Svalbard & Jan Mayen

Svalbard and Jan Mayen are islands located in the Arctic Ocean, north of Norway. Svalbard is an island archipelago composed of 9 main islands, while Jan Mayen is a volcanic island. Many legends and theories exist as to who discovered the islands of Svalbard and Jan Mayen and as to when they were discovered. Svalbard is believed to have been discovered in the 12th century by Norse explorers; and in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was used as a whaling base. Svalbard was also used for coal mining in the 20th century, and a small coal mining industry continues to this day. The first verified discovery of Jan Mayen was in 1614 by Dutch whalers; and from 1615-1638, it was used as a Dutch whaling base. In 1920, Norway was given administration of Svalbard by the United Nations. In 1930, Jan Mayen became part of the Kingdom of Norway.

Although both Svalbard and Jan Mayen belong to the Kingdom of Norway, they are under separate administrative jurisdictions. Svalbard is a non-self governing territory of Norway, administered by the Polar Department of the Norwegian Ministry of Justice. The chief of state is the King of Norway while the head of government is a governor who lives on the island of Spitsbergen. In contrast, Jan Mayen is administered by the governor of the county of Nordland on mainland Norway, the county closest to Jan Mayen.

The population of Svalbard was estimated to be approximately 2,500 people in 2017. The inhabitants are largely of Norwegian descent and are those who live and work on the islands as researchers, miners or meteorologists, primarily. The island of Jan Mayen is uninhabited and only those working at the Norwegian meteorological station, radio communications station or are part of the Norwegian military spend short stays on the island.

Due to their location, both Svalbard and Jan Mayen have arctic climates and ecosystems. Winters are cold, summers are cool and there is a relatively small temperature difference between seasons. The islands also experience high winds. As a result of the islands’ latitudes, in the summer the sun does not set for 4 months and in the winter, the islands experience complete darkness for several months. To protect the delicate and unique arctic ecosystem, there are several national parks on Svalbard and Jan Mayen is designated as a nature reserve. Jan Mayen and Svalbard are important breeding grounds for many species of sea birds.

Today the important industries of Svalbard include coal mining, research and tourism. The tourism industry has developed around giving people the ‘Arctic experience’: the untouched glaciers, the rugged mountains and the sighting of polar bears, among other arctic animals. It has also recently become a docking location for cruise ships.