Iceland has been in political turmoil since October, when its currency, stock market and leading banks collapsed amid the global financial crisis. The island nation's Nordic neighbors sent billions of dollars to prop up the economy, as did the International Monetary Fund in its first intervention to support a Western European democracy in decades.

But weekly demonstrations -- some verging on riots -- finally forced Prime Minister Geir Haarde and his coalition to resign en masse on January 26.The country's president turned to the Social Democratic Alliance party to form a new government, and they selected Sigurdardottir to lead it.

She has been a member of Iceland's Parliament for 30 years, and was in her second stint as minister of social affairs. She started her career as a flight attendant for the airline that became IcelandAir. She was active in the flight attendants' labor union during her 11 years with the airline, according to her official resume. She briefly led her own political party, which merged with other center-left parties to form the Alliance party.

Sigurdardottir is Iceland's first female prime minister, although not the North Atlantic nation's first female head of state -- Vigdis Finnbogadottir became its fourth president in 1980. Her prime ministership may be short-lived. The government she is forming is only due to last until the next elections, which must take place by May and could be held in April.