Wednesday 17 June 2009

Ittoqqortoormiit, 70°29′ N 21°58′ W




Ittoqqortoormiit ! The name alone is already a promise of a distant quest. The Danes called it Scoresbysund, same as the magnificent fjord where the town is located. (I posted about that in Ultima Thule, here). The inuit name Ittoqqortoormiit means "Place with Big House".

One of the youngest and most remote towns in Greenland, it was founded in 1925 by some 70 Inuit settlers at the request of the arctic explorer Ejnar Mikkelsen.
With just 550 citizens, surrounded by glaciers and sea ice, it is only accesible by helicopter (once a week) or by boat a few months a year.
A truly Thule of the East, facing Iceland and the Jan Mayen island.
School

Hotel

Sports Hall

Inuit child with sled

Ittoqqortoormiit is the most northerly permanent settlement in East Greenland. The region is known for its wildlife which includes polar bears, muskoxen, arctic foxes, seals, walruses, narwhals, shrimp and halibut. That provides hunting and fishing , the main activity for the local community.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

the inuit childs name is keersoor napatoq

Mário R. Gonçalves said...

Thank you, your help is welcome