Esperanto is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it is intended to be a universal second language for international communication, or "the international language". Zamenhof first described the language in Dr. Esperanto's International Language, which he published under the pseudonym Doktoro Esperanto. Early adopters of the language liked the name Esperanto and soon used it to describe his language. The word esperanto translates into English as "one who hopes".
Iceland is a Nordic island country between the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the region's westernmost and most sparsely populated country. Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which is home to about 36% of the country's roughly 380,000 residents. The official language of the country is Icelandic. Iceland is on a rift between tectonic plates, and its geologic activity includes geysers and frequent volcanic eruptions. The interior consists of a volcanic plateau with sand and lava fields, mountains and glaciers, and many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate, despite a latitude just south of the Arctic Circle. Its latitude and marine influence keep summers chilly, and most of its islands have a polar climate.
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. Reykjavík has a population of around 140,000 as of 2023. The Capital Region has a population of around 248,000.
Iceland took control of its foreign affairs in 1918 when it became a sovereign country, the Kingdom of Iceland, in a personal union with the King of Denmark. As a fully independent state, Iceland could have joined the League of Nations in 1920, but chose not to do so for cost reasons. It negotiated with Denmark to initially carry out most of its foreign relations, while maintaining full control. Denmark appointed a diplomatic envoy (Ambassador) to Iceland in 1919 and Iceland reciprocated in 1920, opening an embassy in Copenhagen. Iceland established its own Foreign Service in April 1940 when Denmark became occupied by Nazi Germany and ties between the two countries were severed. The Republic of Iceland was founded in 1944. The Icelandic foreign service grew slowly in the post-WWII period, but increased rapidly after the mid-1990s. Iceland's closest relations are with the Nordic states, the European Union and the United States. Iceland has been a member of the United Nations since 1946. Iceland was a founding member of the World Bank in 1946 and NATO in 1949. In terms of European integration, Iceland was a founding member of the OEEC in 1948 and the Nordic Council in 1952, it joined EFTA in 1970, was a founding member of the CSCE in 1973 and the EEA in 1992 and joined Schengen in 1996.
Laugardalsvöllur is Iceland's national football stadium and the home venue for the Iceland national football team. It is in Reykjavík with a capacity of 9,500, or about 28,321 for concerts.
The FootballAssociation of Iceland is the governing body of football in Iceland. It was founded on 26 March 1947, joined FIFA the same year, and UEFA in 1954. It organises the football league, Úrvalsdeild, and the Iceland men's national football team and Iceland women's national football team. It is based in Reykjavík.
Esperanto-USA (E-USA) is the largest organization for speakers and supporters of Esperanto in the United States. It was founded in 1952 as the Esperanto League for North America (ELNA) in Sacramento, California. Headquartered in Portland, Maine, Esperanto-USA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the U.S. affiliate of the Universal Esperanto Association. Brandon Sowers is President of E-USA, and Quintyn Bobb is Vice-President.
Iceland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 36 times since its debut in 1986, missing only two contests since then, in 1998 and 2002, when prevented from competing due to finishing outside qualification places the preceding years. The country's best result is second place, which it achieved with "All Out of Luck" by Selma in 1999 and "Is It True?" by Yohanna in 2009. The Icelandic participant broadcaster in the contest is Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), which select its entrant with the national competition Söngvakeppnin.
Sinfóníuhljómsveit Íslands (ISO) is an Icelandic orchestra based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Its primary concert venue is the Harpa Concert Hall. The Iceland Symphony is an autonomous public institution under the auspices of the Icelandic Ministry of Education. Iceland Symphony Orchestra made its home in Háskólabíó from 1961 to 2011, but moved into the new 1800-seat Harpa Concert Hall in spring 2011. The orchestra gives approximately sixty concerts each season. Per a 1982 law, the Iceland Symphony's primary financial sources are the Icelandic treasury (82%) and the City of Reykjavik (18%).
The Miss Iceland or Miss Universe Iceland is a national beauty pageant in Iceland. Beginning in 2023, the winner represents Iceland at Miss Universe pageant.
The discography of Sigur Rós, an Icelandic post-rock group, consists of eight studio albums, three remix album, five extended plays, one soundtrack album, sixteen singles, twenty-three music videos and two video albums. Sigur Rós was formed in 1994 in Reykjavík, Iceland, by singer and guitarist Jón Þór Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm and drummer Ágúst Ævar Gunnarsson.
Amerika Esperantisto was a North American Esperanto-language monthly publication founded in January 1907 as Amerika Esperantista Revuo. It was originally published by the American Esperanto Association, a national association formed by Boston Esperantists in March 1905.
Reykjavík North is one of the six multi-member constituencies of the Althing, the national legislature of Iceland. The constituency was established in 2003 when the existing Reykjavík constituency was split into two. The constituency currently elects nine of the 63 members of the Althing using the open party-list proportional representation electoral system. At the 2021 parliamentary election it had 45,361 registered electors.
Reykjavík South is one of the six multi-member constituencies of the Althing, the national legislature of Iceland. The constituency was established in 2003 when the existing Reykjavík constituency was split into two. The constituency currently elects nine of the 63 members of the Althing using the open party-list proportional representation electoral system. At the 2021 parliamentary election it had 45,716 registered electors.
Northeast is one of the six multi-member constituencies of the Althing, the national legislature of Iceland. The constituency was established as Northeastern in 1959 following the nationwide extension of proportional representation for elections to the Althing. It was renamed Northeast in 2003 when most of the Eastern constituency was merged into the Northeastern constituency following the re-organisation of constituencies across Iceland. Northeast consists of the regions of Eastern and Northeastern. The constituency currently elects nine of the 63 members of the Althing using the open party-list proportional representation electoral system. At the 2021 parliamentary election it had 29,847 registered electors.
Iceland–Palestine relations refers to the bilateral relations between Iceland and Palestine. Iceland was the first Nordic country to recognise the independence of Palestine. Full diplomatic relations exist between the two sides. Iceland's representative to Palestine is a non-resident based at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Reykjavík, while Palestine's ambassador to Iceland is also a non-resident based in Oslo, Norway.
Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson is an Icelandic historian and politician who served as the sixth president of Iceland from 2016 to 2024.
Árni Böðvarsson was an Icelandic educator, grammarian, and dictionary editor. He edited the first standard dictionary of Icelandic, co-edited a Russian-Icelandic dictionary, and was also an Esperantist, editor of an Icelandic-Esperanto dictionary, a long-time member of the Universal Esperanto Association (UEA), co-founder of the Reykjavík Esperanto society, and secretary of the Icelandic Esperanto Association.
Þorsteinn Þorsteinsson was an Icelandic economist, director of the Icelandic Bureau of Statistics, and also one of the first authorities on Esperanto in Iceland, author of the first Icelandic textbook on Esperanto.
