Greenland
Where Ancient Traditions Endure, and Mother Nature Rules
Dominating the North Atlantic Ocean, Greenland is Earth’s largest island. This vast land covers an impressive 2,175,600 km2. This is more than New Guinea, Borneo, and Madagascar (the next three largest islands) combined, more than three times the size of Texas, and more than four times the size of France! At the core of the country lies the Greenland Ice Sheet, the largest outside of Antarctica, containing approximately a tenth of all Earth’s ice – around 6% of all fresh water on planet Earth.
Inhabited largely by Inuit people, Greenland is a country where ancient traditions still hold sway, and Mother Nature rules all human activity. Greenland holds a huge diversity of scenery and ecology, from the lush green fjords and rolling pastures of the south to the rugged hills and icebergs of Disko Bay.
History and Population
Greenland has been inhabited for around 4,500 years by several waves of nomadic people. These Paleo-Inuit groups were not the ancestors of the modern Greenlanders, but unrelated groups who arrived and then disappeared – sometimes thousands of years later. Around the year 1000, the Norse arrived in Greenland from Iceland, and named the land of green fjords they discovered ‘Greenland’. Around the year 1300, a new group arrived from the north: the Thule people. There is limited evidence of trade between the Thule and Norse, and in the early 1400s, the Norse Greenlanders mysteriously disappeared.
The population in Greenland stands at around 56,000. Around 90% of the population are Greenlandic Inuit, the rest being Danes and other nationalities.
A Geography Rich in Ice and Minerals
Greenland stretches nearly 2,700 km from the northernmost point of land on Earth (Kaffeklubben Island) to the south (Nunap Isua/Cape Farvel), and is approximately 1,000 km wide. The highest mountain in the country is Gunnbjørns Fjeld on the east coast, at 3,733m. The ice sheet covers about 85 % of Greenland, and the total volume of the ice sheet amounts to about 7 % of the Earth’s total freshwater resources.
Greenland’s huge and maze-like coastline is among the longest on Earth, and is indented with thousands of fjords, islands, and skerries. Greenland is known to hold huge quantities of rare earth metals such as uranium, platinum, and cobalt, as well as iron, nickel, graphite, and gold.
The Varied Climate of Greenland
The climate in Greenland depends on location. Southern Greenland lies well below the Arctic Circle, and the warming effects of the Gulf Stream moderate the climate, which is similar to that in Scandinavia or northern Scotland. The western coast of Greenland has the largest areas of ice-free land in the country. While the coasts are cool even in summer, rarely rising much above 50°F (10°C), temperatures inland in towns such as Kangerlussuaq can rise over 68°F (20°C). In winter, this is reversed, with temperatures rarely dropping below around -4°F (-20°C). North and East Greenland do not feel the warming effects of ice-free land or the Gulf Stream, and summer temperatures rarely rise much above 43°F (6°C). In winter, temperatures can be brutal, regularly plummeting to below -22°F (-30°C).
At the core of Greenland’s Ice Sheet, the temperature is permanently below 32°F (0°C).
The Wildlife of Greenland
Greenland is only home to 7 very hearty land mammals: the muskoxen, caribou, Arctic hare and Northern collared lemming, and 3 carnivores – the Arctic fox and stoat. Greenland is also home to a variety of whale species, and if you’re lucky, you might just catch a glimpse of one during your visit. The most commonly seen whales include humpback whales, minke whales, and fin whales. Though rarely spotted, Polar bears are one of the most iconic animals in Greenland.
Greenland is also home to many species of birds. Over 230 species have been observed. The White-Tailed Eagle is one of the most iconic birds found in Greenland. White-Tailed Eagles are one of the largest eagles in the world and can grow up to 2.5 meters (8 feet).
Popular Expeditions to Greenland
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