I want the information of Iceland 名著《简爱》（夏落蒂勃郎特）

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Knowledge of Danish antiquity is derived largely from archaeological research. Some historians believe that Danes inhabiting the southern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula migrated to the Jutland Peninsula and the adjacent islands in the Baltic Sea in the 5th and 6th centuries. Evidence of major public structures\u2014including a canal, a long bridge, and the ramparts across the neck of Jutland now called the Danevirke\u2014in the 8th century attests to the presence of a fairly strong central authority in Jutland on the eve of the Viking age. Within a century of their first raid on the British Isles in the 780s, the Danes were masters of the part of England that became known as the Danelaw. Under King Harold Bluetooth in the 10th century, political consolidation increased, and the Christianization of the Danes was begun. Harold\u2019s son, Sweyn I, conquered all of England in 1013 and 1014. Sweyn\u2019s son, Canute II, who ruled England (1016-1035) and Denmark (1018-1035), completed the Christianization of Denmark.

A Expansion and Prosperity

In the late 12th and early 13th centuries, the Danes expanded to the east. They conquered the greater part of the southern coastal areas of the Baltic Sea, establishing a powerful and prosperous realm twice the size of modern Denmark. In this era of expansion, feudalism in Denmark attained its zenith. The kingdom became wealthier and more powerful than it had ever been. Most of the country\u2019s once-free peasantry saw their rights reduced. Marked economic progress was made in this era, principally in the development of the herring-fishing industry and livestock raising. This progress was the basis for the rise of merchants and craftsmen and of a number of guilds.

Growing discord between the Danish crown and the nobility led to a struggle in which the nobility, in 1282, compelled King Eric V to sign a charter, sometimes referred to as the Danish Magna Carta. By the terms of this charter, the Danish crown was made subordinate to law, and the assembly of lords, called the Danehof, was made an integral part of the administrative institutions.

A temporary decline in Danish power after the death of Christopher II in 1332 was followed, in the reign of Waldemar IV, by the reestablishment of Denmark as the leading political power on the Baltic Sea. However, the Hanseatic League, a commercial federation of European cities, controlled trade.

B The Kalmar Union and The Reformation

In 1380 Denmark and Norway were joined in a union under one king, Olaf II, a grandson of Waldemar IV, and with Norway came Iceland and the Faroe Islands. After Olaf\u2019s death in 1387, his mother, Margaret I, reigned in his stead. In 1389 she obtained the crown of Sweden and began the struggle, completed successfully in 1397, to form the Union of Kalmar, a political union of the three realms. Denmark was the dominant power, but Swedish aristocrats strove repeatedly\u2014and with some success\u2014for Sweden\u2019s autonomy within the union. The Kalmar Union lasted until 1523, when Sweden won its independence in a revolt against the tyrannical Christian II led by Gustav Vasa, who was elected king of Sweden as Gustav I in that year.

Also in 1523 Christian II was driven from the Danish throne. There followed a period of unrest, as L\u00fcbeck, the strongest Hanseatic city, interfered in Danish politics. With help from Sweden\u2019s king, L\u00fcbeck\u2019s interference was ended and Christian III consolidated his power as king of Denmark. During his reign (1534-1559) the Reformation triumphed in Denmark, and the Lutheran church was established as the state church. At this time the Danish kings began to treat Norway as a province rather than as a separate kingdom. Commercial and political rivalry with Sweden for domination of the Baltic Sea resulted in the indecisive Nordic Seven Years\u2019 War (1563-1570) and the War of Kalmar (1611-1613) between Sweden and Denmark.

The intervention of Christian IV in the religious struggle in Germany on behalf of the Protestant cause in the 1620s led to Danish participation in the Thirty Years\u2019 War. Continued rivalry with Sweden for primacy in the north led to the Swedish Wars of 1643 to 1645 and 1657 to 1660, in which Denmark was badly defeated and lost several of its Baltic islands and all of its territory on the Scandinavian Peninsula except Norway.

C Absolute Monarchy

Economic reverses resulting from these defeats had far-reaching consequences in Denmark. The growing commercial class, hard hit by the loss of foreign markets and trade, joined with the monarchy to curtail the power and privileges of the nobility. In 1660, capitalizing on the nobility\u2019s unpopularity after its poor military performance in the Swedish Wars, Frederick III carried out a coup d\u2019\u00e9tat against the aristocratic Council of the Realm. The monarchy, which until then had been largely dependent for its political power on the aristocracy, was made hereditary, and in 1661 it became absolute. The tax-exemption privileges of the nobility were ended, and nobles were replaced by commoners in the nation\u2019s administrative apparatus. Important administrative reforms were also introduced.

In the 18th century Denmark began the colonization of Greenland; Danish trade in East Asia expanded; and trading companies were established in the West Indies, where Denmark acquired several islands. In 1788 constraints on the liberties of the peasants were abolished, and in the following decades an agricultural enclosure movement greatly enhanced the production of foodstuffs.

