Each year the University Centre of the Westfjords hires experienced language teachers for the summer courses. Instructors in previous years have been among others Ólafur Guðsteinn Kristjánsson, Jón Bjarni Atlason, Ólöf Bergmannsdóttir, Bryndís Friðgeirsdóttir, Bjarney Ingibjörg Gunnlaugsdóttir, Dr. Peter Weiss 

The principal instructor for the summer 2020 is Eiríkur Sturla Ólafsson (born 1976 in Reykjavík).

Eiríkur has a BA degree in German and History and a MA degree in Translation Studies (2005). He studied in Reykjavík, Cologne and Berlin. 

He‘s a bit of a nerd when it comes to languages and grammar in particular and has a special interest in Latin, German, Icelandic (of course), Japanese and Etymology.

Eiríkur has been teaching Icelandic to foreigners since 2007 when he started teaching in Zürich, Switzerland. After moving on to Humboldt University Berlin for 6 years he has spent the past 7 years teaching Icelandic at the Beijing Foreign Studies University in China.

Eiríkur counts his teaching as one of his major passions but has many additional interests, such as sports and travel journalism, translation work and writing, and most of all travelling. He also takes his swimming sessions very seriously and can‘t understand why his fellow countrymen waste all their time lying around in the „heiti pottur“ when they could be having a good swim in the pool instead.