Borgarnes () is a town located on a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

at the shore of Borgarfjörður in

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

and is the largest town in the Borgarbyggð municipality with a population of about 3800 residents. It is a main junction in Iceland and the gateway to the Snaefellsnes National Park. Iceland's capital

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

is 69 kilometers from the center of Borgarnes. The second largest bridge in Iceland, the Borgarfjarðarbrú, connects traffic to and from Reykjavík.

Local area

There are four national forests in the region (approximately 40 km from the town center) which are overseen by the Icelandic Forest Service. The forest in Borgarfjörður are mix of birch woods and native conifers. These forests are Vatnshorn , Norðtunga , Selskógar , Stalpastaðir and Jafnaskarð . Borgarnes has the oldest and tallest of the birch trees in Iceland.

History

Borgarnes was founded in the late nineteenth-century, in a region that served as the setting of

Egil's Saga ''Egill's Saga'' or ''Egil's saga'' ( ; ) is an Icelandic saga (family saga) on the lives of the clan of Egill Skallagrímsson (Anglicised as Egill Skallagrimsson), an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald. The saga spans the years c. 850–1000 a ...

. The town draws its name from Borg á Mýrum, the farm of

Egill Skallagrímsson Egil Skallagrímsson ( ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of '' Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a period from approx ...

, the saga's poet-hero protagonist. A museum in Borgarnes, the Settlement Center, is devoted to the region's ties to Egill Skallagrímsson.

Arts and culture

The Safnahús Borgarfjarðar is a civilization museum that displays cultural artifacts and historical photos. Safnahús Borgarfjarðar was one of Iceland's first collections to receive the formal recognition of the Saga Council in (2013). Borgarnes is famous for its park ''Skallagrímsgarður'' . A small hill in the park is said to be the grave of a viking hero, Skallagrímur Kveldúlfsson. Borgarnes is also one of the filming locations in the Hollywood film ''The Secret Life of Walter Mitty''. The Geirabakari Kaffihus, which is featured in the film, was transformed into Papa John's during the filming. Borgarnes is the birthplace of Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir. Borgarnes is the hometown of Magnús Scheving, an athlete and entrepreneur best known for creating, directing, and starring in children's television show ''

LazyTown ''LazyTown'' () is an Icelandic children's educational musical television series created by aerobics champion Magnús Scheving. Originally produced in English, it has been broadcast in dozens of languages globally. Designed to encourage health ...

.'' He cites Borgarnes as a unique experience, having only 3 other students in his grade at school.

Economy

Borgarnes' commerce is primarily based on agriculture, tourism and culture.

Notable people

, warrior, poet and

berserker In the Old Norse written corpus, berserkers () were Scandinavian warriors who were said to have fought in a trance-like fury, a characteristic which later gave rise to the modern English adjective ''wikt:berserk#Adjective, berserk'' . Berserkers ...

Sigurður Páll Jónsson Sigurður Páll Jónsson (born 23 June 1958) is an Icelandic politician from the Centre Party. He represented Northwest in the Parliament of Iceland from 2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Deve ...

, member of parliament * Magnús Scheving, athlete and creator of ''

References

External links

* {{Authority control Populated places in Western Region (Iceland) Borgarbyggð