Kalaaliaraq Market
Encyclopedia
Kalaaliaraq Market is a market in Nuuk
, the capital of Greenland
, located in the Old Nuuk
neighborhood, approximately 150 m (492.1 ft) to the southeast of the Nuuk Cathedral
. Its name means "The little Greenlander" in the Greenlandic language.
, as well as whale
, reindeer
and seal
meat, sold directly by the tradesmen. It is an important place for social interaction for many inhabitants, an equivalent of the village pump in other places of the world. Although polar bear
s are a rarity in Nuup Kangerlua
and the entire coastal region of southwestern Greenland, the final journey of the unlikely catch leads to the Kalaaliaraq market; a cause for celebration, and a social event.
The municipality is currently constructing a new and modern building with coolers, freezers and much more, for the sale of caribou meat, musk ox, seal, whale, cod, salmon and much more wild life. This building is situated in the city center.
at the market are often low, a cause for concern for the municipal authorities. Unlike in Nuuk, in smaller towns such as Ilulissat
, as well as in the village settlements, the seafood
is sold in open stands without running water or electricity.
Nuuk
Nuuk, is the capital of Greenland, the northernmost capital in North America and the largest city in Greenland. Located in the Nuup Kangerlua fjord, the city lies on the eastern shore of the Labrador Sea and on the west coast of Sermersooq. Nuuk is the largest cultural and economic center in...
, the capital of Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, located in the Old Nuuk
Old Nuuk
Old Nuuk is a neighborhood of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. It is part of the Nuuk Centrum district, located in the southwestern part of the town, facing the Nuup Kangerlua fjord...
neighborhood, approximately 150 m (492.1 ft) to the southeast of the Nuuk Cathedral
Nuuk Cathedral
Nuuk Cathedral or Church of Our Saviour is a wooden lutheran cathedral in the Old Nuuk neighborhood of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. It was established in 1849. The red building with its' spire is a prominent site on the landscape...
. Its name means "The little Greenlander" in the Greenlandic language.
Social function
The market is noted for its fresh fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, as well as whale
Whale
Whale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
, reindeer
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
and seal
Fur seal
Fur seals are any of nine species of pinnipeds in the Otariidae family. One species, the northern fur seal inhabits the North Pacific, while seven species in the Arctocephalus genus are found primarily in the Southern hemisphere...
meat, sold directly by the tradesmen. It is an important place for social interaction for many inhabitants, an equivalent of the village pump in other places of the world. Although polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
s are a rarity in Nuup Kangerlua
Nuup Kangerlua
Nuup Kangerlua is a long, fjord in the Sermersooq municipality in southwestern Greenland. It is the longest fjord on the Labrador Sea coast of Greenland, and one of the longest in the inhabited part of the country....
and the entire coastal region of southwestern Greenland, the final journey of the unlikely catch leads to the Kalaaliaraq market; a cause for celebration, and a social event.
The municipality is currently constructing a new and modern building with coolers, freezers and much more, for the sale of caribou meat, musk ox, seal, whale, cod, salmon and much more wild life. This building is situated in the city center.
Hygiene
The standards of hygieneHygiene
Hygiene refers to the set of practices perceived by a community to be associated with the preservation of health and healthy living. While in modern medical sciences there is a set of standards of hygiene recommended for different situations, what is considered hygienic or not can vary between...
at the market are often low, a cause for concern for the municipal authorities. Unlike in Nuuk, in smaller towns such as Ilulissat
Ilulissat
Ilulissat is a town in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland, located approximately north of the Arctic Circle. With the population of 4,546 as of 2010, it is the third-largest settlement in Greenland, after Nuuk and Sisimiut....
, as well as in the village settlements, the seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
is sold in open stands without running water or electricity.