NordenBladet – There are over fifty thousand immigrants in Iceland, MBL.is mediates. First-generation immigrants now make up just over 14% of the population, which is a dramatic increase from the 12% measured last year. For reference, at the beginning of the decade, that number was roughly 8%.
Second-generation immigrants also increased from 4,861 last year to 5,263 this year. Adding the numbers of first and second-generation immigrants together, the total equals 15.6% of the population, which is the highest number of immigrants Iceland has ever seen.
As in recent years, Polish people were the most populous group of immigrants to the country, followed by people from Lithuania, then the Philippines. Most immigrants to the country choose to settle in the capital region, but other hot spots include Suðurnes and the Westfjords.
While immigration is up, citizenship is down. Only 569 people were granted citizenship last year, while 637 individuals received Icelandic citizenship in the previous year. As with the immigration statistics, the number of people receiving Icelandic citizenship was largely Polish.
NordenBladet – The upcoming RÚV/Netflix co-production ‘The Valhalla Murders’ was just recommended on BBC’s ‘Ten TV shows to watch in December’ and Icelandic media is freaking out.
The show is about a police investigator named Arnar who travels from Denmark to assist in the investigation surrounding Iceland’s first serial killer. He has to work with Kata, the officer in charge of the case, and together they must race against the clock to find the murderer before it’s too late. While the victims initially seem unrelated, the trail leads them to an abandoned boys’ home named Valhalla, where some horrifying events occurred 35 years earlier. The series will premiere on RÚV and Netflix on December 26th and for those select few who don’t get books on Christmas, it looks pretty binge-worthy.
Of the show, the BBC wrote, “…this latest Nordic noir ticks the right boxes for addictive viewing this winter.” We could not agree more.
Judging by the trailer alone, it looks like it will be filled with violence, scandal, and deep, philosophical examination of the human condition. So if you liked ‘Trapped‘, ‘The Valhalla Murders’ should be right up your alley.
Truenorth’s Thordarson told Variety: “We are extremely pleased to have signed this ground-breaking deal with Netflix. This is a validation of our efforts to bring the best quality content to the world and our trust in our young and promising director-creator Þórður Pálsson who has worked on this passion project for many years.”
“This is historic contract with Netflix. This fascinating project in general is a big result for our more ambitious and focused work at RÚV aimed at massively increasing the selection, distribution, and above all else, the quality of Icelandic TV material,” added Magnús Geir Þórðarson. director general of RÚV.
“The Valhalla Murders” reunites some of Iceland’s top talents. The series, based on an idea by Pàlsson, a graduate from London’s National Film & TV School, is co-penned by seasoned screenwriter Margrét Örnólfsdóttir (“Trapped 2”, “Prisoners”), Otto Geir Borg (“I Remember You”), Mikael Torfason (“Made in Iceland”) and crime author and poet Óttar M. Norðfjörð. Pálsson directs the show with David Oskar Olafsson and Thora Hilmarsdottir.
Toplining the series are actors Nína Dögg Filippudóttir (“Trapped”) and Björn Thors (Woman at War).
The story centers on police profiler Arnar, sent back home from Copenhagen to his native Iceland to investigate the country’s first serial killer case. He teams up with the local senior cop Kata. The murders don’t seem to have much in common until the investigative duo connect them to an abandoned boys’ home named Valhalla, where horrendous crimes occurred 35 years earlier.
The Icelandic show is set to premiere on RÚV at Christmas 2019.
During her keynote speech in Göteborg, Brounéus confirmed the latest Netflix investments in the Nordic region:
*“Quicksand”, its first Swedish Original, which is set to bow its first two episodes in the Berlin Festival’s Berlinale Series. The FLX production will premiere on Netflix on April 5;
*“The Rain” Season 2,” the returning season of its first Danish original, produced by Miso Film;
*“Young Wallander,” an English-language show produced by Yellow Bird U.K., based on Henning Mankell’s best-selling Kurt Wallander novels.
