Iceland trivia: 45 questions and answers

Reykjavík. Reykjavík, on Faxaflói bay in the southwest, is the capital and by far the largest city. Keflavík is where the main international airport is.

The Icelandic króna. Iceland uses its own currency, the Icelandic króna (ISK). It is not in the European Union and does not use the euro.

False. False. Iceland has never been an EU member state. It belongs to the European Economic Area, which gives it access to the EU single market, and it is a member of NATO.

Þjórsá. Þjórsá, about 230 km long, flows from the Hofsjökull glacier to the sea in the south. The Hvítá forms the Gullfoss waterfall, and the Ölfusá flows through Selfoss.

Ingólfur Arnarson. Ingólfur Arnarson is remembered as the first permanent settler, at Reykjavík in 874. Leif Erikson sailed to North America, Jón Sigurðsson led the independence movement in the 1800s, and Jón Arason was the last Catholic bishop.

Þingvellir. The Althing met every summer at Þingvellir, in a rift valley northeast of Reykjavík. Its name means 'assembly fields'.

True. True. To avoid civil war, the question was settled at the Althing, and the lawspeaker Þorgeir decided on 'one law and one religion' for all Icelanders.

1944. The republic was declared at Þingvellir on 17 June 1944. In 1918 Iceland had become a sovereign kingdom that still shared the Danish king.

Vigdís Finnbogadóttir. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir was elected President of Iceland in 1980 and served until 1996. Thatcher, Gandhi and Meir were prime ministers, not presidents.

The United Kingdom. In three Cod Wars between 1958 and 1976, Icelandic coast guard ships cut the nets of British trawlers. In 1976 the United Kingdom accepted Iceland's 200-nautical-mile fishing zone.

True. True. In April 2010 about 20 countries closed their airspace, and around 10 million travellers were affected.

Skyr. Skyr is made from skimmed milk and eaten cold, often with berries and cream. Rúgbrauð is rye bread, harðfiskur is dried fish and laufabrauð is a thin Christmas bread.

Fermented and dried shark. Hákarl is fermented and dried shark meat, with a strong smell of ammonia. Smoked lamb is hangikjöt, sheep's head is svið and fried dough twists are kleinur.

Smoked lamb. Hangikjöt means 'hung meat': smoked lamb or mutton, boiled and served in slices, traditionally with potatoes in white sauce and green peas.

True. True. This hot spring bread, hverabrauð, is dug up the next day. It is a dark, dense, slightly sweet rye bread.

Caraway. Brennivín is distilled from grain and flavoured only with caraway. It is a strong alcoholic drink, at 37.5 percent.

One with everything. 'Eina með öllu' means 'one with everything': raw onion, crispy fried onion, ketchup, sweet mustard and remoulade.

True. True. Plokkfiskur began as a way to use up leftover fish, such as cod or haddock, and is served with dark rye bread and butter.

Húsavík. Húsavík, on Skjálfandi bay, is a centre of whale watching and has a whale museum. Selfoss and Egilsstaðir are inland towns.

True. True. At about 64 degrees north, Reykjavík is further north than any other national capital.

The North American and Eurasian plates. Þingvellir lies on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the boundary between the North American and Eurasian plates. In the Silfra fissure, divers swim between them.

False. False. Iceland's three World Heritage Sites are Þingvellir National Park, Surtsey and Vatnajökull National Park. Geysir is famous, but not on the list.

Strokkur. Strokkur erupts every few minutes, up to about 35 m high. Gullfoss and Skógafoss are waterfalls, and Hekla is a volcano.

Icebergs. Jökulsárlón is a glacier lagoon where icebergs break off the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier and float towards the sea.

1963. Surtsey appeared in November 1963, and the eruption lasted until 1967. Only a few scientists may land there.

True. True. The architect designed it to recall Iceland's landscape, especially its columns of basalt. The church is 74.5 m tall and was finished in 1986.

True. True. Most Icelanders have no family name. A last name such as Jónsson or Jónsdóttir shows the father's (or mother's) first name, so people are listed by first name.

1989. Strong beer was legalised on 1 March 1989, now celebrated as 'Beer Day'. Wine and spirits had been legal for decades before.

False. False. To keep the breed free of disease, horses that leave Iceland may not return, and no horses have been allowed into the country since a law of 982.

13. There are 13 Yule Lads, sons of the troll Grýla. They come one by one on the 13 nights before Christmas.

True. True. On 26 May 1968, 'H-Day', all traffic in Iceland moved from the left to the right side of the road.

The Atlantic puffin. The Atlantic puffin. Around 60 percent of the world's Atlantic puffins are thought to breed in Iceland, with the biggest colonies in the Westman Islands.

Smoky bay. Reykjavík means 'smoky bay', from reykur (smoke) and vík (bay), after the steam of hot springs. Ice fjord is Ísafjörður, fire mountain is eldfjall and golden falls is Gullfoss.

Volcano. Eldfjall means volcano. A glacier is jökull, a waterfall is foss and a hot spring is hver.

True. True. Sundlaug is a swimming pool, and almost every Icelandic town has one, heated by geothermal water.

Bread. Brauð means bread, as in rúgbrauð, rye bread. Coffee is kaffi, fish is fiskur and water is vatn.

Takk fyrir. 'Takk fyrir', or simply 'takk', means thank you. 'Bless' is bye, 'skál' is cheers and 'afsakið' is excuse me.

True. True. 'Skál!' (SKOWL) means cheers.

Gleðileg jól. 'Gleðileg jól' means Merry Christmas. 'Góða ferð' is have a good trip, 'allt gott' is all good and 'það var ekkert' is you're welcome.

False. False. 'Bless' means bye, and Icelanders often say it twice: 'bless bless'. Hello is 'halló' or 'góðan daginn'.

112. In Iceland you call 112 for police, ambulance, fire and rescue. There is also a 112 web chat.

False. False. Tipping is not expected in Iceland, because service is included in the price.

Shower thoroughly without a swimsuit. You must shower thoroughly without a swimsuit in the changing room before going in. Icelandic pools use very few chemicals, so good hygiene matters.

True. True. Headlights must be on day and night, and everyone in the car must wear a seat belt.

It is against the law and fined heavily. It is against the law and fined heavily, because moss and soil take decades to recover from tyre tracks. Stay on the roads and marked tracks.