Languages of the Faroe Islands of tourism. Norwegian is occasionally heard too, due to the islands' geographical proximity to Norway. Languages of the Faroe Islands The official language of the Faroe Islands is Faroese. The Faroese language is a Germanic language which is descended from Old Norse. Faroese is similar in grammar to Icelandic and Old Norse, but closer in pronunciation to Norwegian. In the twentieth century Faroese became the official language and, because the Faroe Islands are a self-governing country within the Kingdom of Denmark, Danish is taught in Faroese schools. The first recorded settlers of the Faroe Islands were Irish monks (papar), so
Faroe Islands rat ("Rattus norvegicus"), and the house mouse ("Mus musculus"). Apart from these, there once was a local domestic sheep breed, the Faroe sheep (depicted on the coat of arms), a variety of feral sheep survived on Lítla Dímun until the mid-19th century. Grey seals ("Halichoerus grypus") are common around the shorelines. Several species of cetacea live in the waters around the Faroe Islands. Best known are the long-finned pilot whales ("Globicephala melaena"), which are still hunted by the islanders in accordance with longstanding local tradition. Orcas ("Orcinus orca") are regular visitors around the islands. The domestic animals of the Faroe