Country Name
Iceland.
Location
Iceland is an island located in the Atlantic ocean. It does not have any countries bordering around. However, it is considered a part of the Nordic Countries, which include Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands.
Iceland is northwest of The United Kingdom and Norway. Iceland is bordered by the Greenland Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.
Capital
Reykjavík.
Reason for Naming
The Sagas of Icelanders say that a Norwegian named Naddodd (or Naddador) was the first Norseman to reach Iceland, and in the 9th century, he named it Snæland or "snow land" because it was snowing. Following Naddodd, the Swede Garðar Svavarsson arrived, and so the island was then called Garðarshólmur which means "Garðar's Isle".
Then came a Viking named Flóki Vilgerðarson; his daughter drowned en route, then his livestock starved to death.
The sagas say that the rather sad Flóki climbed a mountain and saw a fjord (Arnarfjörður) full of icebergs, which led him to give the island its new and present name "Iceland".
Flag
The Flag of Iceland was adopted on 17 June 1944. The Icelandic flag, like other Nordic countries, features the Nordic cross, which represents Christianity.
The flag consists of a blue background with the white-edged red Nordic
cross that extends to the edges; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to
the hoist side. The blue color represents the nation’s mountains, the red color represents the fire from Icelandic volcanoes, the white color represents the snow and ice in the country, and the Nordic cross represents Christianity.
*Flag Facts:
- The Iceland flag is similar to the flag of Norway but instead of the blue color is the red color.
Language
Iceland's official written and spoken language is Icelandic, a North Germanic language descended from Old Norse.
Icelandic Sign Language was officially recognized as a minority language in 2011. English and Danish are mandatory subjects in the school curriculum. English is widely understood and spoken, while basic to moderate knowledge of Danish is common mainly among the older generations.
Polish is mostly spoken by the local Polish community (the largest minority of Iceland), and Danish is mostly spoken in a way largely comprehensible to Swedes and Norwegians—it is often referred to as skandinavíska (i. e. Scandinavian) in Iceland.
Religion
Icelanders have freedom of religion guaranteed under the Constitution, although the Church of Iceland, a Lutheran body, is the state church.
Iceland is a very secular country; as with other Nordic nations, church attendance is relatively low.
Religion followers in Iceland are; Lutheran Protestant Christianity, Atheism or Agnosticism, Roman Catholic, Other forms of Christianity, Neo-Pagan or Folk Religions, and Other Beliefs.
Other religions or associations in the country Germanic Heathenism, Humanist association, Zionism, Buddhism, Islam, Bahá'í Faith, and Others.
Currency
Icelandic króna (ISK).
Time Zone
+00:00 GMT.
Government Regime
Unitary parliamentary republic.
Climate
The climate of Iceland's coast is subarctic. The warm North Atlantic Current ensures generally higher annual temperatures than in most places of similar latitude in the world. Regions in the world with similar climates include the Aleutian Islands, the Alaska Peninsula, and Tierra del Fuego, although these regions are closer to the equator.
The climate varies between different parts of the island. Generally, the south coast is warmer, wetter, and windier than the north. The Central Highlands are the coldest part of the country. Low-lying inland areas in the north are the aridest. Snowfall in winter is more common in the north than in the south.
The highest air temperature recorded was 30.5 °C. The lowest was −38 °C. The temperature records for Reykjavík are 26.2 °C, and −24.5 °C.
International Phone Code
+354
Internet Code
.is
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