Editorial Type:
Article Category: Research Article
| Online Publication Date: 05 Nov 2007
The Early Exploration of Greenland
The Early Exploration of Greenland
Page Range: 247 – 258
About 4000 years ago the first immigration of Inuit tribes explorated Greenland, and about 1000 years ago the Norsemen explorated southwest Greenland; and Icelandic sagas describe every-day life. The early search for the Northwest Passage years ago was followed by intensive whaling during 17th and 18th centuries. The connection between Greenland and Scandinavia was re-established by Hans Egede, who started his missionary and explorationary activity in 1721, whereafter polymaths from Denmark and other countries contributed to our scientific knowledge. Several attempts to reach the North Pole resulted in new information about the High Arctic Greenland, while local Inuit, such as Hans Hendrik, played an important role in several expeditions in the Arctic. The growing Danish and foreign scientific expeditions led to the Danish government establishing in 1878 established the Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland, whose mandate was to coordinate such research.
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