The Kingdom of Norway (Norge in Norwegian) is one of the world's most maritime nations. The country is long and narrow with drowned valleys called fjords that bring the sea far inland in most regions. The mainland coast is estimated to be 2650 km (1650 mi) long and when all the islands and minor indentations are counted the total coastline approaches an astonishing 60,000 km (37,500 mi), long enough the go around the world one and a half times. With such a lengthy and rocky shore it's not surprising that Norway has a large number of lighthouses. Norway is divided into counties (fylker) and the counties are divided into townships (kommuner). This page lists lighthouses of the Sognefjord district (Sogn) in the former county of Sogn og Fjordane. Located north of Bergen and south of Trondheim, Sogn og Fjordane has no large population centers. It is a region of steep mountains and deep fjords with some of the most spectacular scenery Norway has to offer, including the Sognefjord, Norway's longest fjord, which winds for 205 km (127 mi) through the southern part of the former county. On 1 January 2020, Hordaland County (the Bergen area) and most of Sogn og Fjordane County were merged to form the new Vestland County. In Norwegian a lighthouse is a fyrtårn (fire tower) or simply a fyr; a fyrlykt is a beacon and a lyktehus is a lantern. Øy is an island, holmen is an islet, skjær is a skerry (a tiny island or rocky reef), sund is a strait (often between an island and the mainland), bukt is a bay, nes is a headland, and havn is a harbor. Aids to navigation in Norway are maintained by the Kystverket (Coast Directorate), an agency of the Ministry of Transport and Communications. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. NF numbers are from the Norsk Fyrliste. Admiralty numbers are from volumes B and L of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 115. In 2018 NGA dropped listings for lights of the fjords. |
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Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Sunnfjord (Florø Area) | South: Bergen Area
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index | Ratings key
Posted June 19, 2006. Checked and revised July 15, 2024. Lighthouses: 37. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.