During the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), efforts by England to blockade the European continent led to naval clashes with Denmark. Copenhagen was twice bombarded by British fleets, first in 1801 and again in 1807, and the Danish navy was destroyed. As a result, Denmark was largely cut off from Norway, and the Danish monarch reluctantly sided with Napoleon. By the Peace of Kiel (1814) Denmark ceded Helgoland to the British and Norway to Sweden; in return, Denmark was given Swedish Pomerania, which it later exchanged for Lauenburg, previously held by Prussia.

D Constitutional Monarchy

A growing demand for constitutional government in Denmark led to the proclamation of the constitution of 1849. Denmark became a constitutional monarchy, civil liberties were guaranteed, and a bicameral legislature, which was to share legislative power with the Crown, was established. German nationalism in Schleswig and Holstein (see Schleswig-Holstein), both hereditary duchies held by the kings of Denmark, presented the Danes with serious problems in the wake of the Revolution of 1848. The two duchies had long been objects of dispute between Danish kings and German monarchs. With diplomatic aid from Russia, Denmark had prevailed in a first test of strength in mid-century, but in 1864 Prussia and Austria went to war with the Danes to prevent incorporation of Schleswig into Denmark\u2019s territory and constitutional structure. The Danes were defeated and lost possession of the two duchies and of other territory.

In 1866 the Danish constitution was revised, making the upper chamber (Landsting) more powerful than the lower house (Folketinget). During the last decades of the 19th century, commerce, industry, and finance flourished; dairy farming and the cooperative movement were much expanded; and the working class grew in numbers. After 1880 the newly organized Social Democratic party played a major role in the Danish labor movement and in the struggle for a democratic constitution. The principle of parliamentary government was recognized in 1901, ending a long political deadlock between the Crown and the Landsting on one side and the Folketinget, on the other side.

E Modern Denmark

The country was neutral during World War I (1914-1918). In 1917 Denmark sold the Virgin Islands, in the West Indies, to the United States. Constitutional reforms enacted in 1915 established many of the basic features of the present governmental system. Universal suffrage went into effect in 1918. The same year Denmark recognized the independence of Iceland, but continued to exercise pro forma control of the foreign policy of the new state, and the Danish king remained Iceland\u2019s head of state. In 1920 North Schleswig was incorporated into Denmark as a result of a plebiscite carried out in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles; the southern part of Schleswig had voted to remain in Germany.

In May 1939 Denmark signed a ten-year nonaggression pact with Nazi Germany. In April 1940 Germany invaded and occupied Denmark, although the Danish government was able to maintain much control over its legal and domestic affairs until 1943. The Danish police helped Denmark\u2019s 6,000 Jews to escape safely to neutral Sweden on the eve of their arrest and deportation. Britain occupied the Faroes, and in 1941 the United States established a temporary protectorate over Greenland, building various weather stations and air bases on the island. In 1944 Iceland, following a national referendum, severed all ties with Denmark and proclaimed itself a republic.

After World War II Denmark joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949. Subsequently it has become a member of other international organizations including the European Free Trade Association (1959) and the European Economic Community (1972).

In 1953 Denmark adopted a revised constitution. The constitution created a unicameral parliament, permitted female accession to the throne, and included Greenland as an integral part of Denmark. Greenland was granted home rule in 1979.

Four decades of dominance by the Social Democratic party ended with the 1968 elections. Hilmar Baunsgaard, leader of the Radical Liberal party, formed a coalition government that lasted until 1971, when Jens Otto Krag, a former Social Democratic prime minister, retained office. King Frederick IX died in 1972 and was succeeded by his daughter, Margrethe II. Later that year Krag resigned and was replaced as prime minister and party leader by Anker Jørgensen. The Social Democrats suffered losses in the elections of late 1973, and Poul Hartling, a Liberal, formed a minority cabinet. Following elections in early 1975, however, Jørgensen returned to power, also at the head of a minority government. He retained his leadership until September 1982, when Poul Schl\u00fcter, a Conservative, was named to head a right-of-center coalition. Elections in January 1984 increased the plurality of the coalition, which retained power in the elections of September 1987, May 1988, and December 1990. In 1985 the Folketinget passed legislation against future construction of nuclear power plants in the country, and the government agreed to help establish a Nordic nuclear-free zone. Disputes in the Danish government over NATO-related policies damaged Denmark\u2019s relationship with the organization, but good relations were largely restored by 1988. Destruction of lobster colonies in the strait between Denmark and Sweden in 1988 and other ecological disasters resulted in the passage of rigorous environmental protection measures by the Folketinget.

In the wake of a scandal concerning immigration visas, Prime Minister Schl\u00fcter resigned in January 1993. A new majority coalition government was formed, with Social Democrat Poul Nyrup Rasmussen as prime minister. In 1992 Danish voters narrowly rejected the Maastricht Treaty, which provided for increased political and monetary integration within the European Community (now the European Union). After modifications to the pact that promised exemptions from certain standards for Denmark, the Danes voted their approval in May 1993. In elections held in September 1994, the coalition headed by Rasmussen retained power, but it lost its majority in the Folketinget. After shuffling his coalition slightly, Rasmussen was returned to office once again in 1998 with a thin majority.

