Ilimanaq (), formerly Claushavn, is a settlement in

Avannaata Avannaata (, da, Det Nordlige, lit=The Northern) is a municipality of Greenland created on 1 January 2018 from the bulk of the former Qaasuitsup municipality. It encompasses an area of 522,700 km2 and has 10,726 inhabitants. Geography In ...

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in western

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 ...

. It had 53 inhabitants in 2020. The modern name of the village is

Kalaallisut Kalaallisut may refer to: * Greenlandic language * West Greenlandic West Greenlandic ( da, vestgrønlandsk), also known as Kalaallisut, is the primary language of Greenland and constitutes the Greenlandic language, spoken by the vast majority of ...

for "Place of Expectations".

Geography

Ilimanaq is located on the eastern shore of

Disko Bay Disko Bay ( kl, Qeqertarsuup tunua; da, DiskobugtenChristensen, N.O. & al.Elections in Greenland. ''Arctic Circular'', Vol. 4 (1951), pp. 83–85. Op. cit. "Northern News". ''Arctic'', Vol. 5, No. 1 (Mar 1952), pp. 58–59.) is a large ...

, just south of the mouth of the

Ilulissat Icefjord Ilulissat Icefjord ( kl, Ilulissat Kangerlua) is a fjord in western Greenland. Located 250 km north of the Arctic Circle, the Ilulissat Icefjord runs west from the Greenland ice sheet to Disko Bay just south of Ilulissat town. Ilulissat Icefj ...

( kl, Ilulissat Kangerlua).

History

The old Danish name of the settlement derived from the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

whaler A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...

Klaes Pieterz Torp. The whalers were active in the region from 1719 to 1732, leaving a trail of names behind the settlement of

Oqaatsut Oqaatsut (old spelling: ''Oqaitsut''), formerly Rodebay or Rodebaai, is a settlement in Avannaata municipality, in western Greenland. It had 29 inhabitants in 2020. The modern name of the settlement is Kalaallisut for "Cormorants". The village is ...

to the north was originally a Dutch whaling station named "Rodebay". Claushavn was founded in 1741, around the same time as

Ilulissat Ilulissat, formerly Jakobshavn or Jacobshaven, is the municipal seat and largest town of the Avannaata municipality in western Greenland, located approximately north of the Arctic Circle. With the population of 4,670 as of 2020, it is the t ...

Transport

Air

Air Greenland Air Greenland A/S (formerly named Grønlandsfly), also known as Greenlandair, is the flag carrier airline of Greenland, owned by the Greenlandic Government. It operates a fleet of 32 aircraft, including 1 airliner used for transatlantic and cha ...

serves the village as part of government contract, with winter-only helicopter flights between

Ilimanaq Heliport Ilimanaq Heliport is a heliport in Ilimanaq, a village located just south of Ilulissat Icefjord in Avannaata municipality in western Greenland. The heliport is considered a ''helistop'', and is served by Air Greenland as part of a government co ...

and

Ilulissat Airport Ilulissat Airport ( kl, Mittarfik Ilulissat, da, Ilulissat Lufthavn); () is a minor international airport serving Ilulissat, Greenland, the entire Disko Bay Region, the North and West Greenland. It is the 59th largest airport in the Nordic co ...

. Settlement flights in the Disko Bay are unique in that they are operated only during winter and spring. During winter, the nearby

Qasigiannguit Qasigiannguit (), formerly Christianshåb, is a town located in western Greenland on the southeastern shore of Disko Bay in the Qeqertalik municipality. With 1,081 inhabitants in 2020, it is the thirteenth-largest town in Greenland. The main indu ...

town to the south of Ilimanaq can be reached on foot, or by

dogsled A dog sled or dog sleigh is a sled pulled by one or more sled dogs used to travel over ice and through snow. Numerous types of sleds are used, depending on their function. They can be used for dog sled racing. Traditionally in Greenland and the ...

Sea

During summer and autumn, when the waters of Disko Bay are navigable, communication between settlements is by sea only, serviced by

Diskoline Disko Line A/S is a passenger and freight ferry line in western Greenland. It was founded in 2004DiskolineAbout/ref> as a small freight company. Complementary transport services Diskoline provides sea transport services on contract with the ...

.Diskoline timetable
The ferry links Ilimanaq with Ilulissat, from where ferry connections are available to Oqaatsut,

Qeqertaq Qeqertaq (according to the old spelling ''K'eĸertaĸ'') is a settlement in the Avannaata municipality in western Greenland, located on an island off the southern shore of the Nuussuaq Peninsula in an inlet of Sullorsuaq Strait. Founded in 183 ...

Saqqaq Saqqaq (old spelling: ''Sarqaq'') is a settlement in the Avannaata municipality in western Greenland. Founded in 1755 as Solsiden, Saqqaq had 132 inhabitants in 2020. The village's Kalaallisut name is a translation of the Danish meaning "Sunny Sid ...

Qeqertarsuaq Qeqertarsuaq () is a port and town in Qeqertalik municipality, located on the south coast of Disko Island on the west coast of Greenland. Founded in 1773, the town is now home to a campus of the University of Copenhagen known as Arctic Station. ...

, and towns and settlements in the Aasiaat Archipelago.

Population

The population of Ilimanaq has been stable in the last two decades.Statistics Greenland

References

{{Authority control 1741 establishments in Greenland Villages of Ilulissat Disko Bay Populated places in Greenland Populated places of Arctic Greenland Populated places established in 1741 Avannaata