List of Iceland-related topics
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Iceland:
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
sovereign island nation located in the
North Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
between continental Europe and
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
. It is considered part of Northern Europe. It is the least populous of the Nordic countries, having a population of about 329,000 (January 1, 2015).Population - key figures 1703-2015
Statistics Iceland Iceland is volcanically and geologically active on a large scale; this defines the landscape in various ways. The interior mainly consists of a
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...
characterized by sand 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 highe ...
s and
glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
s, while many big glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Warmed by the Gulf Stream, Iceland has a
temperate climate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...
relative to its
latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...
and provides a habitable environment and nature.


General reference

* Pronunciation:
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
* Common English country name:
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
* Official English country name:
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
* Common endonym(s): Ísland * Official endonym(s): Ísland * Adjectival(s): Icelandic * Demonym(s): Icelander(s) *
Etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...
: Name of Iceland *
ISO country codes ISO 3166-1 (''Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1: Country codes'') is a standard defining codes for the names of countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest. It ...
: IS, ISL, 352 *
ISO region codes ISO 3166-2 is part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and defines codes for identifying the principal subdivisions (e.g., provinces or states) of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1. The ...
: See ISO 3166-2:IS *
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
country code top-level domain A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is an Internet top-level domain generally used or reserved for a country, sovereign state, or dependent territory identified with a country code. All ASCII ccTLD identifiers are two letters long, and all ...
:
.is .is (dot is) is the top-level domain for Iceland. The country code is derived from the first two letters of '' Ísland'', which is the Icelandic word for Iceland. Registration of .is domains is open to all people and companies without any specia ...


Geography of Iceland

Geography of Iceland Iceland ( ) is an island country at the confluence of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans, east of Greenland and immediately south of the Arctic Circle, atop the constructive boundary of the northern Mid-Atlantic Ridge about from Scotland and ...
* Iceland 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 historically ...
* Land boundaries: ''none'' * Coastline: 4,970 km * Population of Iceland: 319,326 people (April 2009
estimate Estimation (or estimating) is the process of finding an estimate or approximation, which is a value that is usable for some purpose even if input data may be incomplete, uncertain, or unstable. The value is nonetheless usable because it is de ...
) - 172nd most populous country * Area of Iceland: - 107th largest country * Atlas of Iceland


Location of Iceland

* Iceland is situated within the following regions: ** Northern Hemisphere and
Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the te ...
**
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
*** North Atlantic **
Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
***
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 entirel ...
**** Northern Europe *****
Nordic region The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Swed ...
**
Time zone A time zone is an area which observes a uniform standard time for legal, commercial and social purposes. Time zones tend to follow the boundaries between countries and their subdivisions instead of strictly following longitude, because it ...
:
Coordinated Universal Time Coordinated Universal Time or UTC is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is within about one second of mean solar time (such as UT1) at 0° longitude (at the IERS Reference Meridian as the currently use ...
UTC+00 UTC+00:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +00:00. In ISO 8601, an example of the associated time would be written as 2019-02-07T23:28:34+00:00. It is also known by the following geographical or historical names: *Greenwich Mean ...
*
Extreme points of Iceland This is a list of the extreme points of Iceland, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location. Iceland (country) * Northernmost point — Kolbeinsey, Eyjafjörður () * Northernmost settlement — Gr ...
** High: Hvannadalshnúkur ** Low:
North Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
0 m


Environment of Iceland

*
Climate of Iceland The climate of Iceland is subpolar oceanic (Köppen climate classification ''Cfc'') near the southern coastal area and tundra (Köppen ''ET'') inland in the highlands. The island lies in the path of the North Atlantic Current, which makes its clim ...
*
Renewable energy in Iceland Iceland is a world leader in renewable energy. 100% of Iceland's electricity grid is produced from renewable resources. In terms of total energy supply, 85% of the total primary energy supply in Iceland is derived from domestically produced rene ...
***
Geothermal power in Iceland Geothermal power in Iceland refers to the use of geothermal energy in Iceland for electricity generation. Iceland’s uniquely active geology has led to natural conditions especially suitable for harnessing geothermal energy. Icelanders have long ...
*
Geology of Iceland The geology of Iceland is unique and of particular interest to geologists. Iceland lies on the divergent boundary between the Eurasian plate and the North American plate. It also lies above a hotspot, the Iceland plume. The plume is believed to h ...
** Earthquakes in Iceland **
Volcanism of Iceland :''The volcano system in Iceland that started activity on August 17, 2014, and ended on February 27, 2015, is Bárðarbunga.'' :''The volcano in Iceland that erupted in May 2011 is Grímsvötn.'' Iceland experiences frequent volcanic activity, ...
*** Iceland hotspot ***
Iceland plume The Iceland hotspot is a hotspot which is partly responsible for the high volcanic activity which has formed the Iceland Plateau and the island of Iceland. Iceland is one of the most active volcanic regions in the world, with eruptions occur ...
*
National parks of Iceland Since 2008, Iceland has three national parks. Prior to 2008 there were four national parks in Iceland; in that year Jökulsárgljúfur and Skaftafell were merged and incorporated into Vatnajökull National Park. Vatnajökull National Park and ...
**
Snæfellsjökull Snæfellsjökull (, ''snow-fell glacier'') is a 700,000-year-old glacier-capped stratovolcano in western Iceland. It is situated on the westernmost part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula in Iceland. Sometimes it may be seen from the city of Reykjav ...
**
Vatnajökull Vatnajökull ( Icelandic pronunciation: , literally "Glacier of Lakes"; sometimes translated as Vatna Glacier in English) is the largest and most voluminous ice cap in Iceland, and the second largest in area in Europe after the Severny Island i ...
**
Þingvellir Þingvellir (, anglicised as ThingvellirThe spelling ''Pingvellir'' is sometimes seen, although the letter "p" is unrelated to the letter "þ" (thorn), which is pronounced as "th".) was the site of the Alþing, the annual parliament of Iceland ...
* Wildlife of Iceland ** Flora of Iceland *** ''
The Botany of Iceland ''The Botany of Iceland'' is a five-volume classic scientific work on flora and vegetation of Iceland. It includes fungi, lichen, algae, bryophytes, and vascular plants. History It was published 1912 to 1949 and funded by the Carlsberg Foundation. ...
'' *** Campanula uniflora ***
Cerastium arcticum ''Cerastium arcticum'', the Arctic mouse-ear chickweed or Arctic mouse-ear, is a flower distributed at parts of western and southern Greenland, Baffin Island, Labrador, Iceland, Scotland, Norway and Svalbard. It is a perennial herb that grows i ...
***
Crowberry ''Empetrum nigrum'', crowberry, black crowberry, or, in western Alaska, blackberry, is a flowering plant species in the heather family Ericaceae with a near circumboreal distribution in the Northern Hemisphere. It is usually dioecious, but there ...
***
Dryas octopetala ''Dryas octopetala'', the mountain avens, eightpetal mountain-avens, white dryas or white dryad, is an Arctic–alpine flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. It is a small prostrate evergreen subshrub forming large colonies. The specific epithe ...
***
Lupinus nootkatensis ''Lupinus nootkatensis'', the Nootka lupine, is a perennial plant of the genus ''Lupinus'' in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to North America. The Nootka lupine grows up to 60 cm tall. Late in the 18th century it was first int ...
*** Ranunculus glacialis ***
Salix arctica ''Salix arctica'', the Arctic willow, is a tiny creeping willow (family Salicaceae). It is adapted to survive in Arctic conditions, specifically tundras. Description ''S. arctica'' is typically a low shrub growing to only in height, rarely to ...
*** Saxifraga cernua *** Saxifraga cespitosa ***
Stellaria humifusa ''Stellaria humifusa'', the saltmarsh starwort, is plant native to northern North America and Eurasia. References holostea Flora of Eastern Canada Flora of Eastern Europe Flora of Northern Europe Flora of Siberia Flora of Subarctic ...
** Fauna of Iceland ***
Birds of Iceland Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight s ...
****
Anatidae The Anatidae are the biological family of water birds that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica. These birds are adapted for swimming, floating ...
*****
Cygnus olor The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...
*****
Cygnus columbianus The tundra swan (''Cygnus columbianus'') is a small swan of the Holarctic. The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific, but are also sometimes split into two species: Bewick's swan (''Cygnus bewickii'') of the Palaearctic and the ...
*****
Cygnus cygnus The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/) (''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, pronounced ''hooper swan'', is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type speci ...
***** Anser fabalis *****
Anser brachyrhynchus The pink-footed goose (''Anser brachyrhynchus'') is a goose which breeds in eastern Greenland, Iceland and Svalbard. It is migratory, wintering in northwest Europe, especially Ireland, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and western Denmark. The na ...
*** Insects of Iceland ****
Moths of Iceland Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
*** Mammals of Iceland


