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ICELAND (Dan. Island)
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See also:ICELAND (See also:Dan. See also:Island) , an island in the See also:North See also:Atlantic Ocean, belonging to See also:Denmark. Its extreme northerly point is touched by the See also:Arctic Circle; it lies between 13° 22' and 24° 35' W., and between 63° 12' and 66° 33' N., and has an See also:area of 40,437 sq. m Its length is 298 M. and its breadth 194 III., the shape being a rough See also:oval, broken at the north-See also:west, where a See also:peninsula, diversified by a See also:great number of fjords, projects from the See also:main portion of the island. The See also:total length of the See also:coast-See also:line is about 3730 m., of which approximately one-third belongs to the north-western peninsula. Iceland is a See also:plateau or tableland, built up of volcanic rocks of older and younger formation, and pierced on all sides by fjords and valleys. Compared with the tableland, the lowlands have a relatively small-area, namely, one-fourteenth of the whole; but these lowlands are almost the only parts of the island which are inhabited. In consequence of the rigour of its See also:climate, the central tableland is absolutely uninhabitable. At the outside, not more than one-See also:fourth of the area of Iceland is inhabited; the See also:rest consists of elevated deserts, See also:lava streams and glaciers. The north-west peninsula is separated from the main See also:mass of the island by the bays Hunafl6i and Brei5ifjor5r, so that there are really two tablelands, a larger and a smaller. The See also:isthmus which connects the two is only 4 m. across, but has an See also:altitude of 748 ft. The mean See also:elevation of the north-west peninsula is 2000 ft. The fjords and glens which cut into it are shut in by precipitous walls of See also:basalt, which plainly shows that they have been formed by erosion through the mass of the plateau. The See also:surface of this tableland is also See also:bare and desolate, being covered with See also:gravel and fragments of See also:rock. Here and there are large straggling snowfields, the largest being Glamu and Drangajokull,1 on the culminating points of the plateau. The only inhabited districts are the shores of the fjords, where grass grows capable of supporting See also:sheep; but a large proportion of the See also:population gain their livelihood by fishing. The other and larger tableland, which constitutes the substantial See also:part of Iceland, reaches its culminating point in the See also:south-See also:east, in the gigantic snowfield of Vatnajokull, which covers 3300 sq. m. The See also:axis of highest elevation of Iceland stretches from north-west to south-east, from the See also:head of Hvammsfjorlr to Hornafjortr, and from this See also:water-parting the See also:rivers descend on both sides. The See also:crest of the water-parting is crowned by a See also:chain of See also:snow-capped mountains, separated by broad patches of See also:lower ground. They are really a chain of See also:minor plateaus which rise 4500 to 6250 ft. above See also:sea-level and 2000 to 3000 It. above the tableland itself. In the extreme east is Vatnajokull, which is separated from Tungnafellsjokull by Vonarskard (3300 ft.). Between Tungnafellsjokull and Hofsjokull lies the broad depression of Sprengisandr (2130 ft.). Coni:nuing north-west, between Hofsjokull and the next snow-capped See also:mountain, Langjokull, lies Kjolur (2000 ft.); and between Langjokull and Eiriksjokull, Flosaskard (2630 ft.). ' To the' north of the ioklar last mentioned there are a number of lakes, all well stocked with See also:fish. Numerous valleys or glens penetrate into the tableland, especially on the north and east, and between them See also:long mountain spurs, sections of the tableland which have resisted the See also:action of erosion, thrust themselves towards the sea. Of these the most considerable is the mass crowned by Myrdalsjokull, which stretches towards the south. The interior of the table-See also:land consists for the most part of barren, grassless deserts, the surface being covered by gravel, loose fragments of rock, lava, driftsand, volcanic f jokull (390). The glaciers which stream off from these snowfields ashes and glacial detritus. are often of vast extent, e.g. the largest See also:glacier 'of Vatnajokull See also:Save the lower parts of the larger glens, there are no lowlands j has an area of 150 to 200 sq. m., but the greater number are on the north and east. The south coast is See also:flat next the sea; 1 small. Altogether, more than 120 glaciers are known in Iceland. but immediately underneath Vatnajokull there is a See also:strip of gravel and See also:sand, brought down and deposited by the glacial streams. The largest See also:low-lying See also:plain