Only at spring shearing are the roaming sheep brought together. Many families cooperate on the costs and labor needed for this task. (RAFN HAFNJORD / ICELANDIC TOURIST BOARD)

         The merits of small scale

That women do not change their names at marriage creates within them that sense of individual identity so important to both Icelanders and feminism. Gudrun Gudjohnsen, a museum worker, feels that Icelandic women are naturally inclined toward independence, having inherited the genes of adventurous Viking women who came to the country to find freedom. Both men and women take great pride in the fact that one of their first presidents was a woman. While historic women did not have ultimate legal control of their children or political rights, they did control the household and the dairying, a strong position in the economy. They could also bear witness during legal proceedings and be outlawed themselves, go to school, and learn Latin.

This is not to say that women have not had to overcome the odds of sexism. When fishing became a larger part of the economy, and thus more important economically and as a means to prestige, the work roles were sharply divided in ways they had not been historically. When positions on fishing boats began to require formal education, women lost their leadership roles and were relegated to working in canneries or as maids or cooks on board. Prior to that they had been coxswains and oarsmen.