Not Bjork Again Trivia Quiz

Answer: United the chiefs of Iceland to achieve independence from Norway

Snorri Sturluson was a member of a prominent family clan in 13th century Iceland known as the Sturlings. His upbringing by Jon Loftsson, a relative of the Norwegian royal family, afforded him an excellent education and powerful political connections. Coupled with fierce ambition, he elevated himself to one of the most powerful chieftainships in the land of ice and fire. He was twice elected as Lawspeaker but, far from being a unifying force, his pursuit of a union with Norway caused division among the clans and ultimately led to his demise.

To this day, Snorri Sturluson is regarded as Iceland's greatest historian. He is credited with authoring the "Heimskringla", a semi-mythological collection of sagas about Norse kings. He is also considered one of the most important poets in Icelandic literature. His "Prose Edda", is an instructional textbook representing the most complete and detailed recounting of Norse Mythology. Many of the stories we know about the principal characters in Norse mythology (Odin, Thor, Loki, etc.) were written by Snorri Sturluson. Indeed, he is the only known source for several classic Norse myths like "The Death of Beautiful Baldur" and "How Thor Got His Hammer of Might".

This question was contributed by Phoenix Rising member JCSon, who fondly recalls his 2018 trip to Iceland, and is inspired to revisit his copies of "The Prose Edda" and "King Harald's Saga".

Answer: Children's fiction

Yes, Yrsa Sigurdardóttir writes both crime novels and children's fiction - an interesting combination. Her first crime novel, "Last Rites", was published in 2005 and was the first in the series featuring lawyer Thóra Gudmundsdóttir. She has also authored another successful series featuring child psychologist Freyja and police detective Huldar, beginning with "The Legacy" in 2018. Her children's book "Biobörn" won the Icelandic Children's Book Award in 2003. The title translates to "Cinema Children" in English. As well as being a best-selling author, Yrsa is a civil engineer. She didn't start writing until she was in her 30s.

Phoenix Rising team member lg549 authored this question and that's the extent of her authoring.

Answer: Gregor Clegane

Hafthor Bjornsson dominated strongman competitions for a number of years thanks, largely, to his height and immense strength. Many judges have labelled him as (possibly) being the "strongest man ever". In 2018 he became the first person to have won the Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man and World's Strongest Man in the same calendar year.

Hafthor's portrayal of Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane, in the fourth season (2013) of the HBO television series "Game of Thrones" was his first foray into acting. He would continue to play the character right through to its conclusion in season eight (2017).

This question was heaved into this quiz by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19.

Answer: Women's suffrage

Bríet Bjarnhédinsdóttir is a famous name in Iceland for her role in securing the right to vote for women. While working as a schoolteacher in Reykjavik in the late 1880s she wrote articles and made public speeches to call for women's rights, before going on to found her own magazine and set up a women's society.

In 1907 she founded the Icelandic Women's Rights Association with the stated aim of achieving political equality for women in terms of both employment rights and suffrage. The latter was initially achieved in 1915 when women aged over 40 were granted the right to vote; it took until 1920 for them to be granted equal voting rights to men. Briet Bjarnhédinsdóttir remained president of the association until 1927, becoming one of the first group of women to be elected to Reykjavik City Council and standing (unsuccessfully) for election to parliament.

This question was voted into the quiz by Phoenix Rising's Fifiona81.

Answer: PlayStation

Ólafur Jóhann Ólafsson, aka Olaf Olafsson, began with Sony in 1985. In 1991 he founded Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc as part of the larger Sony Corporation and spearheaded the development of the PlayStation. After six years in this position, he clashed with higher-ups because he wanted a lower price point for the PlayStation. He was forced to resign. Besides being a business executive, Olaf Olafsson is an accomplished author of such novels as "The Journey Home", "Absolution", and "Walking Into the Night".

This question was virtually entered into the quiz by Phoenix Rising member tazman6619.

