Fast Facts
Note: Starting today, I am adding world capitals to the facts list. I have revised prior days’ as well because we should know how to spell Reykjavik and Tegucigalpa.
- Named by: Flóki Vilgerðarson, who saw ice caps in Iceland. Earlier names included Snæland (Snowland) and Garðarshólmur (Garoar’s island, mine all mine!)
- Capital: Reykjavik
- Long/Lat: 64.1 N/21.2 W, 4200 mi and 8 hrs east of Castro valley
- Population: 394,000 or only 6x CVs
- Size: 39,800 sq mi or 2350 CVs, not population dense
- Avg temp in April: 39 F/4 C brrr
- Median household income: $55,000 because stuff is expensive in Iceland
- Ethnicity: 86% Icelander, 7% Polish
- Main industries: Fishing, tourism, aluminum
So many volcanoes! Hekla, Eldgjá, Herðubreið, Eldfell, and Laki, whose 1783 eruption wiped out a quarter of the population. This is what happens when a country emerges out of the ocean rift between two tectonic plates, as the Eurasian plate and Mid-Atlantic plate are moving away from each other. You get Iceland.
A fourth-grade view of geology would point out that all the continents used to be huddled together in Pangaea, and, over a LOOOOONG time, they’ve been separating. The Atlantic Ocean’s getting bigger, and the Pacific, smaller. One of the points of separation goes through Iceland, which is only about 14 million years old. Proto-humans began at 3 mya, so Iceland is just a little older than we are. No wonder it’s still got acne!
In June 1783, a fissure along the Skafta River opened up, and at least ten eruptions poured lava out, in an event now called Skaftareldar. A priest held mass during much of the eruptions, as the lava approached–but did not overwhelm–the church, which earned that talk the name “fire sermon.” (Those Protestants-fire and brimstone!) The sulfuric gases which continued to spew afterward were much worse, however, producing the “famine of the mist,” or Móðuharðindin. It took out half the cattle, 80% of the sheep and horses, and 20% of the population, even though many had originally went offshore during the eruption. Because Denmark was its only trading partner, news of the eruption didn’t reach Europe until September.
In the early modern period, Iceland’s industries were mainly dried cod and wool. Dorothy Dunnett’s To Lie with Lions tells a great story of Renaissance-era entrepreneurs racing with fishing and gunboats to corner the cod haul in the 1670s, but also experiencing the eruption of Katla. Well, Dunnett calls it Katla, “The Mouth of Hell,” but today’s Internet said it was Veðivötn in 1677 because Dunnett didn’t have Internet and Wikipedia in 1961. The story tells of the eruption happening as our hero and heroine were escaping the rival fishermen, and the duo had to wrap leather around their feet because their shoes burned off.
But Iceland in the medieval period also had sheep, and one type of currency was actually a twill cloth called vaðmál, made from wool. Viking settlers brought the sheep @ 9th century, and because there hasn’t been much opportunity for much inter-breeding, the sheep are much the same as they were, centuries ago. The cloth had to meet certain standards of thickness, quality, and length to count as currency. Women did much of the work, which gave them–as scholars say–“indirect power over commerce.” Clothing as currency was very practical, since it could be worn, exchanged, displayed (artwork), and durable.
Today, tourism is also a sizeable part of Iceland’s economy, as I well know since I think at least 4 friends have sent all these gorgeous photos of dormant volcanoes, geysers, fissures, hot springs, spas and so forth. Got those, thanks. Iceland also manufactures aluminum and has started harnessing clean energy, geothermal, naturally. (hoho)
Iceland now has a thriving economy, strong support for women and social justice, independent energy production, and is the most peaceful country in the world.
I asked Majel Barrett for little known facts, and she said, “Oh, there’s no reptiles” and “people have to have their names approved.” No reptiles because brand new land, post-asteroid, so all reptiles today need more sunlight than Iceland might sustain. They carry parasites, so Iceland’s poobahs forbid anyone bringing them in. But aside from the cute bits my AI was scraping from tourists sites, there’s something they don’t mention: China.
China is now heavily involved with Iceland’s economy, more than the U.S. Missed opportunity, perhaps. The U.S. used to have troops stationed there, beginning in WW2. They left in 2006, shortly before the world economic collapse which hit Iceland hard in 2008. In 2010, China loaned Iceland big $$ and began creating trade agreements, for energy–geothermal and oil–as well engaging in currency swaps. Imports and exports between Iceland and China have soared since. Iceland started to join the EU, but never did; they have joined the BRI (Chinese Trade), despite America praising them for not doing so.
However, this seems like a seismic trade event, on its way to erupting, do we not think?
