Bolungarvík

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title: "Bolungarvík" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["municipalities-of-iceland", "populated-places-in-westfjords", "fishing-communities", "fishing-communities-in-iceland", "populated-places-established-in-the-10th-century"] topic_path: "general/municipalities-of-iceland" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolungarvík" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Bolungarvíkurkaupstaður
settlement_type	Municipality
image_skyline	Bolungarvík, Vestfirðir, Islandia, 2014-08-15, DD 049.JPG
imagesize	250px
image_caption	Skyline of Bolungarvíkurkaupstaður
image_shield	COA Bolungarvik.png
shield_size	85px
image_map	Bolungarvíkurkaupstadur_map.png
map_caption	Location of Bolungarvíkurkaupstaður
mapsize	250px
pushpin_map	Iceland
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Iceland
subdivision_type1	Region
subdivision_name1	Westfjords
subdivision_type2	Constituency
subdivision_name2	Northwest Constituency
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	Jón Páll Hreinsson
unit_pref	Metric
area_total_km2	109
population_total	1,022
population_as_of	1 August 2024
population_density_km2	auto
postal_code_type	Postal code(s)
postal_code	415, 416
code1_name	Municipal number
code1_info	4100
website
::

Bolungarvík is close to abundant fishing grounds and has been used as an outpost for fishing since the 17th century, making it one of the earliest in Iceland. The village was not accessible by road until 1950, and in 2010 the Bolungarvíkurgöng tunnel was opened under the Óshlíð mountain to bypass the old road, which was frequently subject to avalanches and rock falls.

Tourist sites include the Ósvör Maritime Museum, featuring a restored 19th-century fishing hut, a natural history museum, which houses taxidermied animals including a polar bear and the biggest bird collection in Iceland, and an indoor swimming pool with outdoor hot tubs and a water slide. Skálavík bay can be reached by a gravel road from June through August, and that same road also leads to the top of the Bolafjall mountain (638 m.) with views of the village of Bolungarvík, the Latrar Air Station, the Ísafjarðardjúp fjord, the Jökulfirðir fjords, the Hornstrandir nature reserve and the Denmark Strait. The surroundings of Bolungarvík are destinations for hiking, horse riding, sea angling and birdwatching.

History and folklore

According to Landnámabók, Þuríður Sundafyllir settled in Bolungarvík around 940 along with her brother Þjóðólfur. Folklore says they had a disagreement and put a spell on each other, as they were both skilled sorcerers. Þuríður laid on her brother that he would spend eternity as a monolith on which all birds would defecate. Þjóðólfur in turn hexed his sister that she would forever stand where the wind blows most. The pillar that was said to be Þuríður collapsed in half in 1936. The legend says that same night the cliff "Þjóðólfur" sank in the sea. That night their spell washed away into the sea.

In popular fiction

Bolungarvík was the location for Nói Albínói, a movie by Dagur Kári about a disaffected teenager living in a remote Icelandic village.
Rúnar Rúnarsson's 2015 film Sparrows was partly filmed in Bolungarvík.
The 2015 film Albatross by Snævar Sölvi Sölvason is set in Bolungarvík.

Gallery

File:Faro de Bolungarvík, Vestfirðir, Islandia, 2014-08-15, DD 052.JPG|The lighthouse in Bolungarvík Óshólaviti File:Museo marítimo Ósvör, Bolungarvík, Vestfirðir, Islandia, 2014-08-15, DD 066.JPG|The Ósvör Maritime Museum File:TraditionalFisherman1Ice.JPG|Bolungarvík fisherman File:Bolungarvik-bolafjall.jpg|H-4A Air Radar Station atop Bolafjall

Climate

Based on the climate data for the most recent reference period, Bolungarvík has either a subarctic climate (Köppen: Dfc) or a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc) bordering very closely on a Tundra climate (ET), depending on the isotherm used.

Panoramas

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Bolungarvík,_Vestfirðir,_Islandia,_2014-08-15,_DD_050-053_PAN.jpg" caption="Panorama of the village of Bolungarvík}}"] ::

References

"Bolungarvík".
(7 April 2016). "Bolungarvík: Only a Tunnel Away". Icelandic Times.
"Bolungarvík road tunnel, Iceland".
"Jakub Gainski". Vikari.
(11 August 2016). "The Saga Of Icelandic Cinema: 'Nói the Albino'". [[Reykjavík Grapevine]].
(2 July 2014). "Rúnar Rúnarsson hefur tökur á nýrri kvikmynd". [[Morgunblaðið]].
(15 June 2015). "Sverrir Bergmann syngur titillag kvikmyndarinnar Albatross". [[Vísir.is]].
"Fréttir". [[Icelandic Meteorological Office]].
"Climatological Data for Bolungarvík". Veðurstofa Íslands.

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