Qaasuitsup
Encyclopedia
Qaasuitsup is a new municipality in Greenland
, operational from 1 January 2009. As of January 2010 its population is 17,749. The administrative center of the municipality is in Ilulissat
(formerly called Jakobshavn). The municipality consists of the former municipalities of western and northern Greenland, each named after the biggest settlement:
at 643427 square kilometre.
In the south, it is flanked by the Qeqqata
municipality. In the southeast, it is bordered by the Sermersooq
municipality, however this border runs north-south (45° West
meridian
) through the center of the Greenland ice sheet
, and as such is free of traffic. In the east and northeast it is bordered by the Northeast Greenland National Park
.
At the southern end of the municipal coastline are the waters of Disko Bay
, an inlet of the larger Baffin Bay
, which to the north edges into the island of Greenland in the form of Melville Bay
. The coastline of northeastern Baffin Bay is dotted with islands of the Upernavik Archipelago
, entirely contained within the municipality. In the far northwest near Qaanaaq
and Siorapaluk
, the municipal shores extend into Nares Strait
, which separates Greenland from Ellesmere Island
.
is also spoken in and around Qaanaaq.
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...
, operational from 1 January 2009. As of January 2010 its population is 17,749. The administrative center of the municipality is in 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....
(formerly called Jakobshavn). The municipality consists of the former municipalities of western and northern Greenland, each named after the biggest settlement:
- Aasiaat Municipality
- Kangaatsiaq Municipality
- Ilulissat Municipality
- Qaanaaq MunicipalityQaanaaq MunicipalityQaanaaq Municipality was the only municipality in the county of North Greenland . It is now part of the municipality of Qaasuitsup.The Thule Air Base , which is not part of any municipality , is a part of the U.S...
- Qasigiannguit Municipality
- Qeqertarsuaq Municipality
- Uummannaq Municipality
- Upernavik MunicipalityUpernavik MunicipalityUpernavik Municipality was one of the municipalities of Greenland, until 31 December 2008. The municipality was home to approximately 3,000 people, while 1,144 live in the town of Upernavik, and the remainder live in ten other settlements, including Kullorsuaq, with a population of about 400...
Geography
The municipality is located in northwestern Greenland. With an area of 660000 square kilometre, it is the largest municipality in the world by area, larger than FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
at 643427 square kilometre.
In the south, it is flanked by the Qeqqata
Qeqqata
Qeqqata is a new municipality in western Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The municipality was named after its location in central-western part of the country. Its population is 9,677 as of January 2010. The administrative center of the municipality is in Sisimiut...
municipality. In the southeast, it is bordered by the Sermersooq
Sermersooq
Sermersooq is a new municipality in Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. It is home to Nuuk , the capital of Greenland, and is the most populous municipality in the country, with 21,232 inhabitants as of January 2010...
municipality, however this border runs north-south (45° West
45th meridian west
The meridian 45° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Greenland, the Atlantic Ocean, South America, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
meridian
Meridian (geography)
A meridian is an imaginary line on the Earth's surface from the North Pole to the South Pole that connects all locations along it with a given longitude. The position of a point along the meridian is given by its latitude. Each meridian is perpendicular to all circles of latitude...
) through the center of the Greenland ice sheet
Greenland ice sheet
The Greenland ice sheet is a vast body of ice covering , roughly 80% of the surface of Greenland. It is the second largest ice body in the world, after the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The ice sheet is almost long in a north-south direction, and its greatest width is at a latitude of 77°N, near its...
, and as such is free of traffic. In the east and northeast it is bordered by the Northeast Greenland National Park
Northeast Greenland National Park
Northeast Greenland National Park is the largest national park in the world, with an area of , making the park larger than 163 countries. It is the only national park in Greenland, and the most northerly national park in the world, its most northerly point reaching slightly further than the most...
.
At the southern end of the municipal coastline are the waters of Disko Bay
Disko Bay
Disko Bay is a bay on the western coast of Greenland. The bay constitutes a wide southeastern inlet of Baffin Bay.- Geography :To the south the coastline is complicated with multiple waterways of skerries and small islands in the Aasiaat archipelago...
, an inlet of the larger Baffin Bay
Baffin Bay
Baffin Bay , located between Baffin Island and the southwest coast of Greenland, is a marginal sea of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is connected to the Atlantic via Davis Strait and the Labrador Sea...
, which to the north edges into the island of Greenland in the form of Melville Bay
Melville Bay
Melville Bay , is a large bay off the coast of northwestern Greenland. Located to the north of the Upernavik Archipelago, it opens to the south-west into Baffin Bay. Its Kalaallisut name, Qimusseriarsuaq, means "the great dog sledding place"....