The center-right Liberal Party emerged as Denmark\u2019s largest political party in the November 2001 elections. A minority coalition government composed of the Liberal Party and the Conservative People\u2019s Party replaced the Social Democrat-led government, and Liberal Party leader Anders Fogh Rasmussen was named prime minister. The far right, anti-immigration Danish People\u2019s Party, which became the third-largest party in the Folketinget, pledged to support the Liberal-Conservative coalition. The Liberal Party campaigned on a platform that included promises to tighten immigration, reduce foreign aid, and improve health care.

Jane Eyre \u2014 A Beautiful Soul

Jane Eyre, is a poor but aspiring, small in body but huge in soul, obscure but self-respecting girl. After we close the covers of the book, after having a long journey of the spirit, Jane Eyre, a marvelous figure, has left us so much to recall and to think:
We remember her goodness: for someone who lost arms and blinded in eyes, for someone who despised her for her ordinariness, and even for someone who had hurt her deeply in the past.

We remember her pursuit of justice. It\u2019s like a companion with the goodness. But still, a virtuous person should promote the goodness on one side and must check the badness on the other side.

We remember her self-respect and the clear situation on equality. In her opinion, everyone is the same at the God\u2019s feet. Though there are differences in status\u3001in property and also in appearance, but all the human being are equal in personality.

We also remember her striving for life, her toughness and her confidence\u2026

When we think of this girl, what she gave us was not a pretty face or a transcendent temperament that make us admire deeply, but a huge charm of her personality.

Actually, she wasn\u2019t pretty, and of course, the ordinary appearance didn\u2019t make others feel good of her, even her own aunt felt disgusted with it. And some others even thought that she was easy to look down on and to tease, so when Miss Ingram met Jane Eyre, she seemed quite contemptuous, for that she was obviously much more prettier than \u2018the plain and ugly governess\u2019. But as the little governess had said: \u2018Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong!\u2019 This is the idea of equality in Jane Eyre\u2019s mind. God hadn\u2019t given her beauty and wealth, but instead, God gave her a kind mind and a thinking brain. Her idea of equality and self-respect impress us so much and let us feel the power inside her body.

In my mind, though a person\u2019s beauty on the face can make others once feel that one is attractive and charming, if his or her mind isn\u2019t the same beautiful as the appearance, such as beauty cannot last for, when others find that the beauty which had charmed them was only a falsity, it\u2019s not true, they will like the person no more. For a long time, only a person\u2019s great virtue, a noble soul, a beautiful heart can be called as AN EVERLASTING BEAUTY, just as Kahill Gibran has said, that \u2018Beauty is a heart enflamed and a soul enchanted\u2019. I can feel that how beauty really is, as we are all fleshly men, so we can\u2019t distinguish whether a man is of nobleness or humbleness, but fleshly men, so we can\u2019t distinguish whether a man is of nobleness or humbleness, but as there are great differences in our souls, and from that, we can know that whether a man is noble or ordinary, and even obscure, that is, whether he is beautiful or not.

Her story makes us thinking about life and we learn much from her experience, at least, that is a fresh new recognition of the real beauty.

Iceland
I INTRODUCTION
Iceland (Icelandic, Ísland), island republic, in the North Atlantic Ocean, about 300 km (about 185 mi) east of Greenland and about 1,000 km (about 620 mi) west of Norway. The country’s extreme dimensions are about 305 km (about 190 mi) from north to south and about 485 km (about 300 mi) from east to west. Iceland has an area of 103,000 sq km (39,800 sq mi).

II LAND AND RESOURCES

In shape Iceland is generally elliptic, and the coastline, with a total length of 4,990 km (3,100 mi), is deeply indented, especially in the west and north. Important embayments on the West Coast are Faxaflói (bay) and Breiðafjörður (fjord). Projecting northwest between the latter and Húnaflói (bay), one of the major indentations on the northern coast, is an irregularly formed peninsula fringed by precipitous cliffs. The peninsular coastline makes up about 30 percent of the total for the island. Volcanic in origin, Iceland consists predominantly of uninhabitable lava tablelands with mountainous outcroppings; the lowlands, situated mainly along the southwestern coast, occupy about 25 percent of the total area. The bulk of the Icelandic population lives along the coast, particularly in the southwest.

Elevations in the uplands average between about 610 and 915 m (about 2,000 and 3,000 ft). Hvannadalshnúkur (2,119 m/6,952 ft), in the southeast, is the highest summit. Nearly 15 percent of the surface of the island is covered by snowfields and glaciers. Vatnajökull, a glacier in the southeast, has an area of 8,456 sq km (3,265 sq mi). The island has more than 120 glaciers and numerous small lakes and swift-flowing rivers.

Iceland is remarkable for the number of its volcanoes, craters, and thermal springs and for the frequency of its earthquakes. More than 100 volcanoes, including at least 25 that have erupted in historic times, are situated on the island. Noteworthy among the volcanoes are Hekla (1,491 m/4,892 ft), which has erupted many times, including in 1766, 1947, and 1980, and nearby Laki, with about 100 separate craters. Vast lava fields have been created by volcanoes, and many eruptions have caused widespread devastation. In 1783, when the only known eruption of Laki occurred, molten lava, volcanic ashes and gases, and torrential floods resulting from melting ice and snow led to the deaths of more than 9,000 people, ruined large tracts of arable land, and destroyed about 80 percent of the livestock on the island. In 1963 an ocean-floor volcano erupted off the southwestern coast of Iceland, creating Surtsey Island. In 1973 a volcano on Heimaey Island became active, forcing the evacuation of the island’s main town, Vestmannaeyjar.

