Nuuk (Greenlandic pronunciation:[nuːk]^ⓘ;Danish:Nuuk,^[1] formerlyGodthåb[ˈkʌtˌhɔˀp])^[2] is thecapital of andmost populous city inGreenland, an autonomous territory in theKingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat ofgovernment and the territory's largest cultural and economic center. Nuuk is also the seat of government for theSermersooqmunicipality. In January 2025, it had a population of 20,113^[3] – more than a third of the territory's population – making it one of the smallestcapital cities in the world by population.

Nuuk
Capital city
(left to right, top to bottom:) Skyline at night; Church; Downtown Nuuk, withKatuaq in the foreground;Sermitsiaq mountain overlooking Nuussuaq;Nuussuaq district;Qernertunnguit, neighbourhood in theQuassussuup Tungaa district; the skyline at night with theaurora borealis above
Flag Coat of arms
Nuuk Location withinGreenland Show map of Greenland Nuuk Nuuk (North America) Show map of North America
Coordinates:64°10′36″N51°44′10″W / 64.17667°N 51.73611°W /64.17667; -51.73611
Sovereign state	Kingdom of Denmark
Constituent country	Greenland
Municipality	Sermersooq
Founded	29 August 1728
Incorporated	1728
Area
• Total	49 km2 (18.8 sq mi)
Elevation	5 m (16 ft)
Population  (2025)
• Total	20,113 (Largest in Greenland)
	City and metropolitan population is co-extensive, the entire Metro area belongs to Nuuk City[clarify]
Demonym	Nuummioq
Time zone	UTC−02:00 (WGT)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−01:00 (WGST)
Postal code	3900, 3905
Website	www.sermersooq.gl

The city was founded in 1728 by the Danish-Norwegian missionaryHans Egede when he relocated from the earlier Hope Colony (Haabets Koloni), where he arrived in 1721; the governorClaus Paarss was part of the relocation. The new colony was placed at the Inuit settlement of Nûk and was namedGodthaab ("Good Hope"). "Nuuk" is theGreenlandic word for "cape" (Danish:næs) and is commonly found in Greenlandic place names. It is so named because of its position at the end of theNuup Kangerluafjord on the eastern shore of theLabrador Sea. Itslatitude, at 64°11' N, makes it the world'snorthernmostcapital, only a few kilometres farther north than the Icelandic capitalReykjavík. Whenhome rule was established in 1979, the authorization of place names was transferred to Greenlandic authorities, who subsequently preferred Greenlandic names over Danish ones. The nameGodthåb mostly went out of use over the next two decades.

The campus of theUniversity of Greenland, hostingStatistics Greenland and the main holdings of thePublic and National Library of Greenland,^[4] is at the northern end of the district, near the road toNuuk Airport.^[5]

Nuuk receives its electric power mainly from the renewable energy-poweredBuksefjord 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.^[6][7]

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 BC when they lived in the area around the now abandoned settlement ofQoornoq.^[8] 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 AD 1000. The Nuuk area was later inhabited byNorse settlers from around 1000 AD until the disappearance of the settlementfor uncertain reasons during the 15th century. (Western Settlement).^[9]

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 (until 1814) under the unitedDanish-Norwegian Crown, but the colony had not had any contact for over three centuries. Paarss's colonists consisted of mutinous soldiers, convicts, and prostitutes; and 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.^[10] Hans Egede went back to Denmark in 1736 after 15 years in Greenland, leaving his sonPoul to continue his work.^[11] Godthaab became the seat of government for the Danish colony ofSouth Greenland,^[12] whileGodhavn (modern Qeqertarsuaq) was the capital ofNorth Greenland until 1940, when the administration was unified in Godthaab.^[13]

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 for 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),^[14] before they were discontinued in 1900 and folded into the LutheranChurch of Denmark.^[15]

Around 1850, Greenland, and especially the area around Nuuk, were in crisis. The Europeans had brought diseases and a culture that conflicted with the ways of the native Greenlanders. Many Greenlanders were living in poverty. 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, 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 city of Godthåb was renamed Nuuk by the Greenland Home Rule government. The city boomed during the 1950s whenDenmark began to modernize Greenland. As in Greenland as a whole, Nuuk is populated today by both Inuit andDanes. Over a third of Greenland's total population lives in the Nuuk Greater Metropolitan area.^[16]

A 2016 article inThe Guardian examining indigenous influences on cities worldwide^[17] suggested that

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.^[17]

