Funen
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Funen |
Funen (
Danish:
Fyn) is the third largest
island of Denmark, it has a population of 445,000 people. The main city is
Odense, connected to the sea by
canal, though this is now seldom used. The city's shipyard
Odense Steel Shipyard has been relocated outside of Odense proper.
The island forms the biggest part of
Funen County which also includes the islands of
Langeland,
Ærø,
Tåsinge, as well as a number of smaller islands. Funen is linked to
Zealand,
Denmark's largest island, by the
Great Belt Bridge carrying both trains and cars. The
Great Belt Bridge is in reality two bridges; a low bridge connecting Funen to the small island of
Sprogø in the middle of the
Great Belt and a long
suspension bridge the rest of the way to
Zealand. The suspension bridge was the second longest in the world at the time of opening. From Funen to Sprogø, trains use a separate bridge parallel to the low bridge and constructed in a similar way. A tunnel connects Sprogø with Zealand, forming the other half of the railway connection.
Two bridges connect Funen to the Danish mainland,
Jutland; the first was constructed in the
1930s shortly before
World War II for both cars and trains. The second, a suspension bridge, was constructed in the
1970s and is used for cars only.
Apart from the main city,
Odense, all major towns are located in coastal areas. Beginning in the northeast of the island and moving clockwise, the list is as follows:
Kerteminde (NE),
Nyborg (E),
Svendborg (S),
Fåborg (SW),
Assens (W),
Middelfart (NW) and
Bogense (N).
Funen is famous as the birthplace of
Hans Christian Andersen and the composer
Carl Nielsen.
nds-nl:Funnen
