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Haakon IV

(Encyclopedia)Haakon IV (Haakon Haakonsson), 1204–63, king of Norway (1217–63), illegitimate son of Haakon III and grandson of Sverre. Secretly reared by the Birkebeiner faction (see Sverre), he was chosen king...

Eliasson, Olafur

(Encyclopedia)Eliasson, Olafur, 1967–, Danish sculptor, architect, and installation artist. His work is influenced by nature and natural phenomena. Early works involved frozen water droplets, electric fans, and s...

Sigurðsson, Jón

(Encyclopedia)Sigurðsson, Jón yōn sĭˈkhürᵺsōn [key], 1811–79, Icelandic statesman and historian. A student in Copenhagen from 1833, he developed an interest in Icelandic literature and history, on which ...

Nicol prism

(Encyclopedia)Nicol prism nĭkˈəl [key], optical device invented (1828) by William Nicol of Edinburgh. It consists essentially of a crystal of calcite, or Iceland spar, that is cut at an angle into two equal piec...

Pomeranian

(Encyclopedia)Pomeranian pŏmˌərāˈnēən [key], breed of small, sturdy toy dog descended from the sledge dogs of Iceland and Lapland. It stands about 6 in. (15.3 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 3 to 7 ...

Icelandic language

(Encyclopedia)Icelandic language, member of the North Germanic, or Scandinavian, group of the Germanic subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages. Spoken chiefly in Iceland, where it is the official languag...

lichen

(Encyclopedia)lichen līˈkən [key], usually slow-growing organism of simple structure, composed of fungi (see Fungi) and photosynthetic green algae or cyanobacteria living together in a symbiotic relationship and...

Schengen Agreement

(Encyclopedia)Schengen Agreement shĕngˈən [key], agreement signed in 1985 in Schengen, Luxembourg, by several European Community (now the European Union; EU) to establish a mutual visa policy that would permit f...

Stefansson, Vilhjalmur

(Encyclopedia)Stefansson, Vilhjalmur vĭlˈhyoulmər stĕfˈənsən [key], 1879–1962, Arctic explorer, b. Canada, of Icelandic parents, educated at the Univ. of North Dakota, the State Univ. of Iowa, and Harvard....

Fischer, Bobby

(Encyclopedia)Fischer, Bobby (Robert James Fischer) fĭshˈər [key], 1943–2008, American chess player, b. Chicago. In 1958, he became a grandmaster, the youngest to that time. In the Interzonal and Candidates' m...