Amager ( or, especially among older speakers, ) is a
Danish island in the
Øresund. The Danish capital,
Copenhagen, is partly situated on Amager, which is connected to the much larger island of
Zealand by five bridges. Amager also has a connection across the Øresund to Sweden, the
Øresund Bridge. Its western part begins with a tunnel from Amager to another Danish island,
Peberholm.
Copenhagen Airport is located on the island, around from Copenhagen city centre. Amager is the largest island in the Øresund, and the only one with a large population. As of 2014, close to 180,000 people live on the island, including its northern tip,
Christianshavn. The northern part is included in the Copenhagen municipality. The middle part comprises
Tårnby municipality, and
Dragør municipality is located on the southeast part of the island. Most of the western part is land that was reclaimed from the sea from the 1930s-1950s. This enlargement, from the shallow sound towards
Zealand, is known as
Kalveboderne. The enlargement has never been built-up and its soil isn't suitable for agricultural use. However the area between Dragør town and the airport is cultivated land of high quality. Amager has in the past been referred to as the "kitchen of Copenhagen". At the border of the enlargement there is an old
beech forest,
Kongelunden (The King's Grove).
