New Iceland ( ) is the name of a region on

Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg () is a very large, relatively shallow lake in North America, in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Its southern end is about north of the city of Winnipeg. Lake Winnipeg is Canada's sixth-largest freshwater lake and the third- ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

founded by Icelandic settlers in 1875. The community of Gimli, which is home to the largest concentration of Icelanders outside of Iceland, is seen as the core of New Iceland. Other rural areas of Manitoba settled by Icelanders include Lundar (on

Lake Manitoba Lake Manitoba () is the 14th largest lake in Canada and the 33rd largest lake in the world with a total area of . It is located within the Canadian province of Manitoba about northwest of the province's capital, Winnipeg, at . History The la ...

); Hecla-Grindstone Provincial Park (on

); Glenboro, in the southwestern region of the province; Selkirk, north of Winnipeg; and

Morden Morden is a district and town in South London, England, now within the London Borough of Merton, in the ceremonial county of Greater London. It adjoins Merton Park and Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon to the north, Mitcham to the east, Sutton, Londo ...

to the south.Matthiasson, John S. 2019 September 23.
Icelandic Canadians
" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. Historica Canada. Retrieved 2023-08-07.

History

Background

Between 1870 and 1915, some 20,000 Icelanders left their homeland—roughly a quarter of the population of

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 ...

—due to harsh environmental and economic conditions in the country, including the eruption of Mount Askja. From 1863 to 1873, a small but growing emigration movement developed. Initially,

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

was favoured as a likely destination, with over 40 Icelanders emigrating to that country, and many more prepared to go before transportation difficulties blocked the movement. Attention then turned to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. In May 1870, four young Icelanders moved to

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, inspired by enthusiastic letters from a Danish store clerk. Letters home from the four men encouraged many others to go the same way and try life in the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

. Soon, six people followed to North America in 1871 and twenty-two in 1872. Among them was Sigtryggur Jonasson, a young government official who became the first Icelander to arrive in Canada. Around this time, in the 1870s, the federal

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

began a series of reserve schemes to establish populations of European ethnic minorities—

Mennonites Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

, Doukhobors, and Icelanders—both in Manitoba and what was then the

North-West Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of the three territories in Northern Canada. Its estimated pop ...

. A group of 115 Icelandic settlers joined Jonasson in Canada the following year, taking up land in the Rosseau district of Ontario. In 1874 a second and larger group of 365 Icelanders arrived to homestead in Kinmount, Ontario. Suitable land for a large Icelandic colony in Ontario's Free Grant area was limited, and in the spring of 1875, the newcomers' search for a colony site resumed. Many of the Kinmount group were attracted to

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, while those who remained were persuaded by a Scottish missionary, John Taylor, to seek land in Manitoba or the North West Territories. Three emissaries, Taylor, Sigtryggur Jonasson, and

Einar Jonasson Einar Sigurjon Jonasson (17 June 1887 – 8 July 1935) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1932 to 1935, as a member of the Manitoba Liberal Party. Jonasson was born in Mountain, Nor ...

, were elected to search for the new colony site in the west. The delegation was joined by several Icelandic settlers from Wisconsin and arrived at the frontier town of

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, on 20 July 1875. The young province had suffered a grasshopper plague that summer, but the Icelandic delegation was impressed with land they inspected immediately north of Manitoba's boundaries.

Founding New Iceland

On 25 September 1875, over 200 Icelandic immigrants migrated from Kinmount, Ontario, to

, from where they then travelled north by flatboat on the Red River to the west shore of

. Here, they had been promised an Icelandic reserve in the District of Keewatin, in what was then an unorganized part of the Northwest Territories. (The migrants' original destination was the White Mud River; however, bad weather made it impossible to go all the way, so they chose a town in the bay north of Willow Point: Gimli.) This reserve, established by an

order-in-council An Order in Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom, this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' ...

through the '' Dominion Lands Act'', and included Big Island (now Hecla Island), became New Iceland. The land comprised an wide tract running along the shores of Lake Winnipeg for about , and was chosen for its relative fertility and proximity to the proposed route of the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

. This would make the first part of a large wave of immigrants who settled in the

Canadian Prairies The Canadian Prairies (usually referred to as simply the Prairies in Canada) is a region in Western Canada. It includes the Canadian portion of the Great Plains and the Prairie provinces, namely Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. These provin ...

. These Icelandic settlers, known in their native language as ('Icelanders in the West'; initially many Icelanders did not see emigration as a change of country, and there was some discussion of moving the entire population), called their settlement "New Iceland".

