People

Iceland was settled in the ninth century. The majority of the settlers were of Norse origin, with a smaller Celtic element. A general legislative and judicial assembly, the Althingi, was established in 930, and a uniform code of laws for the country was established at the same time. In 1262, Iceland entered into a union with the Norwegian monarchy. When the Danish and Norwegian monarchies were united in 1380, Iceland came under Danish rule, which lasted for more than five hundred years. Iceland was granted a new constitution in 1874 and obtained home rule in 1904. With the Act of Union in 1918, Iceland became a sovereign state in a monarchical union with Denmark. In 1944, Iceland terminated this union with Denmark and founded a Republic. The native language, Icelandic, belongs to the Nordic group of the Germanic languages.

Iceland has experienced substantial net immigration in recent years, causing the share of citizens of foreign origin to rise to 6% of the total population at the end of 2007.

As in other advanced countries, the population of Iceland is ageing, but at a relatively slower pace than in most OECD countries. In 2006, despite high life expectancy, the ratio of the total population aged over 65 to the population of working age was lower in only five OECD countries: Ireland, South Korea, Mexico, the Slovak Republic and Turkey.

Economy of Iceland,Central Bank of Iceland