Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík

Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík (MR; official name in English: Reykjavik Junior College) is a junior college in Iceland. It is located in Reykjavík.

The school traces its origin to 1056, when a school was established in Skálholt, and it remains one of the oldest institutions in Iceland. The school was moved to Reykjavík in 1786, but poor housing conditions forced it to move again in 1805 to Bessastaðir near Reykjavík. In 1846 the school was moved to its current location, and a new building was erected for it in Reykjavík. This was the largest building in the country at the time and can be seen on the 500 Icelandic krona bill. It was used initially when Althing began to meet again in Reykjavík after a few years hiatus and thus it is in this building where Icelandic independence leader Jón Sigurðsson led the MPs in their famous phrase, ''Vér mótmælum allir''.

The school has previously been known as ''Lærði skólinn'' (The Learned School), ''Latínuskólinn'' (The Latin School) and by the Latin title ''Schola Reykjavicensis''; it received its present name in 1937.

Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík offers a three-year course of study. It usually ends with a degree (''stúdentspróf'') which gives the graduating student the right to advance to an Icelandic university.

Many Icelandic politicians, including the first prime minister Hannes Hafstein, former Prime Minister Davíð Oddsson, former President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson and current president, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson all attended MR. Almost every Prime Minister of Iceland has been educated at the school apart from Halldór Ásgrímsson, Ólafur Jóhannesson, Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson, Þorsteinn Pálsson, Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir and Katrín Jakobsdóttir. Geir H. Haarde, Davíð's successor as chairman of the Independence Party and former Prime Minister, also took over from him as chairman of student body, ''Skólafélagið'' (inspector scholae). In 1879 Hannes Hafstein was the school's first inspector scholae, and in 1940 his grandson Einar Ragnarsson Kvaran achieved the position. The former President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, was also the president of the main student body, ''Framtíðin''. Provided by Wikipedia