ICELAND IS INTERESTING

Fun Facts about Iceland, 

On June 17, 1944, Iceland officially broke ties with Denmark to become a free and independent republic. 

In 1940, during WWII, Germany invaded Denmark. At this time, Iceland was a neutral Danish territory. The British feared the Nazis would next invade and occupy Iceland for use as a North Atlantic Supply post. A pre-emptive British strike was made under the code name of “Operation Fork”. On May 10, 1940 British troops landed without resistance and arrested German citizens. The British and Canadians maintained the occupation till July 7, 1941 when US troops took over the occupation. Yes, this was five months before the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the US entry into WWII. During the occupation Iceland cooperated with the Allies, yet remained neutral. 

Iceland enacted a prohibition on alcoholic beverages in the early 1900’s. Then via a national referendum most alcohol was legalized, with the exception of beer containing more than 2.25 percent alcohol. It was thought that the beer would lead to drunkenness among the common folks. It was not until March 1, 1989, a date now celebrated in Iceland as Beer Day, was the consumption of beer made legal. 

The  Laki eruption of 1783 and 1784 was so significant the ash and sulfuric acid caused many freak weather events in Europe. Iceland crops were decimated and one half of the country’s livestock died. This became known as the “Haze Famine”. The Danish Government considered evacuating Iceland. It took two decades for the population to recover. 

Iceland is home to the world’s oldest parliament. Started in 930, a national assemble named Althingi gathered to govern the island. For two weeks every summer the chieftains would gather at Thingvellir, east of Reykjavik where the tectonic plates converge. All free and law-abiding citizens could attend as the assembly passed laws. 

Iceland publishes the most books per capita of any country in the world. This dates back to the sagas and the telling the stories of the Norse  settlers. It has been reported that 1 out of every 10 Icelanders will publish a book. There is also the Christmas tradition of gifting books known as the “Christmas Book Flood”. 

From 1966 to 1986, Iceland had one television station and it was government run. The station would go black and not broadcast on Thursdays to encourage human interaction. Also they did not broadcast during the vacation month of July from 1966 to 1983. 

None of mainland Iceland is in the Arctic Circle. Iceland is situated south of the Arctic Circle with the exception of the island of Grimsey off its northern coast, a place so remote that birds outnumber people by 1,000 to 1.   The marker at Grimsey is not exact so ask a local to show you the red arctic circle line, or is it blue. It is a good place to see and photo Puffins. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream resulting in a winter climate similar to that of New York.

So now you know some interesting Iceland facts which make it such a wonderful place to visit.