Author: Vera Illugadóttir
Lemúrinn: That Time an Icelandic Linguist (Almost) Rescued a British Stockbroker Stuck on the Greenland Ice Cap
The past was a simpler time, back when any young Briton could embark on daring expeditions to far-flung locales in…
The Man Who Didn’t Like Hangikjöt: W.H. Auden In Iceland
by Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson and Vera Illugadóttir
In 1936, a thirty-year-old poet from Britain travelled around Iceland. His name was Wystan Hugh Auden—you probably know him as…
Fine dining in Iceland in 1809: “A Most Involuntary Intemperance”
In the summer of 1809, a young British botanist, William Hooker, visited Iceland on the first botanical expedition of what…
In The Year 2000, Ants Will Have Conquered The World
by Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson and Vera Illugadóttir
Icelanders in 1971 predict the futureIn 1971, the magazine Samvinnan gathered a panel of Icelanders to predict the state of…
The Sinister Christmas Clan Of Iceland
by Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson and Vera Illugadóttir
In Iceland, there is no Santa Claus. Instead, there are thirteen “jólasveinar,” which can be translated to “Yule Lads.” They…
Was Literature’s First Man On The Moon An Icelandic Peasant?
Kepler’s dream of IcelandMy name is Duracotus and my fatherland Iceland called Thule by the ancients. My mother, Fiolxhilde who…
“What A Hard Life Is That Of The Poor Icelanders!”
One day in August 1888, the British steamer ‘Camoens’ docked in the town of Akureyri in Northern Iceland. The ‘Camoens’-for…
“They Are A Gruesome Lot”
Monstrous cats in the Icelandic sagasIt is thought that the first cats touched Icelandic soil in the tenth century, accompanied…
Raccoons In Iceland: A Sad History
As visitors to Iceland will no doubt soon realise, Iceland’s fauna is not particularly diverse. Several attempts have been made…
Danish Surveyors On A Road Trip Around Iceland
In the years 1900-1910, several teams of surveyors from the Danish Geological Survey institute travelled around Iceland, taking photos and…
Lemúrinn: Thorarinn Gunnarsson: Iceland’s Forgotten Sci-Fi Superstar
With powerful AI-controlled ships, the Starwolves have been defending the Republic against the numerically superior but technically inferior Union forces,…
Greater Beings In The Stars Will Be Frequent Guests
by Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson, Vera Illugadóttir and Dr. Helgi Pjéturss
At the start of each New Year we are tempted to make predictions. Lemúrinn will make no such forecast for…
Lemúrinn: The Dream Of Icelandic Muskoxen
This photograph, taken in August 1929, shows a few muskox calves grazing in Reykjavík’s central Austurvöllur square, which was back…
Lemúrinn: The Graf Zeppelin Visits Reykjavík
by Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson and Vera Illugadóttir
“On Thursday, July 17, at around 11:00 AM, the citizens of Reykjavík looked up at the sky in astonishment as…
Lemúrinn: The Presence Of A People
by Vera Illugadóttir and Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson
In the last decade of the 19th century a young Englishman named Frederick W.W. Howell travelled extensively in Iceland, visiting…
Lemúrinn: Iceland’s Forgotten Zoo
Exotic animals are a rare sight in Iceland. Once upon a time, however, Icelanders could visit lions, monkeys, polar bears,…
Celebrating One Thousand Years Of Alþingi In 1930
by Vera Illugadóttir and Helgi Hrafn Guðmundsson
In the summer of 1930, 28-year-old Swedish photographer and scholar Berit Wallenberg travelled to Iceland where she spent a couple…
Lemúrinn: The Icelandic Tourist Experience In 1925
In July 1925, a German cruise ship called the SS München stopped in Reykjavík, its first stop on a month-long…