Íeda Herman

Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman (May 21, 1925 in Reykjavík, Iceland – October 9, 2019 in Burlington, Iowa)[3] was an Icelandic author and adventurer.[4][5]

Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman
BornÍeda Jónasdóttir
May 21, 1925
Reykjavík, Iceland
DiedOctober 9, 2019(2019-10-09) (aged 94)
Burlington, Iowa
Occupationwriter, interior designer
LanguageEnglish, Icelandic
Genrememoir, fiction, cooking
SubjectIcelandic culture and cuisine
Years active2014-2019
SpouseDelbert Herman (1945-2015)[1]
Children10[2]
Website
vikingamma.com

Life

Herman was born to Jonas Bjornsson and Dagbjort Oktavia Bjarnadottir in Iceland in 1925.[3] She grew up in the 1930s,[5] and was raised hearing stories of Vikings and the Huldufólk or "Hidden People" of Iceland.[6] During World War II, she met Rev. Delbert J Herman, an American serviceman who was stationed in Reykjavík.[3][2] They were married on March 25, 1945,[3] and then moved to Illinois together.[2] When she became a US citizen in 1956, she lost her Icelandic citizenship.[7]

Herman graduated with a degree in interior design in Chicago, and opened her own design shop. She retired in 2009 and earned a degree from the Institute of Children's Literature.[8] In 2015, her husband of 70 years died.[1]

At 88 years old, Herman went paragliding for the first time in Utah. She loved it so much, she repeated the experience two years later in her homeland of Iceland.[5][9] She also explored the cave that inspired Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth.[9][10]

Despite suffering from a stroke in 2016, she remained very active physically, staying fit and traveling.[2] At the age of 91, she co-authored a cookbook of Icelandic cuisine with her daughter.[11] Along with her daughter, she conducts presentations on Icelandic culture and cooking.[12] She also lead adult education seminars, and has written articles for magazines and newspapers.[10] She was the subject of the 2019 RÚV documentary Aldrei of Seint (Never Too Late).[13][14]

Herman died on October 9, 2019 in Burlington, Iowa.[3][15] Her Icelandic citizenship had been restored by Alþingi earlier that year.[7][13] At the time of her death, Herman had 24 great-grandchildren and eight great-great-grandchildren,[3] and had been returning to Iceland annually to share her story and knowledge of Icelandic history.[4]

Works
  • Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman (August 24, 2017). Happiness in Living Color. Heidi Herman (Compiler). Hekla Publishing. p. 56. ISBN 978-1947233959.
  • Herman, Heidi; Herman, Íeda Jónasdóttir (July 19, 2017). Homestyle Icelandic Cooking for American Kitchens. Hekla Publishing. p. 82. ASIN B074412T18.
  • Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman (April 3, 2017). Viking Kids Don't Cry. Hekla Publishing. p. 152. ISBN 9780998281681.
  • Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman (July 17, 2016). The Silver Arrow. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. p. 118. ISBN 9781535203623.
  • Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman (2014). Trolls - Monster Worm - Hidden People: Fond Memories of Iceland. Outskirts Press. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-4787-0008-1.

References
  1. "Delbert Herman Obituary - Bloomington, IL". Peoria Journal Star. March 1–2, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  2. Michael Smothers (January 16, 2017). "Morton stroke survivor offers sage advice". Journal Star. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  3. "Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman". The Hawk Eye. October 15, 2019. Retrieved October 20, 2019.
  4. "Viking Kids Don't Cry, By Íeda Jónasdóttir Herman | Dedicated Review". The Children's Book Review. June 16, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  5. "Ieda Herman signs `Growing Up Viking` @ Magers & Quinn Booksellers, Minneapolis". Magers & Quinn. 21 May 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  6. "About Ieda Jonasdottir Herman, author of 'Growing Up Viking' and'Viking Kids Don't Cry'". Smashwords. 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  7. Oddur Ævar Gunnarsson (October 10, 2019). "Ida Jónasdóttir Herman is deceased". Fréttablaðið. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  8. Íeda J. Herman (2014). Trolls - Monster Worm - Hidden People: Fond Memories of Iceland. Outskirts Press. ISBN 978-1-4787-0008-1.
  9. "Interview with Ieda Herman Author of The Silver Arrow". Young Adult Promo Central. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  10. "About". Legendary Iceland. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  11. "91-year-old writes a cookbook of Icelandic recipes". Iceland Monitor. October 13, 2016. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  12. Heidi Herman. "Speaker Topics". heidiherman.com. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  13. Alexander Elliott (October 10, 2019). "Remembering Ída Jónasdóttir Herman". RÚV. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  14. "Aldrei of seint" [Never Too Late] (in Icelandic). RÚV. April 19, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  15. "Ída Jónasdóttir Herman er látin" [Ida Jónasdóttir Herman is deceased] (in Icelandic). RÚV. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
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