Everything you need to know about Iceland: news, reviews, in-depth analysis, opinion and more
Iceland: the land of ice and fire' Holds Prominent Role in World Geopolitical Order.
Scottish and Irish hermits first inhabited Iceland but left after the coming of Pagan Nose people in the 9 th century. The Pagan Nose people framed the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing in 930 A.D. The Norway and the Denmark subsequently ruled over the Iceland. In 1875 the eruption of Askja volcano devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. The people in search of a better life emigrated mostly to Canada and the US. The Denmark granted limited home rule to Iceland in 1874 and finally in 1944 Iceland became an independent nation. Iceland is a country that has representative democracy and a parliamentary republic. The strategic alliance with world's dominating organisations always benefited Iceland economically, socially and politically.
Iceland Profile: Overview of Facts and Figures:
Geography and Climate of Iceland:
Iceland is an island country with capital at Reykjavik is located in the North Atlantic Ocean between mainland Europe and Greenland. Iceland is the world's 18 th largest island and Europe's second largest island following Britain.
The Iceland enjoys sub polar oceanic climate. The North Atlantic Ocean Currents keeps the climate warm in lower attitude. The winters are mild and windy while the summers are damp and cool.
Culture and Cuisine of Iceland:
Iceland's culture is influenced both by its geography as well by its history. In the 9 th century Vikings settled in Iceland and provided a social structure that is based on love of freedom and self-respect. Icelanders are of Scandinavian origin having mixed Celtic descent. Freedom and respect for the individual are still at the heart of twentieth-century Iceland. Iceland has a plethora of culture and it's quite visible during its annual events when they present their literature, manuscript illuminations, woodcarvings and folk music.
Icelanders harvest their food directly from the surrounding nature. This includes seafood, mushrooms, berries, reindeer and lamb. Modern Icelandic cuisine is based on local ingredients, specifically lamb and seafood but often with some exotic additions and influences. In many homes the hearty food of the past like the heavy steaks with cream sauce and caramelized potatoes, is being pushed out in favor of pasta and fresh vegetables
Tourism and Attractions in Iceland:
Iceland offers every attraction that a tourist dreams of seeing. Whether they are active volcanoes, biggest glaciers or hot springs, Iceland has something for everyone. The combination of flora & fauna, ice & water, icecaps & glaciers and spouting geysers & steaming solfataras makes it a mystic place.
Lake Mývatn Conservation Area is one of the top tourist attractions due to its ecological activities. It is known for its bubbling mud flats, volcanic craters, newborn lava fields, teeming bird life, and crystal blue lake. The Westmann Islands (Vestmannaeyjar) is referred as a paradise at the end of the world. Teeming with wildlife and laden with natural beauty it remains a preferred tourist spot of Iceland.Major Sight-seeing Places in Iceland include:
London, June 19 (ANI): A middleman has reportedly used 'informal approach' to forward the request of seeking asylum in Iceland on behalf of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
New Delhi, June 12 (IANS) Nearly a month after India was admitted as an observer into the mineral-rich Arctic Council, India's External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid is visiting Norway, a member of the eight-nation forum, where he will pay a visit to the Indian research station, Himadri, in Svalbard
London, May 27 (ANI): In an attempt to deal with the issue of pornography and children's exposure to the content through web, campaigners are appealing the government to introduce ways to block online pornography.
New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) India's status as an observer at the eight-nation Arctic Council will give it a chance to understand the ice cap's climate, which impacts the Indian monsoon, along with the possibility of exploring the mineral-rich North Pole and shorter shipping routes for future business, a senior official said.
New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) Norway hopes India, a "key player" in the deliberations on climate change, would help find a solution to the fast-melting ice cover in the Arctic region now that it has got observer status in the Arctic Council.
New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) Norway's sovereign wealth fund, Government Pension Fund Global, is investing $4 billion in India and is focused in the areas of oil and gas, shipping and hydropower, Norway's envoy to India has said.
New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) Norway hopes India will help find a solution to the fast melting ice cover in the northernmost part of the globe, now that it has got an observer status in the Arctic Council.
New Delhi/Kiruna, May 15 (IANS) The Arctic Council agreed Wednesday to include six new nations, including India and China, as observers to their eight-state diplomatic council.
Oslo, May 15 (IANS) Norway welcomed India and five other countries after they secured permanent observer status in the inter-governmental forum Arctic Council Wednesday.
Kiruna (Sweden), May 15 (IANS) India and China Wednesday got observer status in the Arctic Council along with four other countries.
Moscow, May 14 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet on the sidelines of the two-day Arctic Council meeting due to begin in Sweden Tuesday.
Melbourne, May 12 (Xinhua-ANI): The statistics released by the 14th Save the Children's State of the World's Mothers report showed that Australia has reached the top 10 best countries to be a mother around the world this year, local media reported on Sunday.
