Iceland and Icelandic Culture

  Myths and Mythology in Iceland Huldufólk, the Elves of Iceland Image sourced from  Ancient Origins In Iceland, elves are known as  Huldufólk, which translates to "hidden people". These elves live in enchanted rocks and cliffs, and they tend to resemble humans and their lifestyle almost exactly. This is mainly why Icelanders tend to believe that they are invisible most of the time. There are a few exceptions to this, where they become visible on nights like  Midsummer Night and New Year’s Eve. The Icelandic elves are fiercely protective of their homes, and are known to unleash great harm onto those that disturb them. It is believed that the last manifestation of this myth occurred during a road-laying project in the Gálgahraun lava field in 2015. After many tries, with either machine breakdowns, or other issues along the way, the road ended up being rerouted to bypass the "hidden people's" realm.  Sources:  Island Hotel  and  Guide to Icelan...

National Symbols of Iceland Flag of Iceland Sourced from  Britannica The Icelandic national flag was designed by Matthías Þórðarson in 1913, and was officially adopted as the national flag in 1915. The design of the flag is called the Nordic Cross, and it helps connect Iceland to other countries in Scandinavia. Even the colors of the flag tell a story! The blue symbolizes the Atlantic Ocean that surrounds the island, demonstrating the strong connection that Iceland has with the sea. The white represents the glaciers found on the island, and the snowy mountain peaks, and all of the pristine ice features that you can find that shape much of the natural scenery in Iceland. The red cross symbolizes the flowing lava and the volcanoes that are found on the island. This truly brings together the idea that Iceland is the "Land of Fire and Ice".  Sources: ( Guide to Iceland ,  Britannica ,  Scandinavia Standard , and Government of Iceland ) The Icelandic Coat of Arms Sou...

  Healthcare in Iceland In Iceland, there is a universal healthcare system. Healthcare is subsidized, and the Icelandic Health Insurance system will automatically cover anyone who has been a legal resident in the country for 6 or more months. Not just in Iceland, the healthcare system is generally public and offers universal access for all inhabitants. In March 2018, the President of the European Federation on Internal Medicine, Runolfur Palsson, MD FACP, was interviewed on his perspective on the healthcare system in Iceland. He was asked about what other countries can learn from the European healthcare system, which Iceland belongs to. “In European countries, the healthcare system is generally public with universal access for the inhabitants. However, in some countries private medical clinics do exist and in some cases the services are reimbursed by private insurance companies, whereas in other instances services provided by the private sector are reimbursed by the national he...

  Business Protocol in Iceland In Iceland, business protocol is conducted in a certain fashion. You are expected to be punctual, as it is expected to be able to start the meeting at the scheduled time. If you have a presentation or such that requires some set up, this should be considered when you are arriving to meetings, as this will usually take some extra time to prepare to present. At the start of a business meeting, you are expected to shake hands with everyone who is present, which also tends to be repeated at the conclusion of the meeting. The handshake should be firm, and eye contact should be made during this as well. It is also common to exchange business cards at this time as well. Before the meeting typically takes place, informal conversation usually occurs. A common conversation topic, especially if one is unfamiliar with Iceland, is how they may like Iceland. You should be prepared to give a short and positive response. Icelanders like to mix pleasure and busine...

  Nonverbal Language and Communication Why would it be important to understand nonverbal communication in certain cultures? How would it help you while you interact with those from that culture? By understanding nonverbal communication from unfamiliar cultures, you can then communicate effectively with those from different cultures. It can prevent misunderstandings, it can build trust, and it will allow you to have an accurate understanding and interpretation of messages that the speaker may be trying to relay to you. Things such as eye contact or gestures tend to vary among different cultures, and by even knowing these and what certain gestures may mean to them can avoid you being offensive on accident. By knowing these nonverbal cues, you can foster and create better relationships with those who come from a different culture from yourself. (EBSCO). Some potential obstacles you may come across to accurately understand nonverbal messages and cues of other people can be differen...

  Iceland and Language             The official language of Iceland is known as Icelandic, which has its origins in Northern Germanic languages. Modern Icelandic is very similar to the Norwegian and Faroese languages, as both originated from the Old Norse language and have evolved overtime to their respective languages. Icelandic is spoken by approximately 300,000 people, most of who reside in Iceland. Icelandic has evolved very little from Old Norse, and Icelandic speakers are able to read Old Norse with great ease, although pronunciation has changed. There are no dialects that exist within the language or by their speakers. (EBSCO). To those who do not speak Icelandic, they use English as a Lingua Franca. Lingua Franca is defined as “a language or mixture of languages used as a medium of communication by people whose native languages are different”. (ThoughtCo). English is actually taught as a second language in Iceland, ...

The Discovery of Iceland and Norse Settlements In around 870 AD, Iceland was settled first by Hrafna-Flóki Vilgerðarson, who deliberately sailed to Iceland as the news of a new country in the West reached Norway, and became the forst Scandinavian to do so. When he climbed a mountain in what is now Vatnsfjörður (a nature reserve that is located in the north-western area of Iceland), he spotted some drift ice in a fjord. This in term gave name to the country, Iceland. In 874, the settlement of Iceland begins after Ingólfr Arnarson became the first permanent Nordic settler of the newfound country. Iceland still to this day is very proud of their Nordic roots and heritage, and this is representative in many different areas of their culture, such as their language, architecture, and even their own folklore. Iceland becomes a Republic Iceland has only recently gained its independence, after centuries under rule of either Norway or Denmark. In around 1258, we see that a man named Giss...

  Iceland: A Timeline of   Major Historical Events References and Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Icelandic_history https://www.visindavefur.is/svar.php?id=6729 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalmar_Union https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_independence_movement https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17386859 https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/iceland-becomes-republic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GIUK_gap

Below is a short video containing information and a short overview of Iceland's long history.  

  What is the worldview in Iceland like?              Iceland has a wonderful, blended worldview of both spiritual and religious practices. Christianity practices are the main religion that we see here in Iceland, with 68.13% of the population belonging to Christian denominations according to Statistics Iceland. 57.23% of the population belonging to The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, with another 5.28% belonging to other minor Lutheran churches. According to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, they state the following about their core assumptions, cultural expressions, and their practicing ethics: o    “The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland is grounded in the Scriptures and in five confessions of faith: the Apostles ’Creed, the Nicene Creed, the Athanasian Creed, the Augsburg Confession and Luther’s Small Catechism. The Church understands itself as part of the one, holy, catholic and a...

  What is the family structure like in Iceland? The traditional family structure in Iceland has changed throughout the years, specifically within the last 50 or so years. Iceland actually leads the list of countries with unwed mothers, where in 2016, 67% of babies born in Iceland were born to parents who were not married. Bill Weir, a CNN reporter, sat down with an Iceland native, Bryndis Asmundottir and discussed how Iceland views marriage. Weir writes it best, stating:   “’You have this horrible term in English, ‘broken families,’ ” Bryndis Asmundottir says over coffee. “Which basically means just if you get divorced, then something’s broken. But that’s not the way it is in Iceland at all. We live in such a small and secure environment, and the women have so much freedom. So you can just, you can choose your life.’ Bryndis has three kids with two partners and not a drop of shame or regret. She explains that since few Icelanders are religious, there is no moral stigma at...