Fréttabladid reports that 4.5% of all inhabitants of Iceland are foreign citizens, the same percentage of the population as its Nordic neighbors. Today’s total immigrant population of 14,000 represents an increase of 3,500 in one year, the largest such jump in Icelandic history. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” />
In 1981, the number of foreign citizens living in Iceland was only 1.4% of the population. Almost all were from Western countries. There has been a rapid increase in immigration since 1995. In 2004, there were almost 2000 Polish citizens living in Iceland compared to 25 in 1981. The second largest group today is Danish citizens at 890. Following are citizens from the former Yugoslavia (670) and the Philippines (647).