Geographic features of Iceland

* Fjords of Iceland *
Glaciers of Iceland The glaciers and ice caps of Iceland cover 11% of the land area of the country (about 11,400 km² out of the total area of 103,125 km²) and have a considerable impact on its landscape and meteorology. Glaciers are also contributing to ...
*
Highlands of Iceland The Highlands of Iceland ( is, hálendið ) are a sparsely inhabited plateau that covers most of the interior of Iceland. They are situated above 400–500 metres (1300–1600 feet) and are mostly an uninhabitable volcanic desert, because the wa ...
* Islands of Iceland *
Lakes of Iceland This is a list of lakes of Iceland (partially indicating surface, depth and volume). Iceland has over 20 lakes larger than 10 km² (4 sq mi), and at least 40 others varying between 2.5 and 10 km² (1 to 4 sq mi) in size. This list also in ...
* Mountains of Iceland ** Baula ** Borgarvirki ** Búrfellshyrna ** Búlandstindur **
Eldgjá Eldgjá (, "fire canyon") is a volcano and a canyon in Iceland. Eldgjá is part of the Katla volcano; it is a segment of a long chain of volcanic craters and fissure vents that extends northeast away from Katla volcano almost to the Vatnajöku ...
**
Esjan Esja, in Icelandic called Esjan, which means "the Esja" (), is a mountain situated in the south-west of Iceland, about ten kilometres north of Iceland's capital city Reykjavík. Esja is not a single mountain, but a volcanic mountain range, mad ...
**
Helgafell Helgafell (, "holy mountain") is a small mountain on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula of Iceland. The mountain is high. A temple in honor of Thor (''Þór'') was built there by Þórólfr Mostrarskegg, the first settler of the area. His biography is ...
**
Herðubreið Herðubreið (, ''broad-shouldered'') is a tuya in northern part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland. It is situated in the Highlands of Iceland at the east side of the Ódáðahraun desert and close to Askja volcano. The desert is a larg ...
** Hlíðarfjall ** Hvannadalshnúkur ** Kerling **
Kerlingarfjöll Kerlingarfjöll () is a tall mountain range in Iceland situated in the Highlands of Iceland near the Kjölur highland road. They are part of a large tuya volcano system of . The volcanic origin of these mountains is evidenced by the numerous hot ...
(mountain range) **
Kverkfjöll Kverkfjöll (; 1,764 m) is a mountain range situated on the north-eastern border of the glacier Vatnajökull in Iceland. With the glacier Kverkjökull, it is between the Vatnajökull glacier and the Dyngjufjöll mountains. The mountains are act ...
(mountain range) **
Súlur Súlur () is a mountain located to the south west of the town Akureyri in Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country i ...
** Óshyrna ** Volcanoes in Iceland ***
Askja Askja () is an active volcano situated in a remote part of the central highlands of Iceland. The name Askja refers to a complex of nested calderas within the surrounding Dyngjufjöll mountains, which rise to , ''askja'' meaning ''box'' or '' ...
*** Bláhnjúkur *** Brennisteinsalda *** Búrfell ***
Hekla Hekla (), or Hecla, is a stratovolcano in the south of Iceland with a height of . Hekla is one of Iceland's most active volcanoes; over 20 eruptions have occurred in and around the volcano since 874. During the Middle Ages, the Icelandic Nor ...
***
Helgafell Helgafell (, "holy mountain") is a small mountain on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula of Iceland. The mountain is high. A temple in honor of Thor (''Þór'') was built there by Þórólfr Mostrarskegg, the first settler of the area. His biography is ...
***
Hengill Hengill ( Icelandic, pronounced ) is a volcanic mountain range situated in the southwest of Iceland, to the south of Þingvellir. The mountain range covers an area of about 100 km². The volcano is still active, evidenced by its numerous ho ...
*** Katla *** Kollóttadyngja *** Krafla ***
Laki Laki () or Lakagígar (, ''Craters of Laki'') is a volcanic fissure in the western part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland, not far from the volcanic fissure of Eldgjá and the small village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The fissure is properly ...
***
Öræfajökull Öræfajökull (; ' Öræfi glacier' or 'wasteland glacier') is an ice-covered volcano in south-east Iceland. The largest active volcano and the highest peak in Iceland at , it lies within the Vatnajökull National Park and is covered by part of ...
***
Skjaldbreiður Skjaldbreiður (, "broad shield") is an Icelandic lava shield formed in one huge and protracted eruption roughly 9,500 years ago. The extensive lava fields which were produced by this eruption, flowed southwards, and formed the basin of Þi ...
***
Snæfellsjökull Snæfellsjökull (, ''snow-fell glacier'') is a 700,000-year-old glacier-capped stratovolcano in western Iceland. It is situated on the westernmost part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula in Iceland. Sometimes it may be seen from the city of Reykjav ...
***
Trölladyngja Situated in the Ódáðahraun lava field, Trölladyngja () is the biggest of the Icelandic shield volcanoes, reaching a height of above sea level,Rivers of Iceland On an island like Iceland, the rivers are short in length. None of the rivers are important as a means of navigation due to the impracticality of settlements in the Highlands of Iceland where they originate. South * Hvítá * Krossá * Kúðaflj ...
**
Waterfalls of Iceland Iceland is unusually suited for waterfalls (Icelandic: s. ''foss,'' pl. ''fossar''). This island country has a north Atlantic climate that produces frequent rain and snow and a near-Arctic location that produces large glaciers, whose summer mel ...
* Valleys of Iceland *
World Heritage Sites in Iceland In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...


Regions of Iceland


Region codes

* NUTS of Iceland * ISO 3166-2 codes of Iceland * FIPS region codes of Iceland


Administrative divisions of Iceland

Administrative divisions of Iceland This article shows the administrative divisions of Iceland. Contemporary Constituencies Until 2003, the constituencies for the parliament elections were the same as the regions, but by an amendment to the constitution they were changed to the ...
*
Regions of Iceland The regions of Iceland are eight areas of Iceland that roughly follow the arrangement of parliamentary constituencies as they were between 1959 and 2003. These regions are not incorporated polities but rather recognized groupings of municipalitie ...
*
Counties of Iceland Iceland was historically divided into 23 counties known as ''sýslur'' (), and 23 independent towns known as ''kaupstaðir'' (). Iceland is now split up between 24 sýslumenn (magistrates) that are the highest authority over the local police ( ...


