Garðabær
Encyclopedia
Garðabær is a municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...

 in the Greater Reykjavík
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...

 area of Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

.

As of January 2011, its population was 10,909.

The municipality is the location of a 5067 m² (6,060.08 sq yd) TV studio, where the LazyTown
LazyTown
LazyTown is a children's television program that was produced in Iceland with a cast and crew from Iceland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was created by Magnús Scheving, a gymnastics champion and CEO of LazyTown Entertainment, who also stars in the show...

children series was recorded. It contains one of the most advanced HDTV facilities in Europe.

History

Garðabær is a growing town in the Reykjavík capital area
Greater Reykjavík Area
The Greater Reykjavík Area is a name used collectively for Reykjavík and seven municipalities around it.. The area is the largest urban area in Iceland. Each municipality has its independent elected council. With a population of 200,852, the Greater Reykjavík Area comprises over 60% of the...

. Garðabær is the sixth largest town in Iceland with a population of 10,272 (July 1, 2008).

The site of Garðabær has been inhabited since Iceland was first settled in the 9th century. Landnámabók
Landnámabók
Landnámabók , often shortened to Landnáma, is a medieval Icelandic written work describing in considerable detail the settlement of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries AD.-Landnáma:...

, the Book of Settlement, tells about two farms in the site of Garðabær, Vífilsstaðir and Skúlastaðir. The former was named after Vífill who vas a slave of Ingólfur Arnarson the first settler of Iceland. Ingólfur gave Vífill his freedom and he made his home at Vífilsstaðir.

Overview

There are many nature reserves surrounding Garðabær and the scenery from various sites in Garðabær is spectacular. From many areas in Garðabær the impressive Snæfellsjökull
Snæfellsjökull
Snæfellsjökull is a 700,000 year old stratovolcano with a glacier covering its summit in western Iceland. The name of the mountain is actually Snæfell, but it is normally called "Snæfellsjökull" to distinguish it from two other mountains with this name...

 (Snæfells Glacier) can be seen to the west, as well as Mt. Esja, and there is also a good view over the capital Reykjavík and the neighbour town Kópavogur
Kópavogur
Kópavogur is a city and Iceland's second largest municipality, with a population of 30,779.It lies immediately south of Reykjavík and is part of the Greater Reykjavík Area. The name literally means seal pup bay...

. The view to the south includes the mountains of the Reykjanes Peninsula
Reykjanes
Reykjanes or Reykjanesskagi is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....

.

The only IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...

 store in all Iceland is in Garðabær.

Twinnings

Asker
Asker
Asker is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the Viken traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Asker. The municipality is a suburb of Oslo, the national capital...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 – Jakobstad
Jakobstad
Jakobstad is a town and municipality in Ostrobothnia, Finland. The town has a population of and covers a land area of . The population density is .- History :...

, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 – Eslöv Municipality
Eslöv Municipality
Eslöv Municipality is one of 290 municipalities of Sweden, situated in Skåne County in southern Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Eslöv....

, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 – Tórshavn
Tórshavn
Tórshavn is the capital and largest town of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the north west of the town lies the high mountain Húsareyn, and to the southwest, the high Kirkjubøreyn...

, Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...

 – Birkerød
Birkerød
Birkerød is a town and was a municipality in Frederiksborg County on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark...

, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

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