Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
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| Vigdís Finnbogadóttir | |
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| In office 29 July 1980 – August 1, 1996 |
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| Preceded by | Kristján Eldjárn |
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| Succeeded by | Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson |
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| Born | April 15, 1930 |
| Profession | University professor |
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir (vɪɣtis fɪnpɔɣatoʊhtɪr ) (born 15 April 1930) was the 4th president of Iceland, serving from 1980 to 1996. She was the world's first elected female president. She was Iceland's first and so far only female president.
[edit] Education
Finnbogadóttir studied French and French literature at the University of Grenoble and the Sorbonne in Paris from 1949-1953, history of theater at the University of Copenhagen and a BA in French and English as well as PGCE at the University of Iceland.
She has received honorary degrees from the following Universities:
- University of Grenoble, France (1985)
- University of Bordeaux, France (1987)
- Smith College, USA (1988)
- Luther College, USA (1989)
- University of Manitoba, Canada (1989)
- University of Nottingham, Britain (1990)
- University of Tampere, Finland (1990)
- Göteborg University, Sweden (1990)
- The Gashuin University in Tokyo, Japan (1991)
- University of Miami, USA (1993)
- St. Mary's University in Halifax, Canada (1996)
- University of Leeds, Britain (1996)
- The Memorial University of St John, Canada (1997)
- University of Guelph, Canada (1998)
- University of Iceland, Iceland (2000)
[edit] Career
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir worked with the Reykjavík Theatre Company 1954-1957 and again 1961-64. During the summers she also worked as a tourguide. Finnbogadóttir taught at Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík 1962-1967 and at Menntaskólinn við Hamrahlíð 1967-1972. She also taught for a while at University of Iceland.
She was the Artistic Director of the Reykjavík Theatre Company (Leikfélag Reykjavíkur), later the City Theatre 1972-1980. From 1976 to 1980 she was a member of the Advisory Committee on Cultural Affairs in the Nordic countries (Chair from 1978-1980); member of the Advisory Committee on Cultural Affairs in Nordic countries, 1976-1980; Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, 1996 to present.
At her election, on 29 June 1980, she was the first woman in the world to be elected the head of state in a democratic election. She was re-elected unopposed in 1984 and 1992, and overwhelmingly won a contested election in 1988.
Finnbogadóttir made national headlines in Iceland back in 1972 as the first single woman to adopt a child[citation needed]. Currently, she is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador.
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Kristján Eldjárn |
President of Iceland 1980–1996 |
Succeeded by Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson |
| Presidents of Iceland |  |
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| Sveinn Björnsson • Ásgeir Ásgeirsson • Kristján Eldjárn • Vigdís Finnbogadóttir • Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson |
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Categories: Articles to be expanded since January 2007 | All articles to be expanded | Articles with unsourced statements since January 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1930 births | Living people | Presidents of Iceland | Female heads of government | History of Iceland | Female heads of state | Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav | Icelandic people | Icelandic people stubs | European politician stubs
