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Brief histories of the first clubs of each geographic regions or countries
Rotary Club of Reykjavik, the
First Club
of Iceland
Rotary International District 1360
Part of our section on Europe
There had been contacts to Rotary already in 1920 from Hull, England but it was the Rotary Club of Copenhagen that sponsored
the Reykjavik Club.
The first club was founded in Reykjavik on 13 September 1934 on the initiative of the Danish governor of Iceland,
Ludvig Storr. (Iceland was a part of Denmark up to 1945).
Charter members where also two Rotarians from Hannover, Germany and the mayor of Reykjavik, Knud Zimsen.
The Charter is dated 31 may 1935 and the original club number is 3842.
At the time, the Club was in District 75 in Denmark.
Following this first club were Isafjord and Siglufjord in 1937 and Akureiri in 1937.
Then followed Husavik in 1940 and Krflavik (the airbase) in 1945.
From 1945 the district number was 74 and changed many times before ariving at its present number 1360.
There where six clubs in 1946 and the development was then rapid so that by 1956 there where 13 clubs and now 28 clubs.
Since the population of Iceland is only 266 000 people the penetration of 1100 Rotarians is the highest in the world,
being 1 in every 242 people.
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