The city was founded in 1728 by the Danish-Norwegian missionaryHans Egede when he relocated from the earlier Hope Colony (Haabets Koloni), where he had arrived in 1721; the governorClaus Paarss was part of the relocation. The new colony was placed at theInuit settlement of Nûk and namedGodthaab ("Good Hope"). "Nuuk" is theGreenlandic word for "cape" and is commonly found in Greenlandic place names.[citation needed] It is so named because of its position at the end of theNuup Kangerluafjord on theLabrador Sea's eastern shore. Itslatitude, at 64°11' N, makes it the world'snorthernmostcapital, a few kilometres farther north thanReykjavík. Whenhome rule was established in 1979, the authorization of place names was transferred to Greenlandic authorities, who preferred Greenlandic names to Danish ones. The nameGodthåb mostly went out of use over the next two decades.
The site has a long history of habitation. The area around Nuuk was first occupied by the ancient, pre-Inuit,Paleo-Eskimo people of theSaqqaq culture as far back as 2200 BCE, when they lived in the area around the now abandoned settlement ofQoornoq.[4] For a long time, it was occupied by theDorset culture[failed verification] around the former settlement ofKangeq, but they disappeared from the Nuuk district before 1000 AD. The Nuuk area was then inhabited byNorse settlers from around 1000 until the disappearance of the settlementfor uncertain reasons during the 15th century.[5]
The city proper was founded as the fort ofGodt-Haab in 1728 by theroyal governorClaus Paarss, when he relocated the missionary and merchantHans Egede's earlier Hope Colony (Haabets Koloni) fromKangeq Island to the mainland. At that time, Greenland was formally still aNorwegian colony under the unitedDanish-Norwegian Crown, but the colony had not had any contact for over three centuries. Paarss's colonists were mutinous soldiers, convicts, and prostitutes; within the first year, most died of scurvy and other ailments. In 1733 and 1734, asmallpox epidemic killed most of the native population as well as Egede's wife.[6] Hans Egede returned to Denmark in 1736 after 15 years in Greenland, leaving his sonPoul to continue his work.[7] Godthaab became the seat of government for the Danish colony ofSouth Greenland,[8] whileGodhavn (modern Qeqertarsuaq) was the capital ofNorth Greenland until 1940, when the administration was unified in Godthaab.[9]
In 1733,Moravian missionaries received permission to begin a mission on the island; in 1747, there were enough converts to prompt the construction of theMoravian Brethren Mission House and the formal establishment of the mission asNew Herrnhut (Danish:Nye-Hernhut). This became the nucleus of present-day Nuuk as many Greenlanders from the southeastern coast left their territory to live at the mission station. From this base, further missions were established atLichtenfels (1748),Lichtenau (1774),Friedrichsthal (1824),Umanak (1861), andIdlorpait (1864),[10] before they were discontinued in 1900 and folded into the LutheranChurch of Denmark.[11]
In 1853,Hinrich Johannes Rink came to Greenland and was surprised at how local Greenlandic culture and identity had been suppressed under Danish influence. In response, in 1861, he started theAtuagagdliutit, Greenland's first newspaper, with a native Greenlander as editor. This newspaper based in Nuuk later became an important token of Greenlandic identity.
DuringWorld War II, there was a reawakening of Greenlandic national identity. The use of written Greenlandic grew, and a council was assembled underEske Brun's leadership in Nuuk. In 1940, an American and a Canadian Consulate were established in Nuuk.
Under new regulations in 1950, two councils amalgamated into one. This Countryside Council was abolished on 1 May 1979, when the Greenland Home Rule government renamed the city of Godthåb to Nuuk. The city boomed during the 1950s when Denmark began to modernize Greenland. As in Greenland as a whole, Nuuk is populated today by both Inuit and Danes. Over a third of Greenland's total population lives in the Nuuk Greater Metropolitan area.[12]
According to a 2016 article inThe Guardian examining indigenous influences on cities worldwide:[13]
One city... stands out. Nuuk... has probably the highest percentage of aboriginal people of any city: almost 90% of Greenland's population of 58,000 is Inuit, and at least eight in 10 live in urban settlements. Nuuk also celebrates Inuit culture and history to an extent that is unprecedented in many cities with higher total aboriginal populations. By proportion and by cultural authority and impact, it may well be tiny Nuuk that is the most indigenous city in the world.[13]
Nuuk has a maritime-influencedtundra climate (KöppenET) with long, cold, snowy winters and short, cool summers. Although the winters are very cold, they are still milder than those in other tundra climates at similar latitudes, such asAlaska or parts ofEastern Siberia. Instead, peak winter is similar to identical latitudes in theNordic countries. On 21 December, the shortest day and longest night of the year, the sun rises at 11:22 am and sets at 3:28 pm. On 21 June, the longest day and shortest night of the year, the sun rises at 3:53 am and sets at 1:03 am, producing constantcivil twilight. Nuuk occasionally has mild temperatures year-round, with each month having recorded 13 °C (55 °F) or warmer, although only June, July, August, and September have recorded what could be considered hot weather (defined as 22.5 °C (72.5 °F) or higher). The monthly averages range from −9 °C (16 °F) to 7 °C (45 °F), whereas all-time extremes range from −32.5 °C (−26.5 °F) on 14 January 1984 to 26.3 °C (79.3 °F) on 6 July 2008. The record wind in Nuuk is 68 km/h.
