East Greenland Itocortormite is likely the most remote village in the world. It is located north of the Arctic Circle and only 350 people live there. But their unique way of life is under threat, writes Deutsche Welle.
It is not at all strange that Donald Trump wanted to buy Greenland. Before him, another American president made a similar attempt: Harry Truman after the Second World War. He offered $100,000, but even then the Danish government rejected the offer.
But why Greenland – the largest island in the world, whose area is six times that of Germany, actually belongs to a small Denmark? Geographically, the island is part of North America – Greenland’s northwestern tip is “a stone’s throw” from the Canadian coast, while Denmark is more than 3000 km.
Between it and Greenland are located Iceland and a part of Norway.
The whole story has to do with the vikingsand more recently with the whalers. In the 18th and 19th centuries, they came en masse from Norway, Holland, Germany and Denmark, built settlements and military bases. Conflicts constantly break out, in which the Danes eventually manage to prevail. In 1933, icy Greenland finally became the property of Denmark.
What you need to know about Greenland and Itokortormit:
– The thickness of the ice reaches up to 3800 meters, but the glaciers are melting. It also increases rainfall, which accelerates melting. According to scientists, if the Greenland ice melts completely, sea level will rise more than 7 m.
– Earlier, because of the ice, the inhabitants of Itokortormit approx 11 months a year were cut off from the rest of the world. For this reason, many polar bears and other animals were used for food.
– With the melting of the glaciers, this way of life is becoming more and more impossible – in the Arctic temperatures rise 4 times fasterthan elsewhere.
– On the island no roads or railways, to connect villages and cities. To get from one place to another, Greenlanders travel by plane, helicopter, boat or sledge.
– Greenland is particularly affected by climate change. Since 1990, the average temperature in summer has increased by 1.8 degrees and in winter by 3.
– Greenland was once green – between 450,000 and 900,000 years ago it was covered with dense forests. Today, 85% of the island is under a dense ice sheet.
– To the older generation in the village with 350 inhabitants has to get used to the new living environment. All they have to do is remember the past and realize that nothing will ever be the same.
Source: Deutsche Welle
