Icelanders are a Scandinavian ethnic group and a nation, native to Iceland.
On 17 June 1944, when an Icelandic republic was founded the Icelanders became independent from the Danish monarchy. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and Lutheranism is the predominant religion. Historical and DNA records indicate that around 60 to 80 percent of the settlers were of Norse origin (primarily from Western Norway) and the rest were of Celtic stock from the British Isles.