= Constituencies of Iceland

=
Constituencies of Iceland Iceland is divided into 6 constituencies for the purpose of selecting representatives to parliament.National Electoral Commission of Iceland 2013, p. 4 History The current division was established by a 1999 constitution amendment and was an at ...
Iceland is divided into 6
constituencies An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
for the purpose of selecting representatives to the Alþingi (parliament): *Reykjavík North (11) *Reykjavík South (11) *Northwest (9) *Northeast (10) *South (10) *Southwest (12)


= Municipalities of Iceland

=
Municipalities of Iceland The municipalities of Iceland ( is, Sveitarfélög ) are local administrative areas in Iceland that provide a number of services to their inhabitants such as kindergartens, elementary schools, waste management, social services, public housing, pu ...
* Cities of Iceland (by population) ** Capital of Iceland:
Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...


Demography of Iceland

Demographics of Iceland This article is about the demographic features of the population of Iceland, including population density, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. As of 2022, the Icela ...


Government and politics of Iceland

* Form of government:
unitary Unitary may refer to: Mathematics * Unitary divisor * Unitary element * Unitary group * Unitary matrix * Unitary morphism * Unitary operator * Unitary transformation * Unitary representation * Unitarity (physics) * ''E''-unitary inverse semigrou ...
parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...
representative democratic republic * Capital of Iceland:
Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...
*
Elections in Iceland Iceland elects on a national level a ceremonial head of state—the president—and a legislature. The president is elected for a four-year term by the people. The parliament (''Alþingi'') has 63 members, elected for a four-year term by proportio ...
* Icelandic nationalism *
Liberalism and centrism in Iceland Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...
* Political parties in Iceland *
Icelandic political scandals Icelandic political scandals are political scandals which have occurred in Iceland's history and are connected to Iceland's politicians: * (1911) Bankafarganið – Public opinion shifted to mistrust when Björn Jónsson, the Icelandic minis ...
* Taxation in Iceland


Branches of the government of Iceland

Government of Iceland The politics of Iceland take place in the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the president is the head of state, while the prime minister of Iceland serves as the head of government in a multi-party syste ...


Executive branch of the government of Iceland

* Head of state:
Guðni Th. Jóhannesson Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson (; born 26 June 1968) is an Icelandic historian and politician serving as the sixth and current president of Iceland. He took office in 2016 after winning the most votes in the 2016 election, 71,356 (39.1%). He wa ...
,
President of Iceland The president of Iceland ( is, Forseti Íslands) is the head of state of Iceland. The incumbent is Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson, who is now in his second term as president, elected in 2016 and re-elected in 2020. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir as ...
* Head of government:
Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson (pronounced sɪːɣʏrðʏr ˈiŋgɪ ˈjouːhansɔn born 20 April 1962) is an Icelandic politician, who was the prime minister of Iceland from April 2016 to January 2017. He is the chairman of the Progressive Party. ...
,
Prime Minister of Iceland The prime minister of Iceland ( is, Forsætisráðherra Íslands) is Iceland's head of government. The prime minister is appointed formally by the president and exercises executive authority along with the cabinet subject to parliamentary suppo ...
** First Lady of Iceland *
Cabinet of Iceland The Cabinet of Iceland ( is, Stjórnarráð Íslands) is the collective decision-making body of the government of Iceland, composed of the Prime Minister and the cabinet ministers. History The Cabinet of Iceland is considered to have been forme ...
** Cabinet ministers *** Minister of Education, Science and Culture of Iceland:
Illugi Gunnarsson Illugi Gunnarsson (born 26 August 1967) is an Icelandic politician and former member of the Althing The Alþingi (''general meeting'' in Icelandic, , anglicised as ' or ') is the supreme national parliament of Iceland. It is one of the ...
Present government of Iceland
/ref> ***
Minister for the Environment of Iceland An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of the environment) is a cabinet position charged with protecting the natural environment and promoting wildlife conservation. The areas associated with the duties of an ...
: Sigrún Magnúsdóttir ***
Minister of Finance of Iceland The Icelandic Ministry of Finance (Icelandic: ') is responsible for overseeing the finances of the Icelandic government. The Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs is Bjarni Benediktsson. Organization of the Ministry of Finance The top civ ...
: Bjarni Benediktsson *** Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture of Iceland:
Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson (pronounced sɪːɣʏrðʏr ˈiŋgɪ ˈjouːhansɔn born 20 April 1962) is an Icelandic politician, who was the prime minister of Iceland from April 2016 to January 2017. He is the chairman of the Progressive Party. ...
***
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland The Ministry for Foreign Affairs ( is, Utanríkisráðuneytið) is an Icelandic cabinet-level ministry founded 18 November 1941. The current Minister for Foreign Affairs is Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir. The Minister of Foreign Affairs tak ...
:
Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson (born 9 June 1968) is an Icelandic politician for the Center Party. He is a member of the Althingi (Iceland's parliament) for the Centre Party for the Northwest of Iceland constituency since 2017. He was the Chairman ...
*** Minister of Health: Kristján Þór Júlíusson (Part of the
Ministry of Welfare (Iceland) The Ministry of Welfare ( is, Velferðarráðuneytið) is an Icelandic cabinet-level ministry founded 1 January 2011. It is the result of the merger of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Security, founded 17 April 1939 as the Ministry of S ...
) *** Minister of Social Affairs and Housing:
Eygló Harðardóttir Eygló Harðardóttir (born 12 December 1972) is an Icelandic politician. She served as Iceland's Minister of Social Affairs and Housing 2013–2017. She has a degree in art from the University of Stockholm and has studied economics at the Univ ...
(Part of the
Ministry of Welfare (Iceland) The Ministry of Welfare ( is, Velferðarráðuneytið) is an Icelandic cabinet-level ministry founded 1 January 2011. It is the result of the merger of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Security, founded 17 April 1939 as the Ministry of S ...
) *** Ministry of Industries and Innovation of Iceland:
Ragnheiður Elín Árnadóttir Ragnheiður Elín Árnadóttir (born 30 September 1967) is an Icelandic politician who is the director of the OECD Development Centre. She was previously the Minister of Industry and Commerce A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commer ...
*** Minister of the Interior of Iceland:
Ólöf Nordal Ólöf Nordal (3 December 1966 – 8 February 2017) was an Icelandic politician who was the Minister of the Interior of Iceland from 4 December 2014 to 11 January 2017. She died on 8 February 2017. She was a member of the Independence Party. ...
** List of cabinets of Iceland *
List of Icelandic ministries This is a list of Icelandic government ministries Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a s ...


