While there are certainly more than five trailblazing women in Iceland’s history, I thought it would be helpful to start off with these women first because they have made a significant impact on Iceland and the progression of the society for everyone. You might have heard of some of the  women I’m featuring but there are others that you have probably never learned about. 

Before I jump into speaking about each woman, I will first give a bit of history about Iceland regarding suffrage and the significant impact that Icelandic women’s organizations had in the country. These organizations were formed before women had the right to vote. After going over each of the phenomenal women’s backgrounds, I share a little timeline of significant moments in Icelandic history that are related to women rights and equal rights. 

Next is the random fact of the episode and I will end off with the Icelandic word of the day. I found a lot of information on the Women’s history Archives website. The Archives was founded in January of 1975 by Anna Sigurðardóttir, Else Mia Einarsdóttir and Svanlaug Baldursdóttir. Since 1996 it has been a special entity within the National Library of Iceland. There is so much information there and I will have links to the website in the show notes if you want to check it out.

I think it is important and super fascinating to share some history about Iceland and how the country being governed by Denmark played a significant role in the rights of women in the country. At the beginning of the 19th century Iceland did not have many people residing in the country. The ones that did live here were farmers, their wives and kids, people who worked as laborers and maids. There was not a middle class until later into the 20th century. That is significant because it is often thought that the middle class are the backbone of social movements. In fact from 1845, the right to vote for men in Iceland was limited to those of a certain age that paid taxes and had property.

That changed in 1903 but still that means that more than 50 years went by where only men with certain status in society had the right to vote. What is so interesting to me is that the Icelandic parliament discussed women’s suffrage more than once in the 19th century and most parliamentarians supported it. However, all bills that contained women’s suffrage were vetoed by Danish authorities. Those bills also proposed changes in the relationship between countries as well. I’m sure that had a lot to do with the bills being vetoed. I was surprised at how progressive parliament was back about this topic. And for those who are not aware, Iceland didn’t become a sovereign state until 1918 and declared independence in 1944.

Iceland’s first women’s organization was founded in the countryside in 1869. It’s focus was to foster more unity and cooperation among women in the region. They also collected money to buy a knitting machine that all members could use.

Most women’s organizations at the time were focused on helping the sick and the poor. Iceland didn’t have a national healthcare system then and municipalities were barely providing any social help. By stepping in to help, these women organizations played a significant role in shaping the welfare state of the country. These organizations provided home care for the sick and created a healthcare center in Reykjavik.

Because women were only allowed to get the most elementary education from the established institutions at the time, Icelandic women decided to create their own private schools between 1874 and 1879.

Icelandic women gained the parliamentary vote in 1915, but the right was, however, blemished by the fact that only women over 40 years of age got the vote. Nowhere else in the world was women’s suffrage restricted in this particular way. Certain circumstances in Iceland contributed to this unique decision, and we shall take a closer look at them here. (In 1920 the franchise limits on women were lifted in accordance with the agreement in 1918 between Denmark and Iceland when the latter became a sovereign state).

Up until 1975, women that worked outside of the home earned less than 60% of what men earned.

In 1975, the United Nations announced that year would be International Women’s Year. A feminist group in Iceland called Redstockings, which I assume they were inspired or even in affiliation with Redstockings of the Women’s Liberation Movement that was founded in 1969 in NYC, had the idea of striking or ´taking a day off´ as a way to honor that year. They felt that taking a day off sounded more appealing to the masses and would result in more women participating. Plus, some women might be fired if they were to strike but they could request a day off.

The fateful day was October 24th, 1975. 90% of women in Iceland took the day off, or essentially went on strike  to “demonstrate the indispensable work of women for Iceland’s economy and society”.

Women that had jobs did not show up for work and those that were normally at home, did not do any housework or child rearing for the whole day. Men had to take their children to work as well as scramble to feed themselves and the kids. I’m sure most kids ate hotdogs that day.

The following year, Iceland’s parliament passed a law guaranteeing equal pay.

Kosingaréttur

Kosing – vote

Réttur – right

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