Þingvellir
| Þingvellir National Park | |
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IUCN category II (national park)
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Þingvellir from the information centre overlook
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Position of Þingvellir in Iceland
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| Coordinates | 64°15′29″N 21°07′30″W / 64.25806°N 21.12500°WCoordinates: 64°15′29″N 21°07′30″W / 64.25806°N 21.12500°W |
| Area | 9,270 ha (35.8 sq mi) |
| Established | 1930 |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | iii, vi |
| Designated | 2004 (28th session) |
| Reference no. | 1152 |
| Region | Europe and North America (Northern Europe) |
Þingvellir (Icelandic: 
[ˈθiŋkˌvɛtlɪr̥] ), anglicised as Thingvellir, is a national park in the municipality of Bláskógabyggð in southwestern Iceland, about 40 km northeast of Iceland's capital, Reykjavík. Þingvellir is a site of historical, cultural, and geological significance, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Iceland. The park lies in a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the boundary between the North American tectonic plate and the Eurasian. To its south lies Þingvallavatn, the largest natural lake in Iceland.
Þingvellir is associated with the Althing, the national parliament of Iceland, which was established at the site in 930 AD. Sessions were held at the location until 1798.
Þingvellir National Park (Icelandic: þjóðgarðurinn á Þingvöllum) was founded in 1930, marking the one-thousandth anniversary of the Althing. The park was later expanded to protect the diverse and beautiful natural phenomena in the surrounding area, and was designated as a World Heritage Site in 2004.
The name Þingvellir is derived from the Old Norse Þingvǫllr, from (“thing, assembly”) and (“field”), meaning assembly fields. Compare the English and (“Thingweald”) from Anglo-Saxon and . The site takes its name from Alþing (Althing), the national parliament of Iceland, which was founded at Þingvellir in 930 and held its sessions there until 1798. A thing was a form of governing assembly found in Germanic societies, and a tradition that endures to this day in one form or another across Northern Europe.
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