Thermal springs are common in Iceland. Particularly numerous in the volcanic areas, the springs occur as geysers, as boiling mud lakes, and in various other forms. Geysir, generally regarded as the most spectacular, erupts at irregular intervals (usually from 5 to 36 hr), ejecting a column of boiling water up to about 60 m (about 200 ft) in height. Most homes and industrial establishments in the Reykjavík area are heated by water piped from nearby hot springs.

A Climate

Iceland has a relatively mild and equable climate, despite its high altitude and its proximity to the Arctic. Because of oceanic influences, notably the North Atlantic Drift (a continuation of the Gulf Stream), climatic conditions are moderate in all sections of the island. The mean annual temperature at Reykjavík is about 5° C (about 41° F), with a range from -1° C (31° F) in January to 11° C (52° F) in July. In the northwestern, northern, and eastern coastal regions, subject to the effects of polar currents and drifting ice, temperatures are generally lower. Windstorms of considerable violence are characteristic during much of the winter season. Annual precipitation ranges between about 1,270 and 2,030 mm (about 50 and 80 in) along the southern coast, and is only about 510 mm (about 20 in) along the northern coast. The southern slopes of some of Iceland’s interior mountains receive up to about 4,570 mm (about 180 in) of moisture per year.

B Plants and Animals

The vegetation of Iceland is of the arctic European type. Grass and heather are abundant along the southern coast and afford pasturage for sheep and other livestock. Extensive forests probably existed on the island in prehistoric times, but present-day trees, such as birch and spruce, are relatively scarce. Bilberries and crowberries are the only kinds of fruit that grow on the island. The arctic fox was probably living in Iceland at the time of the first human settlement. Reindeer were introduced about 1770; rodents were brought in on ships. Neither reptiles nor frogs and toads are found. About 100 species of birds inhabit the island; many of these species are aquatic, among them the whistling swan and several kinds of duck. The eider duck is valued for its down. Whales and seals live along the coast, as do cod, haddock, halibut, and herring. Many salmon and trout inhabit Iceland’s freshwater rivers and lakes.

III POPULATION

The population of Iceland is extremely homogeneous, being almost entirely of Scandinavian and Celtic origin. Beginning in the 1940s a large-scale movement to the coastal towns and villages has occurred. Some 92 percent of the people now live in cities and towns. The population of Iceland (2002 estimate) is 279,384. The overall population density is 2.7 persons per sq km (7 per sq mi).

A Political Divisions and Principal Cities

Iceland is divided into eight regions, each with its own administrative center. Reykjavík (population, 1998 estimate, 108,351) is the capital and chief port. Other towns are Akureyri (15,102), on the northern coast; Kópavogur (21,370), Hafnarfjörður (18,600), and Keflavík (7,637), on the western coast near Reykjavík; and Vestmannaeyjar (4,640), on the tiny island of Heimaey off the southern coast.

B Religion and Language

The state church of Iceland is the Evangelical Lutheran church, with which about 90 percent of the people are affiliated. Complete religious freedom exists, however. Free Lutherans and Roman Catholics make up a small minority. The language is Icelandic, which has remained closer to the Old Norse of Iceland’s original Viking settlers than to the other Scandinavian languages. See Icelandic Language; Icelandic Literature.

C Education

Literacy in Iceland approaches 100 percent of the adult population. Education is free through the university level and is compulsory for all children between the ages of 6 and 16. In the 1998-1999 school year 30,355 pupils were enrolled in primary schools, 30,253 students attended secondary and vocational schools, and 7386 were enrolled in higher institutions. The leading institution of higher education is the University of Iceland (1911), in Reykjavík. The country also has a technical college and colleges of agriculture and music as well as teacher-training schools.

The principal libraries of Iceland are the University Library, the National Library, and the City Library, all located in Reykjavík. The capital is also the site of the Museum of Natural History; the National Museum, containing a major collection of Icelandic antiquities; and an art gallery housing the work of the Icelandic sculptor Einar Jónsson.

IV ECONOMY

Private enterprise forms the basis of the economy of Iceland, but the government exercises a considerable degree of control and supervision over key sectors. Until the close of the 19th century, agriculture was the chief occupation, with fishing as a supplementary source of income. By the middle of the 20th century, however, fishing and fish processing had become the major industries. Hydroelectric power potential is abundant and is being developed to further industrialization. In 1970 Iceland became a member of the European Free Trade Association. The national budget in 1998 included revenue of $2.4 billion and expenditure of $2.4 billion. Iceland suffered from a high rate of inflation in the late 1970s and the 1980s, but the rate decreased substantially in the early 1990s. In 2000 Iceland’s gross domestic product was $8.5 billion.

