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Reykjavík

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Coordinates: [64°08′00″N, 21°56′00″W]
For the town in Canada see Reykjavik, Manitoba
Reykjavík (pronounced [[ˈreiːcaˌviːk]] ([Media helphelp]·[info])) is the capital of Iceland, its largest city and the world's most northern national capital. Its latitude being 64°08' N, not far from the Arctic Circle (at 66°33' N), it receives only four hours of daylight per day in the depth of winter, and in the summer the nights are almost as bright as day.

Contents

Geography

Reykjavík is located in southwest Iceland at the shores of Faxaflói bay. The Reykjavík area coastline is characterized by peninsulas, coves, straits and islands.

During the Ice Age (until 10 000 years ago), a large glacier covered parts of the city area, reaching as far out as Álftanes. Other parts of the city area were covered by sea water. In the warm periods and at the end of the Ice Age, some hills like Öskjuhlíð were islands. The former sea-level is characterised by sediments (with clams) reaching f.ex. at Öskjuhlíð as far up as 43 m above current sea-level. The hills Öskjuhlíð and Skólavörðuholt seem to be the remains of former shield volcanoes which were active during the warm periods of the Ice Age.

After the Ice Age, the land rose as the heavy load of the glaciers fell away, and began to look as it does today.

But the capital city area was still impregnated by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, like the one 4500 years ago in the mountain range Bláfjöll, when the lava coming down the Elliðaárvalley reached the sea at the bay Elliðavogur.

The largest river to run through Reykjavík is the Elliðaá River, which is not navigable by ships, but one of the best salmon fishing rivers in the country. Mt. Esja, at 914 m, is the tallest mountain in the vicinity of Reykjavík.

The city of Reykjavík is mostly located on the Seltjarnarnes peninsula, but the suburbs reach far out to the south and east from it. Reykjavík is a spread out city; most of its urban area is in the form of low-density suburbs and houses are usually widely spaced. The outer residential neighborhoods are as well widely spaced from each other; in between them run the main traffic arteries and a lot of empty spaces with little aesthetical or recreational value. The young age of the city has contributed the most to this kind of urban planning.

People

The population of Reykjavík in 2005 was 114,800, the combined population of the capital city area being about 190,000. There are six other municipalities in the capital city area, those are:

History

The first permanent settlement in Iceland by Nordic people is believed to have been established in Reykjavík by Ingólfur Arnarson around AD 870; this is described in Landnámabók, or the Book of Settlement. Steam from hot springs in the region is supposed to have inspired Reykjavík's name, as Reykjavík translates to "Bay of Smokes".

Reykjavík is not mentioned in any medieval sources except as a regular farm land but the 18th century was the beginning of urban concentration there. The Danish rulers of Iceland backed ideas of a domestic industry in Iceland that would help generate some much needed progress on the island. In 1752, the King of Denmark donated the estate of Reykjavík to the Innréttingar Corporation; the name comes from Danish "indretninger," meaning enterprise. The leading person in this movement was Skúli Magnússon. In the 1750s several houses were constructed to house the wool industry that was to be Reykjavík's most important employer for a few decades and the original reason for its existence. Other crafts were also practiced by the Innréttingar such as fisheries, sulphur mining, agriculture, and ship building.

Sólfar, by Jon Gunnar Arnason Taken at 3:00am local time
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Sólfar, by Jon Gunnar Arnason Taken at 3:00am local time

The Danish Crown abolished monopoly trading in 1786 and granted six communities around the country an exclusive trading charter, Reykjavík was one of them and the only one to hold on to the charter permanently. 1786 is regarded as the date of the city's founding, celebrating its 200th anniversary in 1986. Trading rights were still limited to the subjects of the Danish Crown however, and Danish traders continued to dominate trade in Iceland. Over the next decades, their business in Iceland expanded. After 1880, free trade was expanded to all nationalities and the influence of Icelandic merchants started to grow.

