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What's Iceland's history?

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For a long time, Iceland was entirely uninhabited by humans (which is somewhat odd for an island of its size) and still awaiting discovery; however, in the 9th and 10th centuries, immigrants from Ireland, Scotland and Scandinavia settled the land and officially began its history (though the Irish and Scots are thought to have been family slaves).

The Book of Icelanders records that Ingólfur Arnarson, a Norwegian man was the first man to make his home in Iceland. While some records do suggest that Irish monks may have dwelled in Iceland prior to this time, there is no archaeological evidence to support the hypothesis, and so any prior “owners” of the large island remain a mystery.

Iceland’s political beginning is best marked by the founding of their general assembly (Alþingi) in 930, at which time the Iceland Commonwealth officially began. It is, in fact, the oldest parliament in the world that is still standing (though it has been through some modifications).

Until 1262 Iceland was free and did not have any ruler; however the Sturlungaöld civil war made Iceland a Norwegian colony and thus under the rule of the Norwegian government. When Norway combined with Denmark, Iceland was unofficially under Denmark’s rule – from about 1387 to 1814. However, in 1814, Iceland actually became a Danish colony and was ruled as such until 1904 when the Danish government approved Iceland’s home rule. Finally in 1918 they were granted independence. From that point until World War II, they remained in close relationship with Denmark at which point each country found itself supporting opposing sides of the war. Iceland then became a member of NATO in 1949 and signed an agreement with the United States in 1951that the US would defend them. Today, Iceland is part of the European Union through the Common market but has never sought EU membership.

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