For Iceland, an exodus of workers". The New York Times. 5 December 2008. Archived from the original on 11 December 2008 . Retrieved 10 February 2010. On 21 March 2010, a volcano in Eyjafjallajökull in the south of Iceland erupted for the first time since 1821, forcing 600 people to flee their homes. [79] Additional eruptions on 14 April forced hundreds of people to abandon their homes. [80] The resultant cloud of volcanic ash brought major disruption to air travel across Europe. [81] High-field overview of the area around Reykir Emigration of Icelanders to the United States and Canada began in the 1870s. As of 2006 [update], Canada had over 88,000 people of Icelandic descent, [218] while there are more than 40,000 Americans of Icelandic descent, according to the 2000 US census. [219] Urbanisation Gunnar Helgi Kristinsson (28 June 2005). "Iceland and the European Union". In Lee Miles (ed.). The European Union and the Nordic Countries. Routledge. p.150. ISBN 978-1-134-80405-4. a b "Population by country of citizenship, sex and age (2021)". Statistics Iceland . Retrieved 11 September 2022.

Upper secondary education, or framhaldsskóli, follows lower secondary education. These schools are also known as gymnasia in English. Though not compulsory, everyone who has had a compulsory education has the right to upper secondary education. This stage of education is governed by the Upper Secondary School Act of 1996. All schools in Iceland are mixed-sex schools. The largest seat of higher education is the University of Iceland, which has its main campus in central Reykjavík. Other schools offering university-level instruction include Reykjavík University, University of Akureyri, Agricultural University of Iceland and Bifröst University. Swedish Viking explorer Garðar Svavarsson was the first to circumnavigate Iceland in 870 and establish that it was an island. [25] He stayed during the winter and built a house in Húsavík. Garðar departed the following summer, but one of his men, Náttfari, decided to stay behind with two slaves. Náttfari settled in what is now known as Náttfaravík, and he and his slaves became the first permanent residents of Iceland to be documented. [26] [27] Rather than using family names, as is the usual custom in most Western nations, Icelanders carry patronymic or matronymic surnames, patronyms being far more commonly practised. Patronymic last names are based on the first name of the father, while matronymic names are based on the first name of the mother. These follow the person's given name, e.g. Elísabet Jónsdóttir ("Elísabet, Jón's daughter" (Jón being the father)) or Ólafur Katrínarson ("Ólafur, Katrín's son" (Katrín being the mother)). [222] Consequently, Icelanders refer to one another by their given name, and the Icelandic telephone directory lists people alphabetically by the first name rather than by surname. [223] All new names must be approved by the Icelandic Naming Committee.

Podcast

Sport is an important part of Icelandic culture, as the population is generally quite active. [283] The main traditional sport in Iceland is Glíma, a form of wrestling thought to have originated in medieval times.

Yes. And hospitable — you’ll find yourself making friends easily. Two thirds of Iceland’s 350,000 population are based in Reykjavik, meaning there’s a buzzy city bar and restaurant scene at the weekends — especially in summer, when it stays light late into the night.

The Northern Lights

The climate varies between different parts of the island. Generally speaking, the south coast is warmer, wetter, and windier than the north. The Central Highlands are the coldest part of the country. Low-lying inland areas in the north are the aridest. Snowfall in winter is more common in the north than in the south. The island was governed as an independent commonwealth under the native parliament, the Althing, one of the world's oldest functioning legislative assemblies. Following a period of civil strife, Iceland acceded to Norwegian rule in the 13th century. The establishment of the Kalmar Union in 1397 united the kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. Iceland thus followed Norway's integration into that union, coming under Danish rule after Sweden seceded from the union in 1523. The Danish kingdom forcefully introduced Lutheranism to Iceland in 1550. [16] Garðarshólmi – 'The Isle of Garðar' ". North Sailing.is. 13 December 2005. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016 . Retrieved 28 March 2022.

When the island was first settled, it was extensively forested, with around 30% of the land covered in trees. In the late 12th century, Ari the Wise described it in the Íslendingabók as "forested from mountain to sea shore". [87] Permanent human settlement greatly disturbed the isolated ecosystem of thin, volcanic soils and limited species diversity. The forests were heavily exploited over the centuries for firewood and timber. [88] Deforestation, climatic deterioration during the Little Ice Age, and overgrazing by sheep imported by settlers caused a loss of critical topsoil due to erosion. Today, many farms have been abandoned. Three-quarters of Iceland's 100,000 square kilometres (39,000sqmi) is affected by soil erosion; 18,000km 2 (6,900sqmi) is affected to a degree serious enough to make the land useless. [87] Only a few small birch stands now exist in isolated reserves. The planting of new forests has increased the number of trees, but the result does not compare to the original forests. Some of the planted forests include introduced species. [88] The tallest tree in Iceland is a sitka spruce planted in 1949 in Kirkjubæjarklaustur; it was measured at 25.2m (83ft) in 2013. [89] Vigdis Finnbogadottir, the world's first elected female president". France 24. 31 July 2020. Archived from the original on 8 April 2022 . Retrieved 14 December 2021.

Vigdís Finnbogadóttir assumed Iceland's presidency on 1 August 1980, making her the first elected female head of state in the world. [48] On 31 December 1943, the Danish–Icelandic Act of Union expired after 25 years. Beginning on 20 May 1944, Icelanders voted in a four-day plebiscite on whether to terminate the personal union with Denmark, abolish the monarchy, and establish a republic. The vote was 97% to end the union, and 95% in favour of the new republican constitution. [45] Iceland formally became a republic on 17 June 1944, with Sveinn Björnsson as its first president.