Iceland - Facts & Figures & Culture

People

Population - 330,000 people
Reykjavik - 120,000, metro 200,000
Language is Futhark; 10 ways of describing wind, 9 more letters than English.

One third of the people in Iceland have written a book
SAGA - what is told
All towns have: a church, a swimming pool, and a golf course

Leifer Eriksson Day - Oct. 9
Early Settlers

• Chieftains were burred in their ships with their possessions and slaves.
• Only 2% ever left to explore in fast boats
• 82% of food was barley
• 25% of people were slaves

Viking dishes are eaten during the winter holiday in February.
Babies are put outside on balconies in the winter to keep them healthy.
Skyr is yogurt with lots of protein - traditional.

Tourism is a large industry: 2014 800,000 and 2015 1M.
Fishing was 63% GDP in 2006, in 2013 36%
Film is a growth industry

Police are unarmed

Land

Iceland is the size of Kentucky
20% of Iceland is habitable
12% of Iceland is Glaciers
11% covered in lava
20% grazing
1% agriculture
many earthquakes
30 active volcanoes
"Cotton Flowers" - little white flowers all over the landscape
When the Vikings came 2/3 of the land was covered with birch trees which were all cut down to build buildings and for firewood.
2010 Heimeyer Volcano erupted and disrupted air traffic.
470 indigenous species of flora
600 species of moss
700 species of lichen
National flower Mountain Avens
Birch trees are almost bushes

Birds

• 376 species
• 70 species are breeders
• 9 species of Songbirds breed on Iceland
• 75% are migrants
• Starling eggs and Cormorants are bad luck
• seabirds - land only to reproduce, mate for life
• 2014 - a new dinosaur bird species was found
• National bird of Iceland - Gyr Falcon
• Puffins are still occasionally hunted but very restricted

Icelandic Horses (not Ponies)

5 gaits

• Walk
• Tölt - similar to Tennessee Walking Horse or Paso Fino
• Trot
• Pace
• Canter or Gallop

If an Icelandic Horse is taken to another country it nor it's offspring can never return.

80-100,000 Icelandic horses in Iceland.

Horses have 3 layers of hair.

Other Animals

Arctic Fox - only native species, white in winter gray/brown in summer

No Polar Bears unless one drifts in on and iceberg.

There are 2-3 sheep per capita. They have 2 layers of wool - a coarse 

layer for rain protection and the inner layer is for warmth.

Whales: humpbak, minke and orcas.