Early history

Between 1875 and 1887, New Iceland was completely independent, without any interventions from the Canadian government. In this time, the settlers created their own laws, maintained their own schools, and generally managed their own affairs. This new settlement still took some adapting to, however. The new immigrants' first attempts at fishing on Lake Winnipeg were not successful, as the Icelanders were accustomed to fishing at sea and set their nets too close to the shore. The winter of 1875–1876 was also one of the coldest on record in Manitoba, and the settlers' clothes—including the leather shoes from Ontario—were not suitable for the rigorous weather."Kristjanson, Wilhelm. 1965. ''The Icelandic People in Manitoba''. Wallingford Press. People began to get sick of

scurvy Scurvy is a deficiency disease (state of malnutrition) resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, fatigue, and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum d ...

and other diseases, and approximately 35 lost their lives the first winter in New Iceland. After a few years of failed fishing, homesteading, and politicking, public opinion began to turn against the Icelandic transplants. In an 1877 piece, a writer for the '' Manitoba Free Press'' described New Iceland’s population as an "effete and unprogressive race, who were not equal to the struggle of life on this continent and must inevitable icsuccumb to the fate of the ‘least fit’." The more general migration followed an offer from Lord Dufferin of land in Manitoba to establish what amounted to a "free state".William H. Swatos, Jr. and Loftur Reimar Gissurarson, ''Icelandic Spiritualism: Mediumship and Modernity in Iceland'', New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction, 1996,
p. 53
In 1876, 1200 others joined the first group. Fifty immigrants had remained in Winnipeg the first year, and 200 the second, creating the basis for the first permanent urban Icelandic settlement in Canada. More people came from Iceland and the colony grew, with Icelandic settlements being formed in

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

and the Dakotas. Immigrants learned to handle the ax, how to prepare the soil, fish through ice, and hunt game, as well as how to drain the land, grow crops, and build better houses. Between 1877 and 1880, first Icelandic newspaper in North America, called (The Progress'''), was published in New Iceland. A series of natural disasters, including floods and a smallpox epidemic 1876-77, decimated the population, until a general exodus in 1878 to Winnipeg and

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

began. By 1881, the population of the New Iceland area had declined to about 250. Also in 1881, the provincial boundaries of

were extended north, and New Iceland officially became a part of the Province of Manitoba. Until 1897, only Icelanders were allowed to settle in New Iceland and Icelandic was spoken. The colony changed when it became a part of Canada, whereafter English grew in frequency and the children received better educations.

Demographics and culture

According to

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Manitoba is home to the largest Icelandic population outside of Iceland. There are about 26,000 people with Icelandic ancestry living in Manitoba, making up about 2 per cent of the total population of the province. About 35 per cent of the Icelandic Canadian population lives in Manitoba. Currently many ethnic festivals related to New Iceland, such as Íslendingadagurinn, are held in these areas, and also the weekly newspaper '' Lögberg-Heimskringla''Combining ''Heimskringla'' ('Globe'), founded in 1886, and ''Lögberg'' ('Law-Mound'), founded in 1888; Swatos and Gissurarson
p. 57
is printed in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Gimli, Manitoba Gimli is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in the Rural Municipality of Gimli on the west side of Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba, Canada. It is located 80 km north of the provincial capital Winnipeg. The community's first European settle ...

, was within the "Icelandic Reserve" granted to Icelandic settlers by the Government of Canada in 1875. New Iceland was never a "republic", though the settlers did organize their own local government, which until December 1881 was outside the boundaries of Manitoba. The reserve, at that time within the District of Keewatin,

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...

, was always under Canadian jurisdiction, and the Icelanders were keenly aware of their new loyalties and obligations as Canadians and British subjects—as evidenced during speeches made at Gimli during the visit of Lord Dufferin, Governor General of Canada, in 1877.

References

Bibliography

* Angrímsson, Guðjón. 1997. ''Nýja Ísland: Saga of the journey to New Iceland''. . * Arnason, David. 1994. ''The new Icelanders: A North American community''. . * Olafson-Jenkyns, Kristin. 2001. ''The Culinary Saga of New Iceland: Recipes from the Shores of Lake Winnipeg''. .

External links

''Manitoba Historical Society - Icelandic Settlement''New Iceland Heritage Museum
*
Lögberg-Heimskringla
'
Icelandic Festival (Íslendingadagurinn)Facts about Icelandic Canadians
{{authority control Icelandic-Canadian culture in Manitoba Places in Canada settled by Icelanders Geography of Manitoba History of Manitoba by location 19th century in Iceland Populated places established in 1875 Interlake Region, Manitoba Icelandic settlements in Manitoba 1875 establishments in the Northwest Territories