What is a fjord?

What is a fjord?
From the encyclopedia – we find a long list of fjords in Norway – inlands, connecting the sea and the onces that ones did. This list of Norwegian fjords shows many of the fjords in Norway. In total, there are about 1,190 fjords in Norway and the Svalbard islands. The sortable list includes the lengths and locations of those fjords.

The Oslo fjord

A small selection of the list from a-å we find the Oslofjord.

1. Ormefjord 5 km (3.1 mi) Telemark Porsgrunn 59.0413°N 9.7532°E
2. Osafjord 12 km (7.5 mi) Hordaland Ulvik 60.5111°N 6.9276°E
3. Oslofjord 100 km (62 mi) Akershus, Buskerud, Vestfold, Østfold Tjøme—Oslo 59.2150°N 10.6363°E
4. Osterfjorden 27 km (17 mi) Hordaland Lindås, Osterøy 60.5446°N 5.3180°E
5. Porsangerfjorden 123 km (76 mi) Finnmark Nordkapp, Porsanger 70.1983°N 25.0758°E
6. Puddefjorden 3.5 km (2.2 mi) Hordaland Bergen 60.3921°N 5.2982°E

Of Norways 1190 fjords – we can only fine one of the longest and deepest – the longest and deepest are all scattred round the globe.

The longest fjords in the world are:

• Scoresby Sund in Greenland—350 km (217 mi)[43][44]
• Greely Fiord/Tanquary Fiord in Canada—230 km (143 mi)[citation needed] The length of the total fjordsystem from the head of Tanquary Sound, through Greely Fjord, to the mouth of Nansen Sound is approximately 400 km, making it arguably the longest fjord in the world.[citation needed]
• Sognefjord in Norway—204 km (127 mi)[45]
• Independence Fjord—200 km (124 mi) Greenland
• Matochkin Shar, Novaya Zemlya—125 km (78 mi) (a strait with a fjord structure)[46]

Deep fjords include:

• Skelton Inlet in Antarctica—1,933 m (6,342 ft)
• Sognefjord in Norway—1,308 m (4,291 ft) (the mountains then rise to up to 1,500 m (4,921 ft) and more, Hurrungane reaches 2,400 m (7,874 ft)
• Messier Channel in Tortel, Chile—1,358 m (4,455 ft)
• Baker Channel in Tortel, Chile—1,251 m (4,104 ft)

Tourtopia has made their own list of the worlds most beautiful fjords: http://www.touropia.com/beautiful-fjords-of-the-world/

What defines a fjord?
New World Encyclopedia:
A fjord (or fiord) is a long, narrow deep inlet of the sea bordered by steep cliffs. Fjords commonly extend far inland and are extremely deep in their upper and middle reaches. Norway’s Hardangerfjord drops to 2,624 feet (800 m) below sea level, while the depth of Sogn Fjord (also Norway) measures 4,290 feet (1,308 m) deep, and Canal Messier in Chile is 4,167 feet (1,270 m). The great depth of these submerged valleys is due to their glacial origins.

The seeds of a fjord are laid when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley through abrasion of the surrounding bedrock by the sediment it carries. Many such valleys were formed during the recent ice age. At the end of such a period, the climate warms and glaciers retreat. Sea level rises due to an influx of water from melting ice sheets and glaciers around the world inundating the vacated valleys with seawater to form fjords.

Coasts having the most pronounced fjords include the west coast of Europe, the west coast of North America from Puget Sound to Alaska, the west coast of New Zealand, and the west coast of South America. Other areas which have lower altitudes and less pronounced glaciers also have fjords or fjord-like features. The only areas near a fjord where people can settle are deltas formed at the mouths of rivers.

The word “fjord” comes from Old Norse, fjörðr, meaning a “lake-like waterbody used for passage and ferrying.”