Articles
Iceland's Work-Life Balance Culture: Where Work Ends on Time and Nature Calls
Iceland's work culture prioritises personal leisure over work, despite placing 26th out of 36 nations on the OECD work-life balance index. Icelanders work around 1,697 hours per…
Iceland's Volcanic Landscape: A Living Laboratory of Plate Tectonics and Eruptions
Iceland is one of the most volcanically active locations outside tropical zones. Its geological character is defined by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge spreading zone meeting with a mantle hotspot, resulting…
The Blue Lagoon: A Geothermal Spa Born from an Industrial Accident, Now Iceland's Most Popular Attraction
The Blue Lagoon, located on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland, is the most visited tourist destination in Iceland and one of the world's most stunning geothermal…
The Icelandic Yule Lads: 13 Mischievous Christmas Trolls with 400 Years of Folklore
Iceland celebrates Christmas with 13 distinct gift-giving characters known as the Jólasveinar (Yule Lads), who originate from mediaeval Icelandic folklore and symbolise the country's…
The Golden Circle: Iceland's Ultimate 300-Kilometre Day Trip Through Three Geological Wonders
The Golden Circle is a 300-kilometre (186-mile) loop viewing route that connects three geological wonders within a comfortable driving distance from Reykjavik. It is the ideal one-day…
The Icelandic Naming System: Patronymics and Matronymics Reflecting Gender Equality Values
Iceland has a unique naming tradition where children's last names are derived from their father's or mother's first names, followed by "-son" or "-dóttir" (literally "son" or "daughter"). A family…
The Icelandic Language: A Living Bridge to Old Norse Spoken 1,000+ Years Ago
Modern Icelandic is one of Europe's most linguistically conservative languages, remaining so similar to Old Norse (the language spoken during Iceland's settlement in 870 AD) that…
Iceland's Geothermal Paradise: Sitting Atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge Where Continents Diverge
Iceland is located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a submarine mountain chain that marks the divergence of the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. This spreading zone creates…
Iceland's Gender Equality Milestone: 12+ Years as World's #1 for Gender Parity
Iceland has been ranked first globally in gender equality for at least 12 years in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Index. This achievement is a result of deliberate government…
Vatnajökull Glacier: Europe's Largest Ice Cap Retreating Rapidly Due to Climate Change
Vatnajökull, sometimes known as the "Glacier of Lakes," is the largest ice cap in Iceland and the second largest in Europe, behind Novaya Zemlya's Severny Island. As of 2023, the glacier…
Reykjavik: Iceland's Vibrant Capital Blending Viking Heritage, Modern Culture, and Arctic Nightlife
Reykjavik, the world's northernmost sovereign state capital (at 64°08' North), combines mediaeval Viking origins, 19th-century European sophistication, 20th-century modernist…
Iceland's Viking Settlement: 1,100 Years of Continuous Settlement Since 874 AD
Iceland's current history dates back to 874 AD, when Ingólfr Arnarson, a Norse farmer and chieftain fleeing political unrest in Norway, established the first permanent settlement…