London, May 11 (ANI): An American student is attempting to make a record as the youngest person in history to fly solo around the world, and will be making his first stop in the UK after setting off from California on May 2.
Helsinki, May 8 (IANS) Finland is considered to be the country where mothers enjoy the best conditions in the world, according to a worldwide report.
Washington, April 30 (IANS) Even as it acknowledges India as the world's most populous democracy, the Economist magazine's Index of Democracy 2012 ranks India 38th among 165 nations with an overall score of 7.52.
Karachi, April 22 (ANI): An aeronautical engineer has turned his back on his profession and set out across Europe to learn 33 more trades instead.
Sydney, Apr. 18 (ANI): Engineers have created a new app for Icelanders that allows to check whether their new date happens to be a relative.
London, Apr 12 (ANI): Internet search engine Google has invited a new feature that would let people to contribute to its Map service.
Film: "Oblivion"; Cast: Tom Cruise, Andrea Riseborough, Olga Kurylenko, Melissa Leo, Morgan Freeman, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Zoe Bell; Director: Joseph Kosinski; Rating: *
Geneva, April 10 (IANS) The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Wednesday called on governments not to reduce their spending on children due to austerity measures.
New Delhi, April 7 (IANS) Iceland President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson has called for a new model of e-governance where rulers must "surrender to the people" and allow democracy to be strengthened through the Internet.
New Delhi, April 6 (IANS) President Pranab Mukherjee Saturday met Iceland's President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson and expressed his gratitude over his country's "principled" and "consistent" support to India's candidature for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.
New Delhi, Apr. 6 (ANI): President Pranab Mukherjee has said New Delhi is grateful for Iceland's principled and consistent support of India's candidature for a permanent seat in the UNSC.
New Delhi, April 5 (IANS) Citing his country's example, Iceland President Olafur Ragnar Grimmson Friday said sustainability and economic growth in India can go hand in hand and there was no conflict between the two.
Sydney, Apr. 5 (ANI): Iceland has been named the most welcoming holiday destination in the world, a new study has found
Washington, April 5 (ANI): While it is generally accepted that some important ingredients for life came from meteorites bombarding the early Earth, scientists have not been able to explain how that lifeless rock transformed into the building blocks of life.
New Delhi, Apr. 3 (ANI): The visiting President of Iceland, Dr. Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, will hold discussions with Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh here on Thursday on a host of issues to strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
There's a scene in one of the Lord of the Rings movies when Bilbo Baggins blows a perfect smoke ring. "Your grandfather used to do that," I told the kids. My daughter's eyes widened: "He stole a magic ring from Gollum?" After a moment's thought, I nodded. Kids need to learn to respect their ancestors.
Faro (Portugal), March 14 (IANS) China finished sixth at the 2013 Algarve Women's Football Cup after a 0-1 defeat against Japan.
Ferreiras (Portugal), March 12 (IANS) China beat Iceland 1-0 in their last group match to gain their first victory at the Algarve Women's Football Cup.
Washington, Mar. 8 (ANI): A report is set to be voted on in the European Union parliament on March 12 that could lay the groundwork for laws banning pornography across all media.
Washington, March 7 (ANI): Plumbers, spray painters and hair stylists are some of the high-risk occupations for asthma, a new study has revealed.
London, March 6 (ANI): Scientists may have at last found evidence to believe that the Viking "sunstone" used to navigate the seas did indeed exist.
Guadalajara (Mexico), March 4 (IANS/EFE) Contemporary life is too "boring" to make movies about, Spanish director Fernando Trueba, who much prefers period pieces, said.
Dubai, Feb 26 (IANS/WAM) The UAE has lifted a ban on importing live cows from some European countries including Iceland, Norway, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Estonia, Malta and Hungary.
London, Feb 13 (ANI): Iceland is considering banning web pornography in bid to save young kids from it's damaging effects, and by doing so it would become the first western country to block filth available online.
Yangon, Feb 8 (IANS) Myanmar has established diplomatic ties with Armenia, official media reported Friday.
London, Jan 23 (IANS) Bankrupt British CD and DVD retailer HMV has its debt purchased by restructuring specialist Hilco, easing concerns that the star retailer would disappear from high streets.
Mumbai, Jan 17 (IANS) Tata Consultancy Services has entered into a long-term agreement with global mobile communications leader Nokia to help transform its IT landscape, the company announced here Thursday.
London, Jan.16 (ANI): In a startling discovery, some beef burgers sold in Irish and UK supermarkets, have been found to contain horse DNA, according to the Republic of Ireland's food safety authority (FSAI).
Berlin, January 13 (ANI): Economic and identity issues, rather than starvation and disease, drove Viking descendent out of Greenland back to their ancestral homes in the 15th century, researchers say.
