The history of each country is fascinating and complex. The area of Iceland has been formed for many centuries, despite the fact that this is an island nation. There are a lot of facts about the geography of this country. What did the coins of the Roman Empire do on the island? Were the Vikings involved in the formation of the state? What is the area of Iceland? More on this and more.
Formation of the country
The area of the island of Iceland is now 103 thousand 125 square kilometers. But what happened to the country many centuries ago? For the first time, information about Iceland can be found dating back to the 9th century AD. But already in the modern history of the state there is an event that refutes the basic theory of its formation. The fact is that Roman coins were found on the island, which were used in the III century AD. e.
This event can be explained by the fact that the Vikings later brought money to the island, but this is not known for sure now. It is possible that the area of Iceland was explored before the 9th century. This fact is confirmed by the words of a navigator from Greece, who in the 4th century BC. e. described similar territory.
Help of the gods
There is a theory that suggests that the Irishthe monks found the island of Iceland. They needed the area of \u200b\u200bthe territory in order to pray to their gods. First they found the Faroe Islands, which were still deserted and uninhabited, and later, perhaps, they reached the "Ice Land" as well.
There is an assumption that the name Thule was the first name for the current country. The monks got there already at the end of the 8th century, when the Faroe Islands were settled by their relatives, they began to breed sheep there, and active life began.
Facts
It is known that the area of the island of Iceland was explored already in the 9th century. Naddod arrived here from Norway with other Vikings. They thought that they would be able to arrange life here, but, having climbed the mountain, they did not find anything suitable. When they left the island, snow fell, and Naddod gave the future state the loud name "Snowland".
The next visitor was Gardar Svavarsson. He decided to find out what area the island of Iceland has, and in general to explore the territory. He sailed along the coast for a long time, but in winter it became difficult for his team to survive, and it was decided to stop in the northern bay. Here they formed a small settlement, which to this day is called Khusavik ("Bay of Homes").
The next Viking conqueror, Floki Vilgerdarsson, decided to get a good look at what kind of land Iceland is. He walked around the territory in search of the city of Gardara. On the way, he and his people found a fjord and decided to settle here. Happiness played a cruel joke on his people, all the cattle died during the winter from lack of food. springFloki examined the fjord, but, finding that it was still covered with ice, he gave the island the name Iceland ("Land of Ice").
Already at the end of the 9th century, the settlement of the island began. People organized their state system, and in 1000 they formed a faith. Christianity became their official religion. The Icelanders were very educated, so their history has remained forever in the works of art.
Dependency
It so happened that right up to 1918, the country fought for its independence, and the area of Iceland in sq. km as a state could not be determined. First I had to share with Norway, then fight with Denmark.
By historical coincidence, when the Danish-Norwegian union was annulled, all territories had to go to Sweden. But Iceland was "forgotten", and it remained under the rule of Denmark. For a long time, dissatisfied residents of the Land of Ice rebuilt their monastery under the rule of another power. They methodically formed the necessary authorities, their education system and economy.
Liberation
The state entered into a union with Denmark and became independent on December 1, 1918. The First World War did not affect the island, but brought a flu pandemic here. In World War II, Iceland tried to remain neutral, but the British violated it and entered the Reykjavik harbor. In 1944, the island became a fully independent state, exchanging the status of a kingdom for a republic.
Basic information
So, we already know what the area of the island of Iceland is. State territoryalso occupies 103 thousand km². This country is located to the west of Northern Europe, to the north in the Atlantic Ocean. It is worth noting that in addition to the main island, there are also several small lands belonging to the state around.
If you do not take into account the fact that glaciers occupy more than 11 thousand square kilometers, the area of Iceland in square meters. km will be 92 thousand. By the way, only a quarter of the entire territory is suitable for life. In the central part of the island there are volcanoes, fields and glaciers.
To share the area between whom?
The area of Iceland is divided into sislas and urban districts. Sisla, in turn, consists of cities and communes. One of the city districts is Reykjavik. It is located in the first region with the strange name Hövydborgarsvaidid. In total, there are 8 regions on the island and, accordingly, 8 administrative centers.
Capital
It is known that the entire area of the island of Iceland (in sq. km) includes not only islands, but also peninsulas. One of them is the capital of the state - Reykjavik. It occupies only 275 km² of the Seltjarnarnes peninsula. More than half of the total population of the country lives here - 202 thousand people. The remaining 119 thousand live in other large cities: Kopavogur, Hafnarfjordur, Akureyri, Husavik and others.
