Northern lights, glaciers, geothermal lakes, volcanoes, geysers and endless wonders of nature are the greatest attraction of this small country in Europe, along with the kindness and bonhomie of its people. Iceland has become in a short time one of the most sought after tourist destinations and for something it will be. Discover 50 Iceland Curiosities . The small country of landscapes.
This island located in the North Atlantic, with a total population of just over 330,000 inhabitants, has a fascinating history: from it the Vikings who came to America before Christopher Columbus , Did you know? They settled in Newfoundland and due to the opposition of the natives returned to their country of origin.
50 Curiosities of Iceland
1. Iceland is the second largest island in Europe after Great Britain and eighteenth in the world.
2. The first permanent settlement on the island did not take place until the year 874. On that date a Norwegian Viking chief named Ingólfr Arnason became the first settler. After him other Scandinavians, especially Norwegians, were established over the centuries.
3. The Icelanders not only arrived first at America, but they were the ones who colonized Greenland in the year 986.
4. Iceland was one of the poorest countries in Europe until the 20th century. In 1944 it became independent from Norway and after the Second World War, due to its strategic position, received aid from the Marshall Plan and industrialized fishing activities, becoming one of the richest countries in the world, basing its economy on manufacturing , finance and biotechnology.
5. Iceland, according to the UN, is ninth in the list of countries for its development.
6. One of the most striking sights of Iceland is that on the island there are no ants , this is due to the cold. Recent years have found some species living in the houses but are not native to the island.
7. You will not find mosquitoes in Iceland either.
8. Beer was considered an illegal drink until 1989. Surprising!
9. In Iceland, almost 85% of the energy used comes from renewable energies and half of it, in particular, is geothermal.
10. It is one of the countries where most Coca-Cola is consumed, but curiously they do not have any establishment of the McDonald's chain; yes there were between 1993 and 2009, but they were not successful and they closed.
11. If you live in Iceland you can not have a turtle, nor a lizard nor a snake as a pet, as it is illegal.
12. It is considered to be the oldest democracy in the world since it was established in the year 930. Since this date the independent community of Iceland has been governed by the Althingi parliament.
13. However, it is considered that the island is the "youngest" land, in geological terms, to be populated by the world.
14. The national sport is not football as it happens in most European countries, but handball.
15. Although football is not the majority sport, the Icelanders felt immense pride and joy when qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
16. The majority of Icelanders do not have surnames, practically only have one of their parents is a foreigner. They take the surname of their parents plus the suffix "are" for boys or "dottir" for girls. Telephone directories are sorted by name and add the profession to reduce ambiguities.
17. Among the curiosities of Iceland There is the absence of forests. They almost do not exist, moreover only a quarter of the island has vegetation and only 1% of Icelandic soil is arable.
18. Due to the eruption of the Laki volcano, between 1783 and 1784, there was a famine that ended with almost a quarter of its population. In addition, for this reason, 20% of the inhabitants emigrated to the USA. or Canada.
19. Iceland is currently the most unpopulated country in Europe. It has only 3 inhabitants per square Kilometer.
20. Iceland had the first democratically elected president in 1980 and in 2009 the first openly lesbian head of government in the world.
21. According to a joint study of the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and the Peace Research Institute in Oslo, Iceland is the best country in the world to be a woman .
22. Among the curiosities of Iceland There is the Bóndadagur party. It is the day of the husband or of the man, formerly the day of the farmer. It is celebrated according to the old Nordic calendar on the first day of the month of Þorri (between January and February). Nowadays women usually make a special meal and some small gift to their husbands. However, they also have their day, it is the Konudagur. It falls on the first day of Góa (between October and November) and they also await your gift.
23. The landscapes of Iceland They are one of its main attractions and they are different according to the area of the island that you visit.
24. In the north, the landscapes of Iceland They are formed by lava fields, carved hills and turbulent waterfalls.
25. In Reykjanes you will find more headlights what towns and you'll see besides the famous blue Lagoon , extensive lava fields.
26. Vatnajökull is the largest glacier in Europe and is larger than all of them together.
27. As we have said, one of the curiosities of Iceland is that it has virtually no forests, however in the east of the country is the largest on the island and also the best farmland.
28. In the South you can travel 300 km. Golden Circle, one of the most visited tourist attractions and enjoy the wonderful landscapes of Iceland and also see the waterfall Skógafoss they say it's the most beautiful in Europe.
29. In the north of the island is the city of Húsavík. From there you can perform an activity that is among the curiosities of Iceland : whale watching. This is due to the large number of these marine mammals of various species that frequently enter the bay of the population.
