Sommarøy: The Norwegian Island Where Clocks Have Been Abolished and Time No Longer Exists

Written by Maria Heloisa Barbosa Borges

Published on 27/07/2025 at 10:41

Sommarøy: como é viver em uma ilha onde cortar grama às 3h da manhã é normal

2 people reacted to this.

Located in Norway, Sommarøy Island Abandoned Fixed Schedules, Lives Without Clocks and Challenges Modern Logic of Time

Sommarøy is a small island in the far north of Norway that gained worldwide fame for an unusual reason: there, time simply does not exist. Clocks have been retired, routines follow biological rhythms, and no one worries about the passing of hours.

The proposal arose in response to the extreme light and darkness cycles in the Arctic Circle. During the summer, the sun shines 24 hours a day for more than two months. In winter, darkness prevails for almost 70 consecutive days. Faced with this unique reality, the residents decided to abandon the clock and adopt a freer, more spontaneous way of life.

Sommarøy: the Norwegian island where clocks have been abolished and time no longer exists

The collective decision was marked by a symbolic gesture: the residents hung their clocks on the bridge that connects Sommarøy to the mainland, as a form of protest against the rigidity of conventional time. Instead of set hours, activities began to respect individual needs — whether mowing grass at 3 a.m. or swimming in the sea under the midnight sun.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Nightlife Under the Midnight Sun

With about 350 inhabitants, the island’s economy revolves around fishing and tourism. The absence of schedules attracts curious visitors looking to experience a radical form of freedom. Many report the positive impact of living a few days without worrying about the clock — and the challenge of readjusting to a “normal” routine.

Between June and August, when the sun does not set, it is common to see children playing ball at dawn, people tending to gardens in the early hours, or swimming in crystal-clear waters at 2 a.m. In winter, the dark sky comes to life with the spectacle of the northern lights, turning Sommarøy into one of Norway’s most fascinating destinations.

Criticisms and Skepticism

Despite popular support, the proposal is not unanimous among residents. Some merchants report difficulties dealing with traditional hours.

Still, the debate continues: is it possible to live without time? In Sommarøy, this question has ceased to be theoretical and has become a reality. The island proves that, for some, freedom begins by taking the watch off the wrist and listening only to one’s own rhythm.

0 Comments

most recent

older Most voted

Sommarøy: The Norwegian Island Where Clocks Have Been Abolished and Time No Longer Exists

Located in Norway, Sommarøy Island Abandoned Fixed Schedules, Lives Without Clocks and Challenges Modern Logic of Time

Nightlife Under the Midnight Sun

Criticisms and Skepticism

In the cold desert of Ladakh, where it hardly rains, engineer Sonam Wangchuk created the ice stupa, a tower that freezes winter water and stores it for irrigating crops in the spring, a simple engineering feat that mimics nature.

Libya built over 4,000 kilometers of underground pipelines to bring water from the Sahara to coastal cities in a project that the government itself called the Eighth Wonder of the World.

Chinese woman planted trees for decades while sand buried part of her house, received $5,000 from an American in 1999, and helped transform the desert into a forest of 8 million trees in China.

Desert sand, previously discarded for being too smooth for concrete, becomes an ecological brick in the United Arab Emirates, dispensing with Portland cement, curing at room temperature, and attempting to transform dunes useless for construction into raw material for a new arid engineering.

Almost 6,000 residents live concentrated along a single street nearly 9 km long in the interior of Poland. Houses form a continuous row, and behind them, narrow agricultural strips emerge, creating one of the most unusual rural patterns in Europe.

Described by astronauts as one of the most unlikely natural phenomena on Earth, the Okavango Delta spreads over up to 15,000 square kilometers in the middle of the desert and transforms Botswana into a living labyrinth of channels, islands, and flooded areas.

Two helicopters, 41 people, and over 38 tons of bait were mobilized on a remote Pacific atoll to eliminate rats; five years later, native trees grew by 5,000%, seabirds gained habitat, and the rainforest began to regenerate.

The first trillionaire in history, Elon Musk notices Brazil and its internet, Starlink, which works even in the middle of nowhere, emerges for just R$ 600, fits in a backpack, operates via satellites, and offers dual-band Wi-Fi with WPA3 security.

