or is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An isla ...

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. With an area of , it is the second largest island in

(outside of the

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group rang ...

archipelago). It has a wild, mountainous outer (western) side facing the Atlantic, and a mild and lush inner (eastern) side. The island is located within

Senja Municipality Senja is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It was established on 1 January 2020 when the municipalities of Berg, Lenvik, Torsken, and Tranøy were merged into one municipality. It is located in the traditional district of Hå ...

, which was established on 1 January 2020. The island of Senja had 7,864 inhabitants as of 1 January 2017. Most of the residents live along the eastern coast of the island, with

Silsand Silsand is a village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located on the eastern shore of the large island of Senja. The village has a population (2017) of 1,583 which gives the village a population density of . Sil ...

being the largest urban area on the island. The

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 ...

Gryllefjord Gryllefjord is a fishing village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located on the island of Senja, along the Gryllefjorden in the northern part of the municipality. The village has a population (2017) of 383 whi ...

on the west coast has a summer-only ferry connection to the nearby island of

Andøya Andøya is the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago, situated about inside the Arctic circle. Andøya is located in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The main population centres on the island include the villages of ...

: the

Andenes–Gryllefjord Ferry Andenes–Gryllefjord Ferry is an automobile ferry service connecting the islands of Andøya (in Nordland county) and Senja (in Troms og Finnmark county) in Norway. Operated by Troms fylkestrafikk, the crossing between the villages of Andenes in ...

. The island sits northeast of the

Vesterålen Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the arch ...

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arch ...

, surrounded by the Norwegian Sea to the northwest, the Malangen fjord to the northeast, the Gisundet strait to the east, the

Solbergfjorden Solbergfjorden is a fjord (or more accurately, a strait) on the southeastern side of the large island of Senja in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It lies in the municipalities of Dyrøy, Sørreisa, and Senja. The long strait flows into the ...

to the southeast, the Vågsfjorden to the south, and the

Andfjorden Andfjorden is a fjord on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties in Norway. It primarily flows between the large islands of Andøya and Senja. Grytøya and the smaller islands Bjarkøya and Krøttøya are located in the fjord. The ...

to the west. Ånderdalen National Park is located in the southern part of the island.

Etymology

The

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlement ...

form of the name is believed to have been ''Senja'' or perhaps ''Sændja''. The meaning of the name is unknown, but it might be related to the verb ''sundra'', which means to "tear" or "split apart", possibly because the west coast of the island is torn and split by numerous small fjords. It might also be derived from a

Proto-Norse Proto-Norse (also called Ancient Nordic, Ancient Scandinavian, Ancient Norse, Primitive Norse, Proto-Nordic, Proto-Scandinavian and Proto-North Germanic) was an Indo-European language spoken in Scandinavia that is thought to have evolved as ...

form of the word ''Sandijōn'', meaning "(area) of sand" or "sandy island".

Geography

The island of Senja is located along the

county coastline with

Finnsnes Finnsnes () is a small town that is the administrative centre of Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The town is located on the mainland part of Norway, just across the Gisundet strait from the island of Senja. The Gisund ...

as the closest town. Senja is connected to the mainland by the Gisund Bridge. The municipalities located on Senja are

Lenvik Lenvik ( sme, Leaŋgáviika) is a former municipality that was located in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020. The municipality was partly situated on the mainland and partly on the isla ...

(part of which is on the mainland),

Berg Berg may refer to: People *Berg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Berg Ng (born 1960), Hong Kong actor * Berg (footballer) (born 1989), Brazilian footballer Former states * Berg (state), county and duchy of the Hol ...

Torsken Torsken is a former municipality that was located on the western coast of the large island of Senja in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into the new Senja Municip ...

, and

Tranøy Tranøy is a former municipality that was located in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality is situated on the southern coast of the large island of Senja. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was m ...

. The northern coasts of Senja face the open sea, the western coast faces the islands of

and Krøttøya, and the southern coast faces the islands of

Andørja Andørja is a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1926 until its dissolution in 1964. It was located in the northeastern half of the present-day Ibestad Municipality. It encompassed the entire isla ...

and Dyrøya. On the western coast, steep and rugged mountains rise straight from the sea, with some fishing villages (like

and Husøy) tucked into the small lowland areas between the mountains and the sea. The eastern and southern parts of the island are milder, with rounder mountains, forests, rivers, and agricultural land. Senja is often referred to as "Norway in miniature", as the island's diverse scenery reflects almost the entire span of Norwegian natural geography. Senja is known domestically for its scenery and is marketed as a tourist attraction.

Climate

Laukhella is near Silsand on Senja island, facing the mainland towards the east. The Eastern part of Senja has an atypical

boreal climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...

, as the wettest season is autumn and winter, and winters are also milder than typical for this climate. The western part of Senja facing the Norwegian Sea has a more subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc) like the Hekkingen lighthouse. Hekkingen island in Senja municipality is closer to the open sea, has milder winters, and has a subpolar oceanic climate like western Senja. Older climate data from the village Gibostad on the eastern shore of the island; facing the mainland, during 1961-1990.

Economy

Naturally, the

fishing industry The fishing industry includes any industry or activity concerned with taking, culturing, processing, preserving, storing, transporting, marketing or selling fish or fish products. It is defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization as including ...

is dominant on Senja, notably the ''Nergård Group'' at

Senjahopen Senjahopen or Senjehopen is a village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. Senjahopen is located along the Mefjorden on the northwest part of the large island of Senja, where it is one of the most important fishing villag ...

and ''Brødrene Karlsen'' at Husøy.

