Kullorsuaq

---

title: "Kullorsuaq" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["melville-bay", "populated-places-in-greenland", "populated-places-of-arctic-greenland", "upernavik-archipelago", "1928-establishments-in-north-america", "20th-century-establishments-in-greenland", "populated-places-established-in-1928"] description: "Settlement in Greenland" topic_path: "general/melville-bay" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kullorsuaq" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Settlement in Greenland ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Kullorsuaq
image_skyline	Kullorsuaq.jpg
imagesize	300px
image_caption	Wooden houses in Kullorsuaq
pushpin_map	Greenland
pushpin_map_caption	Location within Greenland
pushpin_mapsize	300
subdivision_type	State
subdivision_name	Kingdom of Denmark
subdivision_type1	Constituent country
subdivision_name1	Greenland
subdivision_type2	Municipality
subdivision_name2	Avannaata
established_title	Founded
established_date	1928
population_as_of	2025
population_total	441
timezone1	Western Greenland Time
utc_offset1	−02:00
timezone1_DST	Western Greenland Summer Time
utc_offset1_DST	−01:00
coordinates
postal_code_type	Postal code
postal_code	3962 Upernavik
::

| name = Kullorsuaq | native_name = | other_name = | image_skyline = Kullorsuaq.jpg | imagesize = 300px | image_caption = Wooden houses in Kullorsuaq | image_shield = | shield_size = | pushpin_map = Greenland | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_caption = Location within Greenland | pushpin_mapsize = 300 | subdivision_type = State | subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark | subdivision_type1 = Constituent country | subdivision_name1 = Greenland | subdivision_type2 = Municipality | subdivision_name2 = Avannaata | subdivision_type3 = | subdivision_name3 = | government_footnotes = | leader_title = | leader_name = | established_title = Founded | established_date = 1928 | population_as_of = 2025 | population_total = 441 | timezone1 = Western Greenland Time | utc_offset1 = −02:00 | timezone1_DST = Western Greenland Summer Time | utc_offset1_DST = −01:00 | coordinates = | postal_code_type = Postal code | postal_code = 3962 Upernavik | website =

Kullorsuaq is a settlement in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is the northernmost settlement in the Upernavik Archipelago, located on Kullorsuaq Island at the southern end of Melville Bay, itself part of the larger Baffin Bay.

The settlement was founded in 1928 and became a trading station, growing in size after World War II when hunters from several small villages around Inussulik Bay, Sugar Loaf Bay, and Tasiusaq Bay moved into the larger settlements such as Nuussuaq and Kullorsuaq. Today, Kullorsuaq remains one of the most traditional hunting and fishing villages in Greenland, but maintains a stable population.

The name of the settlement means "Big Thumb" in Kalaallisut, after the Devil's Thumb, a prominent pinnacle-shaped mountain in the center of the island about 3 km north of the settlement.

Geography

Main article: Kullorsuaq Island

Kullorsuaq is located on an island of the same name at the southern end of Melville Bay. The island is the northernmost part of Upernavik Archipelago.

History

Prehistory

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Saqqarlersuaq-from-kullorsuaq.jpg" caption="Kullorsuaq"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Kullorsuaq-church.jpg" caption="''Inuunerup Nutaap Oqaluffia'', the Greenland Free Church in Kullorsuaq"] ::

The Upernavik Archipelago was among the earliest-settled areas of Greenland, the first migrants arriving approximately 4,000 years ago. All southbound migrations of the Inuit passed through the area, leaving behind a trail of archeological sites. These first settlers belong to the Saqqaq culture but were followed around 3,000 years ago by the Dorset culture, which spread along the coast of Baffin Bay. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the Dorset were themselves displaced by the Thule people.

The archipelago has been continuously but sparsely inhabited over this period. Migrants in the 19th and early 20th centuries found many ruins of Inuit settlement on Kullorsuaq, Kiatassuaq, and other smaller islands around Melville Bay, although Danish settlers during the colonial era were unaware of Kullorsuaq until the end of 19th century.

20th century

The modern settlement was initially populated by hunters from now-abandoned villages to Kiatassuaq's south: Inussulik Bay, Sugar Loaf Bay, and Tasiusaq Bay. The initial wave of settlers originated in villages of fewer than 10 people: Ikermiut (abandoned 1954), Itissaalik (abandoned 1957), and Kuuk (abandoned 1972). Several families of hunters from Nuussuaq also moved north to Kullorsuaq, which was founded in 1928.

Between 1930 and 1960, northwestern Greenland underwent a consolidation phase, largely driven by the Danish colonial authorities via Royal Greenland, then part of KNI, which possessed an island-wide monopoly on trade. The mutual agreement between the hunting families and the trade company limited the pre-war northward expansion until the 1950s, when the populations of the smaller settlements reinforced larger communities in Nuussuaq and Kullorsuaq. In 1952, Kullorsuaq became the northernmost trading post in the archipelago with the establishment of its first year-round shop.

In the 1960s, Kullorsuaq was a staging point for further expansion into Savissivik 274 km to the northwest, although this was unsuccessful and most migrants returned south in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, the settlement remains one of the most traditional hunting and fishing villages in Greenland.

The French film “Le voyage au Groenland” (english: Journey to Greenland) directed by Sébastien Betbeder which premiered in 2016 takes place in Kullorsuaq.

Economy

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Kullorsuaq-harbor.jpg" caption="Kullorsuaq Harbour"] ::

Fishing including narwhals and whales and hunting including fur seals and walruses are the primary occupations in the area. The fish processing plant for Upernavik Seafood (a subsidiary of Royal Greenland) and the Pilersuisoq general store are the only organized employers in the settlement.

