The gay dating website PlanetRomeo conducted the survey, and asked its participants to rate their happiness level for three standards: public opinion, public behavior, and life satisfaction. Behind Iceland in second, third and fourth place are its Nordic neighbors Norway, Denmark and Sweden, respectively. Canada is the 6th happiest country for gay men, and the United States came in at number 26. The country with the unhappiest gay happiness index was Uruguay, with a score of 20 out of 100.
Participants in the survey were also asked to speak on their feelings regarding experience with physical violence, situations at work or school, acceptance within family, and overhearing of jokes and insults. Because the survey only asked opinions of gay men, it should be noted that the feelings of lesbians or the transgender community were not represented by this research. But it is no great surprise that Iceland is somewhat of a haven for the gay community. It was the ninth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage in 2010. People come from all over the world to be married in Iceland, and 2013 saw a 55% increase in wedding ceremonies since the year before.
On gay well-being in his country, one Icelandic man shared, “Not one bad comment have I got all these years. We have a very liberal and good society here in Iceland, thanks to brave fighters as artists, singers and many politicians.” Another participant stated, “I think we in Iceland should teach other countries that being gay is not bad. I’d like to see more gay people working in higher authorities in all governments.” Iceland certainly can be a role model for less compassionate countries lower down on the index.
Iceland may be the happiest place for gay men, but that’s not all: this year it was also voted the best country for women and overall the second happiest country in the world. So essentially, if you want to have a happy life – come up to Iceland!
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