Guide (China), Jan 12 (IANS) The third International Extreme Race of Winter Swimming across Yellow River started here in northwest China's Qinghai Province Saturday.
Washington, January 2 (ANI): In a new study, researchers found no significant association between the use of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) during pregnancy and risk of stillbirth, neonatal death, or postneonatal death, after accounting for factors including maternal psychiatric disease.
Washington, January 1 (ANI): The number of women on a corporate board correlates with a firm's sustainability performance, according to a new study.
Yangon, Dec 26 (IANS) Myanmar has established diplomatic ties with Iceland, official media said Wednesday.
Mumbai, Dec 25 (IANS) Even with his latest movie "Barfi!" out of the Oscar race, Anurag Basu is not disappointed. He feels better films have made it to the top nine.
Barfi, the official entry of India to this year's Oscar has failed to qualify for the best foreign language film category for the 85th Academy Awards.
Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Director Anurag Basu's "Barfi!" has failed to qualify for the best foreign language film category for the 85th Academy Awards, according to the latest Oscar shortlist.
London, Dec 17 (IANS) Intense polar storms, missing in most climate models, can make a huge difference to climate predictions, according to new research.
Beijing, Dec 6 (IANS) Beijing will start a 72-hour visa-free stay policy for citizens of 45 countries from Jan 1, 2013. India and Pakistan were excluded from the list.
Washington, December 3 (ANI): Using DESY's light source DORIS, a research team from Hamburg and Iceland has uncovered the molecular structure of a master regulator central to the most deadly form of skin cancer, melanoma.
London, Nov 30 (IANS) High salt levels in cheese may be fuelling an epidemic of high blood pressure (BP) linked to strokes, heart attacks and thousands of premature deaths, claims a group that works towards greater awareness of the effects of salt on health.
New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS) US?based designer Sushma Patel, who is set to make her debut in Indian fashion industry with the forthcoming India Resort Fashion Week (IRFW), hasn't forgotten her Indian roots. She says she makes sure she adds a desi touch to her creations everytime.
London, Nov. 9 (ANI): The immigration system is 'spiralling out of control' as UK's Border Agency officials run up a backlog of more than 300,000 cases, MPs have warned.
Washington, November 5 (ANI) Michael Douglas will be playing Ronald Reagan in 'Reykjavik', which revolves around the U.S.-Russia summit on nuclear weapons 26 years ago in Iceland.
Los Angeles, Oct 16 (ANI): Christoph Waltz has been roped in to play former Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev opposite Michael Douglas's Ronald Reagan in Mike Newell's 'Reykjavik.'
New Delhi, Oct 15 (IANS) Increasing representation for women in parliament is important but the legislative body should also mould its codes, ethics and practices to truly ensure equitable treatment of women, the head of the international organisation of parliaments feels.
Moscow, Oct 11 (IANS/RIA Novosti) The Russian defence ministry is planning to raise and scrap two sunken nuclear submarines in the northern Barents and Kara seas in order to prevent potential radioactive pollution of the area.
Los Angeles, Oct 10 (IANS) Singer Lady Gaga has been honoured with the LennonOno Peace prize for her contribution to promotion of peace.
Wellington, October 6 (ANI): Lady Gaga will share a biennial peace prize in memory of John Lennon to honour her work campaigning for equality for gay, lesbian and transgender people.
London, Oct 5 (IANS) Yoko Ono will honour pop star Lady Gaga with a special award in the memory of her late husband John Lennon for her work as an activist.
London, Oct 1(ANI): Twelve players from the French handball team, which created history by winning consecutive gold medals in Olympic Games, has been detained by the police over allegations that they fixed matches in lieu of money.
London, September 15 (ANI): Bond girl Olga Kurylenko has clarified that the photographs of her kissing Tom Cruise were from her movie 'Oblivion' in which she is co-starring with the actor.
New Delhi, Sep 6 (ANI): India has ranked 33rd in a global Web Index compiled by Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web.
London, Sep 6 (ANI): Sweden has topped a new Web Index revealing the state of the web's development in 61 countries, with the United States and the United Kingdom taking second and third positions respectively.
London, Aug 30 (ANI): An eatery in Doncaster, South Yorkshire claims to have broken the world record for the largest portion of cod and chips.
Beijing, Aug 19 (IANS) China plans to open a research institute in Shanghai for Arctic studies.
Moscow, Aug 11 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Iceland's singer-songwriter Bjork has expressed her support for three jailed members of Russian punk band Pussy Riot and suggested that they should be set free.
Los Angeles, Aug 10 (IANS) Actor Russell Crowe says he has to climb mountains in order to reach on the sets of his forthcoming movie, "Noah".
London, July 28 (ANI): While most celebrities were probably out clubbing, a few of them chose to stay indoors, watch the Olympics Opening Ceremony and Tweet about it.
