A small Norwegian island wants to abandon the concept of time

Anyone who comes to visit the Norwegian islandA sommarieu must leave his sense of time "at the door." Some do it literally. There is an interesting tradition on the island. Those arriving here leave their watches on the large bridge connected to the neighboring, larger Sir-Kvale island. So people let know that they completely forget about time. Because here, on an island located in the western part of the county of Troms north of the Arctic Circle, time in the traditional sense means little.

Why give up time?

During the winter months the sun is never hererises, and during the summer 69 days never sits down. This is a real corner of extremes, and the inhabitants of this place offer to introduce one more into their lives. Local residents made a proposal to completely abandon the concept of time on the island.

Here lives a little more than 300 people. Accordingly, all important local issues are considered in the old manner, at the general meeting of residents. And just at one of them the villagers organized the company Time-Free Zone. They even created a petition, initiated by the 56-year-old local resident Kjell Ove Hvedding.

“For many of us, legislative adoption of this decision will only be a formality to what has been practiced here for many generations,” explained Ove Hvedding in an interview with CNN.

From the Norwegian "Sommaroy" means "summer island". And at least part of the year, namely from May 18 to June 26, it corresponds to this title. Having survived a long polar night, the islanders try to use summer to the maximum, not paying attention to time as such. Very often here you can see how children play at two o'clock in the morning, teenagers go swimming, and adults paint houses or mow lawns.

"When the government from the mainland continuesdiscussion of the transition from winter to summer time and back, we often laugh, because here it is absolutely unimportant. Here, beyond the Arctic Circle, is a completely different life, ”Hvedding adds.

Hvedding collected about 100 signatures in supporthis petition - a third of the total number of inhabitants of the island - and last week sent a proposal to a member of the local parliament. The details of the proposal are still blurry, so for some it caused misunderstanding. For example, some believe that this is rather a symbolic step, others cynically declare that such ideas are rather an advertising step for attracting tourists.

By the way, tourism can turn out to be that stone.stumbling blocks, which will cancel this idea of ​​the world's first “free time zone”. The bottom line is that the Sommarey is an unusually popular holiday destination and during the summer period there are an incredible number of tourists. Travelers are attracted by snow-white beaches surrounded by beautiful fjords. Photographers, artists, cinematographers, writers not only from Norway, but from all over the world come here. In addition to the extraordinary beauty of the majestic northern nature, there is no mosquito, which gives a lot of problems to those who live in the Far North.

Summer in Sommarey is unusually lively. Basically, the village also lives at the expense of tourists. Therefore, when reviewing the petition that residents filed with the authorities, officials expressed concern about how the abolition of the usual hourly regime would affect the local economy.

The rejection of the traditional concept of time, considersHudding will make people more impulsive and reduce the stress they experience from a tight time schedule. However, he agrees that a complete failure of the watch will be impossible. Ultimately, people need to go to work, to school, make appointments with friends and colleagues, neighbors. This moment will require serious study.

Rational grain in the idea of ​​the inhabitants of the islandSommarieu is indeed available. To live by the clock in the conditions of the Far North is extremely difficult. Try to maintain a generally accepted schedule on the polar night or when the sun does not set at all. Biorhythms get off, become different. A forced adherence to a temporary regime inevitably leads to a loss of vitality, an increase in stress levels and the risk of developing depression.

Biorhythms and their influence on our body

However, the rejection of the concept of time will not change the picture. Against evolution you will not trample, scientists note.

"Our bodies are adapted to the 24-hour cycle,generated by the rotation of the earth. We cannot go against evolution, despite the fact that such conditions are created in these places, ”says Hanne Hoffman, a scientist at the University of Michigan (USA), who is concerned with circadian rhythms.

Most of our body functions and our activity(sleep, wakefulness, eating, taking a bath, and so on) follow a 24-hour cycle. Every cell and every organ of our body follows this rhythm. Moreover, even in the absence of light during the day, our cells seem to know what to do in order to keep themselves in good working condition. If you deliberately go against this natural rhythm, then the chance of adverse consequences is great, in the form of heart problems, digestive disorders, an increased risk of cancer and psychological problems.

In the past, people who spent weeks and even monthsin caves and bunkers, they also lost their sense of time, but their bodies still tried to maintain the same 24-hour cycle, which means that our internal clocks work outside our conscious understanding of time.

Like it or not, we are very closeconnected with time. And it will remain so even in spite of the possible success of the idea of ​​the inhabitants of Sommarieu Island. Therefore, even leaving your watch on the bridge, you will still take them wherever you go.

You can discuss the news in our Telegram-chat.