropping
Nón (504m)
*
Húsafjall (697m) (due south)
Gallery
File:Funnigur.Eysturoy.3.jpg, Funningur
File:Funningur.Eysturoy.2.jpg, Funningur
File:Funningur church 2022.jpg, Funningur Church
Image:Faroe Islands, Eysturoy, Funningur (4).jpg, Funningur Church
Image:Faroe Islands, Eysturoy, Funningur (2).jpg, Funningur
File:Funningsfjørður, Faroe Islands (4).JPG, Funningur at the fjord Funningsfjørður
Funningsfjørður () is a village in Faroe Islands, located at the end of a fjord of the same name ('fjørður' is the Faroese word for 'fjord'). It was founded in 1812 and has since 2005 been part of the municipality of Runavík.
Whaling stat ...
Image:Faroe stamp 494 Djurhuus poems - grimur kamban.jpg, Grímur Kamban
Grímr Kamban was, according to the ''Færeyinga saga'', the first Norse settler in the Faroe Islands. The modern Faroese form of the name is ''Grímur'', but it was ''Grímr'' in Old Norse and is often anglicised as ''Grim''.
Settlement of th ...
See also
*
List of towns in the Faroe Islands
This is a list of villages (and towns) of the Faroe Islands as of 29 of April 2025. :fo:Býir í Føroyum
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Towns In The Faroe Islands
Towns
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faro ...
References
External links
Faroeislands.dk: FunningurImages and description of all cities on the Faroe Islands.
Populated places in the Faroe Islands
Eysturoy
{{faroes-geo-stub