*“Ragnarok,” Netflix’s first Norwegian original, from “Borgen” creator Adam Price, produced by SAM Productions.
*Recent acquisitions include Bille August’s “A Fortunate Man” and FLX’s “Bonus Family,” Season 3.
Brounéus reiterated that Netflix is ramping up local content in the Nordics, as part of the group’s ambition to bring more than 100 non-English language series to the world.
She voiced her interest in authentic, relevant and unique projects from a local viewpoint, with potential on the global market, whatever the genre. She also said that she would be looking as well into original feature film production, kids content and documentaries.
NordenBladet – Iceland’s Naming Committee* met on the sixth of November to review another batch of contending names for their approval or rejection, MBL.is reports, and some names fared better than others.
New first names now added to the Icelandic lexicon include Ilíes, Charles, Rey, Damíen, Heiðbjartur, Marzellíus, Kristólín and Mikki. But not everyone was so lucky.
Two of the first names rejected were Lucifer and Zelda. In their reasoning for the decision regarding Lucifer, they cited the use of the letter C, which does not appear in the Icelandic alphabet, but does make one wonder why Charles then was accepted. The committee believed furthermore that Lucifer is another name for Satan, and could therefore make the early life of a child with this name a target for bullying.
Zelda was rejected because the committee did not believe the name had significant historical precedence, despite at least two Icelandic women bearing this name, the older of whom born in 2009. They also cited Icelandic having dropped the use of the letter Z some decades ago—again, despite the fact that one of the names amongst those approved also uses a Z.
The Naming Committee is itself a controversial institution, and many prominent Icelanders—amongst them, writer and former Reykjavík mayor Jón Gnarr and former Minister of Justice Ólöf Nordal—have seen the committee as an antiquated institution that is no longer necessary. The committee’s mandate is to ensure that new Icelandic names abide Icelandic grammar, have historical precedent, and are not harmful to a child.
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* The Icelandic Naming Committee (Icelandic: Mannanafnanefnd; pronounced [ˈmanːaˌnapnaˌnɛmt])—also known in English as the Personal Names Committee—maintains an official register of approved Icelandic given names and governs the introduction of new given names into Icelandic culture.
The Naming Committee was established in 1991 to determine whether new given names not previously used in Iceland are suitable for integration into the country’s language and culture. The committee comprises three appointees who serve for four years, appointed by the Minister of Justice—one to be nominated by the Icelandic Language Committee, one by the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Iceland, and one by the university’s Faculty of Law.
A name not already on the official list of approved names must be submitted to the naming committee for approval. A new name is considered for its compatibility with Icelandic tradition and for the likelihood that it might cause the bearer embarrassment. Under Article 5 of the Personal Names Act, names must be compatible with Icelandic grammar (in which all nouns, including proper names, have grammatical gender and change their forms in an orderly fashion according to the language’s case system). Names must also contain only letters occurring in the Icelandic alphabet, and with only occasional exceptions, a name’s grammatical gender previously had to match the sex of the person bearing the name.
In 2019, changes were announced to the laws governing names. Given names will no longer be restricted by gender. Moreover, Icelanders who are officially registered with non-binary gender will be permitted to use the patro/matronymic suffix -bur (“child”) instead of -son or -dóttir.
As of the end of 2012, the Personal Names Register (Mannanafnaskrá) contained 1,712 male names and 1,853 female names.
NordenBladet – WOW air is rising from the ashes once again, but this time with a firm plan in place for its relaunch. At a press conference held this morning in Iceland, broadcast by Visir.is, details of a potential replacement have been revealed. Calling itself PLAY, the new Icelandic airline has some big ambitions and some solid goals.
Already the airline has chosen the A321 as its launch aircraft of choice. According to its new CEO Arnar Már Magnusson, this is a good fit for its initial destinations with good fuel efficiency. The airline is targeting both passenger and freight operations and will carry some 200 passengers per flight.
