Colonial Moments in Greenland: Mutable Tensions in the Contact Zone

Abstract

In 2009, Greenland obtained self-government, terminating Danish supremacy, which had taken many forms over the centuries. This article analyses significant moments in Greenlandic-Danish relations by unpacking distinct contact zones that have emerged through the many encounters between locals and newcomers. Contact zones are always emplaced and create their own logic, which is not always easily readable as “colonialism” in the sense of appropriating lands and extracting surplus. While wrongs may have been perpetrated and ill-informed actions towards the inhabitants taken, relations between Greenland and Denmark illustrate how “colonialism” is neither uniform nor scalable. The analytical focus on colonial moments stresses the nonlinearity of colonial relations and allows for a subtler understanding of the postcolonial remains.

The embedded construction of price fairness evaluations: a case study of Air Greenland

“…The embedded construction of price fairness (including costs) over multiple areas of law and government that are now under the jurisprudence of Denmark (Hastrup, 2019). The route to independence, however, is difficult, because Greenland is a country with social and economic problems.…”

“…Language, transportation and rural areas also generate tensions. Greenlandic is the official language even though few of the 10.000 Danes living in Greenland speak the language (Hastrup, 2019), and some Greenlandic natives are not fluent in Greenlandic. The fact that many families consist of a mix of Danish and Greenlandic parents further challenges the discussion of Greenlandic natives.…”

“None of Them Could Say They Ever Had Seen Them, but Only Had It from Others”: Encounters with Animals in Eighteenth-Century Natural Histories of Greenland

“…Egede's history was broad in scope and rich in detail, laden with references to Inuit customs, beliefs and behaviours, but his mapping of the territory, its landscape, and natural resources was also vital to the development of economic and political connections with Denmark. The foundation of settler colonies on the west coast, the support given to Egede's efforts to spread the Gospel, and the economic value of his narrative of encounters and observations were all part of the same story [32,35]. Helen Curry and James Secord have observed "natural history [developed] as a way of cataloguing novelties, charting unfamiliar territories and inventorying potentially useful resources" [36].…”

“…Robert Paine, in a contribution to the quincentenary of Columbus' voyages, suggested that "the most intriguing question for anthropology coming out of the scholarly literature of that occasion, namely how, in the West, the unknown is apprehended, then and now" [35,45]. The explanation and classification of the unfamiliar in nature was often determined by an ability to establish connections with something that was known and understood.…”

“…After learning how to manage a kayak, Fabricius was then able to "accompany them on hunts of all kinds and there see, indeed learn for myself." As a foreigner who could demonstrate some proficiency in hunting, "I, who could accompany them on this hunt, am told, that, even after so long a time, my memory is held in esteem by them" [35,42].…”