Nuuk is located at approximately64°10′N51°44′W / 64.167°N 51.733°W /64.167; -51.733^[18] at the mouth of Nuup Kangerlua (formerly Baal's River^[19]), some 10 km (6.2 mi) from the shores of theLabrador Sea on the southwestern coast of Greenland, and about 240 km (150 mi) south of theArctic Circle. Initially, the fjord flows to the northwest, to then turn southwest at64°43′N50°37′W / 64.717°N 50.617°W /64.717; -50.617, splitting into three arms in its lower run, with three big islands in between the arms:Sermitsiaq Island,Qeqertarsuaq Island, andQoornuup Qeqertarsua.^[20] The fjord widens into a bay dotted withskerries near its mouth, opening into Labrador Sea at approximately64°03′N51°58′W / 64.050°N 51.967°W /64.050; -51.967. Some 20 km (12 mi) to the northeast, reaching a height of 1,210 m (3,970 ft),Sermitsiaq can be seen from almost everywhere in Nuuk. The mountain has given its name to the nationwide newspaperSermitsiaq. Closer to the town are the peaks ofStore Malene, 790 m (2,590 ft), andLille Malene, 420 m (1,380 ft).^[21] Themagnetic declination at Nuuk is extreme.^[22][23]

Nuuk has a maritime-influencedtundra climate (KöppenET) with long, cold, snowy winters and short, cool summers. Although the winters in Nuuk are very cold, they are still milder than other tundra climates at similar latitudes, such as inAlaska in theUnited States 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. By contrast, on the longest day and shortest night of the year, 21 June, the sun rises at 3:53 am and does not set until 1:03 am, producing constantcivil twilight. Nuuk can have mild temperatures on brief occasions 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^[24] which do not sustain well.

With 19,872 inhabitants as of January 2024,^[3] Nuuk is by far the largest town in Greenland. The population of Nuuk 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.^[30] 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.^[30] Half of Greenland's immigrants live in Nuuk, which also accounts for a quarter of the country's native population.^[21]

As the capital of Greenland, Nuuk is the administrative center of the country, containing all of the important government buildings and institutions. The public sector bodies are also the town's largest employer.^[21]

As of January 2021, the mayor of Nuuk is Charlotte Ludvigsen. She replaced former mayorAsii Chemnitz Narup in 2019 following a social media scandal involving posts criticizing her party. Like Narup, Ludvigsen is a member of theInuit Ataqatigiit party.^[31]

Greenland'sself-government parliament, the Inatsisartut, is in Nuuk. It has 31 seats and its members are elected by popular vote on the basis ofproportional representation to serve four-year terms.^[32] All of Greenland's major political parties have their headquarters in Nuuk, including the Inuit Ataqatigiit,Siumut,Democrats,Atassut,Association of Candidates and theWomen's Party.^[33]

KANUKOKA (Greenlandic:Kalaallit Nunaanni Kommunit Kattuffiat) was based in Nuuk. It was an association of Greenland's municipalities, led by Enok Sandgreen.^[34] The aim of the organisation was to facilitate cooperation among all five municipalities of Greenland:Avannaata,Kujalleq,Qeqertalik,Qeqqata, and Sermersooq. However, Sermersooq and Qeqertalik both withdrew and KANUKOKA was dissolved as of Tuesday, 31 July 2018.^[35][36] 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 2018 dissolution.^[37] The association was overseen byMaliina Abelsen, the Minister for Social Affairs in the Government of Greenland.^[34][38]

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, the fishing industry in the capital declined.^[39] The port 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.^[21] Seafood, including seal, is also sold in abundance in Nuuk's fish markets, the largest beingKalaaliaraq Market. Minerals includingzinc andgold have contributed to the development of Nuuk's economy.^[40]

The city, like much of Greenland, is heavily dependent upon Danish investment and relies on Denmark for block funding.^[41]

All of Greenland's electricity is supplied by the government-owned companyNukissiorfiit, which has amonopoly on the electricity in Greenland.^[42] 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.^[6][7]

Nuuk has several educational institutions of higher learning. TheUniversity of Greenland (Ilisimatusarfik), the only university in Greenland, is in Nuuk. The university 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), the oldest educational facility in Greenland, 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.

The city is served byQueen Ingrid's Health Center. The health center serves as the regional health center for Region Sermersooq. It has an emergency room, and a central clinic with severalgeneral practitioners. Nuuk also hasQueen Ingrid's Hospital which is the central hospital of Greenland.

TheNuuk Tourist Office was built in 1992 to house the headquarters of the new National Tourist Board of Greenland.^[43]

Shops in Nuuk offer local art and craftwork. In July 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) to the northeast of the town center. Built in 1979, it is a hub forAir Greenland, which is also headquartered in Nuuk^[44] and operates its technical base at the airport. There are flights inside Greenland and to Iceland. A decision has been made to extend the runway to allow for flights to European destinations, such as Denmark.^[45]

Starting in mid 2024, Air Greenland andCanadian North airlines have an agreement with weekly flights between Nuuk andIqaluit,Nunavut, Canada.^[46]

As a result of the high cost of flying goods to Greenland, Nuuk and other towns in Greenland are connected to Denmark by cargo vessels which sail mainly fromAalborg during the warmer months after the winter ice has melted. They bring clothing, flour, medicine, timber and machinery and return with deep-frozen shrimp and fish.^[47] For most of the year, Nuuk is served twice-weekly by the coastal ferry of theArctic Umiaq Line, which links the communities of the western coast.^[48]