Answer: Redfish

Born in Selfoss, Iceland, in 1964, Svandís Svavarsdóttir is the member for the Reykjavík South Constituency and has held numerous posts since she first entered politics in 2009 as a member of the Left-Green Movement. The Althing, the Parliament of the Icelandic Republic, conducted elections in September 2021, resulting in a three-way coalition of the Independence, Progressive, and Left-Green parties. Svandís Svavarsdóttir was appointed as Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries on 28th November 2021.

While most countries are excluded from fishing in Icelandic waters under the 'Act on Fishing and Processing by Foreign Vessels in Iceland's Exclusive Fishing Zone', since 1999, Russian trawlers have been permitted to trawl for redfish within Icelandic waters under a legal derogation of the act. This arrangement was ended in 2022 as part of a raft of sanctions against Russia, meaning the fishing access was rescinded.

Phoenix Rising's VegemiteKid is famously allergic to most seafood (though not oysters!) but still managed to reel this question into the quiz.

Answer: Barcelona

Eidur Gudjohnsen was a prolific striker who scored 26 international goals for Iceland, making him the country's joint top scorer at the time of his retirement from the national team in 2016. He played for all the clubs listed, but it was during the last of his three seasons with Spanish club Barcleona that he was a member of a Champions League-winning squad that also won the La Liga title and Copa del Rey. However, Eidur made just five appearances for Barcelona in the Champions League during the 2008-09 season, the last being a very brief appearance as a substitute during the second leg of their semi-final against his former club Chelsea. Other achievements in Eidur Gudjohnsen's career include two English Premier League wins with Chelsea and an appearance in the quarter finals of Euro 2016 with Iceland.

Phoenix Rising's Fifiona81 kicked this question into the bottom corner of the quiz.

Answer: LazyTown

Magnús Scheving picked up aerobics after betting with a friend to master a sport within three years. He went on to become a champion in aerobic gymnastics. Besides his career as an athlete, Magnús Scheving was also a motivational speaker. During his public speaking he noticed that there was a lack of role models for children regarding healthy living. He went on to publish a children's book, "Áfram Latibær!", that highlights a healthy lifestyle. This book was the precursor to the "LazyTown" television series, which was commissioned by Nickelodeon following the success of a stage play based on the book. "LazyTown" ran for four seasons from 2004-2014 and was broadcast around the world with good reception. Magnús Scheving himself starred as a central character in the series, Sportacus, the town's hero.

This question was lazily vaulted into the quiz by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Emilíana (also known as Emilíana Torrini Davídsdóttir) grew up in Kópavogur, Iceland's second largest municipality in terms of population, of an Italian father and Icelandic mother. As a child she participated in choirs as a soprano. She was a member of the Icelandic group GusGus and has had involvement in a broad range of musical pursuits, including cowriting Kylie Minogue's "Slow" and covering songs by a number of artists such as Simon and Garfunkel, The Rolling Stones and Stevie Wonder, among others. Her simple style is largely indie folk and her preferred accompaniment is acoustic guitar. The lyrics of "Gollum's Song" ("The Two Towers"), also titled "Long Ways to Go Yet", were written by the New Zealand artist Fran Walsh.

Phoenix Rising resident troubadour, VegemiteKid, strummed this question into the quiz.

Answer: First female president

Vigdís Finnbogadóttir was the fourth president of Iceland. She was the first woman in the world to be democratically elected as a country's head of state. She served four terms as president, serving for sixteen years from 1980 to 1996. She won two of those terms unopposed.

Vigdís Finnbogadóttir was educated in French, French Literature and Theatre History. Before her presidency she taught French and French Drama and served as the Artistic Director of what is now the Reykjavik City Theatre. During her tenure as President of Iceland, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir promoted Icelandic culture on the international stage, advocated girls' education and raised awareness on environmental issues. Since her retirement, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir has been UNESCO's Goodwill Ambassador for languages.

This question was first elected into the quiz by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.