Legislative branch of the government of Iceland

*
Parliament of Iceland The Alþingi (''general meeting'' in Icelandic, , anglicised as ' or ') is the supreme national parliament of Iceland. It is one of the oldest surviving parliaments in the world. The Althing was founded in 930 at ("thing fields" or "assembl ...
**
List of standing committees of the Icelandic parliament The following is a list of standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matte ...
** List of speakers of the Parliament of Iceland


Judicial branch of the government of Iceland

* Supreme Court of Iceland


Foreign relations of Iceland

Foreign relations of Iceland Iceland took control of its foreign affairs in 1918 when it became a sovereign country, the Kingdom of Iceland, in a personal union with the King of Denmark. As a fully independent state, Iceland could have joined the League of Nations in 1918, ...
*
Accession of Iceland to the European Union Accession refers to the general idea of joining or adding to. It may also refer to: *Accession (property law) * Accession, the act of joining a treaty by a party that did not take part in its negotiations; see Vienna Convention on the Law of Trea ...
* List of diplomatic missions in Iceland * List of diplomatic missions of Iceland *
Visa requirements for Icelandic citizens Visa requirements for Icelandic citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of Iceland by the authorities of other states. As a member state of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Icelandic citizens enjoy freedom o ...


International organization membership

International organization membership of Iceland The Republic of Iceland is a member of: *
Arctic Council The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the indigenous people of the Arctic. At present, eight countries exercise sovereignty over the lands within the Arctic Circle ...
*
Australia Group The Australia Group is a multilateral export control regime (MECR) and an informal group of countries (now joined by the European Commission) established in 1985 (after the use of chemical weapons by Iraq in 1984) to help member countries to i ...
*
Bank for International Settlements The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is an international financial institution owned by central banks that "fosters international monetary and financial cooperation and serves as a bank for central banks". The BIS carries out its work thr ...
(BIS) * Council of Europe (CE) *
Council of the Baltic Sea States The Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) is a regional intergovernmental organisation working on three priority areas: Regional Identity, Safe & Secure Region and Sustainable & Prosperous Region. These three priority areas aim to address ...
(CBSS) *
Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council The Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) is a post–Cold War, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) institution. The EAPC is a multilateral forum created to improve relations between NATO and non-NATO countries in Europe and Central Asi ...
(EAPC) * European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) * European Free Trade Association (EFTA) *
Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
(FAO) * International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) * International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) *
International Chamber of Commerce The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC; French: ''Chambre de commerce internationale'') is the largest, most representative business organization in the world. Its over 45 million members in over 100 countries have interests spanning every sec ...
(ICC) *
International Civil Aviation Organization The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international a ...
(ICAO) *
International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals f ...
(ICCt) *
International Criminal Police Organization The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
(Interpol) * International Development Association (IDA) * International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS) *
International Finance Corporation The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is an international financial institution that offers investment, advisory, and asset-management services to encourage private-sector development in less developed countries. The IFC is a member of ...
(IFC) * International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) *
International Hydrographic Organization The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is an intergovernmental organisation representing hydrography. , the IHO comprised 98 Member States. A principal aim of the IHO is to ensure that the world's seas, oceans and navigable waters a ...
(IHO) *
International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...
(ILO) * International Maritime Organization (IMO) *
International Mobile Satellite Organization The International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO) is the intergovernmental organization that oversees certain public satellite safety and security communication services provided via the Inmarsat satellites. Some of these services concern: ...
(IMSO) *
International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
(IMF) *
International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
(IOC) *
International Organization for Standardization The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ) is an international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Membership requirements are given in Art ...
(ISO) * International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (ICRM) *
International Telecommunication Union The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies. It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Unio ...
(ITU) *
International Telecommunications Satellite Organization The International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO) is an intergovernmental organization charged with overseeing the public service obligations of Intelsat, which was privatized in 2001. It incorporates the principle set forth ...
(ITSO) *
International Trade Union Confederation The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC); german: Internationaler Gewerkschaftsbund (IGB), link=no; es, Confederación Sindical Internacional (CSI), link=no. is the world's largest trade union federation. History The federation w ...
(ITUC) * Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) *
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) is an international financial institution which offers political risk insurance and credit enhancement guarantees. These guarantees help investors protect foreign direct investments against ...
(MIGA) * Nordic Council (NC) *
Nordic Investment Bank The Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) is an international financial institution founded in 1975 by the five Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden). In 2005, the three Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) also beca ...
(NIB) *
North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
(NATO) *
Nuclear Energy Agency The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) is an intergovernmental agency that is organized under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Originally formed on 1 February 1958 with the name European Nuclear Energy Agency (ENEA)— ...
(NEA) * Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) *
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, pro ...
(OSCE) *
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an intergovernmental organisation and the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which entered into force on 29 April 1997. The OPCW, with its 193 member ...
(OPCW) * Organization of American States (OAS) (observer) *
Permanent Court of Arbitration The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is a non-UN intergovernmental organization located in The Hague, Netherlands. Unlike a judicial court in the traditional sense, the PCA provides services of arbitral tribunal to resolve disputes that aris ...
(PCA) *
Schengen Convention The Schengen Agreement ( , ) is a treaty which led to the creation of Europe's Schengen Area, in which internal border checks have largely been abolished. It was signed on 14 June 1985, near the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, by five of the t ...
*
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
(UN) *
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is an intergovernmental organization within the United Nations Secretariat that promotes the interests of developing countries in world trade. It was established in 1964 by the ...
(UNCTAD) *
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
(UNESCO) *
Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union (UPU, french: link=no, Union postale universelle), established by the Treaty of Bern of 1874, is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to ...
(UPU) *
Western European Union The Western European Union (WEU; french: Union de l'Europe occidentale, UEO; german: Westeuropäische Union, WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 ...
(WEU) (associate) *
World Customs Organization The World Customs Organization (WCO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. The WCO works on customs-related matters including the development of international conventions, instruments, and tools on topics su ...
(WCO) *
World Federation of Trade Unions The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) is an international federation of trade unions established in 1945. Founded in the immediate aftermath of World War Two, the organization built on the pre-war legacy of the International Federation o ...
(WFTU) *
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...
(WHO) *
World Intellectual Property Organization The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO; french: link=no, Organisation mondiale de la propriété intellectuelle (OMPI)) is one of the 15 specialized agencies of the United Nations (UN). Pursuant to the 1967 Convention Establishi ...
(WIPO) *
World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Intern ...
(WMO) *
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...
(WTO)


Law and order in Iceland

Law of Iceland Law of Iceland during the Commonwealth (930—1262) was decided by the Althing. It has changed over the years but the legislative body is still called Althing. History Prior to 1262 the law-code was ''Grágás''. Following the '' Gamli sáttmá ...
* Abortion in Iceland * Cannabis in Iceland * Capital punishment in Iceland *
Constitution of Iceland The Constitution of Iceland ( Icelandic: ''Stjórnarskrá lýðveldisins Íslands'' "Constitution of the republic of Iceland") is the supreme law of Iceland. It is composed of 80 articles in seven sections, and within it the leadership arrangemen ...
*
Human rights in Iceland Iceland is generally considered to be one of the leading countries in the world in regard to the human rights enjoyed by its citizens. Human rights are guaranteed by Sections VI and VII of Iceland's Constitution. Since 1989, a post of Ombudsman ex ...
** Freedom of religion in Iceland **
LGBT rights in Iceland Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in Iceland rank among the highest in the world. Same-sex couples have had equal access to adoption and IVF since 2006. In February 2009, a minority government took office, headed by Jóhanna ...
** Prostitution in Iceland — in 2009, the ''paying'' for sex was outlawed, criminalizing the clients, while ''selling'' sex remained decriminalized. * Icelandic passport * Law enforcement in Iceland **
National Police of Iceland In Iceland, the Police () is the national police force of Iceland. It is responsible for law enforcement throughout the country, except in Icelandic territorial waters which fall under the jurisdiction of the Icelandic Coast Guard. Police af ...
**
Víkingasveitin The Special Unit of the National Police Commissioner (), more commonly referred to as the Viking Squad (), is the police tactical unit of the Icelandic Police. The unit is in many ways modeled on the Delta tactical unit of the Norwegian Police ...
''(The Viking Squad)''