As with the old WOW air, the airline is talking about flying both east and west of Iceland, to the US and to Europe. However, the initial operations will focus on Europe with just a couple of A320s, with a view to growing the fleet to six by spring. Once it reaches that magic number, it says it will be investigating US routes with a view to being operational in time for the summer.
Although there is great work already being done, the CEO says that there are still many things left to do. The airline, he says, does not yet have it’s AOC, but is well on the way to getting one. The airline is yet to reveal a firm launch date but says it plans to start flying within Europe before the end of this year. By spring 2020, it expects to have six A320 family aircraft and to begin services to the USA.
While the airline has chosen red as its main livery color, it harks back to the boldness of the old WOW brand. The lettering too of the chosen name PLAY is somewhat characteristic of the former LCC.
With positivity in mind, the airline is planning to start selling tickets later this month. As part of a launch celebration, it will be giving away 1,000 tickets for free, although it’s not entirely clear how this will work just yet.
The airline is set to announce its first destinations within the next few days. It recommends interested passengers register on the mailing list at flyplay.com for announcements for routes and sales. Prices, it says, will vary by dates and destinations but, “PLAY will provide strong competition in the Icelandic market and strive to offer the best prices at any given time.”
The new airline’s website says that “the sky is our playground”, and describes its mission as,
“PLAY is a new Low Cost Airline operating to and from Iceland. PLAY will provide affordable travel in new Airbus aircraft. PLAY is in everything we do, with professionalism at the core. At PLAY, safety comes first, with our core principles being on-time performance, simplicity, happiness and low prices.”
Headed up by Arnar Már Magnusson as CEO, a previous employee of WOW air, PLAY says that the management team is made up of experienced aviation professionals. Included in the team are Þóroddur Ari who is co-owner and Sveinn Ingi who will be CFO.
Revealed at the press conference, the new airline has already received some $40m from an investment fund owned by Aislinn Whitley-Ryan, a descendant of the founder of Ryanair.
NordenBladet – It seems Icelandic footballer Kolbeinn Sigþórsson was partying too hard and landed himself behind bars in Sweden after a rowdy night out. According to Swedish newspaper Expressen, one player in the Swedish league was arrested last night. They were initially withholding the name from the public, but Fréttablaðið confirmed that the jailbird was Sigþórsson.
According to the report, Kolbeinn apparently resisted arrest around 3:00 o’clock on Friday night and subsequently spent the night in jail. The AIK football club executives have not commented substantially, just saying that the matter will be handled internally.
“Going out for fun in this way is not according to our values,” the chairman of the company told Fréttablaðið. As for whether Kolbeinn will be in the final round on Saturday, we’ll just have to wait and see.
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Kolbeinn Sigþórsson (born 14 March 1990) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a striker for Swedish club AIK and the Iceland national team.
Before being signed by Ajax for a fee of €4.5 million in the summer of 2011, Kolbeinn came through Víkingur Reykjavik’s youth program. He then had a brief spell with HK Kópavogs in his home country and moved on to AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands.
Before making his debut for the Icelandic national team, Kolbeinn played at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels. With 26 goals, he is their joint top goalscorer of all-time.
His brother Andri Sigþórsson was also a professional footballer who now acts as his agent.
Featured image: Kolbeinn Sigþórsson (Wikimedia Commons)
NordenBladet – Yesterday evening, on Tuesday 29 October 2019 awards were handed out in Sweden in Stockholm’s concert hall (Stockholms konserthus, Hötorget 8) at a festive awards gala held by the Nordic Council. Every year the Nordic Council also announces five prizes: the prize for literature, film, music, environment as well as children’s and youth’s literature. Besides the acknowledgement the winner also receives a monetary prize of 350 000 Danish kroons.
