Celebrating Youth and Language: The Icelandic Youth Language Awards
Today in Reykjavík, the Icelandic Youth Language Awards take place in the Norðurljós Hall at Harpa, running from 5 PM to 6 PM. The ceremony is part of the Day of the Icelandic Language celebrations — a yearly reminder of just how much the language still means to people here.
This is the nineteenth edition of the awards, put together by Reykjavíkurborg’s School and Leisure Council together with Reykjavík’s UNESCO City of Literature. The pairing makes sense: both organisations have a genuine stake in keeping literature and language alive for the next generation.
The awards exist to spark real enthusiasm for the Icelandic language among primary school pupils in Reykjavík — not just a passive appreciation, but active skill in speaking and writing it well.
This year, 47 students from 23 primary schools will be recognised for their work. Since the awards began, close to 1,200 pupils and pupil groups have been nominated in total, which says something about how seriously schools here take it.
Mrs. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Iceland’s first female president, who served from 1980 to 1996, is the patron of the awards. Her involvement has always lent the ceremony a particular weight, and her legacy continues to resonate with younger generations.
The awards committee is chaired by Marta Guðjónsdóttir, a member of the school and leisure council. She is joined by headteacher representative Kristín Jóhannesdóttir and specialists Ingunn Ásta Sigmundsdóttir, Dagbjört Þorsteinsdóttir, and Elínrós Benediktsdóttir from the school and leisure division — the people who do the careful work of deciding whose contributions deserve to be celebrated today.
These young voices are worth hearing. Events like this are a good reminder that the Icelandic language has enthusiastic custodians coming up behind it.
