Literally: “it will all work out”
The Icelandic national philosophy that everything will sort itself out in the end — a calm, pragmatic optimism rooted in centuries of surviving volcanoes, harsh winters, and isolation.
Etymology
Þetta reddast is composed of þetta (this/it) and reddast (the middle voice of redda, “to sort/fix”), meaning roughly “it will fix itself.” The middle voice is significant — it implies the situation will resolve without any specific person needing to fix it.
Cultural Context
Iceland sits on an active volcanic rift in the middle of the North Atlantic. The weather can change five times in an hour. Earthquakes, eruptions, and storms are regular occurrences. In this environment, Icelanders developed þetta reddast — not as naïve optimism but as a practical survival philosophy: if you panicked about everything that could go wrong, you’d never leave the house.
Þetta reddast is Iceland’s most cited national trait. When the 2008 financial crash bankrupted the country, Icelanders shrugged and said þetta reddast. When Eyjafjallajökull erupted in 2010, paralyzing European aviation, locals said þetta reddast. And both times, it eventually did.
The phrase represents a specific Scandinavian form of resilience — not the dramatic, fight-against-odds sisu of Finland, but something gentler: the confidence that the universe tends toward resolution. It’s closely related to a deep cultural comfort with uncertainty.
Modern Usage
Veðrið er slæmt? Þetta reddast. — “The weather is bad? Þetta reddast.”
Related Words
Explore more: sisu, mai pen rai, pyt