Geir Vídalín Jónsson (27 October 1761 – 20 September 1823) was an Icelandic prelate who was the last diocesan

Bishop of Skálholt A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

from 1797 till 1801 when he became the first

Bishop of Iceland The following is a list of Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, Evangelical Lutheran bishops of Iceland. The first bishop of Iceland was Geir Vídalín who took office in 1801. As of 2024, 15 people have held the office of Bishop of Iceland. Li ...

Biography

Geir was the son of Jón Jónsson a priest in Laufás, and Sigríður Magnúsdóttir. He graduated from the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (, KU) is a public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia, after Uppsala University. ...

in 1789 and became a cathedral priest in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

and lived in Lambastaðir at

Seltjarnarnes Seltjarnarnes () is a town and municipality in the Capital Region of Iceland. The municipality is located on a peninsula, bordered only by Reykjavík to the east. It is also the most densely populated municipality in Iceland. It took on its curr ...

. He was elected Bishop of Skálholt after the death of

Hannes Finnsson Hannes is a masculine given name and a diminutive of Johannes or Hannibal. Hannes may refer to: *Hannes Alfvén (1908–1995), Swedish chemist and Nobel-prize winner *Hannes Aigner (born 1989), German slalom canoeist and Olympic medalist *Hannes A ...

in 1796. He was consecrated by the

Bishop of Hólar A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Sigurður Stefánsson on 30 July 1797. He did, however, remain at Lambastaðir, planning to relocate the diocese to Reykjavík. After the death of Stefánsson, no new successor was appointed to Hólar and the two Icelandic dioceses were amalgamated into the united Diocese of Reykjavík in November 1801, with Geir Vídalín as the first bishop. Geir's wife was Sigríður Halldórsdóttir who died in 1846.

References

{{Authority control Lutheran bishops of Iceland 1761 births 1823 deaths 18th-century Icelandic Lutheran bishops 19th-century Icelandic Lutheran bishops