The population of the Faroe Islands is largely descended from Viking settlers who arrived in the 9th century. The islands have been connected politically to Denmark since the 14th century. A high degree of self-government was granted the Faroese in 1948, who have autonomy over most internal affairs while Denmark is responsible for justice, defense, and foreign affairs. The Faroe Islands are not part of the European Union.
Northern Europe, island group between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about halfway between Iceland and Norway
62 00 N, 7 00 W
Europe
total: 1,393 sq km
land: 1,393 sq km
water: 0 sq km (some lakes and streams)
eight times the size of Washington, DC
0 km
1,117 km
territorial sea: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
mild winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy, windy
rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast
mean elevation: NA
elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Slaettaratindur 882 m
fish, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas
agricultural land: 2.1%
arable land 2.1%; permanent crops 0%; permanent pasture 0%
forest: 0.1%
other: 97.8% (2011 est.)
NA
NA
party to: Marine Dumping - associate member to the London Convention and Ship Pollution
archipelago of 17 inhabited islands and one uninhabited island, and a few uninhabited islets; strategically located along important sea lanes in northeastern Atlantic; precipitous terrain limits habitation to small coastal lowlands
50,456 (July 2016 est.)
noun: Faroese (singular and plural)
adjective: Faroese
Faroese 89.2% (Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon descent), Danish 7.1%, other 3.7% (includes Icelander, Norwegian, Greenlander, Filipino, Thai, British)
note: data represent respondents by country of birth (2011 est.)
Faroese 93.8% (derived from Old Norse), Danish 3.2%, other 3% (2011 est.)
Christian 89.3% (predominantly Evangelical Lutheran), other 0.7%, more than one religion 0.2%, none 3.8%, unspecified 6% (2011 est.)
0-14 years: 19.98% (male 5,212/female 4,870)
15-24 years: 14.62% (male 3,784/female 3,592)
25-54 years: 37.25% (male 10,191/female 8,605)
55-64 years: 11.66% (male 3,032/female 2,851)
65 years and over: 16.49% (male 4,023/female 4,296) (2016 est.)
total: 37.7 years
male: 37.1 years
female: 38.4 years (2016 est.)
0.53% (2016 est.)
14 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
8.7 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
the island of Streymoy is by far the most populous with over 40% of the population; it has approximately twice as many inhabitants as Eysturoy, the second most populous island; seven of the inhabited islands have less than 100 people
urban population: 42% of total population (2015)
rate of urbanization: 0.47% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
TORSHAVN (capital) 21,000 (2014)
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.18 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female
total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2016 est.)
total: 5.5 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.8 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
total population: 80.4 years
male: 77.8 years
female: 83.1 years (2016 est.)
2.36 children born/woman (2016 est.)
4.7 beds/1,000 population (2012)
NA
NA
NA
Olaifest (Olavsoka), 29 July
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Faroe Islands
local long form: none
local short form: Foroyar
etymology: the archipelgo's name may derive from the Old Norse word "faer," meaning sheep
part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1948
parliamentary democracy (Faroese Parliament); part of the Kingdom of Denmark
name: Torshavn
geographic coordinates: 62 00 N, 6 46 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 30 municipalities
none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
history: 5 June 1953 (Danish Constitution), 23 March 1948 (Home Rule Act), and 24 June 2005 (Takeover Act) serve as the Faroe Islands constitutional position in the Unity of the Realm
amendments: see entry for Denmark (2016)
the laws of Denmark, where applicable, apply
see Denmark
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Dan Michael KNUDSEN, chief administrative officer (since 1 January 2008)
head of government: Prime Minister Aksel V. JOHANNESEN (since 15 September 2015)
cabinet: Landsstyri appointed by the prime minister
elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually elected prime minister by the Faroese Parliament; election last held on 1 September 2015
election results: Aksel V. JOHANNESEN elected prime minister; Parliament vote - NA
description: unicameral Faroese Parliament or Logting (33 seats; members directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)
note: election of 2 seats to the Danish Parliament was last held on 18 June 2015 (next to be held no later than June 2019); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Social Democratic Party 1, Republic 1
elections: last held on 1 September 2015 (next to be held no later than October 2019)
election results: percent of vote by party - Social Democratic Party 25.1%, Republic 20.7%, People's Party, 18.9%, Union Party 18.7%, Progressive Party 7.0%, Center Party 5.5%, Self-Government Party 4.1%; seats by party - Social Democratic Party 8, Republic 7, People's Party 6, Union Party 6, Center Party 2, Progressive Party 2, Self-Government Party 2
highest court(s): Faroese Court or Raett (Rett - Danish) decides both civil and criminal cases; the Court is part of the Danish legal system
subordinate courts: Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif; Mixed Commercial Court; Land Court - expected to begin in 2016
Center Party (Midflokkurin) [Jenis av RANA]
Independence (or Self-Govenment) Party (Sjalvstyrisflokkurin) [Jogvan SKORHEIM]
People's Party (Folkaflokkurin) [Jorgen NICLASEN]
Progressive Party (Framsokn) [Poul MICHELSEN]
Republic (Tjodveldi) (formerly the Republican Party) [Hogni HOYDAL]
Social Democratic Party (Javnadarflokkurin) [Aksel V. JOHANNESEN]
Union Party (Sambandsflokkurin) [Bardur a STEIG NIELSEN]
other: conservationists
Arctic Council, IMO (associate), NC, NIB, UNESCO (associate), UPU
ram; national colors: red, white, blue
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
white with a red cross outlined in blue extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted toward the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag); referred to as Merkid, meaning "the banner" or "the mark," the flag resembles those of neighboring Iceland and Norway, and uses the same three colors - but in a different sequence; white represents the clear Faroese sky as well as the foam of the waves; red and blue are traditional Faroese colors
name: "Mitt alfagra land" (My Fairest Land)
lyrics/music: Simun av SKAROI/Peter ALBERG
note: adopted 1948; the anthem is also known as "Tu alfagra land mitt" (Thou Fairest Land of Mine); as a self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark, the Faroe Islands are permitted their own national anthem
The Faroese economy has experienced a period of significant growth since 2011, due to increases in fish prices, salmon farming, and catches in the pelagic fisheries. Nominal GDP growth was an estimated 7.5% in 2013 and 5.9% in 2014. The fisheries sector a
The public budget has exhibited deficits since 2008, which were financed through increased borrowing. Public debt reached 38% of GDP in 2015. Aided by an annual subsidy from Denmark amounting to about 4% of Faroese GDP, the Faroese have a standard of livi
Dependence on fishing makes the economy vulnerable to price fluctuations. Projections for fish prices are favorable and increasing public infrastructure investments are likely to lead to continued growth in the short term.
