17th June: Iceland Republic Day

Iceland gained independence from Denmark 70 years ago on 17 June 1944. Sveinn Björnsson was its first President. Here are 10 things you may not know about Iceland:

Photo by NASA

1. It is the most sparsely populated country in Europe (although some distance from mainland Europe, it is closer to Europe than to the US and so for practical and political purposes is deemed to be part of Europe). The population is 325,671 and the area 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi).
2. It doesn't have an army. Iceland relies on its coastguard for defences. It is the only member of NATO not to have an army. The lack of an army has made Iceland the most peaceful country in the world, along with a low crime rate and a high level of socio-political stability.
3. Settlement of Iceland began in the 870s after Swedish Viking explorer Garðar Svavarsson circumnavigated it and established it to be an island, then stayed over winter. The first permanent residents were one of Svavarsson's men, Náttfari, and two slaves, who decided to stay behind. The island's settlers were Norsemen and their Gaelic slaves.
4. For a long time, Iceland was a very poor country - its population relied on agriculture and existence was harsh because of the poor soil, volcanoes, climate and disease. It began to prosper during World War II and afterwards thanks to the fishing industry and aid from the United States just after the war. Iceland received the most aid per head through the Marshall Plan than any other country in Europe.
5. Iceland's capital, Reykjavík, is the most northern capital city in the world.
6. The island of Iceland is the 18th largest island in the world and the second largest island in Europe (the largest being Great Britain). It has smaller islands off its coast, including Grímsey, which is the only part of Iceland to be partially inside the Arctic Circle, and Surtsey, which is one of the world's youngest islands, having risen out of the sea during a series of volcanic eruptions in the 1960s. You can only visit Surtsey if you are a scientist researching the growth of life on the island.
7. The English word "geyser" comes from Geysir, one of the geysers in Iceland.
8. The only native land mammal before humans arrived was the Arctic fox. Bats and Polar Bears occasionally visit, but do not settle and breed. There are no native reptiles or amphibians and fewer insects (1,300 known species) than in most other countries. Humans brought sheep, cattle, chicken, goats, horses, the Icelandic Sheepdog, mink, mice, Rats, Rabbits and Reindeer.
9. Iceland was the first country in the world to have a political party formed and led entirely by women. The Women's List or Women's Alliance was founded in 1983 to advance the political, economic, and social needs of women. Although it disbanded in 1999, it left a legacy - every major political party in Iceland has a 40% quota for women, and a third of its MPs are women (compared to a worldwide average of 16%). Iceland was the first country to directly elect a female head of state, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir in 1980.
10. Some of Iceland's traditional foods are cured shark, cured ram, singed sheep's heads, black pudding and broiled puffin.