GREENLAND EXPLAINED! Is it a Country? How Big is it? Your Mini-Guide to this Emerging Destination скачать в хорошем качестве

GREENLAND EXPLAINED! Is it a Country? How Big is it? Your Mini-Guide to this Emerging Destination

IS GREENLAND A COUNTRY? Greenland (Grønland) - a name that conjures images of wilderness and extreme cold, but which is also entering the conversation as a travel destination as new airline routes open up, and as a political topic. In this short TRAVEL GUIDE I hope to broaden your knowledge of this very special place - KALAALLIT NUNAAT. Is it a country? - Well, it depends - Is it a sovereign nation state? No. To fully explain, let’s go back to basics… Geographically the island of Greenland is part of North America. Historically, world maps have shown it as being far larger than it really is, given the massive exaggeration applied to the northern hemisphere. It is not as big as Africa, as I used to think as a child. However, it is still big - about the size of Saudi Arabia, or three times the size of Texas. Most of the island is covered by a thick ice sheet. 1.8 million square kilometres of ice sheet. Historically the population has had no choice but to cling to the coast. It’s believed that the first settlers were vikings around the year 982. Erik the Red brought his followers here after being expelled from Iceland. It’s thought that he called this new land Greenland in an attempt to lure more settlers to his new colony - in other words one of the world’s first and greatest marketing tricks. There are patches of greenery in the far south west, but in reality this land was far less hospitable than Iceland. Although it’s believed that there was some contact, most of the norse settlements lay abandoned by the time that the first Inuit communities took root on the west coast. What happened to the norse remains a mystery, although we know that some of Erik’s vikings moved on to what is now Newfoundland. Most Greenlanders trace their ancestry to the Thule civilisation that arrived from Alaska and northern Canada around the 13th century. The Danes arrived in 1721 and Greenland was designated a colony of Denmark. Home Rule came into force in 1979 and in 2009, Home Rule extended to Self Governance, ensuring an even greater degree of autonomy – also in relation to international affairs. Unlike Denmark, Greenland is not part of the EU. Therefore, although not fully independent, most Greenlanders will describe their land as a country. Greenland is a parliamentary democracy within the Kingdom of Denmark. As are the Faroes Islands. I told you it wasn’t a simple question. Greenland also has its own flag. Using the same colours as the Danish flag it represents the ice cap, the glaciers, the sun and the icebergs. In Greenlandic this land is called Kalaallit Nunaat in Greenlandic, which translates to the ‘Land of the Greenlanders’. It also sometimes called Inuit Nunaat, which means ‘Land of the People’. The mother tongue and official language in Greenland is Greenlandic. Danish arrived when the land was Christianised in the 18th century and functions as a second language. there are three main dialects – one in the north, one in the east and one in the West. Given that almost all the population lives in the west it is this dialect that is regarded as standard Greenlandic. It is closely related to the language spoken by Inuit in Canada and in Alaska. Greenland’s entire population is little over 55,000, around half of which live in the capital is Nuuk, Here is where you’ll find the parliament, the university and most of the employment opportunities. If you spend time anywhere else in Greenland then when you get to Nuuk it really is the big city. By contrast East Greenland is almost empty. There are just a handful of settlements, like Kulusuk, Further in the north east the settlement of Ittoqqoortuumiit is one of the most remote in the world. And even further north is the north east Greenland national park, the world’s largest . Very few people have ever set foot in this spectacular wilderness. As the west coast is more accessible the UNESCO world heritage site of Ilulissat Icefjord is Greenland’s most famous natural attraction. Until 2024 all international flights landed at Kangerssusuaq, an old US military base miles. To get to Nuuk or any other major settlement you needed to take another flight. New airports at Nuuk and Ilulissat have changed that - allowing Greenlanders more efficient connections and, of course, more routes for travellers. The first ever direct flight from Nuuk to the United States is a game changer. Greenland faces new possibilities and huge challenges. In a fragile environment, with a very small population and limited infrastucture tourism must be managed carefully. Currently there are only a handful of small hotels. Foreign investment is also needed, but not at the expense of the Greenlanders and their unique culture. This special corner of the planet must be protected and cherished. Travel Obscurer ‪@TravelObscurer‬ Filmed by Jonathan Wheeler Additional Footage licensed from Envato Elements Music licensed from Artlist