Kullorsuaq is among the 10 poorest communities in Greenland, as are three other settlements in the archipelago Naajaat, Nuussuaq, and Upernavik Kujalleq.

Transport

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Kullorsuaq-heliport.jpg" caption="Kullorsuaq Heliport"] ::

Main article: Kullorsuaq Heliport

Air Greenland serves the village as part of a government contract, with twice-weekly helicopter flights to Nuussuaq and Upernavik.

Population

With 453 inhabitants (2020), Kullorsuaq is the largest settlement in the Upernavik Archipelago outside of Upernavik. It is one of the few settlements in the Avannaata municipality exhibiting significant growth patterns over the course of the last two decades, increasing by over 63% relative to its 1990 level and by almost 16% relative to its 2000 level.

Climate

Kullorsuaq has a tundra climate (Köppen climate classification ET) with very cold, long winters and chilly, short summers. Seasonal lag is so strong that August is the warmest month and very similar to July. February is the coldest month, and April is colder than December.

| location = Kullorsuaq | metric first = Y | single line = Y | width = 100% | Jan high C = -16.6 | Feb high C = -19.3 | Mar high C = -18.9 | Apr high C = -10.8 | May high C = -2.3 | Jun high C = 1.6 | Jul high C = 5.3 | Aug high C = 5.6 | Sep high C = 2.4 | Oct high C = -1.5 | Nov high C = -5.8 | Dec high C = -11.3 | Jan mean C = -18.4 | Feb mean C = -21.3 | Mar mean C = -21.1 | Apr mean C = -14 | May mean C = -4.8 | Jun mean C = 0.5 | Jul mean C = 4.5 | Aug mean C = 4.8 | Sep mean C = 1.3 | Oct mean C = -2.5 | Nov mean C = -6.9 | Dec mean C = -12.7 | Jan low C = -20.2 | Feb low C = -23.3 | Mar low C = -23.4 | Apr low C = -17.2 | May low C = -7.2 | Jun low C = -0.6 | Jul low C = 3.6 | Aug low C = 3.9 | Sep low C = 0.2 | Oct low C = -3.5 | Nov low C = -8 | Dec low C = -14.1 | rain colour = green | Jan rain mm = 7 | Feb rain mm = 4 | Mar rain mm = 5 | Apr rain mm = 8 | May rain mm = 10 | Jun rain mm = 14 | Jul rain mm = 20 | Aug rain mm = 32 | Sep rain mm = 28 | Oct rain mm = 36 | Nov rain mm = 31 | Dec rain mm = 19 | snow colour = green | unit rain days = 0.1 mm | Jan rain days = 0.4 | Feb rain days = 0.1 | Mar rain days = 2.1 | Apr rain days = 2.3 | May rain days = 1.8 | Jun rain days = 5.8 | Jul rain days = 7.8 | Aug rain days = 12.1 | Sep rain days = 5.5 | Oct rain days = 1.6 | Nov rain days = 1.5 | Dec rain days = 1.5 | Jan snow mm = 34 | Feb snow mm = 29 | Mar snow mm = 31 | Apr snow mm = 43 | May snow mm = 61 | Jun snow mm = 19 | Jul snow mm = 1 | Aug snow mm = 4 | Sep snow mm = 98 | Oct snow mm = 133 | Nov snow mm = 110 | Dec snow mm = 97 | Jan snow days = 9.8 | Feb snow days = 7.8 | Mar snow days = 10.2 | Apr snow days = 9.6 | May snow days = 9.8 | Jun snow days = 3.5 | Jul snow days = 0.2 | Aug snow days = 0.9 | Sep snow days = 10.8 | Oct snow days = 14.8 | Nov snow days = 14.9 | Dec snow days = 16.7 | Jan humidity = 88 | Feb humidity = 89 | Mar humidity = 89 | Apr humidity = 86 | May humidity = 86 | Jun humidity = 86 | Jul humidity = 83 | Aug humidity = 79 | Sep humidity = 72 | Oct humidity = 72 | Nov humidity = 75 | Dec humidity = 83 | Jan light = 0 | Feb light = 5 | Mar light = 11.7 | Apr light = 18.4 | May light = 24 | Jun light = 24 | Jul light = 24 | Aug light = 21.1 | Sep light = 13.7 | Oct light = 7.6 | Nov light = 0.5 | Dec light = 0 | Jan uv = 1 | Feb uv = 1 | Mar uv = 1 | Apr uv = 1 | May uv = 1 | Jun uv = 2 | Jul uv = 2 | Aug uv = 2 | Sep uv = 1 | Oct uv = 1 | Nov uv = 1 | Dec uv = 1 | source = Weather Atlas

References

References

1. "Population by Localities". Statistical Greenland.
2. ''Upernavik Avannarleq'', Saga Map, 1:250.000, Tage Schjøtt, 1992
3. "History". Upernavik Tourist Service.
4. O'Carroll, Etain. (2005). "Greenland and the Arctic". [[Lonely Planet]].
5. Petersen, Robert. (2003). "Settlements, kinship and hunting grounds in traditional Greenland: A comparative study of local experiences from Upernavik and Ammassalik". Danish Polar Center.
6. Petersen, Robert. (2003). "Settlements, kinship and hunting grounds in traditional Greenland: A comparative study of local experiences from Upernavik and Ammassalik". Danish Polar Center.
7. "Kullorsuaq". Qaasuitsup Municipality.
8. "Journey to Greenland (2016) - IMDb".
9. "The history of Upernavik". Upernavik Tourist Service.
10. (17 April 2010). "Bygderne skal selv tage ansvar". [[Sermitsiaq (newspaper).
11. "Booking system". Air Greenland.
12. "Climate and monthly weather forecast – Kullorsuaq".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::