Varangerfjord
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Varangerfjord' (Varanginvuono in Finnish) in the county of Finnmark, is the easternmost fjord in Norway. It is approximately 100 km long. In a strict sense, it is a false fjord, as it does not have the hallmarks of a fjord carved by glaciers.
Its mouth, between the city of Vardø (Vuoreija in Finnish) in the north and Grense Jacobselv - near Kirkenes (Kirkkoniemi in Finnish) - in the south, is about 70 km wide. The fjord stretches westwards inland to Varangerbotn in the municipality of Nesseby.
[edit] History
The Kven residents of Varangerfjord are largely descendants of Finnish immigrants who arrived to the area during the 19th century from Finland and northern Sweden.
In the first half of the 19th century, the possibility of Russia demanding the cession of a stretch of coast along the Varangerfjord was for some time on the European diplomatic agenda, inducing King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway to conclude an alliance with Britain and France in order to forestall this possibility.
[edit] References
- This article is based on a translation of the corresponding article in the Norwegian Wikipedia, accessed 27 April 2005.