Military of Iceland

Military of Iceland Iceland's defence forces consist of the Icelandic Coast Guard, which patrols Icelandic waters and monitors its airspace, and other services such as the National Commissioner's National Security and Special Forces Units. Iceland maintains no sta ...
* Army: Iceland does not have a standing army * Navy: No navy (just the
Icelandic Coast Guard The Icelandic Coast Guard (, or simply ) is the Icelandic defence service responsible for search and rescue, maritime safety and security surveillance, and law enforcement in the seas surrounding Iceland. The Coast Guard maintains the Iceland ...
) * Air force: None *
Icelandic Coast Guard The Icelandic Coast Guard (, or simply ) is the Icelandic defence service responsible for search and rescue, maritime safety and security surveillance, and law enforcement in the seas surrounding Iceland. The Coast Guard maintains the Iceland ...
* Iceland Air Defence System *
Icelandic Air Policing Icelandic Air Policing is a NATO operation conducted to patrol Iceland's airspace. As Iceland does not have an air force, in 2006 it requested that its NATO allies periodically deploy fighter aircraft to Keflavik Air Base to provide protection o ...
*
Iceland Crisis Response Unit The Iceland Crisis Response Unit (ICRU; Icelandic: ''Íslenska Friðargæslan'') is an Icelandic para-military unit with a capacity roster of up to 200 people, of whom about 30 are active at any given time. It is operated by the Icelandic Minis ...
*
Víkingasveitin The Special Unit of the National Police Commissioner (), more commonly referred to as the Viking Squad (), is the police tactical unit of the Icelandic Police. The unit is in many ways modeled on the Delta tactical unit of the Norwegian Police ...
: Is equal to the American SWAT unit. *
Military history of Iceland This is a brief overview of historical warfare and recent developments in Iceland. Iceland has never participated in a full-scale war or invasion and the constitution of Iceland has no mechanism to declare war. Settlement and commonwealth In th ...


History of Iceland


By period

* Settlement of Iceland *
History of Icelandic nationality Iceland is an island country between the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. Icelandic nationality is concerned with the conditions by which an individual is a national of Iceland. Icelandi ...
*
Icelandic Commonwealth The Icelandic Commonwealth, also known as the Icelandic Free State, was the political unit existing in Iceland between the establishment of the Althing in 930 and the pledge of fealty to the Norwegian king with the Old Covenant in 1262. With ...
*
Age of the Sturlungs The Age of the Sturlungs or the Sturlung Era ( is, Sturlungaöld ) was a 42–44 year period of violent internal strife in mid-13th century Iceland. It is documented in the Sturlunga saga. This period is marked by the conflicts of local chieftai ...
* Farthings of Iceland *
Christianisation of Iceland Iceland was Christianized in the year 1000 CE, when Christianity became the religion by law. In Icelandic, this event is known as the ''kristnitaka'' (literally, "the taking of Christianity"). The vast majority of the initial settlers of Icel ...
*
Icelandic Reformation The Icelandic Reformation took place in the middle of the 16th century. Iceland was at this time a territory ruled by Denmark-Norway, and Lutheran religious reform was imposed on the Icelanders by King Christian III of Denmark. Resistance to t ...
* Danish-Icelandic Trade Monopoly * New Iceland *
Kingdom of Iceland The Kingdom of Iceland ( is, Konungsríkið Ísland; da, Kongeriget Island) was a sovereign and independent country under a constitutional and hereditary monarchy that was established by the Act of Union with Denmark signed on 1 December 1918 ...
*
Prohibition in Iceland Prohibition in Iceland went into effect in 1915 and lasted, to some extent, until 1 March 1989 (since celebrated as "Beer Day"). The ban had originally prohibited all alcohol, but from 1922 legalized wine and in 1935 legalized all alcoholic beverag ...
*
Iceland during World War II At the beginning of World War II, Iceland was a sovereign kingdom in personal union with Denmark, with King Christian X as head of state. Iceland officially remained neutral throughout World War II. However, the British invaded Iceland on 10 ...
**
Invasion of Iceland The invasion of Iceland (codenamed Operation Fork) by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines occurred on 10 May 1940, during World War II. The invasion took place because the British government feared that Iceland would be used by the Germans, who ...
**
Military operations in Scandinavia and Iceland during World War II A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
*
Founding of the Republic of Iceland A constitutional referendum was held in Iceland between 20 and 23 May 1944.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p961 The 1 December 1918 Danish–Icelandic Act of Union had granted Iceland independence f ...
*
Iceland in the Cold War Throughout the Cold War, the nation of Iceland was a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and allied with the United States, hosting a US military presence in Keflavík Air Base from 1951 to 2006. In 1986, Iceland hosted a sum ...
*
Iceland Defense Force The Iceland Defense Force ( is, Varnarlið Íslands; IDF) was a military command of the United States Armed Forces from 1951 to 2006. The IDF, created at the request of NATO, came into existence when the United States signed an agreement to p ...
*
Accession of Iceland to the European Union Accession refers to the general idea of joining or adding to. It may also refer to: *Accession (property law) * Accession, the act of joining a treaty by a party that did not take part in its negotiations; see Vienna Convention on the Law of Trea ...
*
2010 Iceland power outages The 2010 Iceland power outages was a massive, widespread power outage that occurred nationwide in Iceland, on Wednesday, September 1 to 21, 2010, at approximately 21:00 UTC. At the time, it was one of the most widespread electrical outages in Icel ...


By subject

* Agriculture in Iceland *
Economic history of Iceland The economy history of Iceland covers the development of its economy from the Settlement of Iceland in the late 9th century until the present. The field of economic history in Iceland According to a 2011 review study by economic historian Gu ...
* History of the Jews in Iceland *
Military history of Iceland This is a brief overview of historical warfare and recent developments in Iceland. Iceland has never participated in a full-scale war or invasion and the constitution of Iceland has no mechanism to declare war. Settlement and commonwealth In th ...
* Postage stamps and postal history of Iceland * List of rulers of Iceland


Culture of Iceland

*
Architecture of Iceland The architecture of Iceland draws from Scandinavian influences and traditionally was influenced by the lack of native trees on the island. As a result, grass- and turf-covered houses were developed. Later on, the Swiss chalet style became a prev ...
** Icelandic turf houses ** List of tallest buildings in Iceland **
List of tallest structures in Iceland This is a list of the tallest buildings in Iceland. Tallest buildings Tallest structures An incomplete list of the tallest structures in Iceland. This list contains all types of structures. References

