Icelandic Roots

by Doreen Borgfjord McFarlane As we review the settlements in Winnipeg and the New Iceland area, no doubt many of us have reflected on the life our ancestors experienced. But what of our own life in these Icelandic settlement areas? One of our IR volunteers and author, Doreen Borgfjord McFarlane, reflects on her growing up in Winnipeg as a Canadian with Icelandic heritage. Doree...

By Brian Borgford The following is a series of excerpts from the memoir of Thorsteinn Borgford (I464972), written in 1947 when he was in his 70s. His grandson, Brian, transcribed his typewritten manuscript. Thorsteinn tried to present his story in the third person, but his writing occasionally shifted into the first person. In addition, spelling and other errors that did not imp...

By Gerry Stefanson Gerry Stefanson is a member of the Icelandic Roots Author’s Group, and we are pleased to share his musings through poetry, a craft he has honed in more recent years. Many of Gerry’s poems have been previously published in our Newsletters. He has also published poet “Chap Books” through Spillwords. You can see more of his work, including Passages and Bouleversa...

By David Johnson An anniversary worth commemorating and celebrating! While travelling in Iceland this summer, a visit to the Icelandic Emigration Centre in Hofsós is a must. 2026 marks 30 years since Valgeir Þorvaldsson’s dream of a place in Iceland where the story of why so many Icelanders left for the Western Hemisphere became a reality. And with the birth of that reality, the...

By Heather Goodman Lytwyn Join Icelandic Roots Book Club on Thursday June 4 at 7 pm CDT by Zoom. We are featuring Sigfusson’s Roads by Svein Sigfusson, with co-hosts Heather Lytwyn and Alfreda Duffy. Their guest for the evening is the author’s nephew, Brian Sigfusson. More details are available on the IR Event Calendar. Sigfusson’s Roads is an inspiring story demonstrating the o...