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 Languages of
Iceland
The national language of Iceland is Icelandic.
The Icelandic language is one of the few languages
worldwide that has undergone very little change
from the original, which was spoken by Norse and
Viking settlers. Icelandic has
two letters of its own, Þ/þ and Ð/ð, which
were used in old English. "Þ" is
pronounced "th" as in "thing"
and "Ð" is pronounced "th" as
in "them". Other widely spoken languages
in Iceland are Danish, German and English. Most Icelanders
have at least a basic understanding of the English
language, and many are fluent.
Icelandic Surnames
 Iceland follows a unique tradition concerning
names. Legally, Icelanders follow a patronymic
system of deriving their last name from the first
name of their father. This is why so many
Icelandic men have similar names. For example, in
the case of a man named Magnus Magnusson, his
father's name would also be Magnus. If he has a
sister named Bjork, her surname would be
Magnusdottir. The only way this family name could
be passed down is if the family maintains a tradition
of naming their sons Magnus. Women keep their
surnames when they marry, and it is not unusual to
meet a family with a daughter and son in which no
one has the same surname. For this reason, Icelanders
always refer to each other by their first name,
and not exclusively by last names. Therefore, if
you were referring to Icelandic President
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, you would refer to him
as either "President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson," or
"President Ólafur," but never just "President Grímsson".
There are some Icelanders who do have family
names, but are unable to legally use them.
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