The Faculty of Sociology, Anthropology and Folkloristics was established 1 July 2008 when a new structure was introduced at the University of Iceland. The Faculty is one of the most popular at the University, offering a variety of subjects and programmes that can be linked in various ways. Some of these subjects have been taught at the University of Iceland for decades, others have been introduced more recently.

Tenured lecturers at the Faculty are respected scholars, who have partaken in shaping discourse, both domestically and internationally. Their research productivity is amongst the best at the University. Lecturers publish articles in respected journals and publish books, which amongst other things are useful to students in their studies.

A large group of sessional teachers works at the Faculty, thus broadening diversity in course offerings.

The Social Science Research Institute was founded in 1986. The Institute's objectives are to promote the practice of social scientific methods by carrying out practical and academic research. Several independent research centres, related to lecturers' research projects, operate within the Institute.