A Agriculture

Only 9 percent of Iceland’s labor force is engaged in agriculture and fishing. Only 0.07 percent of the land area is under cultivation. The principal crops are turnips and potatoes. Livestock raising is a major occupation, and considerable quantities of dairy products, wool, mutton and lamb, and chicken eggs are produced. In 2001 the country had 465,000 sheep, 72,100 cattle, and 77,330 horses.

B Fishing

Fishing and fish processing are the most important Icelandic industries, and the total catch in 1997 was 2.2 million metric tons. Food products, including fresh and processed fish, account for 70 percent of Iceland’s exports. Iceland is a leading producer of cod, and other major components of the catch include capelin, haddock, crustaceans, herring, redfish, and saithe. Coastal towns have extensive facilities for fish processing. In response to international pressure, Iceland suspended all whaling operations in 1989. However, in June 1992 Iceland withdrew from the International Whaling Commission, disputing the designation of some species of whales as endangered and claiming that certain species threatened Iceland’s commercial fish population.

C Mining

Iceland has few proven mineral resources, and profitable development has been difficult. Minerals of commercial value include pumice and diatomite.

D Manufacturing

Aside from fish processing, manufacturing is primarily for domestic consumption needs. Principal products are clothing, shoes, soaps, and chemicals. Book production is also a large trade in Iceland. Some electrical appliances are made. In addition, major plants producing aluminum (from imported bauxite) and ferrosilicon have been established to take advantage of Iceland’s energy resources.

E Energy

Hydroelectric installations produce 85 percent of Iceland’s electricity, with geothermal sources supplying the rest. Output in 1999 was 7.1 billion kilowatt hours. Hot water from springs is used for heating and in some manufacturing operations.

F Currency and Banking

The monetary unit of Iceland is the króna, consisting of 100 aurar (78.62 krónur equal U.S. $1; 2000). In 1981 the government introduced a new króna, equivalent to 100 old krónur. Currency is issued by the state-owned Central Bank (1961). Iceland has several private commercial banks.

G Foreign Trade

The yearly value of Iceland’s imports is often greater than that of its exports, although the country’s foreign trade balances occasionally. In 2000 imports cost $2.6 billion, and exports earned $1.9 billion. Major imports include refined petroleum, machinery, transportation equipment, textiles and clothing, chemicals, basic manufactures, and foodstuffs. Exports of metal and ores, including a significant amount of aluminum, account for 16 percent of total exports. The country’s main trade partners are the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, France, Norway, and Japan.

H Transportation and Communications

Iceland has 12,962 km (8,054 mi) of roads, which are mainly located in coastal areas. In 1999 Iceland had 546 passenger cars for every 1,000 residents. The island has no railroads or navigable rivers. The country has several seaports, including Arkanes, Keflavík, Reykjavík, and Siglufjörður. Icelandair provides domestic and international air service.

There are 3 daily newspapers published in Iceland, with a combined circulation of 145,000. Telephone and telegraph services are owned and administered by the government; the state monopoly on radio and television broadcasting ended in 1986. In 1997 the country had 950 radio receivers and 358 television sets for every 1,000 inhabitants.

V GOVERNMENT

Iceland is governed under a constitution that became effective when the country achieved full independence in 1944. Iceland has no armed forces of its own except for 120 coast guard personnel, but is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In 1997 some 1,520 United States military personnel were stationed at Keflavík air base.

A Executive

The head of state of Iceland is a president, who is elected by universal suffrage by persons aged 18 and older to a four-year term. The president has little power, and the country’s chief executive is a prime minister, who is responsible to Parliament. The prime minister is assisted by a cabinet, which holds real executive power.

B Legislature

The legislature of Iceland is the Althing, which has met almost continually since its establishment in ad 930, and which was converted from a bicameral to a unicameral system in 1991. It has 63 members, 54 elected to four-year terms under a system of proportional representation and 9 allotted to the political parties based on their relative vote totals in the elections.

C Political Parties

The leading political organizations of Iceland are the Independence Party, a conservative group; the leftist Alliance coalition, which includes the People’s Alliance, the People’s Party, and the Alliance of Women’s List; the liberal Progressive Party; and the Left-Green Alliance. Governments in Iceland are generally formed by coalitions, including the current government of the Independence Party and the Progressive Party.

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An island country in the North Atlantic near the Arctic Circle. Norse settlers arrived c. 850–875, and Christianity was introduced c. 1000. Iceland passed to Norway in 1262 and, with Norway, to Denmark in 1380. In 1918 it became a sovereign state still nominally under the Danish king, until Icelanders voted for full independence in 1944. Reykjavík is the capital and the largest city. Population: 293,000 .

Iceland, Icel. Ísland, officially Republic of Iceland, republic (2005 est. pop. 297,000), 39,698 sq mi (102,819 sq km), the westernmost state of Europe, occupying an island in the Atlantic Ocean just S of the Arctic Circle, c.600 mi (970 km) W of Norway and c.180 mi (290 km) SE of Greenland. The republic includes several small islands, notably the Vestmannaeyjar off the southern coast of Iceland. Reykjavík is the capital and largest city.
Land and People

Deep fjords indent the coasts of Iceland, particularly in the north and west. The island itself is a geologically young basalt plateau, averaging 2,000 ft (610 m) in height (Öraefajökull, c.6,950 ft/2,120 m high, is the highest point) and culminating in vast icefields, of which the Vatnajökull, in the southeast, is the largest. There are about 200 volcanoes, many of them still active; the highest is Mt. Hekla (c.4,900 ft/1,490 m). Hot springs abound and are used for inexpensive heating; the great Geysir is particularly famous. The watershed of Iceland runs roughly east-west; the chief river, the Jökulsá, flows N into the Axarfjörður (there are several other rivers of the same name).

