How Iceland Changed the World: The Big History of a Small Island

How Iceland Changed the World: The Big History of a Small Island by Egill Bjarnason

Iceland is a small, isolated island just south of the Arctic Circle. It's influence in history has been disproportionate to the small population. It was initially populated by Scandinavians and Irish many centuries ago. (Most often Scandinavian men with Irish women.) These people later continued on to set up towns in Greenland and even in North America. 

This book does not take itself seriously. It does a great job of covering the history of Iceland with a focus on how iceland has impacted other parts of the world.

The Icelanders have been storytellers and have held onto their historic language and recorded many epics. These have allowed us to help piece together many pieces of history. Ancient Iceland had set up forms of government that would appear quite progressive today. 

The population of Iceland did not rise above 100,000 people until the 20th century. The population has been "controlled" by other countries for much of its history. However, despite only recently achieving official independence, the people have had a strong degree of autonomy. They have rarely engaged in external warfare. They have been involved in various international relations. There have been peace conferences there, and the country was influential in the establishment of Israel/Palestine. Iceland has also had the first popularly elected female leader. Recently, a large banking industry rose up and then collapsed. Iceland has historically been homogeneous. Diverse immigration and tourism are relatively new changes. How will it impact the country going forward? 

How Iceland Changed the World: The Big History of a Small Island

Iceland is an interesting place. It is located "in the middle of nowhere", part way between Europe and America. It is really far north and has extreme differences in winter and summer light. It has only been inhabited for a millenia. The descendents of the original inhabitants still remain there. While there has always been interaction with other people, it has not been frequent or deep, thus leading to a fairly homogeneous population. The weather is generally cool. It does not get as cold as inland arctic locations, and rarely gets hot. 

With this situation, Iceland has had an interesting history. The Icelandic sagas are an important source of historical information. (Though there is plenty of "story" in them.) Iceland has been "ruled" by various Scandinavian entities, but always remained somewhat independent. Iceland was the launching point for voyages to Greenland and North America. In more modern times, the location has made it a key point in global wars. It has managed to befriend both Germans and Americans in world wars. The population remains small and can be easily overwhelmed by large external populations. The small economy often requires many imports. Fishing is one of the main exportable natural resources. However, there are talks of exporting electricity. (Iceland has great untapped capacity of geothermal and hydro power.)

This book is a rather tongue-in-cheek look at all the important ways in which Iceland has been an influence in world affairs. Iceland served as a training ground for the moon landing due to its "moon-like" landscape. It was the first country to directly elect a female president. The volcanoes in the country have had significant weather impacts and altered the course of history. This little island has had an outsized role in history.