Migration of Icelanders

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, about 15,000 Icelanders — nearly one-fifth of the nation — emigrated to Canada and the U.S. Harsh winters, poverty, and the hope for a better life drove them to new communities in Manitoba, North Dakota, Minnesota, and beyond.

These West-Icelanders held fast to their language and traditions, founding newspapers, schools, and cultural societies. Their descendants continue to celebrate this heritage today.

This morning, around 50 of them visited Akureyri and gathered at the monument of Káinn, a beloved satirical poet born here in 1859, whose wit and poems still connect Iceland and its emigrant communities abroad.

More about Káinn here: