Vormsi () is the fourth-largest island of

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

, measuring and a registered population of around 400. It is located in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

, northwest of the

mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or demogr ...

and east of

Hiiumaa Hiiumaa ( , ) is the second largest island in Estonia and is part of the West Estonian archipelago, in the Baltic Sea. It has an area of 989 km2 and is 22 km from the Estonian mainland. Its largest town is Kärdla. It is located within ...

island, and is part of the

West Estonian archipelago The West Estonian archipelago (, also Moonsund archipelago) is a group of Estonian islands located in the Baltic Sea around Väinameri. The total area is about . The archipelago is composed of the islands Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, Muhu, Vormsi and ab ...

(Moonsund archipelago). Administratively the island forms part of

Vormsi Parish Vormsi Parish (; ) is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Lääne County. It covers the area of Vormsi island. The population of Vormsi is 231 (as of 1 January 2013) and has an area of 92.93 km2. Settlements There are 14 villages ...

(rural

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

History

The documented history of Vormsi dates back as far as the 13th century. During most of this time, the island was inhabited by

Estonian Swedes The Estonian Swedes (, or ''aibofolke'', "island people"; , or ''rannarootslased'', "coastal Swedes") are a Swedish language, Swedish-speaking minority traditionally residing in the coastal areas and islands of what is now western and northern ...

("rannarootslased" in

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

or "coastal Swedes" in English). ''Ormsö'' in Swedish means "Orm's island", and can be translated also as "Snake island". The Estonian name ''Vormsi'' and German ''Worms'' have both been derived from ''Ormsö''. The island's population reached 3,000 before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the war, nearly all of Vormsi's population, along with other Swedes living in Estonia, forming the larger region of

Aiboland Aiboland (also known as Swedish Estonia and Egeland) is the Estonian Swedish name for the historically Swedish-speaking areas and towns of northern and western Estonia. Historical Aiboland encompasses Nuckö, Ormsö, Runö, Odensholm, ...

, were evacuated, or fled, to Sweden.

Villages

The villages on the island include: Hullo (the administrative centre),

Sviby Sviby is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County, in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by th ...

(the main port),

Söderby Söderby is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County, in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by t ...

, Norrby, Diby,

Rälby Rälby is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County, in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the ...

Förby Förby is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County, in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the ...

, Borrby,

Kärrslätt Kersleti () is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County, in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by ...

, Saxby, Suuremõisa (Magnushof, formerly Busby),

Rumpo Rumpo is a village in Vormsi Parish, Lääne County in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Ba ...

(the main beach area) and Hosby. The island of Vormsi has homeowners from several countries and regions in Estonia, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and elsewhere.

Economy

Vormsi is the per capita wealthiest island and region in Estonia outside of the

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

metro area, with incomes on the same level as inner Tallinn. This is attributed to the fact that many comparatively wealthy people own summer homes on the island and are registered as residents, so their yearly income tax is forwarded to the island's budget. Vormsi has only small businesses with no significant industrial activity. The island earns the majority of its revenues from the taxation on the salaries earned by its residents on the Estonian mainland.

Literature

* Kanarbik, Madis, ''Ormsö. De estlandssvenska böndernas kamp mot godsägarna under 1700- och 1800-talet'' ordistica Tartuensia; 9(Tartu, 2003)
Beyer, Jürgen, 'Whom should one thank for a narrow escape? Lessons drawn from a perilous journey from Vormsi and Noarootsi to Finland in 1796', ''Pro Ethnologia'' 17 (2004), 175-95

Gallery

File:Vormsi sadam 2015.jpg, Vormsi harbour (2015) File:Lehmihaka.jpg, Paddock, Rälby File:Vormsi-tuulimylly.jpg, Old windmill, Rälby File:Metsänvartijanmökki1.jpg, Woodsman's cottage, Hullo File:Vormsi-Ormso-Rumpo-muul.jpg, Beach area in

File:Vormsi-Rumpo.jpg, Viewing platform in

peninsula, looking towards

harbor File:Vormsi kalmistu 02.jpg, Vormsi cemetery File:Aurora Borealis in Vormsi, Estonia.jpg,

Aurora borealis An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

in Saxby File:Vormsi Hullo tuulikud.jpg, Windmills in Hullo, 1930s File:Borbi küla (Borrby), Vormsi saar (Ormsö) SLS 443 22 - 1934.jpg, link=, Aerial photo of the Borrby village, 1934 File:Ny Dag hyllar Stalin ockupation av Estland.jpg, Swedish communist daily Ny Dag headline on 5 September 1940: "The Swedes on Vormsi greet

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

and the new regime" File:Estlandssvenska flyktingar.jpg, Fleeing the Soviet occupation to Sweden, 1944 File:Vormsi Parish - panoramio.jpg, Road signs in Hullo File:Vormsi kirik 2011.jpg, The 15th century Swedish (now Lutheran) church in Hullo (2011) File:Vormsi - panoramio (1).jpg, Round crosses in the Vormsi cemetery File:Estonia-nordic-cross-flag-02.jpg, A Nordic cross flag used in Vormsi File:Ormsö Vormsi ferry.jpg, Vormsi is connected with the mainland by MS Ormsö ( :et)

References

External links

Vormsi vald
(Vormsi municipality) {{Authority control Estonian islands in the Baltic Landforms of Lääne County Vormsi