Greenland

• dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe;
• sparse population confined to small settlements along coast;
• close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk;
• world's second largest ice sheet after that of Antarctica covering an area of 1.71 million sq km (660,000 sq mi) or about 79% of the island, and containing 2.85 million cu km (684 thousand cu mi) of ice (this is almost 7% of all of the world's fresh water);
• if all this ice were converted to liquid water, one estimate is that it would be sufficient to raise the height of the world's oceans by 7.2 m (24 ft)

noun:

Greenlander(s)

adjective:

Greenlandic

total:

35.3 years (2024 est.)

male:

35.9 years

female:

34.7 years

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.07 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

1.13 male(s)/female

total population:

1.07 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

8.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male:

9.9 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

6.9 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

74.5 years (2024 est.)

male:

71.8 years

female:

77.3 years

• especially vulnerable to climate change and disruption of the Arctic environment;
• preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting

urban population:

87.9% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

0.41% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

Greenland

local long form:

none

local short form:

Kalaallit Nunaat

etymology:

named by Norwegian adventurer Erik THORVALDSSON (Erik the Red) in A.D. 985 in order to entice settlers to the island

name:

Nuuk

geographic coordinates:

64 11 N, 51 45 W

time difference:

UTC-2 (3 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

time zone note:

Greenland has four time zones

etymology:

"nuuk" is the Inuit word for "cape" and refers to the city's position at the end of the Nuup Kangerlua fjord

history:

• previous 1953 (Greenland established as a constituency in the Danish constitution), 1979 (Greenland Home Rule Act);
• latest 21 June 2009 (Greenland Self-Government Act)

chief of state:

King FREDERIK X of Denmark (since 14 January 2024), represented by High Commissioner Julie Praest WILCHE (since May 2022) (2024)

head of government:

Premier Mute B. EGEDE (since 23 April 2021)

cabinet:

Self-rule Government (Naalakkersuisut) elected by the Parliament (Inatsisartut)

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• high commissioner appointed by the monarch;
• premier indirectly elected by Parliament for a 4-year term

election results:

2021: Mute B. EGEDE elected premier; Parliament vote - Mute B. EGEDE (Inuit Ataqatigiit) unanimous; 2014: Kim KIELSEN elected premier; Parliament vote - Kim KIELSEN (S) 27.2%, Sara OLSVIG (IA) 25.5%, Randi Vestergaard EVALDSEN (D) 19.5%, other 27.8%

highest court(s):

• High Court of Greenland (consists of the presiding professional judge and 2 lay assessors);
• note - appeals beyond the High Court of Greenland can be heard by the Supreme Court (in Copenhagen)

judge selection and term of office:

• judges appointed by the monarch upon the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Council, a 6-member independent body of judges and lawyers;
• judges appointed for life with retirement at age 70

subordinate courts:

Court of Greenland; 18 district or magistrates' courts

• Democrats Party (Demokraatit) or D
• Fellowship Party (Atassut) or A
• Forward Party (Siumut) or S
• Inuit Community (Inuit Ataqatigiit) or IA
• Signpost Party (Naleraq) or N (formerly Partii Naleraq)

chief of mission:

Consul Monica BLAND (since July 2023)

embassy:

Aalisartut Aqqutaa 47; Nuuk 3900; Greenland

telephone:

(+299) 384100

email address and website:

[email protected]; Homepage - U.S. Embassy & Consulate in the Kingdom of Denmark (usembassy.gov)

• two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white;
• the design represents the sun reflecting off a field of ice;
• the colors are the same as those of the Danish flag and symbolize Greenland's links to the Kingdom of Denmark

name:

"Nunarput utoqqarsuanngoravit" (Our Country, Who's Become So Old also translated as You Our Ancient Land)

lyrics/music:

Henrik LUND/Jonathan PETERSEN

note: adopted 1916; the government also recognizes "Nuna asiilasooq" as a secondary anthem

total World Heritage Sites:

3 (2 cultural, 1 natural); note - excerpted from the Denmark entry

selected World Heritage Site locales:

• Ilulissat Icefjord (n);
• Kujataa, Norse and Inuit Farming (c);
• Aasivissuit–Nipisat, Inuit Hunting Ground (c)

• large self-governing Danish territorial economy;
• preferential EU market access;
• high-income economy;
• dependent on Danish financial support, even for whaling and sealing industries;
• growing tourism;
• hydropower-fueled but environmentally fragile economy

imports:

2 metric tons (2022 est.)

proven reserves:

383 million metric tons (2022 est.)

general assessment:

• adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables, and microwave radio relay;
• the fundamental telecommunications infrastructure consists of a digital radio link from Nanortalik in south Greenland to Uummannaq in north Greenland;
• satellites cover north and east Greenland for domestic and foreign telecommunications;
• a marine cable connects south and west Greenland to the rest of the world, extending from Nuuk and Qaqortoq to Canada and Iceland;
• a contract has been awarded to build a 5G network in Greenland, initially covering three towns, with 10 towns, including Greenland's capital Nuuk to follow (2022)

domestic:

nearly 11 per 100 for fixed-line subscriptions and 118 per 100 for mobile-cellular (2021)

international:

• country code - 299;
• landing points for Greenland Connect, Greenland Connect North, Nunavut Undersea Fiber System submarine cables to Greenland, Iceland, and Canada;
• satellite earth stations - 15 (12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean)) (2019)

• the Greenland Broadcasting Company provides public radio and TV services throughout the island with a broadcast station and a series of repeaters;
• a few private local TV and radio stations;
• Danish public radio rebroadcasts are available (2019)

total:

10 (2023)

by type:

other 10

total ports:

23 (2024)

large:

0

medium:

0

small:

7

very small:

10

size unknown:

6

ports with oil terminals:

5

key ports:

Aasiaat, Illulissat (Jakobshavn), Kusanartoq, Nuuk, Paamuit (Frederikshab), Qeqertarsuaq, Sisimiut