of Iceland, lying between Myrdalsjokull and Reykjanes, has an area of about 1550 sq. in. In its lowest parts this plain barely keeps above sea-level, but it rises gradually towards the interior, terminating in a ramification of valleys. Its maximum altitude is attained at 381 ft. near Geysir. On the west of See also:Mount Hekla this plain connects by a See also:regular slope directly with the tableland, to the great injury of its inhabited districts, which are thus exposed to the clouds of See also:pumice dust and driftsand that See also:cover large areas of the interior. Nevertheless the greater part of this See also:lowland plain produces See also:good grass, and is relatively well inhabited. The plain is drained by three rivers—Markarflj6t, Titj6rsa and Oelfusa—all of large See also:volume, and numerous smaller streams. Towards the west there exist a number of warm springs. There is another lowland plain around the head of Faxafl6i, nearly 400 sq. m. in extent. As a See also:rule the surface of this second plain is very marshy. Several dales or glens penetrate the central tableland; the eastern part of this lowland is called Borgarf jor;5r, the western part M ffrar. The great bays on the west of the island (Faxafloi and Breiis'ifjormr);t as well as the many bays on the north, which are Jokull, plural joklar, Icel. snowfield, glacier. ' Floi, See also:bay; fjor6r, See also:fjord. separated from one another by rocky promontories, appear to owe their origin to subsidences of the surface; whereas the fjords of the north-west peninsula, which make excellent harbours, and those of the east coast seem to be the result chiefly of erosion. Glaciers.—An area of 5170 sq. m. is covered with snowfields and glaciers. This extraordinary development of See also:ice and snow is due to the raw, moist climate, the large rainfall and the low summer temperature. The snow-line varies greatly in different parts of the island, its range being from 1300 to 4250 ft. It is highest on the tableland, on the north See also:side of Vatnajokull, and lowest on the north-west peninsula, to the south of North Cape. Without exception the great neees of Iceland belong to the interior tableland. They consist of slightly rounded domes or billowy snowfields of vast thickness. In See also:external See also:appearance they See also:bear a closer resemblance to the glaciers of the Polar regions than to those of the See also:Alps. The largest snowfields are Vatnajokull (3280 sq. m.), Hofsjokull (520) Langjokull (500) and Myrdals-
It is on the south side of Vatnajokull that they descend lowest; the lower end of Breidamerkurjokull was in the See also:year 1894 only 30 ft. above sea-level. The glaciers of the north-west peninsula also descend nearly to sea-level. The great number of streams of large volume is due to the moist climate and the abundance of glaciers, and the milky See also:
the valleys numerous lakes are found at the backs of the old (slog ft.), which was in eruption eighteen times within the historic See also:period down to 1845. Katla during the same period was active thirteen times down to 1860. The largest See also:volcano is Askja, situated in the See also:middle of the lava-See also: The largest unbroken lava-field in Iceland is Oda6ahraun (Lava of Evil Deeds), upon the table-land north from Vatnajokull (2000 to 4000 ft. above sea-level). It is the See also:accretion of countless eruptions from over twenty volcanoes, and covers an area of 1300 sq.m. (or, including all its ramifications and minor detached streams, 1700 sq. m.), and its volume would fill a cube measuring 13.4 M. in every direction. As regards their superficies, the lava-streams differ greatly. Sometimes they are very uneven and jagged (apalhraun), consisting of blocks of lava loosely flung together in the utmost confusion. The great lava-See also:fields, however, are composed of vast sheets of lava, ruptured and riven in See also:divers ways (helluhraun). The smooth surface of the viscous billowy lava is further diversified by long See also:twisted " See also:ropes," curving backwards and forwards up and down the undulations. Moreover, there are gigantic fissures, See also:running for several See also:miles, caused by subsidences of the underlying sections. The best-known fissure of this See also:character is Almannagja at Thingvellir. On the occasion of outbreaks the See also:fine ashes are scattered over a large portion of the island, and sometimes carried far across the Atlantic. After the eruption of Katla in 1625 the ashes were blown as far as See also:Bergen in See also:Norway, and when Askja was in eruption in 1895 a See also:rain of ashes See also:fell on the west coast of Norway 11 See also:hours 40 minutes, and at See also:Stockholm 15 hours, afterwards. The volcanic ash frequently proves extremely harmful, destroying the pastures so that the sheep and See also:cattle See also:die