This year’s festive awards gala was opened by welcoming speeches from the Swedish parliament speaker Per Olof Andreas Norlén, the Nordic Council of Ministers’ president Hans Wallmark and the Nordic Council of Ministers’ vice-president Gunilla Carlsson, what even added to the festive atmosphere by giving a fantastic concert was the Västerås Symphonic Orchestra with conductor Cathrine Winnes. The event was hosted by Swedish literary critic and television host Jessika Gedlin.jhjh The other performers at the concert were Emilia Amper (a well-known Swedish folk musician and Key Fiddle player), El Sistema Södertälje children’s orchestra, The Mamas (a female trio with members Loulou LaMotte, Dinah Yonas Manna and Ash Haynes), the cellist Johanna Sjunnesson and the Islandic duo Hugar ( Pétur Jónsson, Bergur Þórisson).
First of all the 2019 prize for children’s and youth’s literature was announced (The Nordic Council Children and Young People´s Literature Prize 2019). The prize and the nominees were introduced by Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfen. The winner was 44-year-old Norwegian writer and illustrator Kristin Roskifte. The prize-winning book was “Alle sammen teller” (“Everybody counts”).
The second announced prize was the Nordic Cuncil’s Music Prize 2019. The prize and the nominees were introduced by Finnish conductor and cellist Susanna Mälkki. The music prize winner was the Islandic instrumentalist Gyða Valtýsdóttir. Valtýsdóttir was so moved about winning the prize that a quiver of hands was visible during the acknowledgement speech. With a softest of voices she said that the person behing her success story was her mother.
The third prize to be announced was the Nordic Council Environment Prize 2019. The prize and the nominees were introduced by the European Youth Parliament member Noura Berrouba. The winner was 16-year old Swedish climate activist and founder of the movement “Fridays for Future” Greta Thunberg. The audience applauded to Thunberg already when the nominees were announced. Thunberg helself however was not attending the event since at that time she was in California. On behalf of her the fellow activists got the floor and read out loud Thunberg’s letter that included a thank you as well as the message that she will decline the prize. “I want to thank the Nordic Council for this award. It’s a great honour. But the climate movement needs no more prizes. What we need is for those in power and politicians to listen to research,” she announced. The Nordic Council’s president Hans Wallmark stated on the Norden.org page that he honours the decision that Greta Thunberg has made and that is is being decided what will be done with the prize sums (read more about Greta Thunberg prize and declining the prize sums HERE).
Fourth, the Nordic Council Film Prize 2019 was announced. The nominees were introduced and the prize was handed out by Norwegian actress Lena Cecilia Sparrok. The prize went to Danish drama film “Queen of Hearts” (original title: Dronningen). Film director and screenwriter May el-Toukhy, screenwriter Maren Louise Käehne, film producers Caroline Blanco and Rene Ezra.
The fifth prize, the Nordic Council Literature Prize 2019 was introduced and announced by Swedish poet and writer Johannes Anyuru. The prize went once more to Denmark. The winner of the prize was 28-year old Jonas Eika Rasmussen with his novel “Efter Solen”. However, Jonas Eika brought quite some anxiety to the concert hall. While holding his acknowledgement speech he took advantage of the situation to blame the current government. In the two-page speech that he had prepared, he blamed the Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen who at the time was seated just a few meters away in the hall, he spoke of capitalism, racism, and need for radical changes in the Nordic countries.
A fine ending to the prize gala 2019 of the Council of Ministers (19:30 – 21.00) was made by “Ain´t No Mountain High Enough” by The Mamas and Västerås´i Symphony Orchestra.
See more: a brief society gallery from the gala guests (a.k.a. five minutes before the concert in the hallway and the hall) is soon available at NordenBladet entertainment pages Ohmygossip.
Photography and text: NordenBladet / Helena-Reet Ennet
NordenBladet – Icelandic performer and multi-instrumentalist Gyða Valtýsdóttir (also known as Kría Brekkan) was awarded the 2019 Nordic Council Music Award at a formal ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden, last night. She was awarded the prize for her distinctive vocals, instrumental inventiveness and dignified craftsmanship.