Nationalist sentiment gained influence in the 19th century and ideas about Icelandic independence became widespread. Reykjavík, as Iceland's only city, was the melting pot of such ideas in the country. Advocates of an independent Iceland realized that a strong Reykjavík was fundamental for that objective. All the important years in the history of the independence struggle are important for Reykjavík as well. In the year 1845, Alþingi, or the general assembly that Icelanders formed in 930 was re-established in Reykjavík, however it had been suspended a few decades earlier when it was located at Þingvellir. At the time it only functioned as an advisory assembly that was supposed to advise the King about the matters of Iceland. The placement of Alþingi in Reykjavík effectively established the city as the capital of Iceland. In 1874 Iceland was given a constitution and with it, Alþingi gained some limited legislative powers and in essence became the institution that it is still today. The next step was to move most of the executive power to Iceland and that was done by the Home Rule in 1904 when the office of minister for Iceland was established in Reykjavík. The biggest step towards an independent Iceland was taken December 1,1918 when Iceland became a sovereign country under the Crown of Denmark, the Kingdom of Iceland.

 Historical population of Reykjavík.
1801 600
1860 1,450
1901 6,321
1910 11,449
1920 17,450
1930 28,052
1940 38,308
1950 55,980
1960 72,407
1970 81,693
1980 83,766
1985 89,868
1990 97,569
1995 104,258
2000 110,852
2005 114,800
In the 1920s and 1930s most of the growing Icelandic fishing trawler fleet sailed from Reykjavík and salt-cod production was the main industry but the Great Depression hit Reykjavík hard with unemployment and labour union struggles that sometimes became violent.

In the morning of May 10, 1940 four warships approached Reykjavík and anchored in the harbour. Many citizens were relieved to find out that those were British rather than German. In a few hours, the allied occupation of Reykjavík, illegal under international law, was complete. There was no armed resistance. The Icelandic government had received many requests from the British government about allowing the occupation but they always declined on the basis of the Neutrality Policy. For the remaining years of World War II, British and later American soldiers built bases in Reykjavík; the number of foreign soldiers in Reykjavík became about the same as the local population of the city.

The economic effects of the occupation were quite positive for Reykjavík: the unemployment of the depression years vanished and a lot of construction work was done. The British built Reykjavík Airport, which is still in service today, mostly serving domestic flights; the Americans built Keflavík Airport that has later become Iceland's primary international airport, situated 50 km from Reykjavík. In 1944 the Republic of Iceland was founded and a president elected in popular elections replaced the King; the office of the president was placed in Reykjavík.

In the post-war years, the growth of Reykjavík accelerated. A mass exodus from the rural countryside started mainly because of the better technology in agriculture that reduced the need for workforce in that sector and because of the population boom following better living conditions in Iceland. Young people in the prime of their lives were the most populous group that moved to the capital to live the "Reykjavík Dream", and the city became a city of children. The previously primitive village was rapidly transforming into a modern city. Private cars became common and modern apartment complexes rose in the expanding suburbs and much of Reykjavík lost its village feel. In 1972, Reykjavík hosted the world chess championship between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky.

Reykjavík has in the last two decades become a significant player in the global community, the 1986 Reykjavik Summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev underlined Reykjavík's new-found international status. Deregulation in the financial sector and the computer revolution of the 1990s have transformed Reykjavík yet again. The financial sector and information technology are now significant employers in the city. The energetic city of children has fostered some world famous talents in recent years such as Björk and Sigur Rós.

Administration

Reykjavík is governed by the city council, directly elected by anyone aged over 18 and registered with domicile in the city. The council has 15 members that are elected for 4 year terms. The Independence Party had an overall control of the city council from the party's establishment in 1929 and until 1978 when they narrowly lost the election to NOC (no overall control). From 1978 to 1982 the People's Alliance, the Social Democratic Party and the Progressive Party formed the majority of the council. The Independence Party won an overall control in the 1982 elections, and held it until 1994. Then, its opponents had formed an alliance, called Reykjavíkurlistinn, or R-listinn. That alliance had an overall control until 2006. In the May 2006 elections the electorates could choose between five different Parties; three of them had former formed R-listinn. The Independence Party failed to gain an overall control (received 7 members of the council), but together with the Progressive Party, and its one council member, they were able to form a new majority in the council which took over in June 2006.

The city council governs the city of Reykjavík according to law number 45/1998 [link]. The city council selects people on the boards and each board controls a different field under the city councils authority. The most important board is the city board that wields the executive rights along with the city mayor. The city mayor is the uppermost public official in the city and also the director of city operations. Other public official then control different institution under his authority.