The average monthly temperature (7.4 °C (45.3 °F) in July) is colder than what is considered thelimit for trees (10 °C (50 °F) during the warmest month). There are a few planted trees,[20] which do not sustain well.
Climate data for Nuuk (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1866–present)
With 19,872 inhabitants as of January 2024,[3] Nuuk is by far Greenland's largest town. Its population has doubled since 1977, increased by over a third since 1990, and risen by almost 21% since 2000. In addition to those born in Greenland, data from 2015 showed 3,826 were born outside the country.[26] Attracted by good employment opportunities with high wages, Danes have continued to settle in the town. Today, Nuuk has the highest proportion of Danes of any town in Greenland.[26] Half of Greenland's immigrants live in Nuuk, which also has a quarter of the country's native population.[17]
As the capital of Greenland, Nuuk is its administrative center, containing all important government buildings and institutions. The public sector bodies are also the town's largest employer.[17]
As of January 2021, Nuuk's mayor is Charlotte Ludvigsen. Ludvigsen is a member of theInuit Ataqatigiit party.[27]
KANUKOKA (Greenlandic:Kalaallit Nunaanni Kommunit Kattuffiat) was based in Nuuk. It was an association of Greenland's municipalities, led by Enok Sandgreen.[30] Its aim was to facilitate cooperation among all five municipalities of Greenland:Avannaata,Kujalleq,Qeqertalik,Qeqqata, and Sermersooq. But Sermersooq and Qeqertalik both withdrew and KANUKOKA dissolved on 31 July 2018.[31][32] The organisation ran the municipal elections every four years, with the last election taking place in 2016. All municipal authorities in Greenland were members of the organisation until its dissolution.[33] The association was overseen byMaliina Abelsen, the Minister for Social Affairs in the Government of Greenland.[30][34]
Although only a small town, Nuuk has developed trade, business, shipping and other industries. It began as a small fishing settlement with a harbor, but as the economy developed rapidly during the 1970s and 1980s, Nuuk's fishing industry declined.[35] Nuuk is nevertheless still home to almost half of Greenland's fishing fleet. The localRoyal Greenland processing plant absorbs landed seafood amounting to over DKK 50 million (US$7 million) per annum, mainly (80%)shrimp, but alsocod,lumpfish andhalibut.[17] Seafood, including seal, is also sold in abundance in Nuuk's fish markets, the largest beingKalaaliaraq Market. Minerals includingzinc andgold have contributed to Nuuk's economic development.[36]
Like much of Greenland, Nuuk heavily depends on Danish investment and relies on Denmark for block funding.[37]
All of Greenland's electricity is supplied by the government-owned companyNukissiorfiit, which has amonopoly on it.[38] Since 1993, Nuuk has received its electric power mainly fromBuksefjord hydroelectric power plant by way of a 132 kV powerline crossingAmeralik fjord over a distance of 5,376 m (17,638 ft), the world's longest free span.[39][40]
Nuuk has several educational institutions of higher learning. TheUniversity of Greenland (Ilisimatusarfik), Greenland's only university, is in Nuuk. It was founded in 1987 and expanded in 2007 with the new building,Ilimmarfik, housing departments of journalism, management and economics, language, literature and media, cultural and social history, theology and religion, and social work. Nuuk is also home to the Department of Learning (Ilinniarfissuaq), Greenland's oldest educational facility, in the old colonial part of Nuuk (Nuutoqaq: Old Nuuk). Other notable educational institutions include the Department of Nursing and Health Science, Nuuk Technical College, and the Iron & Metal School.
Nuuk's shops offer local art and craftwork. In 2012, Greenland's first shopping center,Nuuk Center(NC), opened. The center has Greenland's first underground parking. Several supermarkets exist, such as Nuuk Center,Pisiffik,Brugseni, andSpar.
