Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973, but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs in consultation with Greenland's Home Rule Government.
Location
Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada
Geographic coordinates
72 00 N, 40 00 W
Map references
Arctic Region
Area
total
2,166,086 sq km
land
2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.)
Area - comparative
slightly more than three times the size of Texas
Land boundaries
0 km
Coastline
44,087 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
3 nm
exclusive fishing zone
200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
continental shelf
200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
Climate
arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters
Terrain
flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast
Elevation extremes
lowest point
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point
Gunnbjorn 3,700 m
Natural resources
coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, diamonds, gold, platinum, niobium, tantalite, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas
Land use
arable land
0%
permanent crops
0%
other
100% (2005)
Irrigated land
NA
Natural hazards
continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island
Environment - current issues
protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting
Geography - note
dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap
Population
56,344 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
24% (male 6,926/female 6,597)
15-64 years
69.1% (male 20,901/female 18,012)
65 years and over
6.9% (male 1,873/female 2,035) (2007 est.)
Median age
total
34.1 years
male
35.4 years
female
32.3 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate
-0.03% (2007 est.)
Birth rate
16.01 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate
7.93 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate
-8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.16 male(s)/female
65 years and over
0.92 male(s)/female
total population
1.115 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total
14.98 deaths/1,000 live births
male
16.32 deaths/1,000 live births
female
13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population
70.23 years
male
66.65 years
female
73.9 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.4 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS
100 (1999)
HIV/AIDS - deaths
NA
Nationality
noun
Greenlander(s)
adjective
Greenlandic
Ethnic groups
Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000)
Religions
Evangelical Lutheran
Languages
Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English
Literacy
definition
age 15 and over can read and write
total population
100%
male
100%
female
100% (2001 est.)
Country name
conventional long form
none
conventional short form
Greenland
local long form
none
local short form
Kalaallit Nunaat
Dependency status
part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979
Government type
parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy
Capital
name
Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates
64 11 N, 51 44 W
time difference
UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland)
National holiday
June 21 (longest day)
Constitution
5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)
Legal system
the laws of Denmark, where applicable, apply
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
chief of state
Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Soren MOLLER (since April 2005)
head of government
Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002)
cabinet
Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties
elections
the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party);
election results
Hans ENOKSEN reelected prime minister
note
government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit
Legislative branch
unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 15 November 2005 (next to be held by December 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 30.7%, Demokratiit 22.8%, IA 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, IA 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1
note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next to be held in February 2009); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1
Judicial branch
High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen)
Political parties and leaders
Atassut Party (Solidarity) [Finn KARLSEN] (a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark); Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood) [Josef MOTZFELDT] (a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule); Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List) (an independent right-of-center party with no official platform); Siumut (Forward Party) [Hans ENOKSEN] (a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark)
Political pressure groups and leaders
NA
International organization participation
Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU
Diplomatic representation in the US
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
Diplomatic representation from the US
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
Flag description
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white
Economy - overview
The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities are ongoing. Press reports in early 2007 indicated that two international aluminum companies were considering building smelters in Greenland to take advantage of local hydropower potential. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. Air Greenland announced plans to begin summer-season direct flights to the U.S. east coast in May 2007 potentially opening a major new tourism market.
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$1.1 billion (2001 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$1.7 billion (2005)
GDP - real growth rate
2% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$20,000 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture
NA%
industry
NA%
services
NA%
Labor force
32,120 (2004)
Unemployment rate
9.3% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%
NA%
highest 10%
NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
1% (2005 est.)
Budget
revenues
$1.36 billion
expenditures
$1.27 billion; including capital expenditures of $83 million (2005)
Agriculture - products
Industries
fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards
Industrial production growth rate
NA%
Electricity - production
295 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source
fossil fuel
100%
hydro
0%
nuclear
0%
other
0%
note
Greenland is shifting its electricity production from fossil fuel to hydropower production (2001)
Electricity - consumption
274.4 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports
0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption
3,860 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Exports
$404 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities
fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%)
Exports - partners
Denmark 67.7%, Japan 11.8%, China 5.5% (2006)
Imports
$599 million c.i.f. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products
Imports - partners
Denmark 70%, Sweden 16.3%, Norway 3.7% (2006)
Debt - external
$25 million (1999)
Economic aid - recipient
$512 million; note - subsidy from Denmark (2005)
Currency (code)
Danish krone (DKK)
Currency code
DKK
Exchange rates
Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9468 (2006), 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use
25,300 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular
32,200 (2004)
Telephone system
general assessment
adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
