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    Iceland

    331

    Total Church Membership

    0.09% 1-in-1108

    Population vs. Church Members

    3

    Congregations

    0 Wards
    3 Branches

    1

    FamilySearch Centers

    1

    History

    Guðmundur Guðmundsson and Þórarinn Hafliðason, the first Latter-day Saint missionaries to preach in Iceland, were Icelanders who had recently converted in Denmark and returned to their homeland in 1851. After Þórarinn’s untimely death, Guðmundur preached alone for almost two years. In 1853, despite ongoing opposition, he organized a branch on the Westman Islands.

    Although Icelanders continued to join the Church, immigration to North America sometimes left Iceland with no established branches. Recent converts often led the Church with the assistance of Icelandic members who returned as missionaries. Missionary work in Iceland was discontinued at the outset of World War I.

    By the end of World War II, the Church had slowly rebuilt its presence in Iceland. U.S. servicemen stationed near Keflavík formed a small congregation in 1945 and began preaching the gospel. Several missionaries from the Denmark Copenhagen Mission were reassigned to Iceland in 1975, and a branch was organized in Reykjavík the following year. The Book of Mormon was published in Icelandic in 1981, and the first meetinghouse constructed in Iceland was dedicated in 2000. A branch was organized in Selfoss in 2007.

    Although the number of Church members in Iceland remains small, Icelandic Saints form a close-knit community and recognize that “the body hath need of every member, that all may be edified together” (Doctrine and Covenants 84:110).

    For Journalist Use Only

    Gerhard Gudnason
    Reykjavik,
    Iceland
    Phone:  +354-690-6075

    Africa

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    736,701

    Members

    2,476

    Congregations

    Missions

    39Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    343

    Temples

    5Temples

    Asia

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    1,259,094

    Members

    2,110

    Congregations

    Missions

    45Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    363

    Temples

    8Temples

    Europe

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    500,239

    Members

    1,350

    Congregations

    Missions

    34Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    658

    Temples

    14Temples

    North America

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    9,489,479

    Members

    18,476

    Congregations

    Missions

    174Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    2,621

    Temples

    112Temples

    Oceania (Pacific)

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    587,462

    Members

    1,301

    Congregations

    Missions

    18Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    314

    Temples

    10Temples

    South America

    Total Church Membership

    Members
    Congregations

    4,232,425

    Members

    5,602

    Congregations

    Missions

    97Missions

    FamilySearch Centers

    1,106

    Temples

    21Temples