VADS

town and seat of Finnmark fylke (county), northern Norway. Located on the northern shore of Varangerfjorden, the original settlement was on the adjacent island of Vassya, but in the early 1700s the port was reestablished on the mainland. Vads received its town charter in 1833, and the town prospered, principally through trade with Russia. It was almost totally destroyed by the Germans during World War II but has been rebuilt. The inhabitants, almost one-half of whom are Finnish, long have depended primarily on fishing and fish processing. Pop. (1983 est.) mun., 5,995.