. The coastline of northeastern Baffin Bay is dotted with islands of the Upernavik Archipelago
Upernavik Archipelago
Upernavik Archipelago is a vast archipelago of small islands in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland, on the coast of northeastern Baffin Bay...
, entirely contained within the municipality. In the far northwest near Qaanaaq
Qaanaaq
Qaanaaq is the main town in the northern part of the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is one of the northernmost towns in the world. The inhabitants of Qaanaaq speak the West Greenlandic language and many also speak Inuktun. The town has a population of 626 as of 2010...
and Siorapaluk
Siorapaluk
Siorapaluk is a settlement in the Qaanaaq area of the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland and is one of the world's northernmost inhabited settlements. It has a population of 68 speaking the Inuktun language of the Polar Inuit as well as Standard West Greenlandic...
, the municipal shores extend into Nares Strait
Nares Strait
Nares Strait is a waterway between Ellesmere Island and Greenland that is the northern part of Baffin Bay where it meets the Lincoln Sea. From south to north, the strait includes Smith Sound, Kane Basin, Kennedy Channel, Hall Basin and Robeson Channel...
, which separates Greenland from Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Lying within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, with Cape Columbia being the most northerly point of land in Canada...
.
Towns and settlements
- AappilattoqAappilattoq, QaasuitsupAappilattoq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland, located on an island of the same name in the southern part of Upernavik Archipelago. Founded in 1805, the settlement had 180 inhabitants in 2010.- Upernavik Archipelago :...
- AasiaatAasiaatAasiaat is a town in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. Located in the heart of Aasiaat Archipelago at the southern end of Disko Bay. With a population of 3,005 as of 2010, it is Greenland's fifth-largest town.-Etymology:...
(Egedesminde) - AkunnaaqAkunnaaqAkunnaaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. Its population is 101 as of 2010. Akunnaaq is located east of Aasiaat on the Akunnaap Nunnaa island...
- AttuAttu (Greenland)Attu is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland, located on a small island on the shores of Davis Strait. Its population is 226 as of 2010...
- IginniarfikIginniarfikIginniarfik is a village in the municipality of Qaasuitsup, in western Greenland. Its population is 88 as of 2010.- Transport :Air Greenland serves the village as part of government contract, with winter-only helicopter flights from Iginniarfik Heliport to Ikerasaarsuk Heliport and Kangaatsiaq...
- IkamiutIkamiutIkamiut is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland, located on a small island in the Aasiaat Archipelago on the southern shores of Disko Bay. Its population is 96 as of 2010.- Transport :...
- IkerasaarsukIkerasaarsukIkerasaarsuk is a village in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. Its population is 106 as of 2010.- Transport :Air Greenland serves the village as part of government contract, with winter-only helicopter flights from Ikerasaarsuk Heliport to Iginniarfik Heliport and Kangaatsiaq Heliport...
- IkerasakIkerasakIkerasak is a village in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. It had 238 inhabitants in 2010.- Geography :Ikerasak is located approximately 45 km southeast from Uummannaq, at the southeastern end of Ikerasak Island in the northwestern part of Ikerasak Fjord, where it widens into...
- IlimanaqIlimanaqIlimanaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. It had 84 inhabitants in 2010. The name of the village means "the place of expectations" in Greenlandic.- Geography :...
(Claushavn) - IllorsuitIllorsuitIllorsuit is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in western Greenland. Located on the northeastern shore of Illorsuit Island − northwest of Uummannaq at the mouth of the Uummannaq Fjord − the settlement had 91 inhabitants in 2010.- Transport :Air Greenland serves the village as part of...
- IlulissatIlulissatIlulissat 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....
(Jakobshavn) - InnaarsuitInnaarsuitInnaarsuit is an island settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. Located on an island of the same name, the settlement had 161 inhabitants in 2010.- Upernavik Archipelago :...
- KangaatsiaqKangaatsiaqKangaatsiaq is a town located at the southern end of the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. The town received town status as recently as 1986, though as a settlement it has existed much longer. It has 586 inhabitants as of 2010...
- KangerlukKangerlukKangerluk is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in western Greenland, located on the southwestern shore of Disko Island. It had 33 inhabitants in 2010.- Population :...
- KangersuatsiaqKangersuatsiaqKangersuatsiaq is an island settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It had 186 inhabitants in 2010.- Upernavik Archipelago :...
- KitsissuarsuitKitsissuarsuitKitsissuarsuit is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in western Greenland. The settlement was founded in 1830, although until 1817 the island was used as a whaling station...
- KullorsuaqKullorsuaqKullorsuaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is the northernmost settlement in the Upernavik Archipelago, located on Kullorsuaq Island, at the southern end of Melville Bay, an indentiation of Baffin Bay.The settlement was founded in 1928, and became a...