Skaland Skaland is a village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located on the shores of the Bergsfjorden on the northwest side of the island of Senja, about to the southwest of the village of Senjahopen and abou ...

has some

graphite Graphite () is a crystalline form of the element carbon. It consists of stacked layers of graphene. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Synthetic and natural graphite are consumed on la ...

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...

. Another important industry is ArtNord and Tromspotet at Silsand, which specializes in potato and potato products. Sollia has a stair factory and the world's northernmost fibreglass insulation factory, Nicopan AS, which has customers throughout Norway, and exports abroad.

Transportation

The residents of Senja have the Gisund Bridge as a ferry-free road connection to the mainland across Gisundet to the town of

. The town serves as a trading center for the entire Mid-Troms region, including the island of Senja. The island is also connected with the other towns in the county. At Lysnes on northern Senja, you have a fast boat connection with the city of Tromsø, a trip that takes about 50 minutes. From the villages of Flakstadvåg and

Skrolsvik Skrolsvik or Skrollsvika is a village on the southwestern tip of the island of Senja in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which ...

on the west and south side of the island, there are also ferries to the town of Harstad to the south. During the summer there is a ferry between northern Senja and the island of Kvaløya, between southern Senja and Harstad, and between

and

Andenes is the administrative centre of Andøy Municipality which is located in the Vesterålen district of Nordland county, Norway. The village of Andenes is the northernmost settlement of the island of Andøya (and in Nordland county). To the east ...

. Senja has four main roads. The main road is

Norwegian County Road 86 County Road 86 ( no, Fylkesvei 86) is a highway in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The eastern end of the road begins in the village of Andselv (in the Bardufoss area of Målselv Municipality). It then heads west to the Gisund Bridge connec ...

which crosses the Gisund Bridge from Finnsnes, Sørreisa, and

Bardufoss Bardufoss is a town and commercial centre in Målselv Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The three villages of Andselv, Andslimoen, and Heggelia together form the Bardufoss area. Bardufoss is located in the Målselvdalen val ...

. It extends across the island to

and

. From

, Norwegian County Road 861 goes north along Gisundet to Gibostad and northern Senja. Norwegian County Road 860 goes from

Stonglandseidet Stonglandseidet is a village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village has a population (2001) of 225. The village is home to a grocery store, bank, nursing home, Stonglandet Church, and a public school. The village ...

to Silsand, Norwegian County Road 862 goes from Straumsbotn in Berg, via Senjahopen to Botnhamn in Lenvik.

Governance

In March 2017, the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

voted to merge the municipalities of

, and

. The new municipality was established on 1 January 2020 as

( no, Senja kommune). It is located in the traditional district of Hålogaland. The

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

of the municipality became the town of

. The municipality includes all of the islands of Senja, the smaller surrounding islands, and part of the mainland between the Gisundet strait and the Malangen fjord.

Attractions

Among the sights of the island are Ånderdalen National Park, with coastal

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...

forests and mountains, traditional fishing communities, and previously the

Senja Troll The Senja Troll ( no, Senjatrollet) was a tourist attraction in Finnsæter on the island of Senja in northern Norway. It was completely destroyed in a fire on March 28, 2019. The largest troll statue in the world, it was the centerpiece of a famil ...

, the world's largest

troll A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human ...

statue (which burned down 28 March 2019). The southernmost municipality

also has a number of small museums documenting local history, notably the Halibut Museum ("Kveitmuseet") in

In popular culture

The island of Senja is mentioned in

David Armine Howarth David Armine Howarth (28 July 1912 – 2 July 1991) was a British naval officer, boatbuilder, historian and author. Biography After graduating from the University of Cambridge, he became a war correspondent for BBC radio at the start of Wo ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

book, and true story, ''We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance''. It has a namesake island in the

MMORPG A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...

Tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it conn ...

. The Norwegian musician

Moddi Pål Moddi Knutsen (born 18 February 1987 in Senja), known by the artist name Moddi, is a Norwegian musician, author and activist, whose contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest or social justice. Background Pål Knutsen grew up ...

comes from the island and his music is said to have been influenced by its beauty. The Norwegian musician

Biosphere The biosphere (from Greek βίος ''bíos'' "life" and σφαῖρα ''sphaira'' "sphere"), also known as the ecosphere (from Greek οἶκος ''oîkos'' "environment" and σφαῖρα), is the worldwide sum of all ecosystems. It can also ...

lives in Senja (as of 2018-19) and his album ''The Senja Recordings'', which was recorded in Senja, refers to several places in Senja (Bergsbotn, Steinfjord, etc.).

Gallery

Bergsfjorden on Senja.jpg, Bergsfjorden, Senja Senjahusoy.jpg, Husøy, Northern Senja View from a ridge between Segla and Hesten, Senja, Norway, 2014 August.jpg, View from a ridge between Segla and Hesten, Senja Kistefjellet i Lenvik (3).jpg, View from Gibostad towards Kistefjellet on the mainland Senja(4).jpg, Seashore on Senja Okshornan Senja.JPG,

Ersfjorden Ersfjorden is a fjord in the Tromsø municipality of Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandina ...

and nearby mountains Silsand1.JPG,

Okshornan from Tungeneset, 2015 September - 3.jpg, Okshornan peaks viewed from Tungeneset

References

External links

* *
Alpin moro på eventyrøya Senja
{{authority control Islands of Troms og Finnmark