The island was governed as an independent commonwealth under the native parliament, the Althing, one of the world's oldest functioning legislative assemblies. After a period of civil strife, Iceland acceded to Norwegian rule in the 13th century. In 1397, Iceland followed Norway's integration into the Kalmar Union along with the kingdoms of Denmark and Sweden, coming under de factoDanish rule upon its dissolution in 1523. The Danish kingdom introduced Lutheranism by force in 1550, and the Treaty of Kiel formally ceded Iceland to Denmark in 1814. (Full article...)
"Cocoon" is a song by Icelandic singer Björk for her fourth studio album, Vespertine (2001). Written and produced by Björk and Thomas Knak, it was released as the album's third single on 11 March 2002 by One Little Indian Records. Inspired by her relationship with artist Matthew Barney, Björk wanted to create a record with a domestic mood. Working with Knak, she wrote "Cocoon", a song which is lyrically about a woman who describes making love with her lover during their post-coital hibernation, and includes frank sexual narrative related both explicitly and through over-sharing and metaphor.
Music critics received "Cocoon" with positive reviews, calling it one of the album's highlights. The song experienced moderate commercial success on record charts in the United Kingdom, Australia, and France but reached the top ten in Spain. The accompanying music video for "Cocoon" was directed by Eiko Ishioka and was filmed in New York City. It premiered at the Raindance Film Festival in October 2001, and was made available online through the singer's official website in February 2002, closer to the song's release as a single. It depicts Björk as a geisha whose makeup extends over her entire bleached nude body. The video was considered inappropriate and was banned from primetime MTV, following her music video for "Pagan Poetry". Björk promoted the song by performing it on the Vespertine world tour and several television and radio shows. (Full article...)
Mývatn is a shallow eutrophiclake situated in an area of active volcanism in the north of Iceland, not far from Kraflavolcano. The lake and its surrounding wetlands have an exceptionally rich fauna of waterbirds, especially ducks. The lake was created by a large basaltic lava eruption 2300 years ago, and the surrounding landscape is dominated by volcanic landforms (pictured), including lava pillars and pseudocraters. The effluent river Laxá is known for its rich fishing for Brown Trout and Atlantic Salmon.
Stefán began playing chess at the age of 11 and earned his international master title in 2002, at age 19. He won the Reykjavík Chess Championship twice, in 2002 and 2006. He achieved the required norms for his grandmaster title by 2006 and was awarded the title in 2011, after reaching a rating of 2500. He represented Iceland at five Chess Olympiads and four European Team Chess Championships. (Full article...)
Iceland, though it lies so far to the north that it is partly within the Arctic Circle, is, like Norway, Scotland, and Ireland, affected by the Gulf Stream, so that considerable portions of it are quite habitable.
Image 21US Army training in Iceland in June 1943. (from History of Iceland)
Image 22The flag of Iceland being raised and the flag of the United States being lowered as the U.S. hands over the Keflavík Air Base to the Government of Iceland. (from History of Iceland)
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