Berlevåg

Berlevåg is a municipality in the county of Finnmark, Norway.

The name Berlevåg, "Pearl Bay", is due to pearls being found in a nearby river. The municipality is situated on the northern end of the peninsula of Varangerhalvøya, facing the open Barents Sea. There are two settlements in Berlevåg. In addition to Berlevåg there is Kongsfjord with approximately 45 inhabitants.

The port is difficult, and the breakwater was destroyed several times by the weather. However, the use of tetrapodes, that intertwine, made for a flexible breakwater that could resist the Barents Sea. The port was secured in 1973. Since then, the Hurtigruten has been able to dock in Berlevåg, earlier a smaller vessel had to unload cargo and passenger in the open sea. Today, there is also an airport.

In World War II, the village was completely burned down and the inhabitants evacuated by force as part of the scorched earth strategy of the Germans. The government wanted to relocate the inhabitants to nearby Kongsfjord because of a better harbour, but they refused, and the village was rebuilt.

Berlevåg was brought fame in Norway when the Norwegian film director Knut Erik Jensen made a documentary film about Berlevåg Mannsangsforening, a mens choir. The movie Heftig og begeistret ("Cool and Crazy") was a big hit in Norway, first shown at Tromsø international film festival.