What’s For Christmas Dinner In Iceland?

A new poll from Market and Media Research (MMR) asked Icelanders what they intend on having for Christmas Eve dinner, the cornerstone of the holiday season.

According to the results, the reigning champion remains hamborgarhryggur, a smoked rack of pork. 46.4% of Icelanders will be serving this as their centerpiece entree on Christmas Eve.

However, pork’s primacy may be on the wane. These numbers are down from 49.8% the year before, and 50.4% the year before that.

Surprisingly, general lamb meat is pretty unpopular for Christmas, with only 9.6% saying they were going to eat this for Christmas; fewer than last year. At the same time, slightly more people this year than last year will be eating either ptarmigan or turkey, at 8% and 9.6%, respectively. As turkeys are not native to Iceland, the rise of an import is notable.

In terms of political affiliation, hamborgarhryggur was most popular amongst voters for the Reform Party, at 51%, and least popular with Social Democrats, at 40%.

Related:

The Encyclopaedia of Icelandic Holidays