of See also:hunger and disease. The outbreak of Laki in 1783 occasioned the loss of 11,500 cattle, 28,000 horses and 190,500 sheep—that is to say, J3 % of the cattle in the island, 77% of the horses and 82% of the sheep. After that the island was visited by a See also:famine, which destroyed 95oo See also:people, or one-fifth of the total population. The Icelandic volcanoes may be divided into three classes: (1) See also:cone-shaped, like See also:Vesuvius, built up of alternate layers of ashes, scoriae and lava; (2) See also:cupola-shaped, with an easy slope and a vast crater opening at the See also:top—these See also:shield-shaped cupolas are composed entirely of layers of lava, and their inclination is seldom steeper than 7°-8° ; (3) chains of craters running See also:close alongside a fissure in the ground. For the most part the individual craters are low, generally not exceeding 300 to 500 ft. These crater chains are both very common and often very long. The chain of Laki, which was formed in 1783, extends 20 m., and embraces about one See also:hundred See also:separate craters. Sometimes, however, the lava-streams are vomited straight out of gigantic fissures in the earth without any crater being formed. Many of the Icelandic volcanoes during their periods of quiescence are covered with snow and ice. Then when an outbreak occurs the snow and ice melt, and in that way they sometimes give rise to serious catastrophes (jokulhlaup), through large areas being suddenly inundated by great floods of water, which bear masses of ice floating on their surface. Katla caused very serious destruction in this way by converting several cultivated districts into barren wastes. In the same way in the year 1362 Oera?fajokull, the loftiest mountain in Iceland (6424 ft.), swept See also:forty farms, together with their inhabitants and live stock, bodily into the ocean. The best-known volcano is Heklaseveral volcanoes, which were particularly active in the years 1724-1730. On several occasions there have been volcanic out-breaks under the sea outside the peninsula of Reykjanes, islands appearing and afterwards disappearing again. The crater chain of Laid has only been in eruption once in historic times, namely, the violent and disastrous outbreak of 1783. Iceland, however, possesses no constantly active volcano. There are often long intervals between the successive outbreaks, and many of the volcanoes (and this is especially true of the chains of craters) have only vented themselves in a solitary outburst. Earthquakes are frequent, especially in the districts which are peculiarly volcanic. See also:Historical See also:evidence goes to show that they are closely associated with three naturally defined regions: (1) the region between Skjalfandi and Axarfjdrl r in the north, where violent earth tremblings are extremely common; (2) at Faxafl6i, where minor vibrations are frequent; (3) the See also:southern lowlands, between Reykjanes and 1Vlyrdalsjokull, have frequently been devastated by violent See also:earthquake shocks, with great loss of See also:property and See also:life, e.g. on the 14th-16th of See also:August 1784, when 92 farmsteads were totally destroyed, and 372 farmsteads and 11. churches were seriously damaged; and again in August and See also:September 1896, when another terrible earthquake destroyed 161 farmsteads and damaged 155 others. Hot springs are found in every part of Iceland, both singly and in groups; they are particularly numerous in the western portion of the southern lowlands, where amongst others is the famous See also:Geyser (q.v.). See also:Sulphur springs and boiling, mud lakes are also See also:general in the volcanic districts; and in places there are carbonic See also:acid springs, these more especially on the peninsula of Snxfellsnes, north of Faxafl6i. See also:Geology.—Iceland is built up almost entirely of volcanic rocks, none of them older, however, than the middle of the Tertiary period. The earlier flows were probably contemporaneous with those of See also:Green-land, the Feeroes, the western islands of See also:Scotland and the north-east of See also:Ireland. The See also:principal varieties are basalt and palagonitic breccias, the former covering two-thirds of the entire area, the latter the remaining one-third. Compared with these two systems, all other formations have an insignificant development. The palagonitic breccias, which stretch in an irregular See also:belt across the island, are younger than the basalt. In the north-west, north and east the coasts are formed of basalt, and rise in steep, gloomy walls of rock to altitudes of 3000 ft. and more above sea-level. Deposits of. See also:clay, with remains of See also:plants of the Tertiary period, See also:lignite and See also:tree-trunks pressed flat, which the Icelanders See also:call suriarbrandur, occur in places in the See also:heart of the