Grindavík is a fishing town at the peninsula of
ReykjanesReykjanes is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....
at the south-western coast of
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
. It is one of the few cities with a harbour at this coast. Most of the 3,000 inhabitants work in the fishing industry. The
Blue LagoonThe Blue Lagoon geothermal spa is one of the most visited attractions in Iceland. The steamy waters are part of a lava formation....
, Grindavík's premiere attraction, is located from the town centre.
Landnáma or
The Book of Settlements mentions that around 934 two Viking settlers, Molda-Gnúpur Hrólfsson and Þórir haustmyrkur Vígbjóðsson, arrived in the
ReykjanesReykjanes is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....
area.
Grindavík is a fishing town at the peninsula of
ReykjanesReykjanes is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....
at the south-western coast of
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
. It is one of the few cities with a harbour at this coast. Most of the 3,000 inhabitants work in the fishing industry. The
Blue LagoonThe Blue Lagoon geothermal spa is one of the most visited attractions in Iceland. The steamy waters are part of a lava formation....
, Grindavík's premiere attraction, is located from the town centre.
History
Landnáma or
The Book of Settlements mentions that around 934 two Viking settlers, Molda-Gnúpur Hrólfsson and Þórir haustmyrkur Vígbjóðsson, arrived in the
ReykjanesReykjanes is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....
area. Þórir settled in Selvog, and Krísuvík and Molda-Gnúpur in Grindavík.
http://www.grindavik.is
The sons of Moldar-Gnúpur established three settlements; Þórkötlustaðahverfi, Járngerðarstaðarhverfi and Staðarhverfi. The modern version of Grindavik is situated mainly in what was Járngerðarstaðarhverfi.
The origins of the municipality can be traced to Einar Einarsson’s decision to move there to build and run a shop in 1897. During that time the town population was only around 360. Fishing had for centuries been a crucial element in the survival of Grindavik’s population. But fishing trips were often extremely dangerous. Men were frequently lost at sea and the catch not always stable. However when a safer access point to land was created at Hópið in 1939, fishing conditions changed dramatically. From 1950 serious development in the fishing industry begun to take place. Grindavik was declared a municipality in 1974.
Activities
A short distance to the north, there is the
Blue LagoonThe Blue Lagoon geothermal spa is one of the most visited attractions in Iceland. The steamy waters are part of a lava formation....
, a geothermal spa using hot and mineralized waters from the nearby Svartsengi power station.
UMFG is the town's sport club.
The Leif the Lucky Bridge spans the Álfagjá rift valley that marks the boundary of the Eurasian and North American continental tectonic plates. It was built in 2002 and named in honor of Icelandic explorer Leif Eriksson, who travelled from Europe to explore North America 500 years before Columbus.
The Icelandic Saltfish Museum in Grindavík opened in September 2002. It displays the story of salt fish production and its importance for the Icelandic economy throughout the centuries in a specially designed building of 650m2.
Notable residents
The
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
ic
writerA writer is anyone who creates a written work, though the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, as well as those who have written in many different forms.-Profession:...
Guðbergur BergssonGuðbergur Bergsson is an Icelandic writer born in Grindavík on October 16, 1932. He went to the University of Iceland for his Teaching degree and then went for further study in literature at the University of Barcelona. He is one of the leading translators of Spanish works in Iceland.His first book...
was born here, and
Kalli BjarniKarl Bjarni Guðmundsson aka Kalli Bjarni is an Icelandic singer who rose to popularity after winning Idol Stjörnuleit, the Icelandic version of Pop Idol.- Arrest :...
, the first winner of the Icelandic version of
Pop IdolPop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 5 October 2001; the show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer, or 'pop idol', in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation...
, lives in the town.
Dnashdnash is an American composer, vocalist, instrumentalist and a fang artist.-Biography:dnash was born on October 4, 1972 in Paris, France and grew up constantly moving, spending most of his childhood in Europe and Indonesia...
, the American composer and instrumentalist whose wife, Ögn Þórarinsdóttir, was raised in Gindavík also calls this picturesque town home when not on tour.
Naval Communication Facility
Near Grindavik, there is a radio station of the United States Navy. It uses several antennas, including two guyed masts. The mast situated at 63°51'1"N 22°28'0"W was built in 1993 and is 304.8 metres tall, the other mast at 63°51'3"N 22°27'6"W was built in 1983 and is 182.9 metres tall. The taller mast replaced a 243.8 metres tall mast, the other a mast of same height.
Twin Towns
RovaniemiRovaniemi is a city and municipality of Finland. It is the administrative capital and the centre of commerce of Finland's northernmost Province, Lapland. It is situated close to the Arctic Circle and between the hills of Ounasvaara and Korkalovaara, at the confluence of the Kemijoki River and its...
,
FinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland
, is a Nordic country and democracy situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It borders Sweden on the west, Russia on the east, and Norway on the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland...
HirtshalsHirtshals is a town in Hjørring municipality in Region Nordjylland on the north coast of the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark, Europe.- The town of Hirtshals :...
,
DenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
PiteåPiteå is a locality and the seat of Piteå Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 22,650 inhabitants in 2005.- Geography :Piteå is located at the mouth of the Pite River , at the shore of the Bay of Bothnia...
,
SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
PenistonePenistone is a small market town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley, in South Yorkshire, England, with a population of 10,101 at the 2001 census. It lies west of the town of Barnsley and north east of Glossop, in the foothills of the Pennines...
,
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
JonzacJonzac is a commune of the Charente-Maritime département in south-western France.-Geography:The river Seugne flows northwestward through the commune and crosses the town....
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
IlhavoÍlhavo Municipality is located in Aveiro District, in Baixo Vouga Subregion, by the Ria de Aveiro and the Atlantic Ocean, with an area of 75 km² and a population of 37,209, distributed by four parishes...
,
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
External links
An Audio interview with a Grindavík resident about life in Grindavík