Problems of the Norwegian Church in the Eleventh Century

• Published in: Church History
• Main Author: Larson, Laurence M.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1935
• Subjects: Religious studies; History; Cultural Studies; Arctic; Sogn; Land's End
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3160842; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0009640700128379

In Viking times the Northmen recognized several important sea routes, one of which, “the North Way,” was of such significance that it gave its name to a kingdom. The ships that sailed this route followed the west coast of the great Scandinavian peninsula northward and northeastward for a distance of one thousand miles to the land's end in the Arctic. Out toward the sea the fairway is flanked by an almost continuous series of islands, large and small, numbering perhaps one hundred and fifty thousand. Many of these are inhabited. On the other side rises the Norwegian plateau, a massive wall of ancient rock, which in many places descends abruptly to the water's edge. The wall is not continuous, for all along the coast the sea, thrusting forth its mighty arms, has carved out a maze of deep inlets, some of which run far into the land. The longest of these, the Sogn Fjord, has a length of nearly one hundred and forty miles.