Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TIMELINE
AD 600-700
Irish monks voyage to uninhabited Iceland, becoming the first (temporary) settlers. There is little
archaeological evidence, although the element 'papar'(fathers) crops up in certain place names.
850-930
Norse settlers from Norway and Sweden arrive, call the island Snæland (Snow Land), then
Garðarshólmi (Garðar's Island), and finally Ísland (Iceland). Scattered farmsteads rapidly cover
the country.
871
Norwegian Viking Ingólfur Arnarson, credited as the country's first permanent inhabitant, sails to
the southwest coast; in time he makes his home in a promising-looking bay that he names Reyk-
javík.
930
The world's oldest existing parliament, the Alþing, is founded at Þingvellir. The Icelanders' law
code is memorised by an elected law speaker, who helps to settle legal matters at annual parlia-
mentary gatherings.
986
Erik the Red founds the first permanent European colony in Greenland, building the settlements
of Eystribyggð and Vestribyggð in the southwest of the country.
1000
Iceland officially converts to Christianity under pressure from the Norwegian king, though pagan
beliefs and rituals remain. Leif the Lucky lands in Newfoundland, becoming the first European to
reach America.
1100-1200