basalt formation. These fossiliferous strata are See also:developed in greatest thickness in the north-west peninsula. Indeed, in some few places well-marked impressions of leaves and See also:fruit have been discovered, proving that in Tertiary times Iceland possessed extensive forests, and its See also:annual mean temperature must have been at least 48° Fahr., whereas the present mean is 35.6°. The palagonitic breccias, which attain their greatest development in the south of the island and on the tableland, consist of reddish, brown or yellowish rocks, tuffs and breccias, belonging to several different groups or divisions, the youngest of which seems to be of a date subsequent to the Glacial epoch. All over Iceland, in both the basalt and See also:breccia formations, there occur small intrusive beds and dikes of liparite, and as this rock is of a lighter colour than the basalt, it is visible from a distance. In the south-east of the island, in the See also:parish of L6n, there exist a few mountains of See also:gabbro, a rock which does not occur in any other part of Iceland. Near Hfisavik in the north there have been found marine deposits containing a number of marine shells; they belong to the Red See also:Crag See also:division of the See also:Pliocene. In the middle of Iceland, where the See also:geological See also:foundation is See also:tuff and breccias, large areas are buried under See also:ancient outflows of lava, whit''h bear evidences of glacial scratching. These lava streams, which are of a doleritic character, flowed before the Glacial See also:age, or during its continuance, out of lava cones with gigantic crater openings, such as may be seen at the present See also:day. During the Glacial epoch the whole• of Iceland was covered by a vast See also:sheet of inland ice, except for a few small isolated peaks rising along its See also:outer margins. This ice-cap had on the tableland a thickness of 2300 to 2600 ft. Rocks scored by glacial ice and showing plain indications of striation, together with thousands of erratic blocks, are found scattered all over Iceland. Signs of elevation subsequent to the Glacial epoch are common all round the island, especially on the north-west peninsula. There are found strikingly developed marine terraces of gravel, See also:shore lines and surf beaches marked on the solid rock. In several places there are traces of shells; and sometimes skeletal remains of whales and walruses, as well as ancient driftwood, have been discovered at tolerable distances from the present coast. The ancient shore-lines occur at two different altitudes. Along the higher, 23o to 26o ft. above the existing sea-level, shells have been found which are characteristic of high Arctic latitudes and no longer exist in Iceland; whereas on the lower shore-line, See also:loo to 13o ft., the shells belong to species which occur amongst the coast See also:fauna of the present day. The geysers and other hot springs are due to the same-causes as the active volcanoes, and the earthquakes are probably manifestations of the same forces. A feature of See also:special See also:interest to geologists in the present conditions of the island is the great See also:power of the See also:wind both as a transporting and denuding See also:agent. The rock See also:sculpture is often very similar to that of a tropical See also:desert.' Climate.—Considering its high See also:latitude and situation, Iceland has a relatively mild climate. The meteorological conditions vary greatly, however, in different parts of the island. In the south and east the See also:weather is generally changeable, stormy and moist; whilst on 11e north the rainfall is less. The climate of the interior tableland approximates to the See also:continental type and is often extremely See also:cold. The mean annual temperature is 37.2° F. in Stykkisholmr on Breiclifjorii'r, 38.3° at Eyrarbakki in the south of Iceland, 41° at Vestmannmyjar, 36° at Akureyri in the north, 36.7° on Berufjor5r in the east, and 3o•6° at Modrudalr on the central tableland. The range is great not only from year to year, but also from See also:month to month. For instance, at Stykkisholmr the highest annual mean for See also: The south and west coasts are washed by the Gulf Stream, and the north coast by an Arctic current, which frequently brings with it a quantity of See also:drift-ice, and thus exercises a considerable effect upon the climate of the island; sometimes it blocks the north coast in the summer months. On the whole, during the 19th See also:century, the north coast was See also:free from ice on an average of one year in every four or five. The clearness of the See also:atmosphere has been frequently remarked. Thunderstorms occur mostly in winter. See also:Flora.