{{TBSW Lists of tallest building ...
* Icelandic cuisine ** Beer in Iceland * Festivals in Iceland **
Iceland Airwaves Iceland Airwaves is a music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), n ...
* Heraldry in Iceland * Media of Iceland * Miss Iceland *
Museums in Iceland This is a list of museums in Iceland. * Akranes Folk Museum * Akureyri Art Museum *Árbæjarsafn * Aurora Reykjavík * Aviation Museum of IcelandBorgarnes Museum Safnahús Borgarfjarðar * Bobby Fischer Center * Center for Icelandic Art * Duus M ...
*
National and University Library of Iceland Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn ( Icelandic: ; English: ''The National and University Library of Iceland'') is the national library of Iceland which also functions as the university library of the University of Iceland. The librar ...
* National symbols of Iceland ** Coat of arms of Iceland **
Flag of Iceland The flag of Iceland ( is, íslenski fáninn) was officially described in Law No. 34, set out on 17 June 1944, the day Iceland became a republic. The law is entitled "The Law of the National Flag of Icelanders and the State Arms" and describes ...
***
List of flags of Iceland The following is a list of Flag of Iceland, Icelandic flags. National flag and State flag Governmental flags Military flag Historical flags Unofficial flags Yacht club flags of Iceland Political flags See also * Flag of Iceland * ...
** National anthem of Iceland *
Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. N ...
* Prostitution in Iceland — in 2009, the ''paying'' for sex was outlawed, criminalizing the clients, while ''selling'' sex remained decriminalized. *
Public holidays in Iceland Public holidays in Iceland are established by the act of the Icelandic parliament''.'' The public holidays are the religious holidays of the Church of Iceland and the First Day of Summer, May Day, the Icelandic National Day. In addition, Chris ...
** First Day of Summer **
Icelandic National Day Icelandic National Day ( is, Þjóðhátíðardagurinn, the day of the nation's celebration) is an annual holiday in Iceland which commemorates the foundation of The Republic of Iceland on 17 June 1944. This date also marks the end of Iceland's c ...
*
Smoking in Iceland Smoking in Iceland is banned in restaurants, cafés, bars and night clubs as of June 2007. A large majority of Icelanders approve of the ban. At the time the ban went into effect, almost one in four Icelandic people were smokers. Iceland has ...
* Icelandic weddings *
World Heritage Sites in Iceland In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...


Art in Iceland

* Icelandic art *
Cinema of Iceland Iceland has a notable cinema film industry, with many Icelandic actors and directors having gone on to receive international attention. The most famous film, and the only one to be nominated for the Academy Award, is '' Börn náttúrunnar'' (''C ...
** List of Icelandic films **
List of Icelandic submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film Iceland has submitted films for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film since 1981. The first film to be sent to AMPAS by Iceland was '' Land and Sons'' which was released in Iceland in 1980. Since then, Iceland has sent in a film e ...
* Icelandic cuisine **
Þorramatur Þorramatur (; transliterated as thorramatur; food of ''Þorri'') is a selection of traditional Icelandic food, consisting mainly of meat and fish products cured in a traditional manner, cut into slices or pieces and served with rúgbrauð ...
*
Icelandic literature Icelandic literature refers to literature written in Iceland or by Icelandic people. It is best known for the sagas written in medieval times, starting in the 13th century. As Icelandic and Old Norse are almost the same, and because Icelandic wo ...
** List of Icelandic-language poets **
List of Icelandic writers Iceland has a rich literary history, which has carried on into the modern period. Some of the best known examples of Icelandic literature are the Sagas of Icelanders. These are prose narratives based on historical events that took place in Icel ...
*
Music of Iceland The music of Iceland includes vibrant folk and pop traditions, as well as an active classical and contemporary music scene. Well-known artists from Iceland include medieval music group Voces Thules, alternative rock band The Sugarcubes, singers ...
**
List of Icelandic composers The composers in this list are those notable ones having Icelandic nationality, or whose main residence is Iceland. Icelandic names differ from most current Western world, Western family name systems by being patronymic (occasionally matronymic) i ...
**
Icelandic folk music Icelandic folk music includes a number of styles that are together a prominent part of the music of Iceland. When speaking of traditional Icelandic vocal music, there are two prominent vocal performance styles, one using the term ''kveða'' and t ...
** Icelandic hip hop **
Icelandic rock Rock and roll is a style of popular music of the United States, American music which has spread around the world, including to the North Atlantic island nation of Iceland. History

Rock came to the island beginning in the mid-1950s. Rock's pop ...
** List of bands from Iceland *
Television in Iceland Television in Iceland is currently composed of the public broadcasting service of RÚV, five free-to-view channels and a number of subscription channels provided by private broadcasters. Broadcasts began in 1955 when the American Forces Radio and Te ...


Language in Iceland

*
Languages of Iceland Iceland has been a very isolated and linguistically homogeneous island historically, but has nevertheless been home to several languages. Gaelic was the native language to many of the early Icelanders. Although the Icelandic or Norse language ...
**
Icelandic language Icelandic (; is, íslenska, link=no ) is a North Germanic language The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic lan ...
***
History of Icelandic The history of the Icelandic language began in the 9th century when the settlement of Iceland, mostly by Norwegians, brought a dialect of Old Norse to the island. The oldest preserved texts in Icelandic were written around 1100, the oldest single ...
***
Icelandic exonyms The following is a list of Icelandic exonyms, that is to say names for places in Icelandic that have been adapted to Icelandic spelling rules, translated into Icelandic, or Old Norse exonyms surviving in Icelandic. Commonly pronunciation is close ...
***
Icelandic grammar Icelandic is an inflected language with four cases: nominative, accusative, dative and genitive. Icelandic nouns can have one of three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine or neuter. Nouns, adjectives and pronouns are declined in four cas ...
***
Icelandic Literary Society The Icelandic Literary Society (Hið Íslenzka Bókmenntafélag), founded in 1816, is a society dedicated to promoting and strengthening Icelandic language, literature and learning. The society was founded in 1816, when the Icelandic independence ...
***
Icelandic name Icelandic names are names used by people from Iceland. Icelandic surnames are different from most other naming systems in the modern Western world by being patronymic or occasionally matronymic: they indicate the father (or mother) of the child ...
****
Icelandic Naming Committee The Icelandic Naming Committee ( is, Mannanafnanefnd; pronounced )—also known in English as the Personal Names Committee—maintains an official register of approved Icelandic given names and governs the introduction of new given names into Ice ...
***
Icelandic orthography Icelandic orthography is the way in which Icelandic words are spelled and how their spelling corresponds with their pronunciation. Alphabet The Icelandic alphabet is a Latin-script alphabet including some letters duplicated with acute accents ...
***
Icelandic phonology Unlike many languages, Icelandic has only very minor dialectal differences in sounds. The language has both monophthong A monophthong ( ; , ) is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and whic ...
***
Linguistic purism in Icelandic Linguistic purism in Icelandic is the policy of discouraging new loanwords from entering the language, by creating new words from Old Icelandic and Old Norse roots. In Iceland, linguistic purism is archaising, trying to resuscitate the language ...
**** High Icelandic *** Icelandic vocabulary **
Icelandic Sign Language Icelandic Sign Language ( is, Íslenskt táknmál) is the sign language of the deaf community in Iceland. It is based on Danish Sign Language; until 1910, deaf Icelandic people were sent to school in Denmark, but the languages have diverged sinc ...


