Tórshavn

Welcome to Tórshavn!

Tórshavn is the capital of the Faroe Islands. At the foot of a mountain range, the archipelago's largest city is home to a population of merely 20,000, but despite its small size has a long history dating back as far as AD 850.

Tórshavn is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is in the southern part of the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the 347-meter-high (1,138 ft) mountain Húsareyn, and to the southwest, the 350-meter-high (1,150 ft) Kirkjubøreyn. They are separated by the Sandá River. The city itself has a population of 19,165 (2019), and the greater urban area has a population of 21,078.

The Norse (Scandinavians) established their parliament on the Tinganes peninsula in AD 850. Tórshavn thus became the capital of the Faroe Islands and has remained so ever since. Early on, Tórshavn became the center of the islands' trade monopoly, thereby being the only legal place for the islanders to sell and buy goods. In 1856, the trade monopoly was abolished and the islands were left open to free trade.