—The vegetation presents the characteristics of an Arctic See also:European type, and is tolerably See also:uniform throughout the island, the See also:differences even on the tableland being slight. At present 435 species of phanerogams and vascular cryptogams are known; the lower orders have been little investigated. The See also:grasses are of the greatest importance to the inhabitants, for upon them they are dependent for the keep of their live stock. Heather covers large tracts, and also affords pasture for sheep. The development of See also:forest trees is insignificant. See also:Birch See also:woods exist in a good many places, especially in the warmer valleys; but the trees are very See also:short, scarcely attaining more than 3 to to ft. in height. In a few places, however, they reach 13 to 20 ft. and occasionally more. A few mountain ash or rowan trees (Sorbus aucuparia) are found singly here and there, and attain to 3o ft. in height. Willows are also See also:pretty general, the highest in growth being Salix phyllicifolia, 7 to so ft. The See also:wild flora of Iceland is small and delicate, with See also:bright See also:bloom, the heaths being especially admired. Wild crowberries and bilberries are the only fruit found in the island. Fauna.—The Icelandic fauna is of a sub-Arctic type. But while the species are few, the individuals are often numerous. The land ' See Th. Thoroddsen, " Explorations in Iceland during the years 1881-1898 " See also:Geographical See also:Journal, vol. xiii. (1899), pp. 251-274, 480-513, with See also:map.mammals are very poorly represented; and it is doubtful whether any species is indigenous. The polar bear is an occasional visitant, being brought to the coast by the See also:Greenland drift-ice. Foxes are common, both the white and the See also:blue occurring; mice and the brown See also:rat have been introduced, though one variety of See also:mouse is possibly indigenous. See also:Reindeer were introduced in 177o. The marine See also:mammalia are numerous. The See also:walrus is now seldom seen, although in prehistoric times it was common. There are numerous species of See also:seals; and the seas abound in whales. Of birds there are over moo species, more than one-See also:half being aquatic. In the interior the whistling See also:swan is common, and numerous varieties of ducks are found in the lakes. The See also:eider See also:duck, which breeds on the islands of Breiifjor&, is a source of livelihood to the inhabitants, as are also the many kinds of sea-fowl which breed on the sea-cliffs. Iceland possesses neither See also:reptiles nor batrachians. The fish fauna is abundant in individuals, some sixty-eight species being found off the coasts. The See also:cod See also:fisheries are amongst the most important in the See also:world. Large quantities of See also:herring, See also:plaice and See also:halibut are also taken. Many of the rivers abound in See also:salmon, and See also:trout are plentiful in the lakes and streams. Population and Towns.—The See also:census of 1890 gave a total population of 70,927, and this number had increased by 1905 to 78,489. The increase during the 19th century was 27,000, while at least 15,600 Icelanders emigrated to See also:America, chiefly to See also:Manitoba, from 1872 to the close of the century. The largest See also:town is Reykjavik on Faxafl6i, with 6700 inhabitants, the See also:capital of the island, and the See also:place of See also:residence of the See also:governor-general and the See also:bishop. Here the Althing meets; and here, further, are the principal public institutions of the island (library, See also:schools, &c.). The town possesses a statue to Thorvaldsen, the famous sculptor, who was of Icelandic descent. The remaining towns include Isafjor6r (pop. moo) on the north-west peninsula, Akureyri (woo) on the north and Seydisfjor6r (800) in the east. See also:Industries.—The principal occupation of the Icelanders is cattle-breeding, and more particularly sheep-breeding, although the fishing industries have come rapidly to the front in See also:modern times. In r85o, 82% of the population were dependent upon cattle-breeding and 7% upon fishing; in 1890 the See also:numbers were 64% and 18% respectively. The culture of See also:grain is not practised in Iceland; all See also:bread-stuffs are imported. In ancient times See also:barley was grown in some places, but it never paid for the cost of cultivation. Cattle-breeding has declined in importance, while the number of sheep has increased. Formerly gardening was of no importance, but considerable progress has been made in this See also:branch in modern times, as also in the cultivation of potatoes and turnips. Fruit-trees will not thrive; but See also:black and red currants and See also:rhubarb are grown, the last-named doing excellently. Iceland possesses four agricultural schools, one agricultural society, and small agricultural associations in nearly every See also:district. The fisheries give employment to