Nuuk has an international airport 4 km (2.5 mi) northeast of the town center. Built in 1979, it was extensively rebuilt and expanded in 2024 and is nowAir Greenland's international and domestic hub and base of operations.[42] Most traffic to, from, and within Greenland passes through the airport. It is served year-round with direct flights toCopenhagen andReykjavík-Keflavík as well as almost all airports in Greenland. Seasonal routes are also operated toNew York-Newark,Billund,Aalborg, andIqaluit[43]
Nuuk is connected to Denmark by theRoyal Arctic Line (in cooperation withEimskip), which sails container ships fromAalborg viaIceland. They generally bring clothing, flour, medicine, timber, machinery, and non-perishable goods, and return with deep-frozen shrimp and fish. Most sea freight to other destinations in Greenland is trans-shipped in Nuuk via Royal Arctic Line.[44]
Nuuk is served twice a week by the coastal passenger ferry of theArctic Umiaq Line, which links the communities of the western coast, for most of the year.[45]
As of 2017, there are 80 km of local roads in Nuuk.[46] No roads connect Nuuk with other parts of Greenland.[47] Most buses and cars owned in Greenland operate in Nuuk.[48] There are threetraffic lights, 12roundabouts, and oneroad tunnel in Nuuk, the only examples of such in Greenland.[49] The city'shigh street isAqqusinersuaq.[50]
Hans Egede's House Hans Egede's House, built in 1721 by the Norwegian missionary Hans Egede, is Greenland's oldest building. Standing close to the harbor among other old houses, it is now used for government receptions.[44][55]
Nuuk Cathedral The Church of Our Saviour of theLutherandiocese of Greenland was built in 1849, and the tower was added in 1884. The red building with a clock tower and steeple is a prominent site on the landscape.[56] The church received the status ofNuuk Cathedral in 1994. The first bishop was Kristian Mørk, followed in 1995 by Sofie Petersen, a Greenland native and the second woman in Denmark to become a bishop.[57]
National Museum Greenland National Museum is in Nuuk and was one of the first museums established in Greenland, inaugurated in the mid-1960s.[58] It has many artifacts and exhibits related to Greenland's archaeology, history, art, and handicrafts, and contains theQilakitsoq mummies.
Katuaq is acultural center used for concerts, films, art exhibitions, and conferences. It was designed bySchmidt Hammer Lassen and inaugurated on 15 February 1997. Katuaq contains twoauditoria, one seating 1,008 people and the other 508. The complex also contains an art school, library, meeting facilities, administrative offices, and a café.
TheNuuk Art Museum is Greenland's only private art and crafts museum.[59] It has a notable collection of local paintings, watercolors, drawings, and graphics, some byAndy Warhol; and figures in soapstone, ivory, and wood, with many items collected by archaeologists.
Ilisimatusarfik, also known as the University of Greenland, is in Nuuk and is the national university of Greenland. Most courses are taught inDanish, although a few are in Kalaallisut. As of 2007[update], the university had about 150 students (almost all Greenlanders), 14 academic staff, and five administrators.[60] Its library has about 30,000 volumes. The campus of theUniversity of Greenland, hostingStatistics Greenland and the main holdings of thePublic and National Library of Greenland,[61] is at the district's northern end, near the road toNuuk Airport.[62]
TheNational Library of Greenland in Nuuk is the country's largest reference library. It is devoted to preserving Greenland's cultural heritage and history.[63] The library holdings are split between the public library in the town center and Ilimmarfik, the campus of the University of Greenland. As of 1 January 2008, there are 83,324 items in the library database at Ilimmarfik.[64]
Nuuk's sports clubs includeNuuk IL (established in 1934),B-67, andGSS Nuuk.Nuuk Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium, used mostly forfootball games. The stadium has a capacity of 2,000.[65] The stadium can also be used as an entertainment venue: the Scottish rock bandNazareth performed at the venue.
Nuuk also has theGodthåbhallen, a handball stadium. It is the home of theGreenland men's national handball team and has a capacity of 1,000.[65] There is a hill for alpine skiing with an altitude difference around 300 meters on the mountain Lille Malene,[66] with the valley station close to the airport terminal.[67] There is also the Nuuk golf course, the only arctic golf course in the world.[68]
^Wittman, P. "GreenlandArchived 17 May 2016 at theWayback Machine".The Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Co. (New York), 1909. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
^"About the University". Archived fromthe original on 28 September 2007.. "ca. 150 studenter; 14 lærere foruden rektor samt 5 teknisk-administrativt ansatte."
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