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Kirkenes
Kirkenes (Norwegian: [ˈçɪ̂rkəneːs] ⓘ), known as Girkonjárga in Northern Sami (pronounced [ˈkir̥ː.ko.ˌɲaːrːka]) and Kirkkoniemi in Kven, is a town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsula along the Bøkfjorden, an arm of the large Varangerfjorden, and is located just a few kilometres from the Norway–Russia border.
The 2.29-square-kilometre (570-acre) town has a population (2023) of 3,404 and a population density of 1,486 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,850/sq mi). When the neighbouring suburban villages of Hesseng, Skytterhusfjellet, Sandnes and Bjørnevatn are all included with Kirkenes, the urban area reaches a population of almost 8,000.
Although Kirkenes is the Norwegian town closest to the Russian border, the town of Vardø to its north is located further east in Norway.
Due to its close proximity to Russians, Finns and Skolt Sami, the town is also known as Kirkkoniemi (Finnish), Киркенес (Russian), and Ǩeârkknjargg (Skolt Sami).
The area around Kirkenes was a common Norwegian–Russian district until 1826, when the present border was settled. The original name of the peninsula was Piselvnes ("Pis River headland"), but this was changed to Kirkenes (meaning "church headland") after the Kirkenes Church was built here in 1862. Kirkenes was a village until 1998 when it received town status.
During the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany, Kirkenes was one of the many bases for the German Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe's Jagdgeschwader 5, and apart from that, the area served as a main base for supplies to the Murmansk front (see Lapland War).
Reportedly, Kirkenes was second after Malta on a list of European towns experiencing air-raid alarms and attacks, with more than 1,000 alarms and 320 air attacks. The town was released by the Red Army on 25 October 1944 when the German Wehrmacht was pushed out and fled the area after having destroyed most of the remaining infrastructure. Only 13 houses survived the war.
Close to the town there is a memorial to 11 freedom fighters who helped the partisans collect information about the German occupation. In the summer of 1943, their activities were discovered and many of them were sent to a prisoner-of-war camp near Kirkenes. Following a court-martial the 11 were sentenced to death and were killed near the memorial spot on 18 August 1943. When the common grave was opened in 1946 it was found that the men had been beaten to death. Following the post mortem and memorial service, the bodies were returned to their homesteads.
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Kirkenes
Kirkenes (Norwegian: [ˈçɪ̂rkəneːs] ⓘ), known as Girkonjárga in Northern Sami (pronounced [ˈkir̥ː.ko.ˌɲaːrːka]) and Kirkkoniemi in Kven, is a town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsula along the Bøkfjorden, an arm of the large Varangerfjorden, and is located just a few kilometres from the Norway–Russia border.
The 2.29-square-kilometre (570-acre) town has a population (2023) of 3,404 and a population density of 1,486 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,850/sq mi). When the neighbouring suburban villages of Hesseng, Skytterhusfjellet, Sandnes and Bjørnevatn are all included with Kirkenes, the urban area reaches a population of almost 8,000.
Although Kirkenes is the Norwegian town closest to the Russian border, the town of Vardø to its north is located further east in Norway.
Due to its close proximity to Russians, Finns and Skolt Sami, the town is also known as Kirkkoniemi (Finnish), Киркенес (Russian), and Ǩeârkknjargg (Skolt Sami).
The area around Kirkenes was a common Norwegian–Russian district until 1826, when the present border was settled. The original name of the peninsula was Piselvnes ("Pis River headland"), but this was changed to Kirkenes (meaning "church headland") after the Kirkenes Church was built here in 1862. Kirkenes was a village until 1998 when it received town status.
During the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany, Kirkenes was one of the many bases for the German Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe's Jagdgeschwader 5, and apart from that, the area served as a main base for supplies to the Murmansk front (see Lapland War).
Reportedly, Kirkenes was second after Malta on a list of European towns experiencing air-raid alarms and attacks, with more than 1,000 alarms and 320 air attacks. The town was released by the Red Army on 25 October 1944 when the German Wehrmacht was pushed out and fled the area after having destroyed most of the remaining infrastructure. Only 13 houses survived the war.
Close to the town there is a memorial to 11 freedom fighters who helped the partisans collect information about the German occupation. In the summer of 1943, their activities were discovered and many of them were sent to a prisoner-of-war camp near Kirkenes. Following a court-martial the 11 were sentenced to death and were killed near the memorial spot on 18 August 1943. When the common grave was opened in 1946 it was found that the men had been beaten to death. Following the post mortem and memorial service, the bodies were returned to their homesteads.