Narvik

Narvik, town in northern Norway, in Nordland county. Narvik is an important Norwegian port on the deep-water Ofotfiorden fiord, which offers year-round ice-free access to the Norwegian Sea despite being north of the Arctic Circle. Narvik's principal export is iron ore, brought by rail from the Kiruna mines of northern Sweden, whose own ports on the Gulf of Bothnia are frozen in winter. Modern facilities and large ore terminals allow Narvik to handle up to 30 million tonnes of ore per year. There is also some fishing. The town was established in the 1880s when the Ofot Railway from Kiruna was built. The name Narvik was adopted in 1898 and its municipal charter granted in 1902. The strategic importance of the port was reflected by its capture by German forces in 1940 after their invasion of Norway, and the subsequent attempts by the Allies to prevent the export of the iron ore to Germany during World War II. Population (1990) 18,640.