about 12,000 people. For the most part the fishing is carried on from open boats, notwithstanding the dangers of so stormy a coast. But larger decked vessels have come into increasing use. In summer the waters are visited by a great number of See also:foreign fishermen, inclusive of about 300 fishing-boats from See also:French ports, as well as by fishing-boats from the Faeroes and Norway, and See also:steam trawlers from See also:England. Excellent profit is made in certain parts of the island from the herring See also:fishery; this is especially the See also:case on the east coast. There are marine See also:insurance See also:societies and a school of See also:navigation at Reykjavik. The export of fish and fish products has greatly increased. In 1849 to 1855 the annual average exported was 148o tons; whereas at the close of the century (in 1899) it amounted to 11,J39 tons and 68,079 barrels of oil, valued at £276,596. See also:Commerce.—From the first colonization of the island down to the 14th century the See also:trade was in the hands of native Icelanders and Norsemen; in the 15th century it was chiefly in the hands of the See also:English, in the r6th of Germans from the Hance towns. From 1602 to 1786 commerce was a See also:monopoly of the Danish See also:government; in the latter year it was declared free to all Danish subjects and in 1854 free to all nations. Since 1874, when Iceland obtained her own See also:administration, commerce has increased considerably. Thus the total value of the imports and exports together in 1849 did not exceed £170,000; while in 1891-1895 the imports averaged £356,000 and the exports £340,000. In 19oz imports were valued at £596,193 and exports at £511,083. Trade is almost entirely with Denmark, the See also:United See also:Kingdom, and Norway and See also:Sweden, in this See also:order according to value. The principal native products exported are live sheep, horses, See also:salt See also:meat, See also:wool and hides, to which must be added the fish products—cod, See also:train-oil, herring and salmon—eiderdown and woollen wares. The See also:spinning, See also:weaving and See also:knitting of wool is a wide-spread See also:industry, and the native See also:tweed (vamal) is the principal material for the clothing of the inhabitants. The imports consist principally of cereals and See also:flour, See also:coffee, See also:sugar, See also:ale, wines and See also:spirits, See also:tobacco, manufactured wares, See also:iron and See also:metal wares, See also:timber, salt, See also:coal, &c. The See also:money, weights and measures in use are the same as in Denmark. The Islands See also:Bank in Reykjavik (1904) is authorized to issue bank-notes up to £133,900 in total value. Communications.—All land journeys are made on horseback, and in the remoter parts all goods have to be transported by the same means. Throughout the greater part of the island there exist no proper roads even in the inhabited districts, but only bridle-paths, and in the uninhabited districts not even these. Nevertheless much has been done to improve such paths as there are, and several miles of See also:driving roads have been made, more particularly in the south. Since 1888 many See also:bridges have been built; previous to that year there was none. The larger rivers have been spanned by iron See also:swing-bridges, and the Blanda is crossed by a fixed iron See also:bridge. Postal connexion is maintained with Denmark by steamers, which See also:sail from See also:Copenhagen and call at See also:Leith. Besides, steamers go round the island, touching at nearly every See also:port. See also:Religion.—The Icelanders are See also:Lutherans. For ecclesiastical purposes the island is divided into 20 deaneries and 142 parishes, and the affairs of each ecclesiastical parish are administered by a parish See also:council, and in each deanery by a district (hjera6) council. When a living falls vacant, the governor-general of the island, after consultation with the bishop, selects three candidates, and from these the See also:congregation chooses one, the See also:election being subsequently confirmed by the governor-general. In the case of certain livings, however, the election requires See also:confirmation by the See also:crown. In 1847 a theological See also:seminary was founded at Reykjavik, and there the majority of the Icelandic See also:ministry are educated; some, however, are graduates of the university of Copenhagen. See also:Health.—The public health has greatly improved in modern times; the See also:death-See also:rate of See also:young See also:children has especially diminished. This improvement is due to greater cleanliness, better dwellings, better nourishment, and the increase in the number of doctors. There are now doctors in all parts of the See also:country, whereas formerly there were hardly any in the island. There is a modern See also:asylum for leprosy at Laugarnes near Reykjavik, and a medical school at Reykjavik, opened in 1876. The general sanitary affairs of the island are under the See also:control of a See also:chief surgeon (See also:national physician) who lives in Reykjavik, and has superintendence over the doctors and the medical school.
