Faial Island

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Faial Island

Native name: Ilha do Faial Nickname: The Blue Island
Faial, as seen from the island of Pico
Location of the island of Faial in the archipelago of the Azores
Geography
Location	Atlantic Ocean
Coordinates	38°34′57″N 28°42′17″W / 38.58250°N 28.70472°W / 38.58250; -28.70472
Archipelago	Azores
Area	173.06 km2 (66.82 sq mi)[1]
Coastline	80.27 km (49.877 mi)[1]
Highest elevation	1,043 m (3422 ft)[1]
Highest point	Cabeço Gordo
Administration
Portugal
Autonomous Region	Azores
Largest settlement	Horta, Azores (pop. 6,400)
Demographics
Demonym	Faialense
Population	14,334 (2021)[2]
Languages	Portuguese
Ethnic groups	Portuguese
Additional information
Time zone	UTC−01:00

Faial Island (Portuguese pronunciation: [fɐˈjal]), also known in English as Fayal, is a Portuguese island of the Central Group (Portuguese: Grupo Central) of the Azores, in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Capelinhos Volcano, the westernmost point of the island, may be considered the westernmost point of Europe (if the Monchique Islet, near Flores Island, is considered part of North America, since it sits on the North American Plate). The largest town on the island is Horta with a population of around 15,000 inhabitants.

The nearby islands of Pico (east across the channel) and São Jorge (northeast across the channel), form an area commonly known as the Triângulo (English: Triangle). Faial Island has also been referred to as the Ilha Azul (English: Blue Island), derived from the writings of Portuguese poet Raul Brandão, due to the large number of hydrangeas that bloom during the summer months:

The man that had the idea to border the road with these plants should have a statue on the island. In no other place do they prosper better: they need a covering of light, humidity and heat...they are in their place. Their blue is the blue that adorns the Azores on lipid days...this is a blue that is even more blue, the bunches of flowers of a colour more intense and fresh. They are in every direction: rising along the roads and the fields, forming hedges; they serve to divide the plots and to cover the peaceful animals.

— Raul Brandão, As Ilhas Desconhecidas (1926), p. 33.