Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a
Nordic island country
An island country, island state or an island nation is a country whose primary territory consists of one or more islands or parts of islands. Approximately 25% of all independent countries are island countries. Island countries are historicall ...
in the
North Atlantic Ocean and in the
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...
. Iceland is the most
sparsely populated country in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...
.
Iceland's
capital and largest city is
Reykjavík, which (along with its surrounding areas) is home to over 65% of the population. Iceland is the biggest part of the
Mid-Atlantic Ridge that rises
above sea level, and its central
volcanic plateau is
erupting almost constantly. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and
lava fields,
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...
s, and
glaciers, and many
glacial rivers flow to the sea through the
lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the
Gulf Stream
The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Current, North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida a ...
and has a temperate climate, despite a h