The Icelandic Canadian - 01.06.1956, Blaðsíða 44

42
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
Summer 1956
gracious wife SigriSur. The last out-
standing group invitation was to be
present at the National Theatre dur-
ing a programme given in honor of the
King and Queen of Denmark. It was
indeed one of the most festive oc-
casions of the season. Altogether, we
met many interesting people, and they
were all most hospitable and interested
in our welfare.
For my part, there were three things
which I did not miss at all while away
from home. One was television, the
second was our numbing advertise-
ments, and the third was our harsh
winter weather. Granted we had a
long period of darkness in December
when our lights were off between
about 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. but the
mildness of the weather made up for
it tenfold. There was frost for about
one month and wild wind storms with
rain once in a while, but imagine be-
ing still able to pick flowers in Dec-
ember and then having the crocuses
sprout in the middle of March! At one
point this year Reykjavik was the hott-
est capital city in Europe, a fact al-
most incredible to people who know
little about Iceland and the soothing
Gulf Stream effect.
The young people with whom I be-
came acquainted while in Iceland were
very interested in the U.S.A. and Can-
ada and especially in their Western
Icelandic cousins. It is regrettable that
there is no closer contact between us
and that the third and fourth gener-
ations on this side know so little of the
language of their forefathers. And yet,
we are so fortunate here in Manitoba
to have the Icelandic Chair in our
University, and a fine library at our
disposal. It would be a wonderful in-
centive to students on both sides to
learn of each other’s culture and langu-
age if some sort of yearly scholarship
of exchange could be arranged between
a student of Iceland and some Ame-
rican or Canadian student of Icelandic
parentage or background to study for
at least one school year. Let’s hope
that sometime in the not too distant
future, such a plan can be worked out.
We owe many thanks to Prof. Finn-
bogi GuSmundsson who is leaving us
this summer for Iceland. He has work-
ed so diligently to make the first years
of the Icelandic Chair successful, and
done all he could to foster interest in
the Icelandic courses amongst the
students. His efforts on our behalf will
long be remembered and appreciated.
Bare is the back without brother
behind it. —Njala
Icelandic is one of the oldest living
Furopean languages. The same tongue
was spoken throughout Scandinavia
when Iceland was colonized at the
end of the IXth and the beginning of
the Xth Centuries. It is interesting
that the language has retained its
ancient vocabulary almost without
change in -the words or inflections,
even with comparatively little change
in pronunciation, and the language
of today is of almost unequalled purity.
In spite of its primitive character, it
blends itself to the formation of new
words to express new activities and
ideas.
★
Once when certain chieftains had
come to Hvammur to serve Sturla with
summons, he asked if Sasmundur of
Oddi was among them. “I guess I am
here”, said Saemundur. Sturla was quick
to answer: “I am sure you are far too
intelligent a man not to know whether
it is you or someone else.”