Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1977, Page 112
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Navnagávan á føroyskum miðum
SUMMARY
The article considers the naming of Faroese fishing grounds encoun-
tered in the traditional inshore fishing. The introduction traces the collec-
tion of names of fishing grounds from the time of Svabo to the present
day and the author’s own extensive collection covering all the islands.
In the main body of the article, Parts I—III, the author suggests some
general categories of names based on his own collection. In the first part
he deals with those fishing ground names in which the main element is
either a word which denotes a fishing ground (mið n., plinkur/plinki m.,
strát n., pass n., repp n., leið f. etc.) or refers, in some way, to the topo-
graphy of the fishing ground. In the second part he deals with fishing
grounds which have acquired their names either from their shore bearings
or from a place nearby on shore. In the third part, names of fishing
grounds are dealt with which have no toponymic element either referring
to a fishing ground or to the shore which can be seen from the fishing
ground. Often, it is difficult to interpret these names since we know
the background of so few. However, when we do know the stories of
their origins, we obtain a picture of the life of the inshore fisherman at
sea and on shore, both in jest and in seriousness.