Raudfjorden (English: Red fjord) is a 20 km long and 5 km wide
fjord
In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...
on the northwestern coast of
Spitsbergen. It has two southern branches,
Klinckowströmfjorden and
Ayerfjorden, split by the peninsula
Buchananhalvøya. The fjord is situated on the divide between
Albert I Land and
Haakon VII Land
Haakon VII Land is a land area at the northwestern part of Spitsbergen, Svalbard, between Woodfjorden and Kongsfjorden
Kongsfjorden as seen from Blomstrandhalvøya
Kongsfjorden (Kongs Fjord or Kings Bay) is an inlet on the west coast of ...
.
History
Raudfjorden was named ''Red-cliff Sound'' by
Robert Fotherby, an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
explorer
Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians.
Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
and
whaler
A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales.
Terminology
The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...
, in 1614. The same year the
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
named the fjord ''Monier Bay'', after the commissary-general of their
whaling
Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution.
It was practiced as an organized industr ...
fleet that year,
Anthonie Monier. This latter name was first marked by the Dutch from 1620 onwards. The former name was later corrupted to ''Red Bay'', the name the fjord retains to this day. The cape separating its two southern branches was named ''Point Deceit'' by Fotherby the same year he explored the fjord, which is now known by its
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
equivalent,
Narreneset.
References
* Conway, W. M. 1906. No Man's Land: A History of Spitsbergen from Its Discovery in 1596 to the Beginning of the Scientific Exploration of the Country. Cambridge: At the University Press.
* Norwegian Polar Institut
Place Names of Svalbard Database
Fjords of Spitsbergen
{{Spitsbergen-geo-stub