- MoriusaqMoriusaqMoriusaq is a moribund settlement which in 2009 had only 2 remaining inhabitants. It is located in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northern Greenland, approximately to the northwest of the Thule Air Base, and to the southwest of Qaanaaq...
- NaajaatNaajaatNaajaat is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland...
- NiaqornaarsukNiaqornaarsukNiaqornaarsuk is a village in the southern part of the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland, along the northern entrance to Arfersiorfik Fjord. Its population is 300 as of 2010.- Transport :...
- NiaqornatNiaqornatNiaqornat is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. Niaqornat means “the head-shaped” in Greenlandic. The settlement is located on the northern coast of the Nuussuaq Peninsula, with a wide view over Uummannaq Fjord...
- NutaarmiutNutaarmiutNutaarmiut is an island settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland. It had 36 inhabitants in 2010.- Upernavik Archipelago :...
- NuugaatsiaqNuugaatsiaqNuugaatsiaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland, located on an island off the southern coast of Sigguup Nunaa peninsula, in the Uummannaq Fjord basin...
- NuussuaqNuussuaqNuussuaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is the only mainland settlement in the Upernavik Archipelago, located near the western tip of the Nuussuaq Peninsula, on the northern coast of Sugar Loaf Bay, an indentiation of Baffin Bay.The settlement was...
(Kraulshavn) - OqaatsutOqaatsutOqaatsut is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in western Greenland. It had 46 inhabitants in 2010. The name of the settlement means 'the cormorants' in Greenlandic...
(Rodebay) - QaanaaqQaanaaqQaanaaq is the main town in the northern part of the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is one of the northernmost towns in the world. The inhabitants of Qaanaaq speak the West Greenlandic language and many also speak Inuktun. The town has a population of 626 as of 2010...
(Thule) - QaarsutQaarsutQaarsut is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland. It is situated on the northeastern shore of the Nuussuaq Peninsula...
- QasigiannguitQasigiannguitQasigiannguit is a town located on the southeastern shore of Disko Bay, in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. With 1,253 inhabitants as of 2010, it is the twelfth-largest town in Greenland. The main industry is shrimp and halibut fishing....
(Christianshåb) - QeqertaqQeqertaqQeqertaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland, located on an island off the southern shore of the Nuussuaq Peninsula, in an inlet of Sullorsuaq Strait...
- QeqertatQeqertatQeqertat is a small village in the Qaanaaq area of the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland. Located approximately east of Qaanaaq on the Harward island, it had 33 inhabitants in 2010.- Population :...
- QeqertarsuaqQeqertarsuaqQeqertarsuaq is a port and a town in Qaasuitsup municipality, located on the south coast of Qeqertarsuaq Island, an island on the west coast of Greenland. Founded in 1773, it is home to a campus of the University of Copenhagen...
(Godhavn) - SaattutSaattutSaattut is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland, Located on a small Saattut Island, southeast of Appat Island and northeast of Uummannaq in the Uummannaq Fjord system, the settlement had 212 inhabitants in 2010.- Transport :Air Greenland serves the village as part...
- SaqqaqSaqqaqSaqqaq is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in western Greenland. Founded in 1755, it had 188 inhabitants in 2010. The name of the village means "the sunny side" in Greenlandic.- Geography :...
- SavissivikSavissivikSavissivik is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland...
- SiorapalukSiorapalukSiorapaluk is a settlement in the Qaanaaq area of the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland and is one of the world's northernmost inhabited settlements. It has a population of 68 speaking the Inuktun language of the Polar Inuit as well as Standard West Greenlandic...
- TasiusaqTasiusaq, QaasuitsupTasiusaq is an island settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It had 248 inhabitants in 2010...
- UkkusissatUkkusissatUkkusissat is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland. The population of the settlement was 170 in 2010.- Geography :...
- UpernavikUpernavikUpernavik is a small town in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland, located on a small island of the same name. With 1,129 inhabitants as of 2010, it is the thirteenth-largest town in Greenland. Due to the small size of the settlement, everything is within walking distance...
- Upernavik KujalleqUpernavik KujalleqUpernavik Kujalleq is an island settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. Founded in 1855 as a trading station, the settlement had 204 inhabitants in 2010.- Upernavik Archipelago :...
- UummannaqUummannaqUummannaq is a town in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northwestern Greenland. With 1,299 inhabitants as of 2010, it is the eleventh-largest town in Greenland, and is home to the country's most northerly ferry terminal...
Language
Kalaallisut, the West Greenlandic dialect, is spoken in the towns and settlements of the western and northwestern coasts. InuktunInuktun
Inuktun is the language of approximately 1000 indigenous Inughuit, inhabiting the world's northernmost settlements in Qaanaaq and the surrounding villages in northwestern Greenland. All speakers of Inuktun also speak Standard West Greenlandic and many also speak Danish and a few also English...
is also spoken in and around Qaanaaq.