Iceland

Iceland
Flag
Location  Arctic Region
Capital  Reykjavík
Area  103,000 sq km
Population  343,518

"All things come to those that wait"
(Proverb/Quote of the Week)

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January

January 1 Iceland became the first country in the world to legalise equal pay between men and women on 1 January 2018 in bid to close gender gap. Under the new rule, companies and government agencies with more than 25 employees will face fines if they can't demonstrate that men and women receive the same salary for the same job. January 2 January 3 January 4 January 5 January 6 January 7 January 8 January 9 Iceland ranked second at the Democracy Index of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) with an overall score of 9.58, as published on 9 January 2019. January 10 January 11 January 12 January 13 January 14 An international team of researchers, that also includes researchers from Iceland, found links between Indians and Aboriginal Australians. The study, published in US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on 14 January 2013, found genetic links between Aborigines from the Northern Territory and Indians that pre-dated European arrival in Australia – going back between 4000 and 5000 years. January 15 January 16 January 17 January 18 January 19 January 20 January 21 January 22 Iceland ranked second in the list of Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Democracy Index with an overall score of 9.58 published on 22 January 2020, which rates the state of democracy across 167 countries based on five measures—electoral process and pluralism, the functioning of government, political participation, democratic political culture and civil liberties. Iceland ranked second in the World Economic Forum's 2018 Inclusive Development Index's (IDI) list of advanced economies, an annual assessment of 103 countries’ economic performance that measures how countries perform on eleven dimensions of economic progress in addition to GDP. January 23 Iceland was crowned as the second greenest country in the world according to the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2016 published by Yale University, Columbia University and the World Economic Forum. The EPI index ranks the performance of each nation in protection of human health from environmental harm and protection of ecosystems based on nine assessment areas that include air quality, climate and energy, forests and water resources. January 24 January 25 Iceland secured the second position at the Democracy Index compiled by the UK based Economist Intelligence Unit with a score of 9.50 out of 10, as published on 25 January 2017. January 26 January 27 January 28 January 29 January 30 January 31

February

February 1 Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir became the first female Prime Minister of Iceland on February 1, 2009. She also made headlines as the world's first openly gay female head of government. February 2 Iceland ranked second at the Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index, published on 2 February 2021, that looks to provide a snapshot of the current state of democracy worldwide for 167 countries. February 3 February 4 February 5 February 6 February 7 February 8 February 9 February 10 February 11 February 12 February 13 February 14 February 15 Iceland ranked eighth in the world on how effectively children can access the justice system to defend their rights, according to a research report released on 15 February 2016 by Children Rights International Network (CRIN). February 16 February 17 February 18 February 19 February 20 Iceland ranked as the world’s second safest country for the newborn with second lowest newborn mortality rates, according to an official report published by UNICEF on 20 February 2018. February 21 February 22 February 23 February 24 Björk of Iceland won the best International Female Solo Artist award at the 2016 BRIT Awards in London. February 25 February 26 February 27 February 28 February 29

March

March 1 March 2 March 3 March 4 March 5 March 6 March 7 March 8 March 9 March 10 March 11 March 12 March 13 Iceland has made strong recovery from the 2008/9 financial crisis and soon expected to surpass pre-crisis economic output levels with strong performance in tourism and fisheries, as reported by the International Monetary Fund on 13 March 2015. March 14 March 15 Iceland was ranked as the world's fourth happiest country according to the annual UN report released on 15 March 2018. March 16 Iceland ranked as the third happiest country in the world according to the 2016 United Nations (UN) World Happiness Report. March 17 March 18 March 19 March 20 Iceland was named as the fourth happiest country in the world, according to an annual U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network report published on 20 March 2021. Iceland was ranked as the third happiest country on Earth, according to a United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network report published on 20 March 2017. March 21 March 22 March 23 March 24 March 25 March 26 March 27 March 28 March 29 March 30 March 31

April

April 1 April 2 April 3 April 4 April 5 April 6 A team of International researchers and Icelandic scientists have used data from atomic bomb tests conducted during the Cold War in order to accurately age the world's biggest fish, the Whale Sharks. The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science on 6 April 2020. April 7 April 8 April 9 April 10 April 11 April 12 April 13 April 14 April 15 Iceland and China signed a free trade agreement on 15 April 2013. Iceland became the first European country to sign a free trade agreement with China, offering hope to the country’s recession-battered economy and giving Beijing a boost in enhancing its influence in the Arctic. April 16 April 17 April 18 April 19 April 20 April 21 April 22 A study by Icelandic and international scientists of genomes from more than 27,000 people in Iceland has revealed that Neanderthal fathers were younger than Homo sapiens, but mothers were older. The research was published on 22 April 2020 in the journal Nature. April 23 April 24 April 25 April 26 April 27 April 28 April 29 April 30

