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Hljómskálagarður Park - Jónas Hallgrímsson

By the statue of poet Jónas Hallgrímsson here in Hljómskálagarður Park you can listen to a reading of his poem "Journey's End". 

Jónas Hallgrímsson (1807-1845) is one of Iceland's most beloved poets, often called "the darling of the nation". His birthday, November 16th, has been celebrated as the Day of the Icelandic Language since 1995. Jónas was a poet and natural scientist and also a prolific wordsmith. The statue, by sculptur Einar Jónsson, was unveiled in 1907, to commemorate the poet's centennial birthday. It originally stood on the corner of Amtmannsstígur and Lækjargata but was moved to Hljómskálagarður Park in 1947. Jónas Hallgrímsson is buried at Thingvellir National Park.

You can listen to the poem read in the original Icelandic on the Icelandic version of this website.

Read by Darren Foreman
Translation: Dick Ringler. From the book
Bard of Iceland. Jónas Hallgrímsson, Poet and Scientist (Reykjavik, Mál og menning 2010)
Recorded by Jórunn Sigurðardóttir, the Icelandic National Broadcasting