Portal:Iceland

Topics Culture Geography Health History Mathematics Nature People Philosophy Religion Society Technology Iceland i/ˈaɪslənd/ (Icelandic: Ísland, IPA: [ˈislant]) is a Nordic European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The country has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi). The capital and largest city is Reykjavík, with the surrounding areas in the southwestern region of the country being home to two-thirds of the country's population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior mainly consists of a plateau characterised by sand fields, mountains and glaciers, while many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. The country is sometimes erroneously called The Republic of Iceland and sometimes its counterpart Lýðveldið Ísland in Icelandic, but the official name is rather like the official name of Canada - simply the country name. One example of the former is the name of the Constitution of Iceland, which in Icelandic is Stjórnarskrá lýðveldisins Íslands and literally means "the Constitution of the republic of Iceland", but note that "republic" is not capitalized. The official title of the President of Iceland (Forseti Íslands) does also not include the word republic as in some other republics. See also Names for Iceland. Template:/box-footer Surtsey (Icelandic: "Surtur's island") is a volcanic island off the southern coast of Iceland. At it is also the southernmost point of Iceland. It was formed in a volcanic eruption which began 130 metres below sea level, and reached the surface on 14 November 1963. The eruption may have started a few days earlier and lasted until 5 June 1967, when the island reached its maximum size of 2.7 km². Since then, wind and wave erosion has seen the island steadily diminish in size: as of 2005 it is only 1.4 km² in size. The new island was named after the fire giant Surtur from Norse mythology, and was intensively studied by volcanologists during its creation and, since the end of the eruption, has been of great interest to botanists and biologists as life has gradually colonised the originally barren island. The undersea vents that produced Surtsey are part of the Vestmannaeyjar (Westmann Isles) submarine volcanic system, part of the fissure of the sea floor called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Vestmannaeyjar also produced the famous eruption of Eldfell on the island of Heimaey in 1973. The eruption that created Surtsey also created a few other small islands along this volcanic chain, such as Jólnir and other unnamed peaks. Most of these eroded away fairly quickly. Goðafoss The Goðafoss (meaning waterfall of the gods), situated in north-central Iceland, is one of the country's most spectacular waterfalls. The water of the river Skjálfandafljót falls from a height of 12 meters over a width of 30 meters. Geir H. Haarde Geir Hilmar Haarde is a former Prime Minister of Iceland and chairman of the Independence Party. Geir became Prime Minister on June 15, 2006 following the announcement of Halldór Ásgrímsson's resignation as the Prime Minister of Iceland on June 5, 2006. He then led a coalition between his party and the Progressive Party. After the 2007 parliamentary elections, where the Independence Party increased their share of the vote, Haarde renewed his term as Prime Minister leading a coalition between his party and the Social Democratic Alliance. He was followed by Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir. January 1 2016: Iceland's ruling president will not run for re-election in June 2016. (Reuters) October 28 2015: Iceland's central bank and the finance ministry agree on steps to lift capital controls. (Reuters) February 27 2015: The fissure eruption in Holuhraun ends. (BBC) February 12 2015: Iceland's Supreme Court confirms convictions of four former exucutives of Kaupthing bank for financial fraud. (RTE) ...that in 1995 an avalanche destroyed 29 homes and killed 20 people in the town of Flateyri? ...that after missing four Summer Olympics, Iceland has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympics since 1936? ...that the layout of Icelandic grasshouses included a main room, additional living space, pantry, lavatory, sauna room, and sleeping area? ► Iceland Ridge (1188m) along the north slope of Öxnadalur, Öxnadalur is situated in Tröllaskagi, a mountainous peninsula with several peaks reaching over 1000 meters above sea level. Subdivisions: Eastern Region • Capital Region • Southern Region • Southern Peninsula • Vestfirðir History: Timeline • Settlement of Iceland • Icelandic Commonwealth • Age of the Sturlungs • Cod War Law: Supreme Court of Iceland Politics: Parliament (Alþing) • President • Prime Minister • Ombudsman • Cabinet • Constitution • Elections • Administrative divisions • Political parties Geography: Climate • Geology • Glaciers • Volcanoes • Waterfalls • Lakes • Rivers • Transport Economy: Stock Exchange • Icelandic Króna • Banks Military: Iceland Air Defence System • Icelandic Crisis Response Unit Demographics: Language • Religion • Subdivisions Culture: Architecture • Art • Cinema • Cuisine • Education • Literature • Media • Music • Prostitution • Public holidays • Sport • Television • Whaling Symbols: Flag • Coat of arms • National anthem (Lofsöngur) Lists: Outline of Iceland • Index of Iceland-related articles Template:/box-footer Requests: List of surnames of Iceland • Þykkvabær • More... Stubs: Constitution of Iceland • Danish–Icelandic Act of Union • Ingólfr Arnarson • Valdís Óskarsdóttir • Tourism in Iceland • Elections in Iceland • Bessastaðir • Þorramatur • Islam in Iceland • Perlan • Southern Region • More... Tasks: Classify and rate unassessed articles Join: WikiProject Iceland There is an Icelandic version of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Iceland Europe Featured articles Alliterative verse • Eldfell • Hrafnkels saga • Surtsey Good articles Bolli Bollason • Die Another Day • Education in Iceland • Iceland hotspot • Icelanders • Paul Oscar • Renewable energy in Iceland Featured pictures Grímsvötn in 1972 Arctic Denmark Finland Norway Scotland Faroe Islands Greenland Europe European Union Ireland 45px Gateway to Iceland Government Offices of Iceland Icelandic Government Information Center & Icelandic Embassies Visit Iceland – the official Icelandic Tourist Board Iceland entry at The World Factbook Iceland entry at Encyclopædia Britannica Iceland from UCB Libraries GovPubs Iceland at DMOZ Wikimedia Atlas of Iceland Wikivoyage has a travel guide for [[Wikivoyage:Iceland#|Iceland]]. Wikia has a wiki on this subject at World Wikia: Iceland

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