Upernavik
Upernavik (Kalaallisut: "Springtime Place" ) is a small town in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland, located on a small island of the same name. With 1,092 inhabitants as of 2020, it is the twelfth-largest town in Greenland. It contains the Upernavik Museum.
The town was founded as Upernavik in 1772. From the former name of its island, it was sometimes known as Women's Island; its name was also sometimes Anglicized to "Uppernavik".
In 1824, the Kingittorsuaq Runestone was found outside the town. It bears runic characters left by Norsemen, probably from the late 13th century. The runic characters list the names of three Norsemen and mention the construction of a rock cairn nearby.
This is the furthest north that any Norse artifacts have been found, other than those small artifacts that could have been carried north by Inuit traders, and marks the northern known limit of Viking exploration.
The town was founded as Upernavik in 1772. From the former name of its island, it was sometimes known as Women's Island; its name was also sometimes Anglicized to "Uppernavik".
In 1824, the Kingittorsuaq Runestone was found outside the town. It bears runic characters left by Norsemen, probably from the late 13th century. The runic characters list the names of three Norsemen and mention the construction of a rock cairn nearby.
This is the furthest north that any Norse artifacts have been found, other than those small artifacts that could have been carried north by Inuit traders, and marks the northern known limit of Viking exploration.
Map - Upernavik
Map
Country - Greenland
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Though a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe (specifically Norway and Denmark, the colonial powers) for more than a millennium, beginning in 986. Greenland has been inhabited at intervals over at least the last 4,500 years by Arctic peoples whose forebears migrated there from what is now Canada. Norsemen settled the uninhabited southern part of Greenland beginning in the 10th century, having previously settled Iceland. Inuit arrived in the 13th century. Though under continuous influence of Norway and Norwegians, Greenland was not formally under the Norwegian crown until 1261. The Norse colonies disappeared in the late 15th century, after Norway was hit by the Black Death and entered a severe decline.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| DKK | Danish krone | kr | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| DA | Danish language |
| EN | English language |
| KL | Greenlandic language |