Recent archaeological evidence and early Icelandic sagas tell us there has been shared history between the islands of Ireland and Iceland since the 7th - 8th centuries; when Irish Monks first explored the island 1000 miles to the north-west of their homeland. Studies by Trinity College Dublin, deCODE Genetics Inc. in Reykjavik and blood banks in Oslo, Norway also show a significant shared genetic history between the two lands due to Irish settlers that likely came in tow with Norwegian settlers in the mid to late 8th century. The Irish Monks already there were referred to as “Papar” which translates from the Latin “Papa” via Old Irish to “Father”.
This shared history was brought up in great detail to me by every Icelandic person I met in the time I spent visiting there in December 2018 and is something most Icelanders are significantly knowledgeable about. This may be explained by deCODE sending swabs via post to sample DNA from willing participants and resulting in one of the most prolific records of a nations genealogy; profiling the people of Iceland back to over a millennium ago.
Iceland has gone through a significant change in the past decade. Suffering from one of the worst economic crashes in the developed world; something else it has in common with Ireland. In spite of this and without resorting to austerity measures it managed to turn the economy back to growth faster than any other nation effected; to a point where its developed the pioneering scientific research mentioned above. I kept this photo diary during my stay in Reykjavik documenting the people who educated me on this matter; any places of relative historic significance and the contemporary Icelandic culture in Reykjavik that has endured both the turbulent economic shift and an increase in tourism and globalisation.
Recent archaeological evidence and early Icelandic sagas tell us there has been shared history between the islands of Ireland and Iceland since the 7th - 8th centuries; when Irish Monks first explored the island 1000 miles to the north-west of their homeland. Studies by Trinity College Dublin, deCODE Genetics Inc. in Reykjavik and blood banks in Oslo, Norway also show a significant shared genetic history between the two lands due to Irish settlers that likely came in tow with Norwegian settlers in the mid to late 8th century. The Irish Monks already there were referred to as “Papar” which translates from the Latin “Papa” via Old Irish to “Father”.
This shared history was brought up in great detail to me by every Icelandic person I met in the time I spent visiting there in December 2018 and is something most Icelanders are significantly knowledgeable about. This may be explained by deCODE sending swabs via post to sample DNA from willing participants and resulting in one of the most prolific records of a nations genealogy; profiling the people of Iceland back to over a millennium ago.
Iceland has gone through a significant change in the past decade. Suffering from one of the worst economic crashes in the developed world; something else it has in common with Ireland. In spite of this and without resorting to austerity measures it managed to turn the economy back to growth faster than any other nation effected; to a point where its developed the pioneering scientific research mentioned above. I kept this photo diary during my stay in Reykjavik documenting the people who educated me on this matter; any places of relative historic significance and the contemporary Icelandic culture in Reykjavik that has endured both the turbulent economic shift and an increase in tourism and globalisation.