30. In Iceland, both commercial and scientific hunting of whales is practiced, but the country earns much more money from whale-watching tours than from the industry derived from its hunting.
31. Approximately 30% of the Icelandic territory consists of lava fields.
32. Do you know where the word Geyser comes from? It comes from the famous Icelandic "Geysir", also called the Great Geysir, the first geyser described in a publication and the first known by modern Europeans. "Geysa" in Icelandic means "sprout" or "erupt".
33. In Iceland you will find many geysers. The Strokkur, very close to the Great Geysir, sprouts every 6-10 minutes and reaches between 15 and 20 meters in height. It is very visited since its frequency is considered "reliable".
34. The language of Iceland It's Icelandic. It is a language that comes from the old Nordic language.
35. One of the curiosities of Iceland it makes reference to its language. It has remained virtually unchanged for centuries, so it is easy for Icelanders to read texts written 1,000 years ago.
36. In Iceland "puffin" is consumed and the heart of this bird is considered a delicious delicacy.
37. The typical food of Iceland it is heavily influenced by fish, but it also includes skyr - similar to yogurt -, smoked lamb or hanhikjöt, lamb head roasted in a typical Icelandic dish called "sviŏ" and harŏfiskur consisting of dried fish pieces with butter or cabbage
38. They also eat things that can be surprising, like whale meat, practically putrefied shark meat (hákari) or súrsaöir hrútspungar, which are boiled or cured malt tea or bones.
39. The capital of Iceland is Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland It is the capital of the northernmost world.
40. 60% of the population of Iceland lives in Reykjavik.
41. The Iceland volcano The most famous is the Eyjafjallaökull. East Icelandic volcano, of unpronounceable name, it erupted on March 21, 2010 after an inactivity of 189 years. It caused the displacement of more than 600 people and the ash clouds that it launched interrupted air traffic throughout Europe.
42. Iceland is crossed by a volcanic mountain range which causes it to be the most active volcanic area in the world with an eruption every five years on average. Today it has between 30 and 40 active volcanoes. The legends of Iceland attributed to the volcano Hekla have a direct entry to hell .
43. We all know that the Nordic crime novel is in vogue. One of the most successful writers is Icelandic Arnaldur Indriðason . The protagonist of most of his works is a policeman named Erlendur Sveinsson who lives in Reykjavik. We recommend you read some of his novels like " Marshes "Or" The woman in green "If you have not done it already. Surely you will like and you will know Iceland!
44. Another of the curiosities of Iceland is that it is the country in the world with the highest ratio of published authors. Awesome! Many Icelanders write and publish their books.
45. In Iceland, the police do not carry firearms. Nor does it have a permanent army and the Coast Guard patrol the waters and perform air defense functions.
46. Icelanders are great movie lovers. They average about 5 films a year, which places them among the Europeans who most go to the screening rooms.
47 Grýla It is a monstrous being of Icelandic folklore. It was said that he lived in the mountains and went down to catch children who did not behave well and make them a stew, which was his favorite dish. In 1766 a decree was made that forbade frightening children with Grýla and their children. From that decree, during the eighteenth century, Grýla became a character associated with Christmas.
48. In Iceland, children do not receive gifts from Santa Claus, but from mischievous beings known as "the children of Yule".
49. According to statistics, most natives believe in elves and are passionate about legends of Iceland . If you travel to Iceland you will see some roads that are diverted to avoid passing over the areas where Elves are believed to live.
50. Elves in Iceland are called Húldufolks . They are invisible beings that populate a large part of the legends of Iceland .
Other curiosities of Europe | By countries
Have you been impressed by all these amazing curiosities of Iceland ? If the country of landscapes, volcanoes and the first Vikings that came to America is so interesting, you may want to surprise yourself by getting to know other nations. Do not miss the following articles with curiosities of Europe gathered by countries! We are sure you will be excited!
- Curiosities of Spain
- Fun Facts of England
- Curiosities of Scotland
- Curiosities of Ireland
- Curiosities of Germany
- Curious facts of France
- Curiosities of Italy
- Curiosities of Greece
- Curiosities of Austria
- Curiosities of Luxembourg
- Curiosities of Switzerland
- Curiosities of Norway
- Curiosities of Sweden
- Curiosities of Denmark
- Curiosities of Belgium
Did you know these curiosities of Iceland ? Have you been surprised to learn that most of its inhabitants believe in elves or have so many active volcanoes? To us yes! If you know some curious data from Iceland that we have not mentioned, share it with us and we can expand the list!
Images: Schneelocke , Dieter Schweizer , Hansueli Krapf , Ane Cecilie Blichfeldt / norden.org