My Opinion: No Man Is an Island, and Neither is Iceland

Sometimes Icelanders have been honored in other countries by something being named after us, our country, places in Iceland, or even famous Icelanders. I have, through the years, sometimes seen such news in the media. And although this is usually not very noteworthy, it is still gratifying. It is good to know that we, and our country, have a place in the big world, and it warms the cockles of your heart.

On my travels in foreign cities, I have sometimes come across streets and places with Icelandic names or something connected with Iceland. This is most common in cities in the Nordic countries, but also in Europe, United States and Canada. And it is so wonderful to see that the street you are walking along is called Iceland Street. It fills you with warmth and pride.

This shows friendship and makes you think about the value of international relations and how nations are often linked in history. It is a mark of respect and recognition of our importance, our country, and it reminds us that although we are a small nation in a small country, we have accomplished many good things through the years, so much so that foreigners see fit to commemorate it. This reminds us that no man is an island, and neither is Iceland.

Each Road Away From Home

In the city of Chicago is the Leif Ericson elementary school. There is another Leif Ericson elementary school in San Diego. There, the children even sing about Leifur in their school songs. The motto of the school is: Be kind to myself. Be kind to others. Be kind to my school. This reminds us that once, a restless Icelander roamed west and found North America. In London, there is an Iceland Road. It is not an interesting street, especially not if compared with Hekla Avenue in Winnipeg. In Tampere, Finland, there is something called Laxnesinpolku. I think it is a street.

In Amsterdam, there is a street called Reykjavikweg. In Torshavn in the Faroe Islands, I had the unique pleasure of walking along Íslandsvegur. And it so happened that while I was walking there, I was listening to Iceland’s Bell on an audio book. Copenhagen is probably the city that has the most of these places and streets. Islands Brygge in Amager is a good example. There is an Iceland Road in every other city in the Nordic countries. And it goes on. And there are libraries and institutions around the world with similar names.

Lindgren and Egner Streets

But although it is nice to see how often others name things after us, it is equally sad to admit how unwilling we are to name places after others. It is as if we only want to name streets after ourselves. I think we have almost emptied the Icelandic sagas, and Icelandic history, of all names.

We have almost finished the personal names register. Whole neighborhoods have concept names derived from ourselves in one way or another. This trend culminated in the Millennium District. We seem to be singularly self-centered when it comes to choosing names. There is not even a Copenhagen Street in Iceland. This is actually embarrassing.

There are so many good things that have come to Iceland from abroad. It can even be said that literally everything good that has come here has come from other countries. Why not thank for it, acknowledge it and show our friendship and respect in action? Isn’t it long overdue? Otherwise, good friendships could be forgotten. And wouldn’t it be nice to be able to delight our guests by showing them such marks of respect?

I therefore suggest that we make amends here. We can start with the Nordic countries. Swede Street and Norwegian Road. If a new street will be made in Fossvogur it could easily be called Finland. And it is long overdue to seal the friendship and solidarity between Icelanders and the Faroese and name some grand street after something Faroese. Þrándur í Götu offers a lot of possibilities. William Heinesen Square would definitely be beautiful, and Oslo Street definitely too.

And if we want to show friendship and gratitude, and be clever too, we can thank the Americans for all the good things they have brought us by naming something after Bill and Bob, the founders of the AA movement. Few people have made as much impact on Icelandic society as they have. And we should thank for it. I think we should have a Wittgenstein Street to commemorate his visit to Iceland. And so on and so forth.

Let’s think outside the box.