The climate is relatively mild and humid (especially in the west and south), owing to the proximity of the North Atlantic Drift; however, N and E Iceland have a polar, tundralike climate. Grasses predominate; timber is virtually absent, and much of the land is barren. (Some of this is a result of human habitition, which led to deforestation and overgrazing.) Only about one fourth of the island is habitable, and practically all the larger inhabited places are located on the coast; they are Reykjavík, Akureyrí, Hafnarfjörður, Siglufjörður, Akranes, and Isafjörður.

The population, until recently largely homogeneous and isolated, is descended mainly from Norse settlers and their slaves. (This homogeneity, combined with longstanding genealogical records, has made Icelanders the subject of fruitful genetic study.) The Lutheran Church is the established church and more than 95% of the people are members of it, but there is complete religious freedom. The official language is Icelandic (Old Norse). Virtually all Icelanders are literate; they read more books per capita than any other people in the world. There is a university (est. 1911) at Reykjavík.

Economy

About 15% of the land is potentially productive, but agriculture, cultivating mainly hay, potatoes, and turnips, is restricted to 0.5% of the total area. Fruits and vegetables are raised in greenhouses. There are extensive grazing lands, used mainly for sheep raising, but also for horses and cattle. Fishing is the most important industry, accounting for 20% of the gross national product (GNP) and 75% of the country's exports. Aside from aluminum smelting and ferrosilicon production, Iceland has little heavy industry and relies on imports for many of the necessities and luxuries of life. More than half of Iceland's GNP comes from the communications, trade, and service industries. Tourism is also important. Most trade is with the United Kingdom, Germany, the Scandinavian countries, and the United States. In 1990, Iceland's per capita national income was higher than the average for Europe. The country experienced a recession from the late 1980s into the early 1990s, as fish stocks dwindled and world prices for fish and aluminum dropped. However, the economy stabilized in the 1990s and the government continued its policies of diversifying the economy and expanding hydroelectric and geothermal energy resources, thus reducing dependence on oil imports.

Government

Iceland is a parliamentary democracy governed under the constitution of 1944. It has a cabinet responsible to the unicameral parliament (the Althing) and a president elected by popular vote for a four-year term. The four major parties are the Independence, the Progressive, the Social Democratic, and the People's Alliance. Iceland is divided into 23 counties.

The republic possesses neither an army nor a navy. The government plays a major part in the economic life of the country and has established monopolies on the import and sale of several important articles. Social welfare legislation is extensive.

History

Settlement and Subjection

Iceland may be the Ultima Thule of the ancients. Irish monks visited it before the 9th cent., but abandoned it on the arrival (c.850–875) of Norse settlers, many of whom had fled from the domination of Harold I. The Norse settlements also contained many Irish and Scottish slaves, mainly women. In 930 a general assembly, the Althing, was established near Reykjavík at Thingvellir, and Christianity was introduced c.1000 by the Norwegian Olaf I, although paganism seems to have survived for a time. These events are preserved in the literature of 13th-century Iceland, where Old Norse literature reached its greatest flowering. (Modern Icelandic is virtually the same language as that of the sagas.)

Politically, Iceland became a feudal state, and the bloody civil wars of rival chieftains facilitated Norwegian intervention. The attempt of Snorri Sturluson (1179–1241) to establish the full control of King Haakon IV of Norway over Iceland was a failure; however, Haakon incorporated Iceland into the archdiocese of Trondheim and between 1261 and 1264 obtained acknowledgment of his suzerainty by the Icelanders. Norwegian rule brought order, but high taxes and an imposed judicial system caused much discontent. When, with Norway, Iceland passed (1380) under the Danish crown, the Danes showed even less concern for Icelandic welfare; a national decline (1400–1550) set in. Lutheranism was imposed by force (1539–51) over the opposition of Bishop Jon Aresson; the Reformation brought new intellectual activity.

The 17th and 18th cent. were, in many ways, disastrous for Iceland. English, Spanish, and Algerian pirates raided the coasts and ruined trade; epidemics and volcanic eruptions killed a large part of the population; and the creation (1602) of a private trading company at Copenhagen, with exclusive rights to the Iceland trade, caused economic ruin. The private trade monopoly was at last revoked in 1771 and transferred to the Danish crown, and in 1786 trade with Iceland was opened to all Danish and Norwegian merchants. The exclusion of foreign traders was lifted in 1854.

