National Day celebration program at Austurvöllur with new format
On National Day, June 17, a celebration service will be held at Reykjavík Cathedral, followed by the celebration program at Austurvöllur.
The ceremony will have a new format this year, as Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir has invited President of Iceland Halla Tómasdóttir to deliver the celebration address, which has always been given by the prime minister. In addition, the ceremony will be arranged so that it will be more visible to the public than before.
The celebration ceremony at Austurvöllur will be broadcast live on RÚV television, and the celebration service will be broadcast live on radio at 10:15am.
The prime minister will lay a wreath from the Icelandic people at the memorial to Jón Sigurðsson, and The Lady of the Mountain will deliver an address. According to tradition, her identity remains secret until she walks onto the square. After the ceremony, a procession will move from Austurvöllur to Hólavallakirkjugarður cemetery, where a wreath from Reykjavík residents will be laid at the grave of Jón Sigurðsson and his wife Ingibjörg Einarsdóttir. More information about the celebrations and street closures in the city is available at www.17juni.is.
Program at Austurvöllur begins at 11:10am:
The choir Graduale Nobili sings "Yfir voru ættarlandi"
Prime minister lays a wreath from the Icelandic people at the memorial to Jón Sigurðsson
Choir sings the national anthem
Celebration speech by the President of Iceland
Choir sings "Hver á sér fegra föðurland"
The Lady of the Mountain delivers an address
Horn players from the Iceland Symphony Orchestra play "Ég vil elska mitt land"
Procession from Austurvöllur to Hólavallakirkjugarð cemetery on Suðurgata at 11: 50am.