Adlon Bar, or Langibar as it was known in daily parlance, stood between Aðalstræti 6 and 8, the old Morgunblaðið building and the theatre Fjalakötturinn, respectively. Langibar was a popular haunt for youngsters, earning it the playful moniker of Ungverjaland – the Icelandic term for Hungary, which can also be read literally to mean “land of youngsters.”

Hannes Hafstein was born on December 4th 1861 in Hörgárdalur in the north of Iceland. He studied law at the University of Copenhagen, after having graduated from the school Lærði skólinn in Reykjavík (now M.R. in Lækjargata close to here), finishing his law degree in 1886.

The history of Hressingarskálinn (lit. The Refreshment Lodge) in Reykjavík, or „Hressó“ as it is usually called in its shortform, goes back to 1932. The place was popular from the start, partly because of the back garden. It was a lively meeting place for artists, among them many poets and writers.

The street Laugavegur derives its name from the fact that it used to lead to the hot springs in Laugardalur, where Reykjavík‘s citizens did their laundry up until the 1930s.

The street Laugavegur derives its name from the fact that it used to lead to the hot springs in Laugardalur, where Reykjavík‘s citizens did their laundry up until the 1930s.

The farm Brekkukot in the novel The Fish Can Sing (1957), by Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness, was modeled after Melkot. Halldór‘s parents first met at Melkot farm, where they worked as farmhands.

Málfríður Einarsdóttir‘s (1899-1983) first book, Samastaður í tilverunni (A Place to Belong), was published in 1977, when she was at the age of 78. She lived in an appartment at Pósthússtræti 15, with her husband Guðjón Eiríksson, a janitor of the building.

Svava Jakobsdóttir was born on October 4, 1930 in the small town of Neskaupstaður. She graduated from highschool in 1949 and completed a B.A. degree in English and American literature at Smith College in Northhampton in Massachusetts in 1952. Svava is one of Iceland’s leading contemporary authors and her short stories, often depicting the lives of women, hold a special place in Icelandic literature. Her first work of fiction was the short story collection 12 konur (Twelve Women), published in 1965.

The writer Tryggvi Emilsson (1902-1993) lived in this neighbourhood from 1947 to 1956. His three-volume autobiography is an important source of information about the life and struggle of the working class in Iceland in the twentieth century.

Ingólfur Arnarson er þekktastur landnámsmanna, hann kom hingað um árið 872 og  var fyrstur til að nema land hér.

Jón Árnason (1819 – 1888), collector of Icelandic folktales, and his wife Katrín Þorvaldsdóttir Sívertsen (1829 – 1895) built the house at Laufásvegur 5 in 1880 and Jón lived there until his death. The house has been known as Jónshús (House of Jón). It is made from gray basalt mixed with lime from Mt. Esja in the capital area.

Við Unuhús, sem stendur við Garðastræti 15, liggur örlítill stígur, svokallaður „Skáldastígur“ sem liggur niður að Mjóstræti í Grjótaþorpi.

Einar Benediktsson (1864-1940) is one of Iceland’s most revered poets. He was an influential figure in the independence movement of Iceland, a lawyer and a highly ambitious entrepeneur. His poetry has been classified as neo-romantic, collected in five books during his lifetime.

Torfhildur Þorsteinsdóttir Hólm (1845-1918) was the first writer by profession in Iceland, and the first woman author to publish novels in the country.

This house, originally in Vonarstræti 12 by the Reykjavík City Lake, was the home of poet Theodóra Thoroddsen (1863-1954).

Around Skólavörðuholt hill, fifteen streets carry names from Norse Mythology. The neighbourhood is sometimes referred to as the Neighbourhood of the Gods as Thor, Freyja and many more gods from the pagan religion have their own streets here. At one time, city authorities tried to name the area Asgard, one of the nine worlds in Norse Mythology and home of the gods, but the name did not stick.