National Revival

The 19th cent. brought a rebirth of national culture (see Icelandic literature) and strong agitation for independence. The great leader of this movement was Jón Sigurðsson. The Althing, abolished in 1800, was reestablished in 1843; in 1874 a constitution and limited home rule were granted; and in 1918, Iceland became a sovereign state in personal union with Denmark. The German occupation (1940) of Denmark in World War II gave the Althing an opportunity to assume the king's prerogatives and the control of foreign affairs. Great Britain sent (1940) a military force to defend the island from possible German attack, and this was replaced after 1941 by U.S. forces.

In 1944 an overwhelming majority of Icelanders voted to terminate the union with Denmark; the kingdom of Iceland was proclaimed an independent republic on June 17, 1944. Sveinn Björrnsson was the first president. Iceland was admitted to the United Nations in 1946; it joined in the Marshall Plan and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In 1946, Iceland granted the United States the right to use the American-built airport at Keflavík for military as well as commercial planes. Under a 1951 defense pact, U.S. troops were stationed there. Björnsson was succeeded by Ásgeir Ásgeirsson.

Relations with Great Britain were strained when Iceland, in order to protect its vital fishing industry, extended (1958) the limits of its territorial waters from 4 to 12 mi (6.4–19.3 km). The conflict, which at times led to exchanges of fire between Icelandic coast guard vessels and British destroyers, was resolved in 1961 when Great Britain accepted the new limits. Kristjárn Eldjárn was elected president in 1968 and reelected in 1972 and 1976. Iceland joined the European Free Trade Association in 1970. In 1971 elections the Independence party–Social Democratic party coalition government, which had governed for 12 years, lost its majority, and a leftist coalition came to power.

The dispute with Britain over fishing rights (widely known as the “cod wars”) was renewed in 1972 when Iceland unilaterally extended its territorial waters to 50 mi (80 km) offshore and forbade foreign fishing vessels in the new zone. An interim agreement was reached in 1973, whereby the British would limit their annual catch and restrict themselves to certain fishing areas and specified numbers and types of vessels.

In Jan., 1973, the Helgafell volcano on Heimaey island erupted, damaging the town of Vestmannaeyjar. Later in the year Iceland and the United States began revising the 1951 defense pact, with a view toward ending the U.S. military presence. U.S. forces still use the NATO base at Keflavík Airport, and their presence continues to be a point of contention among Iceland's parties.

A split in the ruling coalition over economic policies caused the Althing to be dissolved in 1974; following elections, the Independence party formed a new government. Iceland extended its fishing limits to 200 mi (320 km) in 1975, which, after more skirmishes with Great Britain, was finally recognized in 1976. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir was elected president in 1980, thus becoming the world's first popularly elected female head of state; she was reelected in 1984, 1988, and 1992. Davíð Oddsson, of the conservative Independence party, became prime minister in 1991; his center-right coalition was returned to office in 1995, 1999, and, narrowly, 2003. In 1996, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson was elected to succeed Finnbogadóttir, who retired as president. The highly popular Grímsson was reappointed to the post by parliament without an election in 2000; he was reelected in 2004. Oddsson resigned and exchanged posts with coalition partner and foreign minister Halldór Ásgrímsson, of the Progressive party, in Sept., 2004 (Oddsson stepped down as foreign minister a year later).

Bibliography

See V. H. Malmström, A Regional Geography of Iceland (1958); A. Líndal, Ripples from Iceland (1962); B. Guthmundsson, The Origin of the Icelanders (tr. 1967); B. Gröndal, Iceland: From Neutrality to NATO Membership (1971); V. Stefansson, Iceland (1939, repr. 1971); J. J. Horton, Iceland (1983); M. S. Magnusson, Iceland in Transition (1985); E. P. Durrenberger and G. Palsson, ed., The Anthropology of Iceland (1989).

Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland (Icelandic: Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland) is an island nation, a volcanic island in the northern Atlantic Ocean between Greenland, Norway, Ireland, Scotland and the Faroe Islands. Iceland is located in the North Atlantic Ocean just south of the Arctic Circle, which passes through the small island of Grimsey off Iceland's northern coast, but not through mainland Iceland. Unlike neighbouring Greenland, Iceland is considered to be a part of Europe, not a part of North America. It is the world's 18th largest island.

Approximately 10 percent of the island is glaciated. Many fjords punctuate its 3,088 miles (4,970 km) long coastline, which is also where most towns are situated because the island's interior, the Highlands of Iceland, is a cold and uninhabitable desert. The major towns are the capital Reykjavík, Keflavík, where the national airport is situated, and Akureyri. The island of Grímsey on the Arctic Circle contains the northernmost habitation of Iceland.
Area
Whole country: 39,768.5 square miles (103,000 km²)
Vegetation: 9,191 square miles (23,805 km²)
Lakes: 1,064 square miles (2,757 km²)
Glaciers: 4,603 square miles (11,922 km²)
Wasteland: 24,918 square miles (64,538 km²)

Geological and volcanic activity
Iceland is located on both a geological hot spot, thought to be caused by a mantle plume, and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. This combined location means that the island is extremely geologically active, having many volcanoes, notably Hekla, and geysers (itself an Icelandic word). With this widespread availability of geothermal power, and also because of the numerous rivers and waterfalls that are harnessed for hydropower, residents of most towns have hot water and home heat for a low price. The island itself is composed primarily of cooled basalt lava.