Religion in Iceland

Religion in Iceland Religion in Iceland has been predominantly Christian since the adoption of Christianity as the state religion by the Althing under the influence of Olaf Tryggvason, the king of Norway, in 999/1000 CE. Before that, between the 9th and 10th cen ...
* Icelandic funeral * Religions in Iceland ** Christianity in Iceland ***
Church of Iceland The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland ( is, Hin evangelíska lúterska kirkja), also called the National Church ( is, Þjóðkirkjan), is the officially established Christian church in Iceland. The church professes the Lutheran faith an ...
***
Roman Catholicism in Iceland The Catholic Church in Iceland is part of the Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope. The island comprises a single diocese, the Diocese of Reykjavík. , the ordinary is Bishop Dávid Bartimej Tencer. The diocese is not part ...
** Neopaganism in Iceland ** Bahá'í Faith in Iceland ** Buddhism in Iceland ** Islam in Iceland ** Judaism in Iceland *** History of the Jews in Iceland


Sport in Iceland

Sport in Iceland Sports in Iceland are very popular. Popular sports include football, handball, athletics, basketball, chess, golf, volleyball, tennis, skiing, snowboarding, ice hockey, swimming, rock climbing and mountain climbing; horseback riding on Icelandic ...
* Icelandic Chess Championship * Cricket in Iceland * Iceland at the Paralympics *
Icelandic records in athletics The following are the national records in athletics in Iceland maintained by its national athletics federation: Frjálsíþróttasamband Íslands (FRI). Outdoor Key to tables: + = en route to a longer distance h = hand timing Mx = mixed ra ...
* Strength athletics in Iceland *
Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur or ÍR (English: Reykjavik Athletic Club) is an Icelandic multi-sport club, based in the suburb of Breiðholt in Reykjavík. It has teams in association football, football, Team handball, handball, basketball, athlet ...


Olympics

* Iceland at the Olympics


Baseball

* Iceland national baseball team


Basketball

*
Iceland men's national basketball team The Iceland men's national basketball team ( is, Íslenska karlalandsliðið í körfubolta) represents Iceland in international basketball tournaments. The team is controlled by the Icelandic Basketball Association. Iceland has qualified for t ...
*
Iceland women's national basketball team The Iceland women's national basketball team represents Iceland in international women's basketball tournaments. They are controlled by the Icelandic Basketball Association. Competitive record Championship for Small Countries Games of the S ...


Football

* Australian rules football in Iceland *
Football Association of Iceland The Football Association of Iceland ( is, Knattspyrnusamband Íslands, KSÍ) is the governing body of football in Iceland. It was founded on 26 March 1947, joined FIFA the same year, and UEFA in 1954. It organises the football league, Úrvalsdei ...
*
Icelandic football league system The Icelandic football league system is a series of interconnected leagues for club football in Iceland. a fifth level was added to the previous men's format of four levels. there are 79 participating men's teams and 27 women's teams in the footb ...
* List of football clubs in Iceland * List of football stadiums in Iceland * National football teams **
Iceland national football team The Iceland national football team (in ) represents Iceland in men's international football. The team is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland, and have been a FIFA member since 1947 and an UEFA member since 1957. The team's nickn ...
** Iceland national under-17 football team **
Iceland women's national football team The Iceland women's national football team represents Iceland in international women's football. They are currently ranked as the 17th best women's national team in the world by FIFA as of December 2019. On 30 October 2008, the national team q ...


Handball

* Icelandic Handball Association *
Iceland men's national handball team ) , Association = Icelandic Handball Association(''Handknattleikssamband Íslands'') , Coach = Guðmundur Guðmundsson , Assistant coach = Ágúst Þór JóhannssonGunnar Magnússon , Captain = Aro ...


Ice hockey

*
Ice Hockey Iceland Ice Hockey Iceland ( is, Íshokkísamband Íslands (ÍHÍ)) is the governing body of ice hockey in Iceland. Competitions *Men's ** Icelandic Men's Hockey League *Women's ** Icelandic Women's Hockey League National teams Iceland men * Iceland m ...
* Icelandic Hockey League *
Icelandic national ice hockey team The Icelandic men's national ice hockey team ( is, Íslenska karlalandsliðið í íshokkí) is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation, representing Iceland in ice hockey competitions. Iceland is ranked 34th in the world by the IIHF W ...
*
Iceland women's national ice hockey team The Icelandic women's national ice hockey team represents Iceland at the International Ice Hockey Federation's World Women's Ice Hockey Championship Division IIB. The women's national team is controlled by Ice Hockey Iceland. As of 2011, Iceland ...


Rowing

*
Fiann Paul Fiann Paul (born 15 August 1980) is an Icelandic explorer, athlete, artist, speaker and Jungian psychoanalyst. He is the world's most record-breaking explorer, and holds the world's highest number of performance-based Guinness World Records ev ...


Tennis

* Iceland Davis Cup team * Iceland Fed Cup team


Sports personalities

Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen Eiður is an Icelandic given name. It appears in Landnámabók and its meaning is most likely 'oath' in English (''ed'' or ''eid'' in some modern Germanic languages). The name is rather uncommon, carried only by around 200 persons. agsofa Íslands ...
*
Heiðar Helguson Heiðar Helguson (; born 22 August 1977) is an Icelandic former professional footballer who played as a striker. Heiðar started his career in the Icelandic league system, with UMFS Dalvík and Þróttur. Following a one-season spell in Norw ...
, professional footballer, currently at Fulham *
Hermann Hreiðarsson Hermann Hreiðarsson (born 11 July 1974) is an Icelandic former professional football player and coach. He played as a defender and spent 15 seasons in England, gaining a total of 315 appearances in the Premier League. Hermann was relegated fr ...
*
Jón Páll Sigmarsson Jón Páll Sigmarsson (28 April 1960 – 16 January 1993) was an Icelandic strongman, powerlifter and bodybuilder who was the first man to win the World's Strong ...
*
Magnús Ver Magnússon Magnús Ver Magnússon (born 23 April 1963) is an Icelandic former powerlifter and strongman competitor. He is a four-time World's Strongest Man, having won in 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996 and is widely regarded as one of the greatest strongmen of ...
*
Ólafur Stefánsson Ólafur Indriði Stefánsson (born 3 July 1973 in Reykjavík, Iceland) is a former Icelandic handball player who, for many years was the captain of the Iceland men's national handball team but announced his international retirement after the ...
*
Anníe Mist Þórisdóttir Anníe Mist Þórisdóttir (often featured as Annie Thorisdottir in international media) is a professional CrossFit athlete from Reykjavík, Iceland. She is the co-owner of Crossfit Reykjavik, where she also coaches and trains. Anníe is the fir ...


