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Iceland is a North Atlantic island country. It is
located between Greenland and Norway, immediately south
of the Arctic Circle. It has an area of 103,000 km2and
4800 kmof coastline. Iceland is bathed by the Greenland
Sea in the north, the Norwegian Sea in the east, the
Atlantic Ocean in the south, and the Danish Strait in
the west. The most important cities are Reykjavík, the
capital, with 116,500 inhabitants (2004), Kópavogur
(26,800 inhabitants), Hafnarfjördhur (21,800
inhabitants), Akureyri (16,000 inhabitants), Gardhabaer
(9,000 inhabitants) and Húsavik (2400 inhab.). Like the
Azores, it is located on the Central Atlantic Rift,
hence the predominance of basalts and other volcanic
rocks, of about 100 volcanoes and several hot
springs. The geological and climatic characteristics
make much of the territory inhospitable. The arboreal
vegetation cover results from the planting of conifers
and the remaining vegetation is shrub and undergrowth.
The climate is cold, having only three months in
Reykjavík in the south with temperatures above 10 ° C,
which explains the permanence of glaciers.
Economy
Iceland has an economy that is based on the fishing
industry. Over the past 50 years, fishing has gone from
family activity to large-scale commercial activity, with
processing factories operated by large
cooperatives. Industrial production includes aluminum,
diatomite, food products, beverages and textile
products. Only 1% of the soil is cultivated and,
therefore, agriculture is limited to planting potatoes,
hay and forage. Maritime products dominate exports and
are destined for the United Kingdom, Germany and the
USA. Imports come from Denmark, Germany and the USA, and
cover machinery, transport equipment, fuels and
construction materials.
Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide
emissions, per capita (metric tons, 1999), is
7.4.
Population
The population was, in 2006, 299 388 inhabitants, which
corresponds to a density of approximately 3 inhab./km2. The
birth and death rates are respectively 13.64% and
6.72%. Average life expectancy is 80.31 years. The value
of the Human Development Index (HDI) is 0.942 and the
value of the Gender-adjusted Development Index (IDG) is
0.940 (2001). The country's inhabitants are mostly
Icelandic (96%). The religion with the greatest
expression is Evangelical Lutheranism (91%). The
official language is Icelandic.
History
Iceland was colonized by Vikings from Norway in 874, but
some recent archaeological discoveries suggest that it
would have been populated earlier. In 930, the colonists
created the world's first Parliament, the Althing. In
1262, the country joined Norway and, in 1380, both
countries came under the rule of the Danish crown. Until
the Reformation, Iceland was politically autonomous, but
in the mid-17th century, the Danish Crown began to
exercise strong control over the country. At that time,
the national economy declined and, in 1780, hunger
killed 1/5 of the population.
In 1874, Denmark secured the Icelandic Constitution
and, in 1904, Iceland constituted its own
Government. During the German occupation of Denmark in
the 1940s, British and American troops stationed on
Icelandic territory, using it as a strategic air
base. In 1944, Iceland became an independent republic.
Iceland is currently a member of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO), although it does not have
its own military forces. The country has remarkably high
standards of living, education, social security and
health, in addition to having great political stability
and the highest per capita income in Europe.
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