Goðafoss

Goðafoss
Goðafoss
	Aerial panorama of Goðafoss
Location	North of Iceland
Total height	12 m (39 ft)
Total width	30 m (98 ft)

Goðafoss (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkɔːðaˌfɔsː] ^ⓘ) is a waterfall in northern Iceland. It is located along the country's main ring road at the junction with the Sprengisandur highland road,^[1] about 45 minutes from Akureyri. The water of the river Skjálfandafljót falls from a height of 12 metres over a width of 30 metres.^[1] A 1.8-mile hiking trail loops around the waterfall area.^[2]

Name

The origin of the waterfall's name is not completely clear. In modern Icelandic, the name can be read either as "waterfall of the goð (gods)" or "waterfall of the goði (chieftain)." Linguist and placename expert Svavar Sigmundsson suggests that the name derives from two crags at the falls which resemble pagan idols. In 1879–1882, a myth was published in Denmark according to which the waterfall was named when the lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði made Christianity the official religion of Iceland in the year 999 or 1000. Upon returning home from the Alþingi, Þorgeir supposedly threw his statues of the Norse gods into the waterfall. However, although the story of Þorgeir's role in the adoption of Christianity in Iceland is preserved in Ari Þorgilsson's Íslendingabók, no mention is made of Þorgeir throwing his idols into Goðafoss. The legend appears to be a nineteenth-century fabrication.^[3] Nevertheless, a window in Akureyrarkirkja, the main church at Akureyri, illustrates this story.

Gallery

Goðafoss seen from the Eastern bank in summer
Goðafoss seen from the Eastern bank in winter
Panorama of Goðafoss in winter

History

MS Goðafoss was an Icelandic ship named after the waterfall, it was used to transport both freight and passengers. It was sunk by the German submarine U-300 in World War II, resulting in great loss of life.^[4]^[5]

In 2020, the waterfall was granted protected status.^[6]^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b Andrew Evans (2011). Iceland. Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN 184162361X, 9781841623610. Page 365.
^ "Godafoss Waterfall". AllTrails.com. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
^ Svavar Sigmundsson. (2015, 29. júní). Er það rétt að Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði hafi hent goðum í Goðafoss? Vísindavefurinn. Retrieved from http://visindavefur.is/svar.php?id=70316
^ Óttar Sveinsson (23 November 2003). "Árásin á Goðafoss" [The attack on Goðafoss]. Útkall - Árás á Goðafoss [Called out - Attack on Goðafoss] (in Icelandic). Morgunblaðið. pp. 24–25. ISBN 9979956917. Retrieved 6 April 2026 – via Tímarit.is.
^ "Kafbátur sökti Goðafoss" [Submarine sank Goðafoss]. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 12 November 1944. pp. 1–2, 6, 12. Retrieved 6 April 2026 – via Tímarit.is.
^ Vala Hafstað (12 June 2020). "Goðafoss Waterfall Declared Protected". Nature and Travel. Iceland Monitor. Archived from the original on 6 October 2025. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
^ Askham, Poppy (2020-06-12). "Iceland's Goðafoss Waterfall Granted Protected Status". The Reykjavik Grapevine. Retrieved 2026-01-28.