Groclant is the name of a

phantom island A phantom island is a purported island which was included on maps for a period of time, but was later found not to exist. They usually originate from the reports of early sailors exploring new regions, and are commonly the result of navigati ...

generally shown off the western side of

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

, first appearing on maps in the late 16th century. The name of the island may be an errant reading of

. One of the first maps to show Groclant was a Mercator map from 1569, where it appeared west of Groenlant. The island was labeled on the map as being inhabited by

Swedes Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...

. One of the last maps to feature Groclant was a Quadus map of 1608. Modern speculation has theorized that Groclant may be

Baffin Island Baffin Island (formerly Baffin Land), in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada and the fifth-largest island in the world. Its area is , slightly larger than Spain; its population was 13,039 as of the 2021 Canadia ...

, north of Labrador, in northern Canada.

References

{{Authority control Phantom Arctic islands History of Greenland Baffin Island