Thanks for this! My great grandmother was born in Straumfjörður in 1893 and came to Canada with her family when she was four years old in 1897. They settled in Manitoba and later in Alberta.
Thank you for posting this video with English subtitles. :) I'm another descendant of the many, many people who fled Iceland. My ancestors were from the Norđur-Thingeyjarsysla region: Holl, Melrakkasletta.
Thank you for posting this. I am reminded of a book I read years ago called "Wasteland with Words" by Sigurdur Gylfi Magnússon. He examined Icelanders personal correspondence in the period of 1850-1940. What stood out was the grinding poverty, high rate of child deaths, poor sanitation and hygiene occurring during that time in the rural areas. It was an extremely harsh period for those inhabitants.
Great video! I was in Iceland recently, visiting with my family to explore a part of our ancestry. Our ancestors came from just outside Akureyri and settled in Western Canada in 1910. This video answers some questions I had about possible reasons why they left Iceland.
Yes, the 1875 eruption has great of historical value for the large community of descendants of Icelanders who moved as a result of the hardships caused by the eruption, and here is a link that you might find useful but we get lots of visitors looking for they Icelandic families :) www.hofsos.is
Thanks for sharing :) there are quite many immigrant descendant in USA and Canada, some tens of thousands I think, I get some visits from them from time to time :)
What an excellent documetry! Iso appreciate the wonderful old photos and video footage. As another commentator said - thank you for providing English subtitles.
What a moving history. It seems few people can resist the temptation to enslave others. The citizens of Iceland have come so very far since these dark days. Thanks for posting
Wow! What a great video, Gylfi! And more to come :) Cathy helped us find my Great-grandfather's old homestead near Vopnafjörður, plus filled in all the gaps we had in our genealogy. We actually had living relatives still in the Town! She is a treasure. You could reach out to her for all your translation needs.
Yes I love this TV program but it's since 2014 and I really didn't know about it until few days ago but it's the perfect stuff for my channel. Will be uploading the rest in the coming days and weeks but it's 10 episodes...
This is a great series to watch if you want to learn more about this period of Icelandic and North American history. For anyone interested, I too have some documentaries about this on my channel.
Did you ever upload the other episodes ? This documentary is amazing. I was hooked on my PC to watch this episode to know about this period of Iceland. Seems the DVD is not available anymore.
www.icct.info/shop/vesturfarar-westward-bound-dvd-set but it's hard to get, I knew that those people has some stock few months ago: facebook.com/people/Hofsós-Icelandic-Emigration-Vesturfarasetrið/100057656311578/?locale=is_IS
Thank you for this, Gylfi! It is an eye opener and an amazing history lesson. I am discovering through your channel that I know nothing about the “real” Iceland. My concept up until now has been gleaned from Wagner’ s operas and Christmas cards. The rest I have just imagined through wishful thinking. I have always imagined the land of Vikings to be a place of total freedom, individualism, courage, honor, and truth, but I am seeing that there is another darker side as well. Please continue to educate me through your wonderful videos. Far from discouraging me, it makes me want to visit Iceland more than ever. 🙏😆🇬🇧
Yes Janice, it was rough life here in the old days and this is Iceland's own shameful chapter of slavery. And in a way it still goes on but hundreds of Icelanders flee every year from the housing cost here since the sociopaths were allowed to mess up the housing market here....Yes it's plenty of stories and I'm just starting :)
@@EuropeanQoheleth If you still believe there is such a thing as “real”, then you should catch up on what is being revealed about the quantum universe. There is actually no such animal as “real”. This is the 21st century and “real” is obsolete.
Wow, very interesting! I am learning a lot from your channel! Interestingly I had a Dr Gudmunson deliver my first child in Utah! Such hard times. In the late 1800's my family left from Norway and Sweden to come to the USA. Many hardships getting out here to the Western U.S. Life in Oslo and Malmo was like that. Working for the rich and remaining so poor that leaving was the preferred option for many.
Just watched this historical piece of Iceland’s history with interest. Our family came about because of the potato famine in Iceland on the one side and class restrictions and faith restrictions from England on the other side... Then there was the blending of Canadian and American values....over the last number of years. But at present we have a big problem here of housing prices escalating as was mentioned in one comment. Trouble is brewing if this continues, but where can people flee?
Fascinating! I have no personal connection to Iceland, but I'm doing some genealogy at the moment and several of my distant relatives emigrated to the US or Canada between 1870 and 1900. Seems like that time was really the time that sparked the notion of the US being the "land of opportunity", more because of the lack of opportunity for poor people in Europe than anything else.
Thanks for this! My great grandmother was born in Straumfjörður in 1893 and came to Canada with her family when she was four years old in 1897. They settled in Manitoba and later in Alberta.
Thank you for posting this video with English subtitles. :) I'm another descendant of the many, many people who fled Iceland. My ancestors were from the Norđur-Thingeyjarsysla region: Holl, Melrakkasletta.
Eg lika.
Thank you for posting this. I am reminded of a book I read years ago called "Wasteland with Words" by Sigurdur Gylfi Magnússon. He examined Icelanders personal correspondence in the period of 1850-1940. What stood out was the grinding poverty, high rate of child deaths, poor sanitation and hygiene occurring during that time in the rural areas. It was an extremely harsh period for those inhabitants.
Great video! I was in Iceland recently, visiting with my family to explore a part of our ancestry. Our ancestors came from just outside Akureyri and settled in Western Canada in 1910. This video answers some questions I had about possible reasons why they left Iceland.