It is very difficult for tourists on the island to fall asleep in the summer, as there is practically no night here. The sun sets at midnight and begins to rise as early as 2-3 am. But in winter you can see the "white light" here only 4 hoursper day.
Geographic surprises
Looking at the size of Iceland, you understand that this island holds many secrets of geography. It is believed that the Land of Ice is a young state that appeared due to volcanoes active in the last 60 million years.
Those who have never heard of the country and were not interested in it will be surprised that there are almost 30 volcanoes on the island. Moreover, from the moment people settled in Iceland, 20 of them have already disturbed the peace of man. It is also interesting that among the many types of volcanoes, almost all are found on the island. When Laki erupted in the late 1780s, lava covered a huge area of Iceland - more than 570 km².
Another restless fire-breathing giant erupted twice already in the 20th century. One of the underwater volcanoes by 1963 created the island of Iceland - Surtoje. And another one had to be rescued from the inhabitants of a small town in the early 1970s.
Too active
Eyjafjallajökull volcano is now considered the most active. Its activity began in 2010, on a March night. At that time, many already knew about the impending disaster, as they observed seismic activity at the end of 2009. A month before the eruption, they were able to detect the movement of the earth's crust. Moreover, already in early March, more than three thousand shocks per day could be recorded.
The glaciers began to melt rapidly, so the inhabitants of nearby settlements had to be relocated. The airport also had to close for the duration of the eruption. The day before the activation of the volcanoterrible tremors began underground, approaching the surface. The eruption began on March 20 in the evening. Then a break occurred in one part of the glacier. At first, the cloud rose to a kilometer in height, but no large volumes of ash were observed.
Later, a few days later, water entered the crater, which led to an explosion of steam and increased activity of the eruption. On the last day of the month, another rupture occurred, and until April 5th, the volcano spewed lava from two fissures 0.3 and 0.5 km long.
Already in mid-April, residents had to be relocated again, as the second eruption began. Then the ashes rose into the air for 8 kilometers, and the crack turned out to be as much as 2 kilometers in length. A few days later, the ash column rose another 5 km higher, which caused it to enter the stratosphere.
Europe also fell victim to such activity of the fire-breathing giant. On April 15, countries canceled more than 5,000 flights. Denmark and the UK have closed their airports. In addition to financial losses, many heads of state were unable to travel to Poland for the president's funeral.
Ice as a business card
Iceland wouldn't be a "glacier country" if it weren't for its main attraction - glaciers. The area of Iceland in thousand km2 gave more than 11% to these natural formations. In addition, glaciers significantly affect the climate, flora and fauna of the island, and, of course, its landscape.
More than 11 thousand square kilometers of the whole of Iceland were occupied by these huge "cold mountains". Almost every one of them hid a volcano under them, thereby endangering the entire population. The fact is that geothermal processes occur inside, leading to floods. If the volcano begins to actively manifest itself, then there is a possibility of an explosion of under-ice waters, which already leads to an eruption.
Most of the glaciers are located inside the island. The largest of them has an area of more than 8 thousand square meters. km. It is in this area that the highest point of the island is located - 2109 m. All other glaciers are much smaller.
Water expanses
Besides ice, the island has liquid water. There are a lot of rivers that have formed due to frequent rainfall. Despite the fact that they are quite large, they are not used as a transport route. This is because frequent changes in the tectonic structure lead to a change in flow and a divergence of flows.
There are also beautiful large lakes here. The most famous among them are Tingvadlavatn and Tourisvatn. The first has an area of 84 square kilometers and the deepest point is 114 meters. Due to the fact that it is a natural reservoir, the lake is protected by the National Park. But Tourisvatn is a reservoir in Iceland. Its area is 88 square kilometers. The lake was created by a dam in order to generate electricity. By the way, it is noteworthy that, unlike other reservoirs of the island, Tourisvatn has a bright green color.
Plants
Vegetation in the country is very bad. We know the area of Iceland, we know the number of glaciers on the island. Fromof the entire territory, only a quarter of the island is covered with greenery. All of this has to do with soil. It is mineral here due to glaciers and loess type. But history indicates that more than 1000 years ago, the island was covered by two-thirds of the plants.
Moss and grass grow here mostly from greenery. Even woody plants, which previously occupied 1% of the entire territory, have now practically disappeared. Sometimes you can see birch trees twisted due to northern winds. There are now more trees in cities, especially conifers, which are artificially planted by residents.
As you already know, the area of Iceland is 103 thousand square meters. km. Imagine, as much as 10% of them are lava fields. 60% is occupied by a stony placer, which allows only moss and lichens to grow. Therefore, there is practically no place for birch forests and cereal meadows.
