A collaborative project between The Language Centre at the University of Iceland and the Polonicum Centre at the University of Warsaw has recently received funding from NAWA (The National Agency for Academic Exchange) in Poland. The project, titled “ReyVarstigur – From Reykjavik to Warsaw in the Footsteps of the Polish Enlightenment”, is coordinated by Dr. Justyna Zych from the Polonicum Centre.
The project's main objective is to support Polish studies at the University of Iceland and promote Polish culture in Iceland. The project team consists of 10 staff members from the University of Warsaw and 3 from the University of Iceland: Mariola Fiema, an adjunct in Polish studies, Eyjólfur Már Sigurðsson, director of The Language Centre, and Sveinn Yngvi Egilsson, professor of Icelandic literature.
A key aspect of the project is a study trip, where 10 students from the University of Iceland will travel to Warsaw in October 2025. During the trip, the students will take part in Polish language lessons and explore Polish culture, with a particular focus on the 18th-century Polish Enlightenment. The project will culminate in a symposium at the University of Iceland at the end of 2025. Both Polish and Icelandic experts on the Enlightenment will deliver lectures, and students will present their experiences from the study trip and share the projects they developed as part of the initiative.