Værøya


Værøya or Værøy is an island in Værøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The island makes up about 89% of the land area of the whole municipality and it is home to 100% of the municipal residents. The island has two villages on it: Nordland and Sørland. About 95% of the island's residents live in Sørland, which is also the administrative centre of the municipality. There is also the old village of Mostad on the southern part of the island. The Værøy Church and Old Værøy Church are both located on the island.
The island lies at the southern of the Lofoten archipelago, between the islands of Røstlandet and Moskenesøya. The small, uninhabited island of Mosken lies a short distance north of Værøya. The Moskenstraumen strait lies to the north of the island, the Vestfjorden lies to the east, and the Norwegian Sea is to the west. The highest point on the island is the tall mountain Nordlandsnupen.
The Norwegian Lundehund was a dog used in Værøy to hunt puffins on the narrow cliffs on the island. The dog breed nearly went extinct in the 20th century, but a few dogs remained and have since mounted a comeback.

Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Veðrøy. The first element is veðr which means "weather". The last element is øy which means "island". Historically, the name has been spelled Værø.

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