Behavior: Iceland is an island between the North Atlantic Ocean and the Greenland Sea. It has a population of 357,000 people and 314,000 of them speak the native language of Icelandic. Icelandic is most closely related to the Faroese and Western Norwegian languages. Iceland is a full democracy as of 2021 with a constitutional republic with a multi-party system.
Reykjavik is the capital city with a population of 122,853 as of 2016. The President is Guoni Th. Johannesson who took office in 2016. He was reelected for a second term in 2020. Family is very important to Icelanders. They tend to be close-knit with relatives often helping care for the children. Gender equality lessons begin in preschool and Iceland is considered the number one place in the world for gender equality.
Symbolic: The island has a strong religious contingency with Christianity leading the way. 62.3 percent of the religious population is Evangelical Lutheran with the Roman Catholic Church following at 4 percent. Education is very important to Icelandic communities and all education is free through college. The island has seven colleges. Four are public and three are private. They even have a school dedicated to agriculture. Iceland is very concerned about global warming. Since 11 percent of the island is covered in glaciers and it is an island, rising waters could be devastating.
Concrete: Wondering what to wear in Iceland? Besides the heavy, beautiful, woolen sweaters and warm boots worn by many, there is a strong fashion scene, especially in Reykjavik. You can wear Icelandic designers Kron, Inklaw, Myrka, Kiosk, and 66° North lines to blend right in. Festivals on the island abound. You can attend music festivals, outdoor camping festivals, and food festivals where you can eat such delicacies as boiled sheep heads, fermented shark, and pickled sheep testicles. You can also play Kubb (say “Koob”) which involves two teams of six who toss batons (femurs) at the other teams’ blocks (skulls) which have been placed upright in the turf. Just don’t knock over the Kings’ block or you lose! When you are ready to sit down to a meal, expect fish, lamb, and skyr (a form of yogurt). These are staples in the Icelandic diet. After a hearty meal you can join the community as it gathers its flocks of free-range sheep after which you can soak in many of the mineral hot springs that are available on the island. Visit Iceland and you will never be bored!
Lastly, Iceland is the home of the Icelandic Horse. A hearty, robust, and smoothly gaited horse known to be able to do anything asked of it, the Icelandic is prized all over the world for their sturdiness, stamina, and tractablility.