Download - Ice Land
8/3/2019 Ice Land
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ice-land 1/2
IcelandSymbolsFlag of Iceland
Coat of arms is a cross of silver on a
sky-blue shield, with a fire-redcross inside the silver cross
The "Lady of the Mountain" (Fjallkonan) is the female incarnation (national
personification) of Iceland. While she symbolised what Icelanders considered to
be genuine and purely Icelandic, in her purity she reflected a deep-seated, but
unattainable, wish of Icelanders to be a totally independent nation.
LanguageIceland's official written and spoken language is Icelandic, a North Germanic
language descended from Old Norse.
Culture
The culture of Iceland is rich and varied as well as being known for its literary
heritage which stems from authors from the 12th to 14th centuries. OtherIcelandic traditional arts include weaving, silver crafting, and wood carving. The Reykjavík area has
several professional theatres, a symphony orchestra, an opera, and a large amount of art galleries,
bookstores, cinemas, and museums. There are also four active folk dance ensemble in Iceland.
Iceland's literacy rate is among the highest in the world, and a love of literature, art, chess, and other
intellectual pursuits is widespread.
Icelanders generally have a traditional liberal Nordic outlook, similar to other Nordic countries such
as Norway and Sweden. Yet, an important key to understanding Icelanders and their culture (and which
differentiates them from the majority of their contemporary Nordic peoples) is the high importance they
place on the traits of independence and self-sufficiency. Icelanders are proud of their Viking heritage and Icelandic language and take great care to preserve their
traditions and language. Modern Icelandic remains close to the Old Norse spoken in the Viking Age. For
example, the word for computer (an introduced object) is tölva which combines the ancient terms for
number and seer.
Until the Christianisation of Iceland, many traditional Viking beliefs were strongly held, remnants of which
remain today. According to a 2005 New York Times article, the majority of Icelanders either believe in
elves or are unwilling to rule out their existence. There are a number of accounts of roads that have been
re-routed and building plans redesigned or abandoned to avoid disturbing rocks where elves are said to
live.
Icelandic society and culture has a high degree of gender equality, with many women in leadership
positions in government and business. Iceland also has a highly progressive gay rights legislation, with
couples having been able to register civil unions since 1996, adopt since 2006 and marry since 2010.
8/3/2019 Ice Land
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ice-land 2/2
Women retain their names after marriage, since Icelanders generally do not use surnames but patronyms or
(in certain cases) matronyms.
Iceland also has the most extensive and progressive child protection law. The new Children's Act, passed in
March 2003, and effective as of November 1, 2003, not only places Iceland on the list of twenty-five
nations that have outlawed spanking, the act also outlaws verbal and emotional abuse and makes child
protection a priority. Physical or mental violence is punishable by imprisonment and/or fine, and there is no
legal defense.In 2006, Iceland was ranked as the fourth happiest nation in the world by an independent scientific study.
Local and national festivals include the annual National Day, celebrating the country's independence in
1944, Sumardagurinn fyrsti which celebrates the first day of summer, and Sjómannadagurinn which is held
every June to pay tribute to the country's seafaring past.
Easily solved, you might think, but raincoats are somewhat of a taboo in Iceland. They are anything but
fashionable and if you see a person wearing a raincoat in Iceland, it’s probably a foreigner .
Religion
Religion in Iceland was initially the Viking religion that
believed in Norse mythology. Later the nation became half-
Christian and then more fully Christian. This
increasing Christianisation culminated in the Pietismperiod
when non-Christian entertainments were discouraged. At
present the population is overwhelmingly, if
nominally, Lutheran. However there are
also Catholics, Jehovah's
Witnesses, Mormons, Muslims and others. There are also
folk beliefs concerning elves that do not rise to the level of
religion, but have gained some note.
Cuisine
Iceland offers wide varieties of traditional
cuisine. Þorramatur (food of the þorri) is the Icelandic
national food. Nowadays þorramatur is mostly eaten
during the ancient Nordic month of þorri, in January and
February, as a tribute to old culture. Þorramatur consistsof many different types of food. These are
mostly offal dishes like pickled ram's testicles, putrefied
shark, singed sheep heads, singed sheep head jam, blood
pudding, liver sausage (similar to Scottish haggis) and
dried fish (often cod or haddock) with or without butter.
Much of the cuisine centres around Iceland's fishing
industry. Traditional dishes include Hákarl (putrefied shark), gravlax (salmon marinated
in salt and dill), hangikjöt (smoked lamb), hrútspungar (pickled ram's testicles), and slátur (sausages made
from sheep entrails). A popular food is skyr made of cultured skim milk, in the summer time it may beserved with bilberries as a dessert. Brennivin is an Icelandic liquor made from potatoes and caraway.