Icelandic Women in Manitoba: Exploring the Role and Significance of Social and Cultural Capital in a Gender Context

This study examines the Icelandic diaspora in Canada, with a particular focus on the province of Manitoba, highlighting the social and cultural capital of Icelandic women immigrants who played a pivotal role in forming not only their own communities, but also in shaping Canadian civil rights for women. Despite the challenges of migration, over 100,000 Icelanders have established a notable presence in Canada, prompting an examination of how Icelandic women utilized their unique backgrounds to achieve successful assimilation. The study sheds light on immigration patterns and the biographies of three prominent Icelandic-Canadian women (Jóhanna Ketilsdóttir, Anna Sigrídur Gudmundsdóttir Sigbjörnsson and Ingibjörg Björnsdóttir), reconstructed using newspapers and obituary data. Moreover, this chapter demonstrates how these women strategically employed their social and cultural capital to navigate within Canadian society, thereby contributing to a variety of fields related to women’s rights. A particular focus is placed on the key figure of Margaret Benedictsson, whose leadership in the women’s suffrage movement in Manitoba exemplifies the profound impact of social capital, education, and gender equality advocacy on the Icelandic-Canadian narrative. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of the Icelandic- Canadian experience, emphasizing the instrumental roles played by social and cultural capital in the assimilation and contributions of Icelandic women immigrants to the fabric of Canadian society.