Qassimiut | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 60°46′53″N47°09′35″W / 60.78139°N 47.15972°W | |
State | Kingdom of Denmark |
Constituent country | Greenland |
Municipality | Kujalleq |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 20 |
Time zone | UTC−02:00 (Western Greenland Time) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−01:00 (Western Greenland Summer Time) |
Postal code | 3920 Qaqortoq |
Qassimiut (old spellings: Qagssimiut and Kagsimiut) is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The settlement was founded in 1835 as a trading station. With a population of 20 in 2020, it is the smallest organized, permanent settlement in Greenland. [1]
Until January 2009, the settlement—along Eqalugaarsuit and Saarloq, as well as 13 sheep farms—belonged to Qaqortoq municipality. On 1 January 2009 the settlement became part of Kujalleq municipality, when the Narsaq, Qaqortoq, and Nanortalik municipalities ceased to exist. The settlements are presently governed by a joint settlement council, [2] although Qassimiut has no direct representation in the council.
The healthcare services for the settlement are provided by the Napparsimavik Hospital in Qaqortoq. The hospital boat regularly visits the settlement, and an emergency helicopter is available if needed.
KNI subsidiary Pilersuisoq operates a local, all-purpose general store in the settlement. [3]
The settlement school--Atuarfik Qassimiut, Greenlandic for "school of Qassimiut" is part of the Qaqortoq education district. The two-classroom school building was moved to Qassimiut in 1965. The most recent refurbishing and renovation of the school was in the late 1980s.
The settlement has its own heliport, Qassimiut Heliport, which is operated by Mittarfeqarfiit. All other transportation is by boat only. The settlement has gravel roads, but there are no cars.
Internet and phone communications are provided by Greenland Home Rule.
Most towns and settlements in southern Greenland exhibit negative growth patterns over the last two decades, with many settlements rapidly depopulating. Qassimiut has been rapidly losing population over the last two decades. Its population has decreased by more than two thirds relative to the 1990 levels. [4]
Narsaq is a town in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The name Narsaq is Kalaallisut for "Plain", referring to the shore of Tunulliarfik Fjord where the town is located.
Nanortalik, formerly Nennortalik, is a town in Nanortalik Island, Kujalleq municipality, southern Greenland. With 1,185 inhabitants as of 2020, it is the eleventh-largest town in the country. The name Nanortalik means "Place of Polar Bears" or "Place Where the Polar Bears Go". It is the southernmost town in Greenland with a population of over 1,000.
Qaqortoq, formerly Julianehåb, is a city in, and the capital of, the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland, located near Cape Thorvaldsen. With a population of 3,050 in 2020, it is the most populous town in southern Greenland and the fourth or fifth-largest town on the island.
Alluitsup Paa is a village in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. Alluitsup Paa had 202 residents in 2020. Presently, the community's religious activities take place in Qaqortoq.
Aappilattoq is a village in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The name means "red", after the red mountain rising above the settlement in the Greenlandic language. The settlement had 100 inhabitants in 2020.
Qassiarsuk is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality, in southern Greenland. Its population was 39 in 2020. Qassiarsuk is part of the Kujataa World Heritage Site, due to its historical importance as the homestead of Erik the Red and its unique testimony to Greenlandic farming.
Eqalugaarsuit is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland, located southeast of Qaqortoq and northwest of Alluitsup Paa. It had a population of 49 in 2020.
Igaliku is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The town was founded as Igaliko in 1783 by the trader and colonial administrator Anders Olsen and Greenlandic wife Tuperna. In 2020, Igaliku had 21 inhabitants. The nearby Norse ruins of Garðar and the farms surrounding the town were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2017 as part of the Kujataa Greenland: Norse and Inuit Farming at the Edge of the Ice Cap site.
Tasiusaq is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland, founded in 1933. It is located at the Tasermiut Fjord, east of Nanortalik. Its population was 53 in 2020. In the Greenlandic language, the name of the settlement means "like a lake", referring to the lake-looking bay it's situated on. The inhabitants call it "Tasiisaq", which is the local dialect.
Narsarmijit, formerly Narsaq Kujalleq and Frederiksdal, is a settlement in southern Greenland. It is located in the Kujalleq municipality near Cape Thorvaldsen. Its population was 66 in 2020. There has been a slow but steady pattern of emigration since the late 1950s.
Ammassivik is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The modern name is the Kalaallisut for "where you catch ammassaat (capelin)". Its population was 74 in 2010 and 32 in 2020.
Saarloq is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. Its population was 21 in 2020. It is located on a small island with the same name off the Labrador Sea coast, at the mouth of the Qaqortoq Fjord, west of Alluitsup Paa and 20 km south of Qaqortoq.
Narsarsuaq Airport is an airport located in Narsarsuaq, a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. Along with Nuuk Airport and Kangerlussuaq Airport, it is one of three civilian airports in Greenland capable of serving large airliners. It is also the only international airport in southern Greenland.
Arsuk is a village in the Sermersooq municipality in southwestern Greenland. It had 73 inhabitants in 2020. The name of the settlement means the beloved place in the Greenlandic language. The village is served by the communal all-purpose Pilersuisoq store.
Upernavik Kujalleq, formerly Søndre Upernavik, is an island settlement in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. Founded in 1855 as a trading station on Qeqertaq Island, the settlement had 201 inhabitants in 2020.
Kujalleq is a municipality on the southern tip of Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The administrative center of the municipality is in Qaqortoq.
Qaqortoq Heliport is a heliport in the southern part of Qaqortoq, a town in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The distance to Narsarsuaq Airport, the only airport with flights from Qaqortoq, is 59 kilometres (37 mi).
Tunulliarfik Fjord is a fjord near Qaqortoq in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. It is the inner section of Skovfjord (Skovfjorden). In times of the Norse settlement in southern Greenland, it was known as Eiriksfjord.
Qassimiut Heliport is a heliport in Qassimiut, a village in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The heliport is considered a helistop, and is served by Air Greenland as part of a government contract.