Dorrit Moussaieff

Dorrit Moussaieff
Moussaieff in 2012
First Lady of Iceland
In role 14 May 2003 – 1 August 2016
President	Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson
Preceded by	Guðrún Katrín Þorbergsdóttir
Succeeded by	Eliza Reid
Personal details
Born	(1950-01-12) 12 January 1950 (age 67) Jerusalem, Israel
Spouse(s)	Neil Zarach (divorced) Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (m.2003–present)
Religion	Judaism

Dorrit Moussaieff (Hebrew: דורית מוסאיוף, born 12 January 1950) is a Israeli jewellery designer, editor, and businesswoman who was the First Lady of Iceland 2003-2016. She married President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson on his 60th birthday in 2003 and then became first lady after being engaged to him since 2000. Born in Israel, she was raised in the United Kingdom from the age of 13.

Dorrit Moussaieff was born in Jerusalem. Her father, Shlomo Moussaieff, was from a wealthy Bukharian Jewish family from Bukhara, Uzbekistan, part of a long dynasty of jewellers. Dorrit is the great granddaughter of Rabbi Shlomo Moussaieff. Ancestors of hers are said to have woven the robe of Genghis Khan. Her great grandmother, Esther Gaonoff, was a descendant of Yosef Maimon. Her mother, Aliza is an Austrian Jew of Ashkenazi heritage, but Dorrit identifies more with the Bukharian culture and was raised by her father's large family.

Moussaieff was born and raised in the Bukharan Quarter of Jerusalem. At thirteen, she moved with her family to London. She suffered from dyslexia and was home-schooled. In addition to English and Hebrew, she also speaks German, French, and Icelandic.