$1.831 billion (2014 est.)
$1.729 billion (2013 est.)
$1.471 billion (2013 est.)
$2.32 billion (2010 est.)
5.9% (2014 est.)
7.5% (2013 est.)
2.9% (2013 est.)
$36,600 (2014 est.)
agriculture: 16%
industry: 29%
services: 55% (2007 est.)
milk, potatoes, vegetables; sheep; salmon, herring, mackerel and other fish
fishing, fish processing, tourism, small ship repair and refurbishment, handicrafts
3.4% (2009 est.)
25,000 (2015 est.)
agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 18.9%
services: 70.3% (November 2010)
2.9% (2015 est.)
3.1% (2014)
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
revenues: $1.025 billion
expenditures: $1.301 billion
note: Denmark supplies the Faroe Islands with almost one-third of their public funds (2010 est.)
44.2% of GDP (2010 est.)
-11.9% of GDP (2010 est.)
calendar year
2.3% (2011)
0.4% (2010)
$824 million (2010)
$767 million (2009)
fish and fish products 95%, ships (2009 est.)
Russia 20.2%, UK 16.6%, Denmark 16.3%, Nigeria 11.6%, China 9.3%, US 7.2%, Netherlands 5.6%, Norway 4% (2015)
$776 million (2010)
$786 million (2009)
goods for household consumption, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials and semi-manufactures, cars
Denmark 43.9%, Turkey 12.3%, Norway 10%, China 6.2%, Netherlands 4.9%, Germany 4.4% (2015)
$888.8 million (2010)
$68.1 million (2006)
Danish kroner (DKK) per US dollar -
6.865 (2016 est.)
6.7236 (2015 est.)
5.6183 (2014 est.)
5.6125 (2013 est.)
5.79 (2012 est.)
electrification - total population: 100% (2016)
300 million kWh (2014 est.)
300 million kWh (2014 est.)
0 kWh (2013 est.)
0 kWh (2013 est.)
100,000 kW (2014 est.)
60.1% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
36.1% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
3.8% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 bbl (1 January 2016 es)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
4,400 bbl/day (2014 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
4,295 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (1 January 2014 es)
800,000 Mt (2013 est.)
total subscriptions: 17,000
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 34 (July 2015 est.)
total: 63,000
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 126 (July 2015 est.)
general assessment: good international communications; good domestic facilities
domestic: conversion to digital system completed in 1998; both NMT (analog) and GSM (digital) mobile telephone systems are installed
international: country code - 298; satellite earth stations - 1 Orion; 1 fiber-optic submarine cable to the Shetland Islands, linking the Faroe Islands with Denmark and Iceland; fiber-optic submarine cable connection to Canada-Europe cable (2015)
1 publicly owned TV station; the Faroese telecommunications company distributes local and international channels through its digital terrestrial network; publicly owned radio station supplemented by 3 privately owned stations broadcasting over multiple fr (2015)
.fo
total: 47,000
percent of population: 94.2% (July 2015 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 1 (registered in Denmark)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 3 (registered in Denmark) (2015)
OY-H (2016)
1 (2013)
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2013)
total: 960 km (2015)
total: 37
by type: cargo 20, chemical tanker 7, container 2, passenger/cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 2
foreign-owned: 28 (Iceland 4, Norway 13, Sweden 11) (2010)
major seaport(s): Fuglafjordur, Torshavn, Vagur
no regular military forces; the Government of Denmark has responsibility for defense; as such, the Danish military’s Joint Arctic Command is responsible for territorial defense of the Faroe Islands (2016)
defense is the responsibility of Denmark
because anticipated offshore hydrocarbon resources have not been realized, earlier Faroese proposals for full independence have been deferred; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm
