According to legend, a Norse explorer named Naddador was the first one to find Iceland. When he got there, it was snowing, so he decided to name the country Snæland, or "snow land." The next person to find the island was Swedish Viking Garðar Svavarosson, who's actions led people to name it Garðarshólmur (“Garðar’s Isle”). But this did not stick.

 

The next traveler to arrive at Iceland was Flóki Vilgerðarson. On his way to the land of ice, Vilgerðarson's daughter drowned and all of his livestock died from the brutal winter. The Icelandic sagas explain that in his sadness and frustration, Vilgerðarson decided to climb a mountain, only to discover a fjord full of icebergs, which led to the name.

 

The population on the island "felt they were part of the Nordic region, but they wanted to maintain a separate identity," says Guðni Thorlacius

Jóhannesson, the president of Iceland. They called themselves Íslendingur, which means "a man from Iceland in the court of Norway."

 

And so through all of this, Iceland got its name. But what is this name all about? Do Icelanders spend their lives in ice? Are they people of the land? Are they all Vikings? Iceland is quite a unique country: quirky, but adventurous; beautiful, but dangerous; traditional, but modern; happy, but dark. What does all of this mean? How did Iceland get this reputation? And what defines the Icelandic identity?

 

 

This is a song that the Inspired by Iceland campaign created for the nation. This is a great example of the different types of skins and nation branding that Iceland has  created to convey to foreigners what kind of nation they are and what their values are. (v12).

This site was created in the hopes of discovering what the Icelandic media landscape is like through researching Icelandic culture, family life. Technology and major media powers in the nation. The impact of media on family and education. All of this and more is housed in this site. This tiny country, which could fit in the state of Kentucky, has created its own identity, separate from other Nordic countries, through its uniqueness. Explore and learn about this uniqueness, and how it fits into a global context, in this site. o1.