37-year-old Valtýsdóttir is the sixth Icelander to receive the award – a monetary award of DKK 350,000 (USD 52,000; EUR 47,000)
“Gyða Valtýsdóttir is an Icelandic musician who is classically trained but unbound by genre. At an early age she was a founding member of the lauded electronic experimental band múm. A multifaceted performer, she has since been a prominent part of Iceland’s music scene.
Fundamentally a classically trained cellist, Gyða has in recent years been performing her own music as well as collaborating with other musicians across genres. She has used her training to fulfil her visions and delivers her holistic approach to music in an organic way and with admirable technique. Gyða’s music and performance is highly unique and captivating, demonstrating a special sense of phrasing and timing. She is a particularly distinctive performer with a fascinating, earthy presence in live performance – a presence that is fragile and subtle, yet powerful and temperamental. Her deeply personal and organic performance is eminent throughout, whether playing the cello, singing, using her distinctive vocals, or playing other instruments, and has a fundamental originality to it.
Gyða crosses and bridges the gap between musical genres in a unique way, not least by dismissing any notion of their differences. Whether performing her own music or the music of others she brings her personal originality to the music through her instrumental inventiveness.”
Gyða Valtýsdóttir at Nordic Council Awards Ceremony 2019 in Stockholms konserthus, Hötorget 8 (29. october 2019)
Photos: NordenBladet / Helena-Reet Ennet
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Gyða Valtýsdóttir (G Y D A) was one of the 13 artists nominated for the Nordic Council Music Prize 2019.
Gyða Valtýsdóttir came to prominence with lauded electronic experimentalists múm in the early ‘00s. In 2017 Gyða released the album Epicycle, a constellation of pieces by the likes of Schubert, Schumann and Messiaen, but also more experimental composers like Harry Partch and George Crumb. Gyða went into the core of the music, swaying it instinctively to her unique interpretation. In 2018 she released the aptly named Evolution, an exquisite affair, building on her forays into the classical world but weaving experimental and modern strands into the tapestry. Strings swirl, electronics hum gently, voices enter – and then exit – gracefully. A sturdy yet elegant album – delicate and powerful at the same time. Gyða’s career is growing by leaps and bounds at the moment, her first soundtrack (to the film Mihkel/Undir halastjörnu) was released last year and her live performances have been ecstatically received, where her distinctive vocals, instrumental inventiveness and highly personal charm underline a dignified craftsmanship.
NordenBladet – Icelandic crime novelist Arnaldur Indriðason (58) has a new book coming out in Iceland on Friday. It’s his 23rd in as many years. Besides, one of his books was recently published in Norway, marking the thousandth publication of his work. His crime novels have been translated into more than 40 languages, and more than 14 million copies have sold.
Although Arnaldur is well known the world over today, convincing the first publisher abroad to accept his work was no easy task. “It was a struggle,” states Valgerður Benediktsdóttir, who works for Forlagið, Arnaldur’s publisher in Iceland. “We received all sorts of comments from foreign publishers, for example, that obviously no crimes were committed in the country of elves and volcanoes – that considering a crime novel manuscript from such a country was simply not worthwhile.
Others insisted that the author’s name was so hard to pronounce, that should he want to secure the publication of his work abroad, he’d better change his name a.s.a.p.”
Hard work finally paid off. “In 2003, we made a deal with a German publisher regarding the publication of Mýrin [Jar City],” Valgerður relates. “That was a major victory. The book went straight to the German best seller list. And that’s when this really got rolling.”
Lately, three of Arnaldur’s books have been on the best seller list in France. Topping the list of best-selling crime novels there is his first book, published in Iceland 22 years ago.
Valgerður notes that Arnaldur’s popularity abroad has paved the way for numerous other Icelandic writers – of crime fiction, as well as other genres. She states that when a best-selling author of this scale appeared, people worldwide realized there are world-class writers in Iceland.
__________________________________________________ Arnaldur Indriðason (born 8 January 1961) is an Icelandic writer of crime fiction; most of his books feature the protagonist Detective Erlendur.