Economy and infrastructure of Iceland

Economy of Iceland The economy of Iceland is small and subject to high volatility. In 2011, gross domestic product was US$12 billion, but by 2018 it had increased to a nominal GDP of US$27 billion. With a population o350,000 this is $55,000 per capita, based on pu ...
* Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 92nd (ninety-second) * 2008–2012 Icelandic financial crisis * Agriculture in Iceland **
Whaling in Iceland Whaling in Iceland began with spear-drift hunting as early as the 12th century, and continued in a vestigial form until the late 19th century, when other countries introduced modern commercial practices. Today, Iceland is one of a handful of coun ...
*
Banking in Iceland Banking in Iceland faced a crisis in 2008, which resulted in the government taking over three of its largest commercial banks. The short-term liabilities of Icelandic banks in proportion to Iceland's GDP are 211%, as of 11 October 2008, or 480% o ...
**
Banks of Iceland The following is a list of banks in Iceland. Contemporary banks Central * Central Bank of Iceland Commercial * Arion Bank (formerly known as ''New Kaupthing'') * Íslandsbanki (formerly known as ''New Glitnir'') * Landsbankinn (formerl ...
***
Central Bank of Iceland The Central Bank of Iceland ( is, Seðlabanki Íslands) is the central bank or reserve bank of Iceland. It has served in this capacity since 1961, when it was created by an act of the Alþingi out of the central banking department of Landsbank ...
*** National Bank of Iceland * Communications in Iceland **
List of newspapers in Iceland The number of national daily newspapers in Iceland was just five in 1950 and in 1965. This is a list of both current and defunct newspapers in Iceland: Current daily newspapers * ''Fréttablaðið'' – founded in 2001 * '' Morgunblaðið'' – f ...
**
List of postal codes in Iceland Postal codes in Iceland are made up of three digits. The codes are followed by the name of the place where the post is being distributed, which is either a municipality, the nearest city, town or village. The total number of postal codes is 149; w ...
**
Telecommunications in Iceland Telecommunications in Iceland is a diversified market. Submarine connectivity Current internet and telephone services rely on submarine communications cables for external traffic, with a total capacity of 60.2Tbit/s Current * FARICE-1, 2 fib ...
***
Internet in Iceland The use of the Internet in Iceland places Iceland among the top countries in the world in terms of Internet deployment and use. The use of internet in Iceland is widespread. Iceland has been at the forefront of adopting new internet access techno ...
** Telephone numbers in Iceland * Companies of Iceland **
List of companies of Iceland Iceland is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of and an area of , making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe. The capital and largest city is Reykjavík. Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in ...
** Companies listed on the Iceland Stock Exchange *Currency of Iceland: Króna ** ISO 4217: ISK *
Economic history of Iceland The economy history of Iceland covers the development of its economy from the Settlement of Iceland in the late 9th century until the present. The field of economic history in Iceland According to a 2011 review study by economic historian Gu ...
* Energy in Iceland **
2010 Iceland power outages The 2010 Iceland power outages was a massive, widespread power outage that occurred nationwide in Iceland, on Wednesday, September 1 to 21, 2010, at approximately 21:00 UTC. At the time, it was one of the most widespread electrical outages in Icel ...
** Iceland Deep Drilling Project **
Power stations in Iceland Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may ...
*** Icelandic hydroelectric power stations **
Renewable energy in Iceland Iceland is a world leader in renewable energy. 100% of Iceland's electricity grid is produced from renewable resources. In terms of total energy supply, 85% of the total primary energy supply in Iceland is derived from domestically produced rene ...
***
Geothermal power in Iceland Geothermal power in Iceland refers to the use of geothermal energy in Iceland for electricity generation. Iceland’s uniquely active geology has led to natural conditions especially suitable for harnessing geothermal energy. Icelanders have long ...
*
Healthcare in Iceland Iceland has a state-centred, publicly funded universal healthcare system and health insurance that covers the whole population. The number of private providers in Iceland has increased. The healthcare system is largely paid for by taxes (84%) and to ...
** Emergency medical services in Iceland **
List of hospitals in Iceland Iceland has a state-centred, publicly funded universal healthcare system and health insurance that covers the whole population. The number of private providers in Iceland has increased. The healthcare system is largely paid for by taxes (84%) and to ...
*
National parks of Iceland Since 2008, Iceland has three national parks. Prior to 2008 there were four national parks in Iceland; in that year Jökulsárgljúfur and Skaftafell were merged and incorporated into Vatnajökull National Park. Vatnajökull National Park and ...
*
Iceland Stock Exchange The Nasdaq Iceland, formerly known as the Iceland Stock Exchange (XICE) ( is, Kauphöll Íslands), is a stock exchange located in Iceland. It was established in 1985 as a joint venture of several banks and brokerage firms on the initiative of the ...
* Tourism in Iceland * Trade unions ** Confederation of State and Municipal Employees of Iceland **
Icelandic Federation of Labour The Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASÍ) (Icelandic: Alþýðusamband Íslands) is a trade union centre in Iceland. It was formed in 1916 and has a membership of 104,500, approximately half of the Icelandic workforce. The ASÍ is affiliated ...
*
Transport in Iceland The modes of transport in Iceland are governed by the country's rugged terrain and sparse population. The principal mode of personal transport is the car. There are no public railways, although there are bus services. Transport from one major t ...
**
Airports in Iceland This is a list of airports in Iceland. There are no railways in Iceland. Driving from Reykjavík to Akureyri takes 4-5 hours compared to 45 minutes flight time, driving from Reykjavík to Egilsstaðir takes 9 hours compared to 1 hour flight tim ...
**
Rail transport in Iceland As of January 2023, Iceland does not have a public railway system. However there have been three small railways in the past. The main reasons for the lack of railways are the small population, competition with automobile traffic, and the harsh envir ...
- Iceland has no public rail system. **
Roads in Iceland This article lists numbered roads in Iceland. History As late as 1900 Iceland had only a few miles of roading suitable for wheeled transport, mostly located in the southern regions of the island. A network of bridle paths permitted travel and ...
*** Highway system of Iceland ***
Road signs in Iceland Iceland never ratified the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals, but road signs in Iceland conform to the general pattern of those used in most other European countries, with certain design elements borrowed from Danish and Swedish practic ...
***
Speed limits in Iceland The general speed limit for cars in Iceland is in urban areas, on rural gravel roads and on paved rural roads. It is allowed to set higher speed limits up to if deemed safe and necessary for traffic flow but no road actually has higher than the ...
***
Street names in Iceland Street names in Iceland typically consist of two elements. The first element is chosen in alphabetical order and conforming to the neighbourhood's theme (usually nature-related), and the second element is shared by all the streets in a neighbourho ...
*** Tunnels in Iceland **
Vehicle registration plates of Iceland In Iceland, vehicle registration plates are issued by the Icelandic Transport Authority and are made in the state penitentiary. The plates are made of aluminium with reflective base and embossed characters. The current registration system uses th ...


Education in Iceland

Education in Iceland The system of education in Iceland is divided in four levels: playschool, compulsory, upper secondary and higher, and is similar to that of other Nordic countries. Education is mandatory for children aged 6–16. Most institutions are funded by t ...
* Academic grading in Iceland * Icelandic Student Loan Fund *
List of schools in Iceland This is a list of schools in Iceland, which encompasses institutions from Nursery school, playschool to Gymnasium (school), gymnasium. Playschools Nursery school, Playschool is non-compulsory education for those under the age of six and is the fir ...
*
Universities in Iceland This is a list of universities in Iceland. Universities and colleges There are seven universities in Iceland as defined by law. No distinction is made between research universities and other tertiary colleges. Both types are referred to as "hásk ...
**
University of Iceland The University of Iceland ( is, Háskóli Íslands ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' s ...
***
National and University Library of Iceland Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn ( Icelandic: ; English: ''The National and University Library of Iceland'') is the national library of Iceland which also functions as the university library of the University of Iceland. The librar ...


See also

* Asteroid 110299 Iceland named after the island in 2018 * Index of Iceland-related articles *
List of international rankings This is a list of international rankings. By category Agriculture * List of largest producing countries of agricultural commodities *List of countries by apple production * List of countries by apricot production * List of countries by artichoke ...
*
Member state of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is an international military alliance that consists of 30 member states from Europe and North America. It was established at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on 4 April 1949. Article 5 of th ...
*
Member state of the United Nations The United Nations member states are the sovereign states that are members of the United Nations (UN) and have equal representation in the UN General Assembly. The UN is the world's largest intergovernmental organization. The criteria ...


References


External links


Gateway to Iceland

Government Offices of Iceland

Icelandic Government Information Center
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Iceland
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...