Heir bought 23,000 degraded acres in the Scottish Highlands, fenced the area, planted nearly 1 million native trees, and transformed empty mountains into a forest officially recognized after meeting 15 evaluation criteria over 20 years.

Bali transformed volcanoes into a sacred system with 5 rice terraces, water temples, and 19,500 hectares, but the ancient engineering that supports farmers now faces tourism, construction, and the risk of losing its living landscape on the volcanic island.

Organic grape juice from São Roque surprises experts, scores over 90 points in a blind test, and wins a national award after six years of agroecological research.

Via Mar promises to relieve BR-101 in Santa Catarina, but it will be the state’s first toll state highway and faces soft soil and rice fields that threaten the timeline.

Sommarøy: The Norwegian Island Where Clocks Have Been Abolished and Time No Longer Exists

Located in Norway, Sommarøy Island Abandoned Fixed Schedules, Lives Without Clocks and Challenges Modern Logic of Time

A Social Experiment Outside of Time

Nightlife Under the Midnight Sun

Criticisms and Skepticism

In the cold desert of Ladakh, where it hardly rains, engineer Sonam Wangchuk created the ice stupa, a tower that freezes winter water and stores it for irrigating crops in the spring, a simple engineering feat that mimics nature.

Libya built over 4,000 kilometers of underground pipelines to bring water from the Sahara to coastal cities in a project that the government itself called the Eighth Wonder of the World.

Chinese woman planted trees for decades while sand buried part of her house, received $5,000 from an American in 1999, and helped transform the desert into a forest of 8 million trees in China.

Desert sand, previously discarded for being too smooth for concrete, becomes an ecological brick in the United Arab Emirates, dispensing with Portland cement, curing at room temperature, and attempting to transform dunes useless for construction into raw material for a new arid engineering.

Almost 6,000 residents live concentrated along a single street nearly 9 km long in the interior of Poland. Houses form a continuous row, and behind them, narrow agricultural strips emerge, creating one of the most unusual rural patterns in Europe.

Described by astronauts as one of the most unlikely natural phenomena on Earth, the Okavango Delta spreads over up to 15,000 square kilometers in the middle of the desert and transforms Botswana into a living labyrinth of channels, islands, and flooded areas.

Two helicopters, 41 people, and over 38 tons of bait were mobilized on a remote Pacific atoll to eliminate rats; five years later, native trees grew by 5,000%, seabirds gained habitat, and the rainforest began to regenerate.

Bali transformed volcanoes into a sacred system with 5 rice terraces, water temples, and 19,500 hectares, but the ancient engineering that supports farmers now faces tourism, construction, and the risk of losing its living landscape on the volcanic island.

Two young inventors create a terracotta brick that uses water, air, and solar energy to cool cities, and the idea points to buildings that stop worsening urban heat.

Without power for millions, Madagascar receives a proposal for a floating hydroelectric plant inspired by the baobab that promises clean energy, greenhouses, and tourism, but still needs to be realized.

China has a giant rice terrace carved over 1,300 years in the mountains, with up to 3,000 terraces, 82 villages, and 445 km of canals, but the ancestral work that overcame droughts now faces growing tourism, landslides, and rural abandonment.

The largest Gothic church in Northern Europe began in 1248 to house the relics of the Three Wise Men, remained unfinished for centuries, and was only completed 632 years later, with steel, steam, and a German national campaign that turned the delay into a historical symbol.

The first trillionaire in history, Elon Musk notices Brazil and its internet, Starlink, which works even in the middle of nowhere, emerges for just R$ 600, fits in a backpack, operates via satellites, and offers dual-band Wi-Fi with WPA3 security.

Heir bought 23,000 degraded acres in the Scottish Highlands, fenced the area, planted nearly 1 million native trees, and transformed empty mountains into a forest officially recognized after meeting 15 evaluation criteria over 20 years.

Bali transformed volcanoes into a sacred system with 5 rice terraces, water temples, and 19,500 hectares, but the ancient engineering that supports farmers now faces tourism, construction, and the risk of losing its living landscape on the volcanic island.

Organic grape juice from São Roque surprises experts, scores over 90 points in a blind test, and wins a national award after six years of agroecological research.

Via Mar promises to relieve BR-101 in Santa Catarina, but it will be the state’s first toll state highway and faces soft soil and rice fields that threaten the timeline.