  ÃrÃ¦fajÃ¶kull is an ice-covered volcano in south-east iceland, at the southern extremity of the vatnajÃ¶kull glacier and overlooking the ring road between hÃ¶fn and vÃ­k. it is the largest active volcano in the country, and on the summit crater's north-western rim is hvannadalshnÃºkur, the highest peak in iceland at . geographically, ÃrÃ¦fajÃ¶kull is considered part of vatnajÃ¶kull, and the area covered by glacier is within the boundary of vatnajÃ¶kull national park. ÃrÃ¦fajÃ¶kull has erupted twice in historical times. in 1362, the volcano erupted explosively, with huge amounts of tephra being ejected. the district of litla-hÃ©raÃ° was destroyed by floods and tephra fall. more than 40&nbsp;years passed before people again settled the area, which became known as ÃrÃ¦fi. the name literally means an area without harbour, but it took on a meaning of wasteland in icelandic. an eruption in august 1727-28 was smaller, though floods are known to have caused three fatalities. ==see also== * geography of iceland * glaciers of iceland * iceland plume * list of lakes of iceland * list of islands of iceland * list of volcanoes in iceland * list of rivers of iceland * volcanism in iceland * waterfalls of iceland ==references==  ==external links== * volcano images of europe * photos of ÃrÃ¦fajÃ¶kull www.icelandportfolio.com * http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1704-01=  
Active_volcanoes Glaciers_of_Iceland Mountains_of_Iceland South_Iceland Stratovolcanoes VEI-5_volcanoes Volcanoes_of_Iceland