Therefore the administration consists of two different parts. The political power that the city council wields and other boards in its authority and the official system where public official under the authority of the city mayor take care of administering the policy and the management.

The mayor is appointed by the city council, usually one of the council members is chosen but they may also hire a mayor that is not member of the council.

In the town-laws from 1907 the term city mayor public office was introduced but in the year 1908 applications for that position were requested. Two applications were received, one from Páll Einarsson sheriff and town mayor of Hafnarfjörður and another one from Knud Zimsem town councillor in Reykjavík. Páll was employed on the 7th of May and was the city mayor for six years. The city mayor received, at that time, a salary of 4500IKR annually and 1500IKR because of office costs.

Reverse timeline of mayors

Economy

Tjörnin ("The Pond") in Reykjavík
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Tjörnin ("The Pond") in Reykjavík

Major companies

Infrastructure

Roads

Car ownership in Iceland is among the highest in the world, although Reykjavík is not severely affected by congestion as the city is rather spread out. Wide multi-lane highways run all over the city connecting the different neighbourhoods and suburbs. Parking spaces are also plentiful in most areas. Public transportation only exists in the form of a bus system (called 'Strætó bs) and is not very popular in this car friendly city. Route 1 (the Ring Road) runs by the city outskirts and connects it to the rest of Iceland.

Airports & seaports

Reykjavík Airport, the second largest airport in the country (after Keflavík International Airport), is positioned inside the city, just south of the city centre. It is mainly used for domestic flights as well as flights to Greenland and the Faroe Islands. It was built there by the British occupation force during World War II on the outskirts of, then much smaller, Reykjavík. In later years there has been some controversy regarding the location of the airport since it takes up a lot of valuable space in central Reykjavík.

Reykjavík has two seaports, the old harbour near the city centre which is mainly used by fishermen and Cruise ships and Sundahöfn in the east city which is the largest cargo port in the country.

Telecommunications

Heating

Most houses in Reykjavík use the geothermal heating system. It is the largest system of this kind in the world. See geothermal power in Iceland.

Sites of interest

Nightlife

Reykjavík is often dubbed "the nightlife capital of the north". It is famous for its nightlife during the weekends. Icelanders tend to go out late so bars that look rather quiet can fill up suddenly, usually around midnight on a weekend. In fact, the entire town center often fills up rather suddenly after midnight.

One of the main causes for this is that alcohol is very expensive at bars, so people tend to drink at home before going out. Beer was banned in Iceland until 1 March 1989, but has since become Icelanders' drink of choice. However, like other alcoholic beverages, it is still quite expensive; a pint (actually a half litre) of beer in an Icelandic bar can cost between 350 to 800 Icelandic Króna, or from 4 to 9 Euros. To this end, some people show up late and are already drunk when they arrive at the bars downtown.

There are over 100 different bars and clubs in Reykjavík; most of them are located on Laugavegur and its side streets. It is very common for an establishment that is a café before dinner to turn into a bar in the evening. Closing time is usually around 3-5AM on weekends and 1AM during the week.

A running joke amongst natives is when they are asked of Icelandic nightlife by a tourist, they coyly answer: What is a nightlife?

New Year's Eve

The arrival of the new year is a particular cause of celebration to the people of Reykjavík. They spend enormous sums of money on fireworks, most of which are fired as midnight approaches on December 31. As a result, every year the city is lit up with what may very well be the biggest fireworks display in the world. Some celebrities visit Reykjavík during the New Year solely in order to view the spectacle and enjoy the vibrant nightlife that follows.

Gymnasia and universities

The University of Iceland Main Building -- a city landmark
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The University of Iceland Main Building -- a city landmark

Gymnasia

Colleges and universities

Sports teams

See also

External links

Reykjavík Photography

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Twenty largest Municipalities of Iceland

Reykjavík | Kópavogur | Hafnarfjörður | Akureyri | Reykjanesbær | Garðabær | Mosfellsbær | Árborg | Akranes | Seltjarnarnes | Vestmannaeyjar | Skagafjörður | Ísafjörður | Fjarðabyggð | Borgarbyggð | Húsavík | Grindavík | Hornafjörður | Fljótsdalshérað | Dalvíkurbyggð |

 

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