Arnaldur was born in Reykjavík on 8 January 1961, the son of writer Indriði G. Þorsteinsson. He graduated with a degree in history from the University of Iceland (Háskóli Íslands) in 1996. He worked as a journalist for the newspaper Morgunblaðið from 1981 to 1982, and later as a freelance writer. From 1986 to 2001, he was a film critic for Morgunblaðið.
His first book, Sons of Dust (Synir duftsins) came out in 1997, the first in the series with Detective Erlendur. The first two novels in the series have not yet been translated into English. As of 2013, the series included 14 novels. Arnaldur is considered one of the most popular writers in Iceland in recent years — topping bestseller lists time and again. In 2004, his books were 7 of the 10 most popular titles borrowed in Reykjavík City Library. In 2006, his Erlendur novel Mýrin was made into a film, known internationally as Jar City, by Icelandic director Baltasar Kormákur.
Arnaldur’s books have been published in 26 countries and translated into at least 24 languages, including Arabic, Russian, Polish, German, Greek, Danish, Catalan, English, Portuguese, Italian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Finnish, Spanish, Hungarian, Chinese, Croatian, Romanian, Bulgarian, French, Serbian, Slovenian and Turkish.
Arnaldur received the Glass Key award, a literature prize for the best Nordic crime novel, in 2002 and 2003. He won the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger Award in 2005 for his novel Silence of the Grave. He won the world’s most lucrative crime fiction award, the RBA Prize for Crime Writing worth €125,000, in 2013 for Shadow Alley (Skuggasund).
NordenBladet – Minister of Justice Sigríður Á. Andersen has again added further restrictions on asylum seekers, drawing criticism from the Red Cross and members of Parliament.
Stundin reports that the new regulations specifically target people seeking asylum in Iceland for health reasons. By the changes made unilaterally by the Minister, the health of asylum seekers will now have “limited weight” on whether or not authorities will grant asylum unless certain conditions are met. This includes suffering from “a severe illness that is sudden and life-threatening, the treatment for which is available here but not available in their home country.”
Ministers in Iceland have the power to write regulations for their ministries and their attendant institutions, and do not require a vote in Parliament or even disclosure. For example, Left-Green MP Kolbeinn Óttarsson Proppé told Stundin he was surprised to learn of the regulations, even though both he and Sigríður are in the ruling coalition.
Restricts the rights of the child
The Red Cross of Iceland has criticised the regulations, pointing out that it affects adults and children alike. “We can assume [by these regulations] that children suffering from an illness that is not considered serious enough to be sudden and life-threatening will be sent back to their previous point of departure, even though the parents will have to pay for treatment of the disease in this departure country, without any further examination of the circumstances surrounding this individual child.”
Social Democrat MP Helga Vala Helgadóttir and Left-Green MP Andrés Ingi Jónsson have also both criticised the regulations, pointing out that it marks a further restriction on the rights of the child. In point of fact, Andrés is one of Parliament’s spokespeople for children, while Kolbeinn has long advocated for the rights of asylum seekers, and has been especially critical of the Independence Party, from where Sigríður hails, on that subject.
These MPs, amongst others, have spoken in favour of forming a multipartisan committee to examine laws and regulations on foreigners and how they are enforced. An exact date for this committee has yet to be determined.
A history of new restrictions on asylum seekers
Sigríður has been often criticised for placing further and unnecessary restrictions on immigrants, especially asylum seekers, often doing so unilaterally. As just one example by grapevine.is, she stripped asylum seekers of financial support while they await deportation if their applications have been rejected. As almost all asylum seekers are banned by law from working, and deportation waiting periods can stretch into weeks and months, this drew considerable criticism from the Left-Greens.
However, Bjarkey Olsen Gunnarsdóttir, the parliamentary chair of the Left-Green Party, told reporters last January that this would be one of many matters the aforementioned review committee would examine. That committee still has yet to be formed, and even further restrictions on the rights of asylum seekers have been set up in the meantime.
