Church of Tvøroyri

Timber church with a distinctive red-painted exterior above the fjord

The Church of Tvøroyri stands above the town on a small rise, its red-painted wooden exterior visible from the fjord below. The building dates from 1908, replacing an earlier structure, and is typical of the Faroese national church style — a modest wooden frame with a turf roof on the vestry extension and interior woodwork painted in the pale greens and creams that characterise the island's churches.

The churchyard is worth a slow walk — the headstones record Faroese surnames that have been used on Suðuroy for centuries, and the site has a good view down over the town and across to the fjord. Services are still held here in Faroese; visitors are welcome outside service times.

things to do sight church
A story
The current Church of Tvøroyri dates from 1908, but the congregation it replaced was one of the oldest on Suðuroy. In the 17th century, the priest here was one of the few literate inhabitants of the island, and the church records he kept are among the best sources for the genealogy of southern Faroese families.