Egilsstaðir

Egilsstaðir [' εi ː ˌ jɪls sta ː ðɪr̥ ] with 2265 inhabitants (as of 1 January 2009) is the largest city in eastern Iceland. It is located in the municipality of Fljótsdalshérað in the region Austurland.

Geography

In Egilsstaðir the Lagarfljót is (also called Lögurinn ), an elongated lake or river of the same name, in which, according to legend the Lagarfljótwurm, a sea monster to live.

History

The place was only developed in the 1940s in the vicinity of the estate of the same name. This was specialized at the beginning of the 20th century, among other things on the cereal cultivation, but larger forest areas ( in Icelandic scale ) belong to him. Since 1914, a hotel is operated by the Court.

The first houses of today's small town were built in 1944. The city acquired the right place in 1987 and since then has been up in the last few years steadily grown from 1,380 inhabitants in 1988auf 2,237 inhabitants in 2011. One lives of trade and services.

The city Egilsstaðir ( Egilsstaðabær ) was self-employed until June 7, 1998, then belonged to the municipality Austur - HERAD which together with other municipalities merged into the new municipality Fljótsdalshérað on 1 November 2004.

Economy and infrastructure

There are, among other things, some important shops that are otherwise not available in the area, such as a supermarket and a hardware store, an outdoor pool, a comprehensive school, a secondary school, a technical college, the municipal library, the Regional Archives and the District Court for East Iceland, a multi-purpose hall which is used primarily as a youth club, a boat dock on the lake, hotels of luxury to tourist accommodation, sports fields, a golf course, a large information center and a caravan and camping site. In addition, here you can find a health center ( Isl Heilsugæsla ); the nearest hospital is, however, in Neskaupstaður.

In the near Egilsstaðir is the transmission tower Eiðar the Icelandic broadcasting.

Traffic

The Egilsstaðir airport is at the same time (next to Akureyri ) is an alternative landing site for Iceland's Keflavik International Airport.

By Egilsstaðir runs, among other important road Islands Hringvegur.

Churches and communities

The Protestant church of Egilsstaðakirkja, one most of the population belongs to the municipality Múlaprófastsdæmi.Das church building dates from 1974 and stands on the hill Gálgaklettur near the high school Menntaskólinn á Egilsstöðum.

A former pharmacy in Egilsstaðir was converted into a Catholic community center, which is part of the parish of St. Thorlák in Reyðarfjörður, 34 km away. The chapel with 50 seats was inaugurated in late 2009.

Sons and daughters of the city

• Bjarni Benediktsson frá Hofteigi (1922-1968), writer
• Hjálmar Jónsson ( born 1980 ), football player