Páll Gíslason (3 October 1924 – 1 January 2011) was an Icelandic medical practitioner 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 a pioneer in

vascular surgery Vascular surgery is a surgical subspecialty in which vascular diseases involving the arteries, veins, or lymphatic vessels, are managed by medical therapy, minimally-invasive catheter procedures and surgical reconstruction. The specialty evolve ...

in Iceland. Outside of his medical career, he served as the Chief Scout of the

Bandalag íslenskra skáta Bandalag íslenskra skáta (BIS, ''Icelandic Boy and Girl Scout Association'') is the national Scouting and Girl Guides, Guiding organization of Iceland. Scouting was founded in Iceland in 1912 and was among the earlier members of the World Organ ...

, the Icelandic Scout association, from 1971 to 1981 and a city councilman in

for 24 years.

Early life

Páll was born in Vífilsstaðir in Garðahreppur on 3 October 1924 but grew up in

Eskifjörður Eskifjörður (in original spelling; ), or Eskifjördur, is a town and port in eastern Iceland with a large fishing industry. With a population of 1,043 it is one of the most populous towns in the municipality of Fjarðabyggð. History Eskifjör� ...

Hafnarfjörður Hafnarfjörður, officially Hafnarfjarðarkaupstaður, is a port town and municipality in Iceland, located about south of Reykjavík. The municipality consists of two non-contiguous areas in the Capital Region (Iceland), Capital Region, on the s ...

and

. His parents where Gísli Pálsson, a doctor, and Svana Jónsdóttir.

Icelandic Scout Association

Páll became a Scout at the age of 12 in 1936, and led his national association in the 1950s. He led Iceland's delegation of 23 young people to the 6th World Scout Jamboree in 1947. The story is told that as he was looking for land in eastern Iceland to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Scouts of Iceland in 1962, he exclaimed that he did not know anyone on that side the island, "because farmers are never sick!", however when a farmer needed his care, he allowed Páll to use his land for the celebration. In 1981, Páll was awarded the 144th ''

Bronze Wolf The Bronze Wolf Award is an award presented by the World Organization of the Scout Movement for outstanding service by an individual to the Scout Movement. Just over 400 people have received the Bronze Wolf since its creation in 1935. WOSM has r ...

'', the only distinction of the

World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...

, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world Scouting.

Political career

Páll served in the

Akranes Akranes () is a port town and municipality on the west coast of Iceland, around north of the capital Reykjavík. The area where Akranes is located was settled in the 9th century; however, it did not receive a municipal charter until 1942. His ...

city council from 1962 to 1970 and later in the Reykjavík City Council from 1974 to 1998. He was the council president from end of December 1984 to middle of 1985.

Books

In 2010, Páll authored the book ''Læknir í blíðu og stríðu'' with Hávar Sigurjónsson which focused on his life and career.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gislason, Pall 1924 births 2011 deaths Recipients of the Bronze Wolf Award Scouting and Guiding in Iceland