The majority of buses and cars owned in Greenland operate in Nuuk.^[49] There are no roads connecting Nuuk with other areas of Greenland.^[50] The main street in Nuuk isAqqusinersuaq, with a number of shops and the 140-roomHotel Hans Egede.^[51]

Since 2009, the city bus serviceNuup Bussii provides city transport services in Nuuk for theSermersooq municipality,^[52] linking the town center with the airport, the outlying districts and neighborhoods^[53] ofNuussuaq,Qinngorput, as well asQernertunnguit inQuassussuup Tungaa.^[54] In 2012, the buses transported more than 2 million passengers around the city of Nuuk.^[55]

Hans Egede's House
Hans Egede's House, built in 1721 by the Norwegian missionary Hans Egede, is the oldest building in Greenland. Standing close to the harbor among other old houses, it is now used for government receptions.^[47][56]

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.^[57] The church received the status ofNuuk Cathedral in 1994, when the first bishop was Kristian Mørk, followed in 1995 by Sofie Petersen, a native of Greenland and the second woman in Denmark to become a bishop.^[58]

TheHerrnhut House was the center of theMoravian mission ofNew Herrnhut. Other landmarks include theHans Egede Church and theStatue of Hans Egede.

National Museum
Greenland National Museum is in Nuuk and was one of the first museums established in Greenland, inaugurated in the mid-1960s.^[59] The museum has many artifacts and exhibits related to Greenland's archaeology, history, art, and handicrafts, and contains theQilakitsoq mummies.

Modern architectureExamples of modern architecture include theKatuaq cultural center bySchmidt Hammer Lassen (1997), the campus of theUniversity of Greenland by Tegnestuen Nuuk and KHR Arkitekter (2008), theNuuk Center by KHR Arkitekter (2012) and the Anstalten Correctional Facility byFriis & Moltke andSchmidt Hammer Lassen (2019).

•  
  Nuuk Cathedral
•  
  Moravian Brethren Mission House
•  
  University of Greenland
•  
  Katuaq
•  
  Nuuk Center

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, the larger seating 1,008 people and the smaller, 508. The complex also contains an art school, library, meeting facilities, administrative offices and a café.

The Nuuk Art Museum is the only private art and crafts museum in Greenland.^[60] The museum contains a notable collection of local paintings, watercolors, drawings, and graphics, some by Andy Warhol; and figures in soapstone, ivory, and wood, with many items collected by archaeologists.

Ilisimatusarfik, 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 well. As of 2007^[update], the university had approximately 150 students (almost all Greenlanders), around 14 academic staff, and five administrators.^[61] Its library holds approximately 30,000 volumes.

TheNational Library of Greenland in Nuuk is the largest reference library in the country, devoted to the preservation of Greenland's cultural heritage and history.^[62] 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.^[63]

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.^[64] 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.^[64] There is a hill for alpine skiing with an altitude difference around 300 meters on the mountain Lille Malene,^[65] with the valley station close to the airport terminal.^[66] There is also the Nuuk golf course, the only arctic golf course in the world.^[67]

• Johan Carl Christian Petersen (1813–1880), a seaman and interpreter
• Hans Lynge (1906–1988), writer, dramatist, painter, politician, printmaker and sculptor
• Finn Lynge (1933–2014), politician, Indigenous rights activist and priest; the soleMEP for Greenland, 1979 until 1984
• Agnethe Davidsen (1947–2007), Greenland's first female government minister
• Rasmus Lyberth (born 1951), musician and actor
• Sofie Petersen (born 1955), a Lutheran bishop & Bishop of Greenland from 1995 to 2020
• Minik Thorleif Rosing, (DK wiki) ^[da] (born 1957), geologist
• Bo Lidegaard (born 1958), historian and journalist
• brothersOtto Rosing (born 1967), film director &Lars Rosing (born 1972), actor
• Maliina Abelsen (born 1976), Greenland's Minister for Social Affairs
• Aaja Chemnitz Larsen (born 1977), politician, member of the DanishFolketing
• Sara Olsvig (born 1978), politician member of the DanishFolketing, 2011–2014
• Nive Nielsen (born 1979), singer-songwriter and actress
• Julie Berthelsen (born 1979), pop singer and songwriter
• Bibi Chemnitz (born 1983), fashion designer
• Múte Bourup Egede (born 1987), politician, seventhPrime Minister of Greenland

• Nils Nielsen (born 1971), football manager, head coach for theSwitzerland women's national football team, 2018–2022
• Jesper Grønkjær (born 1977),footballer, played 400 games and 80 forDenmark
• Mads Andersen (born 1995), a Danish chess grandmaster

Nuuk istwinned with:

• Coat of Arms of Nuuk
• Sisimiut, the second-largest city in Greenland

• Nuuk – Greenland's largest city and capital. Visitgreenland.com.