May

May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 Guðni Bergsson of Iceland was elected as a member of Fifa's Disciplinary Committee from Europe on 11 May 2017. May 12 May 13 May 14 May 15 May 16 May 17 May 18 May 19 May 20 May 21 May 22 May 23 May 24 May 25 May 26 May 27 Two Icelanders, Sigurdur Sveinsson and Heimir Hallgrimsson, successfully climbed Mount Everest and reached around 7,000 metres (about 23,000 feet), as revealed on 27 May 2021. May 28 May 29 May 30 May 31

June

June 1 Iceland topped the list of the world’s most peaceful country , according to a report published by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) on 1 June 2017. June 2 June 3 June 4 A new post-Brexit trade deal between Iceland and the United Kingdom was agreed in principle on 4 June 2021, seen as a major boost for trade between the two countries. June 5 June 6 Iceland was ranked as the most peaceful country in the world according to the 2018 Global Peace Index (GPI) produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP). June 7 Iceland was ranked as the third safest country in the world according to the annual Gallup Global Law and Order report published on 7 June 2018. June 8 Iceland ranked as the top most peaceful nation in the world, according to the 2016 Global Peace Index published by the Institute for Economics and Peace, in an attempt to measure the relative position of nations' peacefulness. June 9 June 10 June 11 June 12 June 13 Iceland offers the third best family-friendly policies among 31 rich countries with available data, according to a new UNICEF report published on 13 June 2019. June 14 June 15 Iceland football team on 15 June 2016 played their first ever match at a major tournament at the EURO 2016 against Portugal. Iceland became the least populated country to ever qualify for a major tournament. June 16 Iceland football team secured their historic first FIFA World Cup point in their debut match against Argentina with a 1-1 draw on 16 June 2018. June 17 Iceland topped the list of the world's most peaceful countries at the 2015 Global Peace Index published by Institute for Economics & Peace. June 18 June 19 June 20 June 21 June 22 Iceland, whose economy has recovered rapidly following the 2008 collapse of its banking sector, on 22 June 2012 repaid $US483.7 million in loans to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), ahead of schedule. The early repayment, which follows another one of more than $900 million in March 2012, will reduce Iceland’s outstanding obligation to the IMF. June 23 June 24 June 25 June 26 June 27 June 28 Iceland made history by making it through to their first ever quarter finals of the Euro 2016 football tournament after beating England 2-1. June 29 June 30

July

July 1 July 2 July 3 July 4 July 5 Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland, a volcanic region covers an area of over 1,400,000 ha, nearly 14% of Iceland's territory, was designated as the UNESCO World Heritage Site on 5 July 2019. July 6 July 7 July 8 July 9 July 10 July 11 July 12 July 13 July 14 July 15 July 16 July 17 July 18 July 19 July 20 July 21 July 22 July 23 July 24 July 25 July 26 July 27 July 28 July 29 July 30 July 31

August

August 1 Vigdís Finnbogadóttir became the first female President of Iceland on 1 August 1980. She was the world's first democratically elected female head of state. August 2 August 3 August 4 August 5 August 6 August 7 August 8 August 9 August 10 August 11 Iceland won gold in the Mixed Team Golf at the 2018 European Championships. August 12 August 13 August 14 Researchers from Iceland and an international team have set out the first comprehensive map of mutational processes behind the development of tumors - work that should in future lead to better ways to treat and prevent a wide range of cancers. Their study, published on 14 August 2013 in the journal Nature, discovered the genetic imprints and signatures left by DNA-damaging processes that lead to cancer. August 15 August 16 August 17 August 18 August 19 August 20 August 21 August 22 August 23 August 24 August 25 August 26 August 27 August 28 August 29 August 30 August 31

