| Municipalities of Iceland Sveitarfélög Íslands (Icelandic) | |
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| Category | Municipality |
| Location |  Iceland |
| Found in | Regions |
| Number | 62 (as of 2024) |
| Populations | Smallest:Árneshreppur (pop. 53) Largest:Reykjavík (pop. 140,000) |
| Areas | Smallest:Seltjarnarnes (2.11 km2) Largest:Þingeyjarsveit (12,019.59 km2) |
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Themunicipalities of Iceland (Icelandic:sveitarfélög[ˈsveiːtarˌfjɛːˌlœːɣ];sing. sveitarfélag[ˈsveiːtarˌfjɛːˌlaːɣ]) are local administrative areas inIceland that provide a number of services to their inhabitants such askindergartens,elementary schools,waste management,social services,public housing,public transportation, services tosenior citizens anddisabled people. They also governzoning and can voluntarily take on additional functions if they have the budget for it. The autonomy of municipalities over their own matters is guaranteed by theIcelandic constitution.[1]
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| Iceland portal |
The origin of the municipalities can be traced back to thecommonwealth period in the 10th century when rural communities were organized intocommunes (hreppar[r̥ɛhpar̥]) with the main purpose of providing help for the poorest individuals in society. Whenurbanization began in Iceland during the 18th and 19th centuries, several independenttownships (kaupstaðir[ˈkʰœypˌstaːðɪr̥]) were created. The role of municipalities was further formalized during the 20th century and by the end of the century there was no longer any official distinction between urban and rural municipalities.[1]
The trend in recent years has been to transfer more functions and power from the state to the municipalities. This has called for larger municipalities. The government encourages municipalities to merge but has taken a different approach to the issue than governments in otherNordic countries where forced amalgamation is regularly carried out (such as themunicipal reform inDenmark that took effect in 2007). Instead, the process is voluntary. Municipalities negotiate possible mergers among themselves, and any merger must first receive approval from the relevant municipality's constituent voting electorate in a referendum. A similar approach is used by theFaroese government. However, municipalities having a population of below 50 may be forced to merge.
The number of municipalities peaked in the mid-20th century. There were 229 of them in 1950.[2] From 1986 to 1998, their number decreased from 222 to 124. From 2000 to 2024, their number decreased from 124 to the current figure of 62.
The municipalities are governed by municipal councils which are directly elected every four years. Municipal elections were last held on 14 May 2022. The sizes of these councils vary from five members in the smallest municipalities to fifteen in the largest one. Most municipalities except for the very small ones hire an executive manager who may or may not be a member of the municipal council. These managers are usually referred to asmayors (bæjarstjóri[ˈpaiːjarˌstjouːrɪ] orborgarstjóri[ˈpɔrkarˌstjouːrɪ]) in the mostly urban municipalities but "municipal manager" (sveitarstjóri[ˈsveiːtarˌstjouːrɪ]) in the rural or mixed municipalities. It is common for these executive managers to be professionally hired andpolitically independent.
