Qaasuitsup Municipality

Qaasuitsup was Greenland's northernmost and largest municipality by area until 2018, when it was divided into Avannaata (north) and Qeqertalik (south) municipalities. The historic Qaasuitsup encompassed the far northwestern settlements reaching toward the North Pole, including Qaanaaq (the world's northernmost naturally inhabited town) and Upernavik. The economy relied on traditional hunting—subsistence fishing and marine mammal harvesting—in communities where polar night lasts months and supply ships visit only during brief ice-free windows. With Greenland's total population at 56,699 (2024) and density of 0.03 persons/km², northern settlements represent extreme isolation even by Arctic standards. The region contains no active mining operations but sits within Greenland's broader resource potential that has attracted geopolitical interest from the US and China. Infrastructure is minimal: Greenland has less than 100 miles of paved roads nationally. The settlements depend heavily on Denmark's $565 million annual subsidy and government employment, with limited private sector alternatives. As climate change extends ice-free seasons, the region faces both opportunity (shipping access, fishing range expansion) and threat (permafrost degradation, traditional hunting disruption).