The strait between the Norwegian coast and the Jutland peninsula is the Skagerrak. It runs between southern Norway, western Sweden and northern Denmark, linking the North Sea with the Kattegat.
The name probably combines Skagen, the Danish town near Jutland’s northern tip, with rak, a Scandinavian word meaning a straight waterway or channel. The Skagerrak is about 240 kilometers long and widens to roughly 80–140 kilometers, while the Norwegian Trench reaches depths of more than 700 meters.
The Skagerrak has long been a major maritime route. Before the Eider Canal opened in 1784, it was the only sea route into the Baltic. It was also the setting for the 1916 Battle of Jutland, known in Germany as the Battle of the Skagerrak. A common mix-up is Kattegat, which lies immediately southeast of the Skagerrak and continues toward the Danish straits.