Skjoldungen ( kl, Saqqisikuik) is a large uninhabited island in the
King Frederick VI Coast, southeastern
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 ...
. Administratively it is part of the
Sermersooq municipality. The weather of the island is characterized by
tundra climate
The tundra climate is a polar climate sub-type located in high latitudes and high mountains. undra climate https://www.britannica.com/science/tundra-climateThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019 It is classified as ET according to Köppen ...
.
The island was named by
Wilhelm August Graah (1793–1863) after ''Skjoldungen'' or ''Skioldungen'', a honorific title for the successors (
Scyldings) of legendary
King Skjold
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
to the ancient
Danish throne
The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous territories of the Faroe Islands and Greenland. The Kingdom of Denmark was alr ...
in
Norse mythology
Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...
.
Geography
Skjoldungen is a coastal island in the southeastern shores of Greenland. It is located between two fjords, the
Southern Skjoldungen Fjord ( kl, Iittuarmiit), to the southwest, and the
Northern Skjoldungen Fjord ( kl, Qimutuluittiip Kangertiva) to the northeast between Skjoldungen and one of the arms of the
Thorland Peninsula. The
Morke Sound ( kl, Pulaqqaviip Ikaasaa) is a wide
sound
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
that joins both fjords in the NW, separating the island from the mainland.
The island stretches in a NE/SW direction. Its highest point is
Azimuthbjerg
Azimuthbjerg ( kl, Miialeqaaq) is the highest mountain in Skjoldungen Island, SE Greenland. Geography
This multi-peaked mountain rises steeply from the shore of the northern end of the Southern Skjoldungen Fjord ( kl, Iittuarmiit), at the NW corn ...
, a 1,738 m high
ultra-prominent peak at the NW end of the island.
Skjoldungen's maximum width is . Skjoldungen Island has a rugged terrain, which includes the
Skjoldmøen,
Bjarje and
Hjalte glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...
s and the
Gedebukken,
Pandebrasken,
Skuren and
Sfinksen nunatak
A nunatak (from Inuit ''nunataq'') is the summit or ridge of a mountain that protrudes from an ice field or glacier that otherwise covers most of the mountain or ridge. They are also called glacial islands. Examples are natural pyramidal peaks. ...
s.
The southern part divides into two peninsulas jutting southeastwards, the
Roar Peninsula ( da, Roar Halvø) and the
Helge Peninsula ( da, Helges Halvø). Skjoldungen's southernmost headland is
Cape Niels Juel
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
, a narrow cape of reddish-brown rock at the end of the Helge Peninsula. long
Anarnitsoq island lies just to the west of the cape.
History
Since the eastern coast of Greenland was inhabited by
Paleo-Eskimo people around 4,000 years ago, the Skjoldungen Fjords were likely inhabited or visited by nomadic hunters.
At the
Qoornoq
Qoornoq (old spelling: ''Qôrnoq'') is an uninhabited fishing village in the Sermersooq municipality in southwestern Greenland.
History
The area was known to have been inhabited by the ancient pre-Inuit, Paleo-Eskimo people of the Saqqaq culture ...
site, located on a small headland by the shore of the Southern Skjoldungen Fjord, there are archaeological remains of later historical periods.
These include
Thule culture graves
indicating that
Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
lived on the island after the 13th century.
There are remains of relatively recent abandoned Inuit dwellings inside the fjord on Skjoldungen's western shore. These date back to 1938 when one hundred and fifty
Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
from
Ammassalik were convinced by the Danish authorities to settle in this large island. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
a
weather station
A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...
was built and run by the
Allies
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
on Skjoldungen, as well as another one on
Cape Adelaer further south down the coast at .
The inhabitants of the Inuit settlement were relocated in 1965 following a nationwide program to concentrate the population of Greenland in a few larger towns. Another reason was that fishing and hunting were not enough to keep the population even close to a state of self-sufficiency.
Currently the island is a popular destination with tourists on
cruise ship
Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "s ...
s to Greenland owing to its impressive landscapes.
See also
*
List of islands of Greenland
The following is an alphabetical list of the islands of Greenland. Many of these islands have both a Kalaallisut language name and a European language name.
Islands and archipelagoes
* Aaluik
* Aasiaat Archipelago
* Achton Friis Islands
* A ...
*
Finnsbu
Finnsbu was a Norwegian hunting, meteorological and radio station (Finnsbu Radio/LMX) located on the King Frederick VI Coast, Southeastern Greenland.
Administratively the area were the hut stood belongs now to the Sermersooq municipality.
The s ...
, a 1931 - 1933 Norwegian station in Skjoldungen District
Bibliography
Mette Felbo, ''Grønlandske sommertelte'', Grønland, Årg. 41, nr. 1 (1993), p. 19-29*Hans Christian Gulløv, ''Thulekulturen i Sydøstgrønland - set fra Skjoldungen'', Forskning i Grønland, 1994, nr. 1/2, pp. 21–31
on the 1992 ethnographic/archaeological expedition 'Projekt Skjoldungen'; background to the fieldwork
Jette Lewinsky, ''Mosses of the Skjoldungen Area, Southeast Greenland,'' Lindbergia Vol. 1, No. 1/2 (1971), pp. 83-90*Spencer Apollonio, ''Lands That Hold One Spellbound: A Story of East Greenland'', 2008
Hans Christian Gulløv, ''Archaeological Commentary on the Isotopic Study of the Greenland Thule Culture'', Journal of the North Atlantic, Special Volume 3 (2012): 65–76
References
External links
Skjoldungen picturesGeochemical Constraints on the Origin of the Late Archean Skjoldungen Alkaline Igneous Province, SE Greenland{cbignore, bot=medic
New insights on the north-eastern part of the Ketilidian orogen in South-East Greenland
Former populated places in Greenland
Sermersooq
Uninhabited islands of Greenland
World War II sites in Greenland