Government.—According to the constitution granted to Iceland in 1874, the See also: In every hreppur there is also a representative See also:committee, who administer the poor See also:laws, and look after the general concerns of the hreppur. These committees are controlled by the committees of the syslur (See also:county boards), and these again are under the control of the amtsrdl5 (See also:quarter See also:board), consisting of three members. From the sheriff courts appeals lie to the See also:superior See also:court at Reykjavik, consisting of three judges. Appeals may be taken in all criminal cases and most See also:civil cases to the supreme court at Copenhagen. Iceland has her own See also:budget, the Althing having, by the constitution of 1874, the right to See also:vote its own supplies. As the Aithing only meets every other year, the budget is passed for two years at once. The total income and See also:expenditure are each about £70,000 per See also:financial period. There is a national reserve fund of about £6o,00o, but no public See also:debt; nor is there any contribution for either military or See also:naval purposes. Iceland has her own customs service, but the only import duties levied are upon spirits, tobacco, coffee and sugar, and in each case the duties are fairly low. See also:Education.—Education is pretty widespread amongst the people. In the towns and fishing villages there are a few elementary schools, but often the children are instructed at See also:home; in some places by peripatetic teachers. It is See also:incumbent upon the See also:clergy to see that all children are taught See also:reading, See also:writing and See also:arithmetic. The people are great readers; considering the number of the inhabitants, books and See also:periodicals have a very extensive circulation. Eighteen See also:newspapers are issued (once and twice a See also:week), besides several See also:journals, and Iceland has always been distinguished for her native literature. At Reykjavik there are a Latin school, a medical school and a theological school; at M6druvellir and Hafnarfjor6r, modern high schools (Realschulen); and in addition to these there are four agricultural schools, a school of navigation, and three girls' schools. The national library at Reykjavik contains some 40,000 volumes and 3000 See also:MSS. At the same place there is also a valuable archaeological collection. Amongst the learned societies are the Icelandic See also:Literary Society (Bokmentafjelag), the society of the See also:Friends of the People, and the Archaeological Society of Reykjavik. Joles, Summer Travelling in Iceland (See also:London, 1882) ; H. J. ohnston Lavis, "Notes on the See also:Geography, Geology, See also:Agriculture and See also:Economics of Iceland," See also:Scott. Geog. Mag. xi. (1895) ; W. Bisiker, Across • Iceland (London, 1902) ; J. Hann, " Die Anomalien der Witterung auf Island in dem Zcitraume 1851-1900, &c.," Sitsungsberichte, See also:Vienna Acad. Sci. (1904) ; P. I-lermann, Island in Vergangenheit and Gegenwart (See also:Leipzig, 1907). Also Geografisk Tidskrift, and the Geographical Journal (London), passim. (Tn. T.) See also:HISTORY Shortly after the See also:discovery of Iceland by the Scandinavian, c. 85o (it had long been inhabited by a small See also:colony of Irish See also:Culdees), a stream of See also:immigration set in towards it, which lasted for sixty years, and resulted in the See also:establishment of some 4000 homesteads. In this immigration three distinct streams can be traced. (I) About 870–890 four great noblemen from Norway, Ingolf, Ketil Hwng, Skalla-Grim and Thorolf, settled with their dependants in the south-west of the new found land. (2) In 890–900 there came from the western Islands See also:Queen And, widow of See also:Olaf the White, king of See also:Dublin, preceded and followed by a number of her kinsmen and relations (many like herself being 1 870- 930 Heroic Age. 930- 980 980-1030 See also:Saga Telling. I03o-IIO0 I100-I150 The Literary J 1150-1220 Age. 1 1220-1248 11248-1284 Continental ( 1284-1320 See also:Influence -s 1320-1390 chiefly Norse. `1390-1413 Dark Age. 1413-1530 See also:Reformation. 1530-1575 1 1575-1640 2 1640-1700 i 1700-1730 1730-1768 Decay. 1768-1800 1 1800--1850 See also:Gradual f 1850-1874 1874 See also:Poetry of Western Islands. See also:Early Icelandic poets, chiefly abroad. Icelandic poets abroad. First era of phonetic change. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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