NORTH - in History


The North has from the start existed as a dynamic idea, perpetually changing in time and space. A short historical synopsis of ideas about the North and Iceland will be presented below. This historical connection provides a certain grounding for the redefinition of the significance of the North at the beginning of a new era and highlights the ways in which the idea of the “margin” has been shaped by dominant nations, without regard for the definitions used by those who belong to the aforementioned regions. These writings show representations of the North ranging from one extreme to the opposite, from the site of the subhuman and barbaric to the idealized sanctuary.