Yes, the 1875 eruption has great of historical value for the large community of descendants of Icelanders who moved as a result of the hardships caused by the eruption, and here is a link that you might find useful but we get lots of visitors looking for they Icelandic families :) www.hofsos.is
Thanks that was very interesting. I am going to look for more in that series, I love history.
Glad you enjoyed it :) it was available on DVD but hard to get now..
My cousin’s wife is a descendant of the immigrant-wave from Iceland. Her people settled around Gimli, Manitoba.
Thanks for sharing :) there are quite many immigrant descendant in USA and Canada, some tens of thousands I think, I get some visits from them from time to time :)
What an excellent documetry! Iso appreciate the wonderful old photos and video footage. As another commentator said - thank you for providing English subtitles.
My pleasure!
What a moving history. It seems few people can resist the temptation to enslave others. The citizens of Iceland have come so very far since these dark days. Thanks for posting
You're right I'm about slavery, and it's in so many forms today, that the only change
Fascinating! Very happy the algorithm put it where I would see it.
Wow! What a great video, Gylfi! And more to come :) Cathy helped us find my Great-grandfather's old homestead near Vopnafjörður, plus filled in all the gaps we had in our genealogy. We actually had living relatives still in the Town! She is a treasure. You could reach out to her for all your translation needs.
Yes I love this TV program but it's since 2014 and I really didn't know about it until few days ago but it's the perfect stuff for my channel. Will be uploading the rest in the coming days and weeks but it's 10 episodes...
So cool!
Same thing happened in Italy during those years. 9 million people looking for a better life. Shocking but true. Thank you Gylfi 👍
Thanks for dropping by :) always appreciated :)
Absolutely fascinating!!
That was fascinating
Enjoy :)
This is a great series to watch if you want to learn more about this period of Icelandic and North American history. For anyone interested, I too have some documentaries about this on my channel.
Thanks for the tip
@@JustIcelandic Thanks Gilfi for introducing me to this and for all of your help.
Did you ever upload the other episodes ? This documentary is amazing. I was hooked on my PC to watch this episode to know about this period of Iceland. Seems the DVD is not available anymore.
Send me a reminder in my mailbox, you find it in channel info, I get this question every now and then and working on this :)
What is the name of this documentary. I want to see the next episode
www.icct.info/shop/vesturfarar-westward-bound-dvd-set but it's hard to get, I knew that those people has some stock few months ago: facebook.com/people/Hofsós-Icelandic-Emigration-Vesturfarasetrið/100057656311578/?locale=is_IS
Thank you for this, Gylfi! It is an eye opener and an amazing history lesson. I am discovering through your channel that I know nothing about the “real” Iceland. My concept up until now has been gleaned from Wagner’ s operas and Christmas cards. The rest I have just imagined through wishful thinking. I have always imagined the land of Vikings to be a place of total freedom, individualism, courage, honor, and truth, but I am seeing that there is another darker side as well. Please continue to educate me through your wonderful videos. Far from discouraging me, it makes me want to visit Iceland more than ever. 🙏😆🇬🇧
Yes Janice, it was rough life here in the old days and this is Iceland's own shameful chapter of slavery. And in a way it still goes on but hundreds of Icelanders flee every year from the housing cost here since the sociopaths were allowed to mess up the housing market here....Yes it's plenty of stories and I'm just starting :)
There is such a thing as real. I wish people would stop putting it in scare quotes.
@@EuropeanQoheleth If you still believe there is such a thing as “real”, then you should catch up on what is being revealed about the quantum universe. There is actually no such animal as “real”. This is the 21st century and “real” is obsolete.
Wow, very interesting! I am learning a lot from your channel! Interestingly I had a Dr Gudmunson deliver my first child in Utah! Such hard times. In the late 1800's my family left from Norway and Sweden to come to the USA. Many hardships getting out here to the Western U.S. Life in Oslo and Malmo was like that. Working for the rich and remaining so poor that leaving was the preferred option for many.
The DVD-boxset link seems to be dead, they don't seem to have it listed? What is the name of the boxset?
Check the Vesturfarasetur in Hofsós, it was available there just weeks ago as I just got this request from USA
Just watched this historical piece of Iceland’s history with interest. Our family came about because of the potato famine in Iceland on the one side and class restrictions and faith restrictions from England on the other side... Then there was the blending of Canadian and American values....over the last number of years. But at present we have a big problem here of housing prices escalating as was mentioned in one comment. Trouble is brewing if this continues, but where can people flee?
Housing prices are also escalating here and it's getting bad I must say...
Fascinating! I have no personal connection to Iceland, but I'm doing some genealogy at the moment and several of my distant relatives emigrated to the US or Canada between 1870 and 1900. Seems like that time was really the time that sparked the notion of the US being the "land of opportunity", more because of the lack of opportunity for poor people in Europe than anything else.
This looks like a wise bunch in here! I am trying to trace my ancestry back. Does anyone know how Somerled was connected to Iceland. Or am I way off?
Did many move to the Uk ❓
No mostly Canada, USA and few to Brazil..
@@JustIcelandic And that's why in Brazil there's only one family with Icelandic traits
33:54 It ended shortly after the First World War started, not the Second World War.
Thanks..
Frekar áhugavert ég verð að segja. Ég hef heyrt að í Kanada eru margir Íslendingar.
Já tugir þúsunda :)
@@JustIcelandic hélt að það væri kanski aðeins minni, samt, stórt vá.
Takk fyrir þessa frábæru heimild, kæri Gylfi!
Not to brag but it sounds like Iceland was in an even worse condition than Ireland was in 1873.
It was bad, really bad and not just because of the volcanic eruption...
.❤.
❤