Before Donald Trump publicly expressed interest in the island, Greenland rarely commanded sustained global attention. That changed when the US president declared, “We must have Greenland.” Yet Greenland’s strategic and cultural value has long drawn outsiders.
Early migration and Erik the Red
People first settled Greenland roughly 4,500 years ago, arriving from the North American mainland. Centuries later, around the 12th century, the Thule people migrated eastward from Siberia via the Bering Strait; their descendants are the Inuit, who make up most of today’s roughly 56,000 residents.
Greenland’s European name comes from the Viking explorer Erik the Red. Exiled from Iceland around 982 for manslaughter, he sailed west, reached the island and called it Grœnland—“green land”—to attract settlers. While the interior is dominated by ice, coastal areas were comparatively verdant in that era. Norse settlements persisted for about 400 years before vanishing by the 15th century, leaving the Inuit as the island’s sole inhabitants. Nordic legends about lost Norse communities and hidden riches endured in European imagination.
A priest paves the way for Danish colonization
Stories of Norse survivors inspired Hans Egede, a Norwegian priest, to voyage to Greenland. He arrived on July 3, 1721, hoping to find and Christianize any remaining Norse communities. Instead he met Inuit populations and began missionary work: learning the language, studying customs and adapting Christian teachings to local life—for example, rendering “Give us this day our daily bread” into a phrasing relevant to Inuit diets. Egede founded a church and helped establish what became Nuuk. His legacy is contested: a statue stands in Nuuk, but many Greenlanders view him as a symbol of colonial imposition.
Norwegian-Danish dispute: Who owns Greenland?
At Egede’s time Denmark and Norway were united under one crown (1380–1814). When the union ended in 1814, Greenland remained under Danish administration—a status Norway later contested. In 1931 Norway briefly occupied parts of eastern Greenland, naming the area “Eirik Raudes Land.” Denmark brought the dispute to the Permanent Court of International Justice, which in 1933 affirmed Denmark’s sovereignty over all of Greenland.
How the US entered the picture
The United States, expanding across the hemisphere in the 19th century, eyed Arctic territories. Secretary of State William H. Seward—who arranged the Alaska purchase in 1867—also saw strategic value in Greenland, but Congress balked at acquiring an icy, sparsely populated territory. In 1916 the US instead purchased the Danish West Indies and formally recognized Danish sovereignty over Greenland.
World War II changed that dynamic. After Nazi Germany occupied Denmark, Greenland’s ties to Copenhagen were disrupted. In 1941 Denmark’s ambassador to Washington, Henrik Kauffmann, concluded an agreement allowing the US to supply and defend Greenland and to establish weather stations and bases. Inuit communities were not consulted. In 1946 the US offered Denmark $100 million in gold to buy Greenland; Denmark refused. Still, in 1951 the two countries agreed to US operation of Thule Air Base (now Pituffik Space Base), which remains an American strategic installation.
Colonial injustice and the push for autonomy
In 1953 Greenland’s status shifted from colony to an integrated part of the Kingdom of Denmark, gaining two Danish parliamentary seats but limited self-determination. Danish policy pursued rapid “modernization,” promoting the Danish language, schooling and sedentary lifestyles while discouraging nomadic traditions and relocating many Inuit into towns.
Some policies were deeply harmful. In the early 1950s, 22 Inuit children were sent to Denmark to be raised Danish and prepared for leadership roles. In later decades thousands of Inuit women and girls were fitted with contraceptive devices—sometimes without informed consent. These actions contributed to grievances and a growing desire for greater control over Greenland’s affairs.
Home rule and self-government
Greenland achieved home rule in 1979, creating its own parliament and government with limited powers. A major advance came in 2009 when responsibility for most domestic matters was transferred to Greenlandic authorities; Denmark retained foreign and defense policy. Support for full independence remains strong, though economic and strategic considerations complicate the path.
Contemporary attitudes and the US proposal
Polls show broad opposition among Greenlanders to becoming part of the United States; reports have found about 85% oppose any US takeover. Demonstrations in Nuuk and elsewhere signaled public rejection when discussions of selling or acquiring Greenland resurfaced in 2019. Nevertheless, Greenland’s strategic Arctic location and resource potential keep it geopolitically significant, drawing attention from Denmark, the United States and other powers.
This article was originally written in German.