Þingvellir (Icelandic: [ˈθiŋkˌvɛtlɪr̥] , Thing Fields), anglicised as Thingvellir (or, mistakenly, Pingvellir), is a place in the administrative district of Bláskógabyggð in southwestern Iceland, near the Reykjanes peninsula and the Hengill volcanic area. Þingvellir is a site of historical, cultural, and geological importance and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Iceland. It lies in a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It is at the northern end of Þingvallavatn, the largest natural lake in Iceland.
Alþingi (Althing in English), the Icelandic Parliament, was established at Þingvellir in 930, and remained there until 1798.Þingvellir National Park (or Thingvellir National Park) was founded in 1930, marking the 1,000th anniversary of the Althing. It was later expanded to protect natural phenomena in the surrounding area, and became a World Heritage Site in 2004.
Þingvellir became a national park as a result of legislation passed in 1928 to protect the remains of the parliament site by creating the first national park in Iceland, decreed "a protected national shrine for all Icelanders, the perpetual property of the Icelandic nation under the preservation of parliament, never to be sold or mortgaged."