Are there animals?
Everything is interconnected. Flora without fauna, and fauna cannot exist without flora. Due to sparse vegetation, the species composition of the animal world also suffers. Even 1000 years ago, only Arctic fox was found here. Closer to the 19th century, reindeer were forcibly relocated here. Also, kind people randomly brought to the island rodents such as mice, rats and minks.
Birds are doing better. There are about 80 of them here. Among them are familiar swans, ducks and geese. By the way, the most frequent guest in the lake is trout, but in the river you can catch salmon. If you go to coastal areas, you can even meet seals and a couple of species of whales. But in feeding places they liveabout 66 types of fish, among which there are countries important for export: halibut, sea bass, cod and shrimp.
More fish
The area of Iceland and its coastal areas dictated the main export product. Naturally, fishing and processing not only gave additional income to the population, but also made the island one of the main exporters. Thanks to fish, 12% of the population of Iceland is employed in this industry. And this product is 70% of the exported goods.
A popular fish from January to May is cod, then herring takes the lead. Due to the fact that the North Atlantic suffers from a shortage of this type of fish, there is a demand for capelin and saithe.
Reykjavik has become a place where cod processing has been established. But Siglufjordur is engaged in herring. Here it is processed into fish oil and meal. At the end of the last century, Iceland had problems with catching whales, and she agreed to a moratorium. But later the government allowed moderate whaling.
What to sell and buy?
To stay afloat, each country must export the goods it has in abundance. So, 70% of exports, as already mentioned, is fish. The rest is agricultural products and some minerals. Germany and England can be considered the main "buyers" of the state. Iceland is also referred to by the Netherlands, USA, Spain and others.
But as imported products, equipment and oil products, some food products are brought to the island, more oftenall these are vegetables and fruits, as well as textiles. In this direction, Ice Country is cooperating with the United States and Germany.
Interesting facts
Despite the size of Iceland, the country is in many ways a champion. Reykjavik is the northernmost capital in the world. Iceland itself is the largest island born thanks to volcanoes.
There are several other record holders in the country, for example, Hekla (volcano) and Vatnajökull (glacier) are the largest natural objects in Europe. This also includes the Icelandic waterfall, which has a height of 40 meters and a width of 100 meters, it is the most powerful among European "water cascades".
An interesting story with the surnames of the Icelanders. The inhabitants of the island do not have them at all. At birth, the child is given a name, and a patronymic or matronymic is added to the name. If the father's name is Grim, then his son's surname will be Grimsson (son of Grim), as happened in the case of the President of Iceland, Ölavyur Ragnar Grimsson. If a girl were born, her last name would be Grimdottir (daughter of Grim).
But there are those in the country who have received a surname, they are 10% here. Usually these are those who moved from another state. Given the law, their surname passes from parents to children. Among these people, you can also meet Icelanders who received a surname on legal grounds.
In the last century, Iceland became a member of the European Economic Area. But in 2015 she refused to join the European Union.
Iceland's area in Europe is only 17th. This fact struckthe entire continent, after Iceland was able to reach the quarterfinals of Euro 2016 and, despite a devastating score from the hosts of the championship in France, proudly defended the honor of their small and small country.
Note to tourists
The area of Iceland and its location led to instability in the climate and clear rules in the state.
If you decide to travel to explore the territory, be prepared to deal with changeable weather. It happens that in May the snow has not yet melted, while a thaw may last until December. If the inhabitants of the country have come to terms with such a habit, then for tourists this can turn into trouble. Therefore, you need to prepare thoroughly for Iceland.
If you did not have time to plan your overnight stay, there are specially equipped tent sites around the country where you can sleep with your tent for 2-3 dollars per night. If you chose an unauthorized place or decided to warm yourself with a fire, be prepared for large fines.
There may be problems with garbage. The mentality of tourists depends on their country. Not all states strictly monitor the cleanliness of the streets, so people who come from such places often forget that they are visiting. Iceland is very attentive not only to those who litter on the streets, but also to those who cut trees and break branches. It is also illegal to fish unless the government has given you permission to do so.
Traveling by car will also lead totrouble if you decide to turn off the road to another area, which is also prohibited on the island.
In the CIS countries there are usually no direct flights to Reykjavik. Therefore, most likely, you will have to get first to the capitals of Denmark, Sweden, Norway or Finland, and from there it will not be difficult to fly to Iceland. The ticket price may vary depending on the exchange rate, but on average it is $1,000 round trip.