London, July 28 (ANI): While most celebrities were probably out clubbing, a few of them chose to stay indoors, watch the Olympics Opening Ceremony and Tweet about it.
Washington, July 24 (ANI): Tom Cruise has just been through an ugly, media-saturated divorce to Katie Holmes, but it seems the actor is operating under the motto "the show must go on."
New York, July 23 (ANI): Tom Cruise is reportedly searching for a bachelor pad in New York to be near daughter Suri.
Moscow, July 20 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Ukraine's Dynamo Kiev will take on Dutch side Feyenoord in the highest-profile tie of the third qualifying round of the Champions League after the draw was made Friday.
London, July 19 (ANI): Ryan Giggs and his GB football squad have been handed out a plum spot in the athletes' village and bunked up alongside a squad of sexy Scandinavians and Americans.
London, July 18 (ANI): Tom Cruise has been reunited with his daughter Suri for the first time since his divorce from Katie Holmes.
New York, July 18 (IANS) Actor Tom Cruise met his six-year-old daughter Suri here for the first time since ex-wife Katie Holmes filed for divorce.
London, July 12(ANI): A new research has found that people carrying the mutant version of a gene crucial to developing Alzheimer's disease are less likely to suffer from the devastating form of dementia.
Los Angeles, July 11 (IANS) Actor Tom Cruise has resumed work after his lawyers reached a divorce settlement with his estranged wife, actress Katie Holmes.
London, July 10 (ANI): Russell Crowe became the world's best dad for his Harry Potter-mad sons after letting out the news that he'd be working with Hermione in an upcoming flick.
Washington, July 8 (ANI): After three failed marriages with celebrities, Tom Cruise should date someone who is not from showbiz, an expert has said.
Washington, July 7 (ANI): Tom Cruise's lawyer has revealed that the actor is very upset with how the divorce is being played out in the media.
Washington, July 7 (ANI): Tom Cruise's lawyer has revealed that the actor is very upset with how the divorce is being played out in the media.
Washington, July 5 (ANI): Katie Holmes's lawyer has denied reports that the actress wants an emergency hearing on custody and child support in her divorce case.
Washington, July 5 (ANI): Tom Cruise spent a somber 50th birthday with his teenage kids, Connor and Bella, and members of his extended family at his Beverly Hills, California mansion.
New York, July 5 (ANI): Katie Holmes reportedly cut off communications from almost all of her friends - switching cell phones and e-mail addresses, before pulling off a daring escape from Tom Cruise.
New York, July 5 (ANI): Katie Holmes had reportedly hinted her state of mind in an interview conducted weeks before announcing her split from hubby Tom Cruise, saying she was entering "a new phase" and "I know where I want to go."
London, July 5 (IANS) Actress Katie Holmes rejected estranged husband Tom Cruise's plea for her to fly to Iceland to save their marriage.
London, July 4 (ANI): Tom Cruise begged Katie Holmes to fly to Iceland to celebrate his 50th birthday, on Tuesday, but she rejected his last-ditch attempt to save their marriage, it has been revealed.
London, July 3 (ANI): The adopted son of Tom Cruise and his former wife Nicole Kidman, Connor has spoken for the first time since the news of his dad's divorce from Katie Holmes went public on Friday evening.
Washington, July 1 (ANI): Katie Holmes already had a contingency plan in place to ensure that her 6-year-old daughter, Suri, would be taken care of, when she filed to divorce Tom Cruise Thursday after five years of marriage.
New York, July 1 (ANI): Tom Cruise was pictured flying over Iceland in a helicopter, en route to a movie shoot, just a day after his wife, Katie Holmes, filed for divorce.
London, June 30 (ANI): Katie Holmes, who filed from divorce from her husband of 5 years Tom Cruise, was reportedly scared that she was turning 'into a robot' because of his controlling ways.
London, June 30 (ANI): Katie Holmes has decided to end her five-year marriage to Tom Cruise in a surprise split reportedly centered on Scientology.
London, June 30 (ANI): Katie Holmes has filed for divorce in New York citing "irreconcilable differences", announcing the split via a statement to People magazine.
Sydney, June 26 (ANI): A German film-maker has planned to turn the WikiLeaks founder Julain Assange's life into a romantic comedy, according to a report.
Washington, June 25 (ANI): Researchers have found a correlation between the age at which children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) begin taking medication, and how well they perform on standardized tests, particularly in math.
London, June 23 (IANS) French minister for women's rights Najat Vallaud-Belkacem wants to organise a conference of experts on how to abolish sex trade and human trafficking in Europe, The Guardian reported.
London, June 23 (ANI): French minister for women is all set to organise a conference of experts on how to contain the sex-trade and human-trafficking.
Washington, June 18 (ANI): Ancient Antarctica was much warmer and wetter than previously suspected, a new study has found.