| Vernacular name | Official name | Region | Population[3] (2021 Census) | Area (km2) | LAU code | Mayor (Party) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjavík | Reykjavíkurborg | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 129,886 | 274.19 | 0000 | Einar Þorsteinsson (B) |
| Kópavogur | Kópavogsbær | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 37,366 | 79.99 | 1000 | Ásdís Kristjánsdóttir (D) |
| Seltjarnarnes | Seltjarnarnesbær | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 4,567 | 2.11 | 1100 | Ásgerður Halldórsdóttir (D) |
| Garðabær | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 17,224 | 75.46 | 1300 | Gunnar Einarsson (D) | |
| Hafnarfjörður | Hafnarfjarðarkaupstaður | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 29,000 | 144.07 | 1400 | Haraldur L. Haraldsson (Ind.) |
| Mosfellsbær | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 12,340 | 186.16 | 1604 | Haraldur Sverrisson (D) | |
| Kjósarhreppur | Höfuðborgarsvæðið | 274 | 284.08 | 1606 | Guðný Guðrún Ívarsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Reykjanesbær | Suðurnes | 18,847 | 144.48 | 2000 | Kjartan Már Kjartansson (Ind.) | |
| Grindavíkurbær | Suðurnes | 3,445 | 423.46 | 2300 | Róbert Ragnarsson (Ind.) | |
| Suðurnesjabær | Suðurnes | 3,533 | 82.46 | 2505 | Magnús Stefánsson (Ind.) | |
| Vogar | Sveitarfélagið Vogar | Suðurnes | 1,288 | 164.4 | 2506 | Ásgeir Eiríksson (Ind.) |
| Akranes | Akraneskaupstaður | Vesturland | 7,496 | 8.57 | 3000 | Regína Ásvaldsdóttir (Ind.) |
| Skorradalshreppur | Vesturland | 77 | 215.8 | 3506 | Árni Hjörleifsson (Ind.) | |
| Hvalfjarðarsveit | Vesturland | 637 | 481.06 | 3511 | Björgvin Helgason (Ind.) | |
| Borgarbyggð | Vesturland | 3,636 | 4926.85 | 3609 | Björn Bjarki Þorsteinsson (D) | |
| Grundarfjarðarbær | Vesturland | 842 | 149.08 | 3709 | Eyþór Garðarsson (Ind.) | |
| Eyja- og Miklaholtshreppur | Vesturland | 110 | 383.51 | 3713 | Eggert Kjartansson (Ind.) | |
| Snæfellsbær | Vesturland | 1,622 | 682.04 | 3714 | Kristinn Jónasson (Ind.) | |
| Stykkishólmur | Vesturland | 1,233 | 253.47 | 3716 | Sturla Böðvarsson (D) | |
| Dalabyggð | Vesturland | 633 | 2426.88 | 3811 | Jóhannes Haukur Hauksson (Ind.) | |
| Bolungarvík | Bolungarvíkurkaupstaður | Vestfirðir | 929 | 108.08 | 4100 | Elías Jónatansson (Ind.) |
| Ísafjarðarbær | Vestfirðir | 3,674 | 2380.55 | 4200 | Arna Lára Jónsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Reykhólahreppur | Vestfirðir | 245 | 1096.23 | 4502 | Karl Kristjánsson (Ind.) | |
| Vesturbyggð | Vestfirðir | 1,280 | 1511.43 | 4607 | Rebekka Hilmarsdóttir (D) | |
| Súðavík | Súðavíkurhreppur | Vestfirðir | 189 | 750.35 | 4803 | Pétur G. Markan (Ind.) |
| Árneshreppur | Vestfirðir | 37 | 705.41 | 4901 | Eva Sigurbjörnsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Kaldrananeshreppur | Vestfirðir | 109 | 458.4 | 4902 | Finnur Ólafsson (Ind.) | |
| Strandabyggð | Vestfirðir | 416 | 1833.88 | 4911 | Jón Gísli Jónsson (Ind.) | |
| Húnaþing vestra | Norðurland vestra | 1,183 | 3022.83 | 5508 | Guðný Hrund Karlsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Skagaströnd | Sveitarfélagið Skagaströnd | Norðurland vestra | 460 | 52.6 | 5609 | Magnús B. Jónsson (Ind.) |
