The Icelandic Roots Newsletter Team’s Favourite Posts of 2025
- Icelandic Roots
- Jan 3
- 4 min read
Every year the Icelandic Roots Newsletter team considers the articles contributed to the newsletter by IR members and others. These are not the "best" posts, but they appealed to us for various reasons. We have compiled a short list of our favourites for your consideration:
The 50th anniversary of the Women’s March was the most inspirational event in 2025 for me. We featured several articles as a tribute to the women in Iceland who fought for gender equality back in 1975. They showed us it can be done.
My favorite post was Kvennaárið 1975 - The Year of Women 1975 by Bryndís Víglundsdóttir, who writes about her experiences before, during, and after the Women’s Day March on October 24, 1975. See also They Dared. They Could. They Did and Kvennafrídagurinn by Gunnar Birgisson, which both address the Women’s March.
In addition, Emmy Award–winning filmmaker Pamela Hogan, director of the documentary The Day Iceland Stood Still, treated Icelandic Roots members to a behind-the-scenes look at and a special viewing of the documentary.
(Becky Byerly-Adams, Membership Outreach Director)
In 2025, the newsletter team produced 26 editions of Roots News/Rætur Fréttir. Each edition includes four, sometimes five articles, which place no fewer than 104 stories for you to consider each year. This wealth of material includes historic, cultural and personal stories about Iceland, plus stories informing readers about upcoming Icelandic Roots offerings throughout the year. We share news on webinars, book club reads, podcasts and videos.
Picking a couple of stories from this large body of work is difficult because there is an implication that these are the only stories that matter. Not true. All the stories paint a broader picture, a bigger vista of the favorite subject we dwell upon at Icelandic Roots: the land, the people, the culture of Iceland.
While I enjoyed grazing on the banquet of these 100-plus stories from 2025, I do have a soft spot for those tales of smaller events in our lives that can offer deeply profound vistas upon life itself. I call your attention to these gentle tales from two writers who can find keen meaning in their everyday lives:
Samtal Gold, by Brian Borgford (April 22) https://www.icelandicroots.com/post/samtal-gold
Icelandic Roots Writer’s Group member and published author Brian Borgford wrote about the many serendipitous experiences one can have while participating in Judy Dickson’s Samtal Hour. The event is bi-weekly for the most part and Judy keeps things lively with a variety of guests, topics and explorations in the shared interest in Icelandic subjects. Brian pointed out in his article that one can also encounter unexpected and surprising discoveries that literally occur just by tuning in. This article captures that “ah-ha” moment beautifully.
GOING, Going, Gone…., by Sharon Arksey (June 22) https://www.icelandicroots.com/post/going-going-gone
From time to time, we need to talk about Icelanders and their libraries. While they are not the only people on the planet coveting books, Icelandic descendants can locate this need deep in the ancestral DNA. Sharon offers her own example in this story, revealing how she has found enablers along her path. She also confesses to not being above adding and adding additional copies of titles she already has waiting patiently on her library shelves.
(Rob Olason, Newsletter Managing Editor)
Choosing one favourite post for 2025 is no small feat with so many great posts to choose from. For me, there isn’t one specific article, but rather a monthly series we call the "Interesting Icelander".
From the IR database, in support of our 2025 Art and Culture theme, we shortlisted those who have made or are currently making a noteworthy contribution to the culture, heritage, language and life of Icelanders or their descendants. The articles capture the individual’s life and family, education, challenges, accomplishments and their legacy.
These are our Art and Culture Interesting Icelanders from 2025:
Edgar Holger Cahill, Director of the Museum of Modern Art, New York (January 2025)
Vikingur Heiðar Olafsson, musician (February 2025)
Jón Leifs/Þorleifsson, musician (March 2025)
Steinunn Þórarinsdóttir, sculptor (April 2025)
Einar Jónsson, sculptor (May 2025)
Ríkarður Jónsson, sculptor (June 2025)
Þórdís Gísladóttir, author (July 2025)
Hulda Emilsdóttir, singer (August 2025)
Bólu-Hjálmar/Hjálmar Jónsson, poet, woodworker (September 2025)
Jóhannes Sveinsson Kjarval, artist/painter (October 2025)
Magnús R. Einarsson, musician and producer (November 2025)
Jón Kalman Stefánsson, writer (December 2025)
If you want to know more about these individuals, check out the IR database. While you’re there, go to the relationship calculator and see how you’re related. Perhaps you inherited or share a similar innate talent!
(Shaune Jonasson, Newsletter Team)
Some of us were never so fortunate as to have relatives around us who spoke Icelandic. I am one of those people, and I love to learn even a little bit of my ancestors’ language. In 2025, Icelandic Roots members enjoyed Gunnar Birgisson’s regular posts sharing interesting Icelandic words, as well as their usage and sometimes history.
Any language, spoken or written, is a living, breathing thing. Meaning is rarely “baked
into” the words. Meaning comes from the historical origins of the words and is also influenced by fluent users of the language. Gunnar’s posts were always informative, but more importantly, fun and cheerful. Some words did trigger some impassioned debate, shall we say. But this is how we keep language alive and interesting.
(Phyllis Smith, Newsletter Team)
