13 Facts About Iceland, One Of The Happiest Countries In The World That Never Had An Army

Iceland is a small country with a population of just over 350,000 people. All citizens know each other very well in their respective neighborhoods, so there is no need to lock the doors when leaving the house and children can easily stay in a cafeteria or store without supervision. In addition, the cold Nordic country is one of the happiest in the world.

O awesome.club fell in love with this country unconditionally and wants to share with you facts that show that in this world there is an ideal place to live.

The country can be proud of having one of the most powerful waterfalls in Europe, the Dettifoss, a cliff where millions of birds live and one of the largest glaciers. Icelanders always live in harmony with the glorious local nature, respecting and protecting it. On the island there is so much diversity of natural wonders that anyone who lives there or simply visits it cannot fail to fall in love.

Icelanders are very proud of their language. In ancient times, they maintained close social relations on the small island, which ensured a high stability of the language. The old sagas could be read by almost any local inhabitant without any kind of difficulty. Furthermore, Iceland is one of the leading countries in the world publishing market, where more books are published each year than anywhere else.

The country has one of the strongest laws regarding gender equality, freedom of expression, rights of sexual minorities and the level of democracy. Thus, in 1980, Iceland became the first nation in Europe to elect a woman president, and in 2010, a law was created banning striptease clubs in its territory, in support of feminism. The guarantee of religious freedom and laws that prohibit any type of discrimination have made the place a world leader in human rights.

The country’s schools and colleges are free and prices at private universities are low, which makes higher education accessible to all. In addition, the literacy level of the population is higher than anywhere else in the world.

The local government pays much attention to the development of the public health system. Iceland has one of the highest quality of life indicators. At the same time, state medicine fully serves the population, so there is no need for private health institutions.

90% of homes in Iceland are heated by hot spring water from wells. Geothermal facilities provide all of the country’s heating needs, for which citizens do not have to pay.

The Íslendingabók website is a database containing information on the family ties of all Icelanders, from the 18th century onwards. It was developed thanks to the fact that the country’s population is very low (just over 350,000 inhabitants). Many locals use this website to check that their new love is not related.

Apart from the fact that the country does not have a permanent military force, even the police and coast guard do not carry weapons. Crime is virtually zero, so guns are unnecessary. If any of the citizens want to do military service, they can join the Norwegian army thanks to a treaty between the two nations.

In Iceland, scientists discovered which biochemical processes cause addiction, which allowed to reduce the number of smokers and drinkers in the country to 3-5%. The various substances that alcohol and cigarettes contain cause biochemical processes in the brain that subsequently lead the body to become dependent. The researchers decided to look for types of activities that naturally stimulate the same processes in the brain. Among them are dance, music, drawing and sports.

According to local folklore, trolls live in circular rocks. If an Icelander sees such a stone on his way, then under no circumstances will he touch it, he will just turn away, so as not to disturb the spirit. And if it is necessary to move the “house of trolls” to another place, then a special person is invited, who will agree with the spirit so that he leaves. Even when building a new highway, engineers always turn to folklore experts for advice so as not to accidentally affect the location of the trolls’ habitat.

Before being elected mayor of Reykjavik, the country’s capital, Jón Gnarr managed to play in a punk band, work as a taxi driver, a nurse at a psychiatric hospital, at the Volvo factory in Sweden and as a comedian. The result of his party’s government was a complete restructuring of finances, construction of dozens of kilometers of bicycle paths, as well as the organization of education and the growth of tourism in the city.

Iceland’s otherworldly landscapes not only attract travelers, but film directors as well. In the country there are special companies that deal with the organization of shooting from different local natural resources. Among the films and series that were recorded there, stand out game of Thrones🇧🇷 Star Wars🇧🇷 Thor and Interstellar🇧🇷

The naming committee in Iceland is made up of 6 people: 3 are decided by the Minister of Justice and 3 by higher education institutions. This is done because the country is fighting against the “borrowing” of foreign names, since, in the first place, there is a defense of the native language. Often new authorized names are added. Thus, for example, Geimar and Brimþór were adopted for men and Guðna, Íselín and Ljónjón for women. But Henrique was rejected, as his spelling does not match the rules of the Icelandic language.

Did you feel like packing your bags and going to Iceland right away? Or maybe you already know this fascinating country? Tell us in the comments.