| Húnabyggð | Norðurland vestra | 1,377 | 4487.18 | 5613 | ||
| Skagafjörður | Norðurland vestra | 4,204 | 5542.46 | 5716 | Ásta Björg Pálmadóttir (Ind.) | |
| Akureyri | Akureyrarbær | Norðurland eystra | 18,921 | 135.55 | 6000 | Ásthildur Sturludóttir (Ind.) |
| Norðurþing | Norðurland eystra | 2,945 | 3732.78 | 6100 | Kristján Þór Magnússon (Ind.) | |
| Fjallabyggð | Norðurland eystra | 1,954 | 363.83 | 6250 | Gunnar Ingi Birgisson (Ind.) | |
| Dalvíkurbyggð | Norðurland eystra | 1,816 | 597.35 | 6400 | Bjarni Þ. Bjarnason (B) | |
| Eyjafjarðarsveit | Norðurland eystra | 1,046 | 1774.83 | 6513 | Karl Frímannsson (Ind.) | |
| Hörgársveit | Norðurland eystra | 619 | 893.97 | 6515 | Snorri Finnlaugsson (Ind.) | |
| Svalbarðsstrandarhreppur | Norðurland eystra | 432 | 54.39 | 6601 | Eiríkur H. Hauksson (Ind.) | |
| Grýtubakkahreppur | Norðurland eystra | 371 | 431.43 | 6602 | Þröstur Friðfinnsson (Ind.) | |
| Tjörneshreppur | Norðurland eystra | 53 | 198.86 | 6611 | Steinþór Heiðarsson (Ind.) | |
| Þingeyjarsveit | Norðurland eystra | 1,231 | 12019.59 | 6613 | Dagbjört Jónsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Langanesbyggð | Norðurland eystra | 588 | 2483.16 | 6710 | Elías Pétursson (Ind.) | |
| Fjarðabyggð | Austurland | 4,955 | 1614.45 | 7300 | Páll Björgvin Guðmundsson (Ind.) | |
| Múlaþing | Austurland | 4,853 | 10669.19 | 7400 | Björn Ingimarsson (Ind.) | |
| Vopnafjarðarhreppur | Austurland | 635 | 1903.31 | 7502 | Ólafur Áki Ragnarsson (Ind.) | |
| Fljótsdalshreppur | Austurland | 90 | 1516.3 | 7505 | Gunnþórunn Ingólfsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Hornafjörður | Sveitarfélagið Hornafjörður | Suðurland | 2,297 | 6309.44 | 7708 | Björn Ingi Jónsson (D) |
| Vestmannaeyjar | Vestmannaeyjabær | Suðurland | 4,194 | 16.14 | 8000 | Elliði Vignisson (D) |
| Árborg | Sveitarfélagið Árborg | Suðurland | 10,258 | 157.19 | 8200 | Ásta Stefánsdóttir (D) |
| Mýrdalshreppur | Suðurland | 729 | 749.09 | 8508 | Ásgeir Magnússon (Ind.) | |
| Skaftárhreppur | Suðurland | 560 | 6944.26 | 8509 | Eygló Kristjánsdóttir (Ind.) | |
| Ásahreppur | Suðurland | 222 | 2942.32 | 8610 | Egill Sigurðsson (Ind.) | |
| Rangárþing eystra | Suðurland | 1,828 | 1839.93 | 8613 | Ísólfur Gylfi Pálmason (B) | |
| Rangárþing ytra | Suðurland | 1,698 | 3187.09 | 8614 | Ágúst Sigurðsson (D) | |
| Hrunamannahreppur | Suðurland | 781 | 1375.07 | 8710 | Jón G. Valgeirsson (Ind.) | |
| Hveragerði | Hveragerðisbær | Suðurland | 2,723 | 9.03 | 8716 | Aldís Hafsteinsdóttir (D) |
| Ölfus | Sveitarfélagið Ölfus | Suðurland | 2,277 | 736.32 | 8717 | Gunnsteinn R. Ómarsson (Ind.) |
| Grímsnes- og Grafningshreppur | Suðurland | 569 | 899.44 | 8719 | Ingibjörg Harðardóttir (Ind.) | |
| Skeiða- og Gnúpverjahreppur | Suðurland | 533 | 2231.74 | 8720 | Kristófer Tómasson (Ind.) | |
| Bláskógabyggð | Suðurland | 1,124 | 3300 | 8721 | Valtýr Valtýsson (Ind.) | |
| Flóahreppur | Suðurland | 661 | 288.9 | 8722 | Eydís Þ. Indriðadóttir (Ind.) | |
From 1953 to 2024, the number of municipalities in Iceland decreased from 229 to 62:[4]
