Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík
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Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík or MR is the oldest gymnasium (Icelandic: menntaskóli) in Reykjavík, Iceland.
The school traces its origin to 1056, when a school was established in Skálholt, and it remains one of the oldest institutions in Iceland. The school was moved to Reykjavík in 1786, but poor housing conditions forced it to move again in 1805 to Bessastaðir near Reykjavík. In 1846 the school was moved to its current location, and a new building was erected for it in Reykjavík. This was the largest building in the country at the time and can be seen on the 500 Icelandic krona bill. The school had previously been known as "Lærði skólinn" (The Learned School), "Latínuskólinn" (The Latin School) or by the Latin title "Scholae Reykjavicensis", but received its present name in 1937.
Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík offers a four-year course of study. It usually ends with a degree (stúdentspróf) which gives the graduating student the right to advance to an Icelandic university.
Many Icelandic politicians, including former Prime Minister Davíð Oddsson and the current President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, either attended MR or taught there. Geir H. Haarde, Davíð's successor as chairman of the Independence Party, also took over from him as chairman of the student body ("inspector scholae") years ago. The President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, was also the president of the other student body, called Framtíðin ("The Future").
Some notable Icelandic authors have also attended MR, amongst them Tómas Guðmundsson, Guðmundur G. Hagalín, and Davíð Stefánsson. Halldór Kiljan Laxness, a Nobel-prize winning author, also attended the school for some time but dropped out. Another attendee, Niels Ryberg Finsen won the Nobel Prize in medicine.
Noted Icelandic scholar Sveinbjörn Egilsson served as rector from its founding in Reykjavík in 1846.
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[edit] Culture and traditions
Due to the high age and long history of the school, many traditions have evolved between the students. For example: The hall fight and singing of the Brevitate Vitae.
[edit] The Hall Fight
Every year at the end of spring semester the students of MR organize a fight in the halls of the main building. A bell is placed on the ground floor of the building and the seniors aim to reach that bell and ring it while other students try to fight them and prevent them from doing so. Should the seniors succeed their task, they are free to go home and do not need to attend the next class. During the fight, all students are covered in oil.
[edit] The Freshmen Day
One day in the first weeks of school is a special day for newcomers (Icelandic: busar). The day starts with the seniors dressing up in white toga cloaks and painting their faces. The seniors then march around the school and gather the newcomers out to the school grounds where they are then thrown high into the air. On this day (and the next few days after) students tend to sing the song "De Brevitate Vitae." The following night a freshmen ball is held.
[edit] The Fiddle Dance
The fiddle dance is by many described as a fancy promenade ball where live fiddle music is played and students wear their best clothes while dancing elegantly. This event is only open to seniors.
The tradition was started in the 60's and was meant to be an iconoclasm to the hippie culture at the time. Reverend Geir Waage is rumored to have been the originator of the dance. It was only held once.
In 1992 it was resurrected by Dagur B. Eggertsson, a student of the school at the time (but now a notable politician).
[edit] Published writings
The two student bodies maintain a number of periodic publications. Amongst them are:
- The School Paper - Articles about the past year; published once a year.
- Loki Laufeyjarson - A newspaper about daily life and events in the school; published roughly once every month.
- Skinfaxi - Similar to the school paper but with different writers and editors.
- De Rerum Natura - A scientific magazine published by the science club every year.
- Yggdrasill & The Novelist News - Two magazines published by the Novelist club every year.
- Menntaskólatíðindi - a bi-monthly newspaper
[edit] Housing
The number of students has grown rapidly since the founding of the school. This has led to the expanding of the school's housing. The flagship and main building of the school is still the front house, which was built in 1846. Several houses and additions have been built since. These buildings include:
- Íþaka is the library and study hall of MR. It was built in the year 1867 as a gift to Icelanders from Charles Kelsall, a wealthy English merchant. The ground floor is a quiet room in which students find peace and comfort to read (as well as dictionaries and such). The upper floor is a library and a historical archive. (see image: 2)
- Fjósið (The Cowshed) is a small wooden house with two classrooms east of the main building. It was originally used to house the Rektor's cows. (see image: 3)
- Íþróttahöllin (The Gym) is the oldest sports hall in Iceland and for a long time it was the biggest, although it is thought to be very small by today's standards. (see image: 4)
- Þrælakistan (The Slave Chest) is a very small building connected to the Gym. It currently contains modern weight-lifting equipment but historically has contained fairly antiquated weight-lifting equipment.
- Casa Christi (Latin: House of Christ) is an old house with several classrooms. It is relatively big compared to other houses in the area. This building was once used by the Reykjavík YMCA, thus the name "Casa Christi". (see image: 5)
- Casa Nova (Latin: New House) is a relatively new house and probably the biggest one. It has many classrooms and is also the centre for the students' social gatherings. A comfort lounge and a cafeteria is located in the basement of the building. (see image: 6)
- Villa Nova (Latin: New Apartment) is the groundskeeper's shed and a storage room for the school. It also used to house the offices of the student bodies before Amtmannsstígur 2 was taken into service. (see image: 7)
- Elísabetarhús (Elizabeth's House) is the latest addition to the school's housing. It has several classrooms, including perfect classrooms for hands-on scientific training. Known as Casa Subuculae before it was fully taken into service. (see image: 8)
- Amtmannsstígur 2 is the teachers' lounge. It also houses a few offices and serves as a meeting place for the student bodies' chairmen. (see image: 9)
Number 1 on the image is the main building and number 10 is a parking lot.
[edit] Rectors from 1846
1846-1851: Sveinbjörn Egilsson
1851-1867: Bjarni Jónsson
1867-1872: Jens Sigurðsson
1872-1895: Jón Þorkelsson
1895-1904: Björn M. Ólsen
1904-1913: Steingrímur Thorsteinsson
1913-1928: Geir Zoëga
1928-1929: Þorleifur H. Bjarnason
1929-1956: Pálmi Hannesson
1956-1965: Kristinn Ármannsson
1965-1970: Einar Magnússon
1970-1996: Guðni Guðmundsson
1996-2001: Ragnheiður Torfadóttir
2001-Present: Yngvi Pétursson