September

September 1 September 2 Icelandic swimmer Jon Margeir Sverrisson won gold medal and set a new world record of 1:59:62 in the Men’s 200m freestyle in S14 class at the 2012 London Paralympic Games. He is the first Paralympian to break the two minutes in winning the gold in the 200m freestyle. September 3 September 4 Iceland was voted as the world’s eighth most beautiful country by the influential travel publisher Rough Guide’s readers, as published on 4 September 2017. September 5 September 6 Iceland men’s football team qualified for the UEFA European Championship for the very first time on 6 September 2015 after they drew with Kazakhstan 0-0 in the qualifiers. September 7 September 8 The world’s largest factory to capture carbon dioxide from the air began operations in Iceland on 8 September 2021. Named Orca, the plant sucks carbon dioxide directly from the air and buries it as rocks deep underground. September 9 September 10 September 11 September 12 September 13 September 14 September 15 Iceland ranked as the third most democratic country in the world according to the Democracy Index 2014 published by the Economist on 15 September 2015. September 16 September 17 September 18 September 19 Edda Hamar of Iceland was recognized as one of the 2016 UN Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals for building a movement pushing for sustainability and ethics in the fashion industry without compromising style. September 20 September 21 September 22 September 23 September 24 September 25 September 26 September 27 September 28 September 29 September 30

October

October 1 October 2 October 3 October 4 October 5 October 6 October 7 October 8 October 9 Iceland football team qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time with a 2-0 win over Kosovo on 9 October 2017 and became the smallest nation ever to qualify for a World Cup finals. October 10 October 11 October 12 October 13 October 14 October 15 October 16 October 17 October 18 The China-Iceland Arctic Science Observatory was inaugurated and officially began operation on 18 October 2018 in Karholl, northern Iceland to further the scientific understanding on Arctic phenomena. October 19 October 20 October 21 October 22 October 23 October 24 October 25 October 26 October 27 October 28 According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2014 by the World Economic Forum, Iceland ranked first with the smallest gender gap for the sixth year in a row. The report seeks to measure the relative gaps between women and men participations across four key areas: health, education, economy and politics. October 29 October 30 October 31

November

November 1 Iceland was named as the most positive country from Europe at the World’s Most Positive Countries 2018. Iceland was named as the most positive country from Europe at the World’s Most Positive Countries 2016. November 2 For the ninth-year in a row, Iceland ranked as the world‘s most gender-equal country, according to the World Economic Forum‘s Global Gender Gap index published on 2 November 2017. November 3 November 4 November 5 Iceland topped the Freedom on the Net index, assessing 65 countries on their levels of internet and digital media freedom, according to a report released on 5 November 2019 by Freedom House. November 6 November 7 November 8 November 9 November 10 November 11 November 12 November 13 November 14 Iceland ranked second at the Freedom on the Net 2016 index compiled by Freedom House. This index is compiled based on the extent of freedom the citizens of 65 countries experienced on the Internet. Hólmfríður Karlsdóttir from Iceland won the 35th Miss World pageant at the age of 22 on 14 November 1985. She was the first woman from Iceland to win the title. November 15 November 16 November 17 Linda Pétursdóttir from Iceland won the 38th Miss World pageant at the age of 18. The event was held on November 17, 1988 in the Royal Albert Hall, London. She was the second woman from Iceland to win the title. November 18 November 19 Iceland was admitted as a member of the United Nations (UN) on 19 November 1946. November 20 November 21 November 22 November 23 November 24 November 25 November 26 November 27 November 28 November 29 November 30

December

December 1 December 2 December 3 December 4 December 5 December 6 December 7 December 8 December 9 December 10 Unnur Birna Vilhjálmsdóttir from Iceland won the 55th Miss World pageant at the age of 21. The event was held on December 10, 2005 at the Crown of Beauty Theatre in Sanya, China. Unnur was the third representative from Iceland to win the Miss World title. Halldór Kiljan Laxness from Iceland won the Nobel Prize in Literature for 1955 for his vivid epic power which has renewed the great narrative art of Iceland. The award ceremony took place on December 10, 1955. December 11 December 12 December 13 December 14 December 15 Iceland ranked fifth at the United Nations’ Human Development Index, a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development, according to an UNDP report published on 15 December 2020. December 16 December 17 Iceland remained the world’s most gender-neutral country for the 11th year running according to a report published on 17 December 2019 by World Economic Forum. December 18 December 19 December 20 December 21 December 22 December 23 December 24 December 25 December 26 December 27 December 28 December 29 December 30 December 31

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