Althing

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The national legislature of Iceland, the oldest continuing parliamentary body in the world, which meets in Reykjavik
2. The supreme lawmaking assembly of the Icelandic nation, traditionally regarded as one of the earliest parliaments in existence
3. The parliament of Iceland, a representative legislative body that has governed the island nation since its medieval origins

Etymology: The Icelandic parliament has existed since around 930 CE, and its name shows what it was for. "Althing" comes from Old Norse "alþingi", built from "allr", meaning "all", and "þing", an assembly or gathering. The sense was a meeting of all free men, the whole community coming together to settle disputes and make law, rather than a body of elected representatives. The second element is the same word as English "thing", which once meant a public assembly before it came to mean an object. Old Norse speakers used "þing" for these gatherings, and English kept the older sense in a few places, such as the "Tynwald" and other island assemblies that share the Norse heritage. In English the word appears as a borrowing from modern Icelandic, "Alþingi", rather than arriving through the usual medieval routes.

Synonyms: parliament, legislature