Kekertarsuaq ( grenl. Qeqertarsuaq , dat. Godhavn ) - city , port and until 2009 the administrative center of the eponymous municipality of West Greenland . The municipality is one of two (in addition to Aasiat ) in Greenland, located outside the island of Greenland itself, it occupies the island of Kekertarsuac (Disco) in Disco Bay . In a number of sources, mainly pre-revolutionary, the city is called Godgavn [1] .
| City | |
| Kekertarsuaq | |
|---|---|
| Qeqertarsuaq | |
 | |
| A country |  Denmark |
| Self-governing community | Greenland |
| Area | Kaasuitsup |
| History and Geography | |
| Based | 1773 |
| Timezone | UTC − 3 , summer UTC − 2 |
| Population | |
| Population | 845 people ( 2013 ) |
| Nationalities | Greenland Eskimos |
| Official language | Greenlandic |
| Digital identifiers | |
| Postcode | 3953 |
Kekertarsuaq is translated from Inuit as “a large island” and several other islands bear the same name in other municipalities, for example, in Upernavik and Kaanaak . The municipality, which has an area of 9700 km², in addition to the island of Disco (8578 km²) includes several other nearby islands in the Gulf of Disco. In 2013, the population was 845 people. of which 50 lived in the village of Kangerluk , let them go by boat in a few hours.
Content
History
The first settlements on the site of Kekertarsuak date back to the period between 5 and 6 thousand years ago. Kekertarsuak (Godhavn) was founded by Danish whaler Svend Sandgren in 1773 in a sheltered parking lot. It was the northernmost point of Danish whaling. For more than two centuries, whaling was the main occupation of the population. Until now, the main income comes from fishing and hunting. Godhavn was the administrative center of Northern Greenland, then South Greenland was controlled from Godhab ( Nuuk ).
In 1862, under the new law, the so-called. The directorates that were responsible for managing social funds — supporting widows, illegitimate children, etc. The Directorates also acted as lower courts for petty crimes, took part in the fight against epidemics, and established the school for kayak management for boys and sewing for girls.
On May 3, 1940, a meeting of the administrations of North and South Greenland took place in the city, one of the consequences of which was their unification with the capital in Nuuk. In 1950, the Main Office of the Administration was abolished and the city received the usual rights of the municipality, acquiring a modern look.
Nature
Many of the island’s basalt cliffs are covered with glaciers, the largest of which is Sermersuac (Big Glacier), however it is located quite far from the coast and is difficult to reach in summer. The Lingmark Glacier (Lyngmarksbræen) is much smaller, but also much closer to the city and can be reached in a few hours walk. Its length is about 10 km and a height of about 700 meters. Quite an unusual entertainment is a dog sled ride under the midnight sun in the summer. If you get to the top of the mountain, you can get stunning views of Disco Bay and the giant icebergs near Ilulissat at a distance of about 100 kilometers.
In 1999, near the village of Kangerluk, researchers discovered a “running” glacier moving at a speed of 100 meters per day.
Famous People
- Rasmus Lerdorf , developer of the PHP programming language .
See also
- Greenland Administrative Division
Notes
- ↑ Godgavn // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
Links
- qeqertarsuaq.gl Official Page
- greenland.com Map of Kekertarsuac