Iceland’s National Archives began in an attic. When governor Hilmar Finsen announced the establishment of the Country Archives on April 3, 1882, the new institution was given space at Reykjavík Cathedral.
The opportunity arose because other collections were moving out. According to the archives’ institutional history, the National Library and the Archaeological Museum, now the National Museum of Iceland, left the cathedral attic for the newly built Althingi Hall. Finsen used the vacated space to improve conditions for the records of the country’s highest officials.
At first, there was no dedicated employee responsible for the archive. Officials continued overseeing their own records at the cathedral. A more formal arrangement followed at the beginning of 1900, when Jón Þorkelsson, known as Jón forni, became its first director.
The archive’s accommodation changed as the institution developed. It moved to the Parliament building in 1900 and to the museum building on Hverfisgata in 1908. Its move to the present premises at Laugavegur 162 took place between 1987 and 1998.
The scale of the collection has changed just as dramatically. Records that initially fitted into several cathedral rooms have grown into a collection described in the institutional history as approaching 50 shelf-kilometres.
Its historical reach extends much further back than its founding. The National Archives holds documents concerning Iceland’s history from the 12th century, including Reykholtsmáldagi, which it identifies as the oldest document written in Icelandic.
The archives describes these records as sources for the history of society and the rights of individuals, as well as for researching citizens and the nation. The collection’s journey from cathedral rooms to kilometres of shelving reflects the growth of an institution preserving evidence of both public affairs and individual lives.