Svalbard
Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean; population (1995) 2,900 (41% being Norwegian). The main island is Spitsbergen, which includes the largest town, Longyearbyen; other islands include Edgeøya, Barentsøya, Svenskøya, Nordaustlandet, Prins Karls Foreland, Wilhelmøya, Lågøya, Storøya, Danskøya, and Sørkappøya. The other main centres of population are the Russian mining settlements of Barentsburg and Grumantbyen. The total land area is 62,000 sq km/23,938 sq mi.
Sovereignty
The islands are said to have been first reached by William Barents in 1596, but it is probable that Icelanders and Norwegians visited them in the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, possession of the islands was disputed by the Norwegians, Dutch and English when whale hunting was at its peak in the area. While this activity ceased in the 18th century, the question of sovereignty was again raised on the discovery of rich beds of coal. Norway's sovereignty of the islands was recognized by treaty at the Paris Peace Conference in 1920, and in 1925 Norway officially took possession of the archipelago under the
Svalbard Treaty, but gave free scientific and economic access to all other signatory nations.
Industries Russia, Kazakhstan and Norway all mine minerals here, the chief one being coal, although phosphates, asbestos, iron ore, copper and galena are also extracted. |
Features All the islands are mountainous and there is much ice, with 60% of the land area being covered by glaciers and snow fields, and ice floes often block the entrance to Bellsund, the main coal-exporting port; however, the presence of fossil palms show that the islands were in the tropics 40 million years ago. Polar bears, foxes, and reindeer are among the land animals, and musk-oxen have been introduced. Eider duck and other wildfowl breed on the islands, and seals and occasionally walruses are found. The Norwegians maintain weather and research stations on several of the islands. |
