Historical records from 17th century show that the original settlement alongside Hanusará was abandoned, and the village was moved firmly to the new location between the two main rivers in Sørvág.

This coincides very well with the fact that the land belonging to Sørvág is divided into three parts: Suðurtriðingur, Norðurtriðingur and Úttriðingur.

Around 1665, a Dane – Severin Fohrman – bought all the land from the Benkenstock's and immediately started to sell it back to the locals.

This meant that almost all the land in Sørvág is private property (óðalsjørð) instead of belonging to the king (kongsjørð).

Using the "Land Books" (Jarðarbøkur), it is speculated that the number of inhabitants in Sørvág in the 17th century was around fifty.

The reason for this slow progress is due to the special requirements for marriage that were law in the Faroes.

It was only the wealthy farmers who had a substantial amount of land, and therefore the birthrate in the Faroes was very low until this law was abolished.

The locals from Sørvágur formed a part of the backbone of fishermen who went to Greenland to fish.

In the period 1902–1912, there was a whaling station in the nearby bay of Selvík During World War II Sørvágur was home to the British Royal Engineers, who lived at Uppi á Mýrum.

Districts (býlingar) in Sørvág: Vágar has colder and snowier winters than most places in the archipelago.

Lower temperatures combined with higher precipitation are responsible for this, and measurable snow cover can be seen- a rarity in the Faroe Islands, in which snow cover (in areas which regularly experience it) is usually limited to a thin coating.

Frost occurs on average on 62 days of the year,[2] the most out of all stations included in the records of the Danish Meteorological Institute.

During the transformation of the Faroese society from a feudal to a semi-industrial these concerns played a major role in ensuring labour to the common man.

The main colonial in Sørvágur - Norði Stovu handilin - was originally started by the Niclasen concern.

Also placed in the proximity of the harbour lies a Statoil tank station which is run by the Niclasen concern.