The Republic of Iceland，Islenska Lydveldid
Independent date: On December 1 (in 1918)
National Day: On June 17 (in 1944)
National flag: Assumes the rectangle, is long and the wide ratio is 25: 18. The flag is a blue color, is red, the white two colors cross divides into the flag surface four: Two equal blue color squares, two equal blue color rectangles. The blue color represents the sea, the white represents White snow. Blue, white two colors for Iceland's national beauty, manifests Icelandic the natural environment characteristic, namely in the blue color sky and the sea, floats "the ice land" □□Iceland. Iceland was from 1262 for Norway, 14 centuries with received Denmark to rule, therefore on national flag cross design source from the Danish national flag design, expressed in the Icelandic history and Norwegian, Denmark's relations.
National emblem: The central design for the national flag design the shield emblem. The shield emblem upper extreme has a red tongue Jin Zhua Bai Sun and a Bai Chihong tongue Jin Zhua dragon, left side is a black cow, right flank is standing the white clothing old person which a body throws over the cape. ***, the dragon, the cow and the old people all are in the fable patron god. The shield emblem lower extremity stone represents the Icelandic multi- rocks the long seacoast.
Physical geography: The area is 103,000 square kilometers. Is the European most west country, is located middle the North Atlantic Ocean, approaches the arctic circle, the glacier area accounts for 8,000 square kilometers, is the European second Oshima. Coastline long approximately 4,970 kilometers. The entire boundary 3/4 is the elevation 400 - 800 meters plateaus, 1/8 by glacier cover. Some more than 100 volcanos, active volcano more than 20 places. Warner reaches your Si Henu a gram volcano is the national high point, the elevation 2,119 meters. The Icelandic nearly entire country all establishes on the volcano rock, the majority of lands cannot open up wasteland, is world hot spring most countries, therefore is called country of the ice fire. Multi- eruptive fountains, waterfall, lake and rapids rivers, biggest rivers tin Ewer show river long 227 kilometers. Iceland is the cold temperate zone marine climate, constantly changing. Because is affected the Gulf Stream, compares the same latitude other places to be temperate. Summer sunshine long, the winter sunshine is extremely short. Autumn and at the beginning of winter obviously aurora.
Brief history: 8 century's ends, the Irish monks first migrate Iceland. 9 centuries latter half leaves, Norway starts to the Icelandic immigrants. A.D. 930 years establishment parliament and Icelandic federation. In 1262, Icelandic officials under the emperor in Norway. In 1380 the ice, moved with turns over to Denmark to rule. In 1904 attained home rule. In 1918, iced Dan to sign the federation law, stipulated the ice primarily power country, but the diplomatic work still controlled by Denmark. In 1940 Denmark is seized by Germany, ices Dan to relate the severance. The British armed forces enter and be stationed in the same year, next year United States military substitution British armed forces in ice. On June 16, 1944 the ice parliament official announcement dismissed the ice Dan alliance, on 17th established the Icelandic republic. In 1946 joined the United Nations, in 1949 became the NATO member.

Politics: Implements the republican system, the parliament and president wields the legislative power together, the court wields the jurisdiction, president and the government has the executive power together. President is the head of state, through the direct election production, the tenure in office four years, may Time has a time of getting to work. The parliament divides into, the next two courtyards. About the parliamentary original minute two courtyards, in October, 1991 merged are a courtyard, the tenure in office four years. Iceland does not establish the army.
Economy: Fishery, water conservation and geothermal resource rich, other natural resources are deficient, product and so on petroleum needs to import. The industry foundation is weak, except fishing light industry and so on outside product processing and knitting, the industry and builds up the aluminum contour energy consumption industry by the fishing product processing primarily. The fishery is the Icelandic national economy national economy pillar industry, mainly has the capelin, the cod and the black carp, the fishing product exportation accounts for the commodity total export more than 70%. Iceland's fishing fleet is well-equipped, the fish processing technology seizes first the status in the world. Locates the latitude to be high, 日照量 are few, only south several farms yearly produce 400 ~ 500 tons crops. The arable land area 1,000 square kilometers, account for the national total area 1%. The animal husbandry occupies the main status, the majority of agriculture use to use to do the feed pasture. The corresponding wool spinning industry and the leather making industry quite is developed. The meat, the milk, the egg 自给有余, grain, vegetables, fruit basic dependence import. The greenhouse cultivation tomato, the cucumber output may satisfy the domestic 70% expense. Service industry occupies the important status in the national economy national economy, including trade, bank, safe and public service and so on, its output value approximately composes GDP one half, is employed the population to occupy the total labor force 2/3 to be strong. In 1980 developed the tourism vigorously. The main tourist point has the big glacier, the volcano landform, the geothermy eruptive fountain and the waterfall and so on. Iceland's per capital GDP amounts to more than 30,000 US dollars, is the world vanguard. There air and the water source are fresh purely may be called in the world first. Human's mean lifetime achieves the female 81.3 years old, male 76.4 years old. As early as Iceland eliminated the illiterate person in more than 100 years ago. In 1999 Iceland has become in the world the mobile phone popular rate highest country.

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