Multiple archives of modernity: Colonialism, capitalism, and identity in Iceland's transatlantic 19th century.

The article examines 19th-century Icelanders' navigation of colonial networks within the broader Atlantic World, focusing on how Iceland's modernization and emerging nationalism were shaped through material and social engagements beyond Danish colonial rule. It highlights Iceland's integration into interregional economies from its ninth-century settlement, the complexities of its colonial status under Denmark, and the significant impact of Icelandic emigration to settler colonies in Canada and Brazil on both Icelandic society and identity. Drawing on archaeological and archival research in Northern Iceland, the study reveals how rural cooperative movements, shifting labor relations, and transatlantic exchanges of people, capital, and technologies contributed to Iceland's economic and social transformations. The article situates Iceland's development within ongoing colonial dynamics and challenges simplified narratives of linear progress and national exceptionalism by emphasizing Iceland's entanglement in Atlantic coloniality and capitalism.