Avannaata (, ) is a municipality of Greenland created on 1 January 2018 from the bulk of the former Qaasuitsup municipality. It encompasses an area of 522,700 km² and has 10,726 inhabitants.

Geography

In the south, Avannaata is flanked by the

Qeqertalik Qeqertalik (, ) is a municipality of Greenland created in 2018 from four southern regions of the former Qaasuitsup Municipality. It is the least populated municipality at a population of 6,340, despite this it is the 2nd most densely populated m ...

municipality. In the southeast, it is bordered by the Sermersooq municipality; the border runs north–south ( 45° West meridian) through the center of the Greenland ice sheet (), so is free of traffic. In the east and northeast it is bordered by the Northeast Greenland National Park. Pituffik Space Base is an enclave on the Avannaata coast that is administered by the United States Space Force. At the southern end of the municipal coastline are the waters of Disko Bay, although some Disko Bay communities belong to the municipality of Qeqertalik. This bay is an inlet of the larger

Baffin Bay Baffin Bay (Inuktitut: ''Saknirutiak Imanga''; ; ; ), located between Baffin Island and the west coast of Greenland, is defined by the International Hydrographic Organization as a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is sometimes considered a s ...

, which to the north edges into the island of Greenland in the form of Melville Bay. The coastline of northeastern Baffin Bay is dotted with islands of the Upernavik Archipelago, which is entirely contained within the municipality. In the far northwest near Qaanaaq and Siorapaluk, the municipal shores extend into Nares Strait, which separates Greenland from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Ellesmere Island Ellesmere Island (; ) is Canada's northernmost and List of Canadian islands by area, third largest island, and the List of islands by area, tenth largest in the world. It comprises an area of , slightly smaller than Great Britain, and the total ...

. Avannaata's western side extends to the formerly disputed

Hans Island Hans Island (Inuktitut and , ; Inuktitut syllabics: ; , ; , ) is an island in the centre of the Kennedy Channel of Nares Strait in the high Arctic region, split between the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian territory of Nunavut a ...

's eastern half, while Canada's Qiqiktaluuk Region administers the western half.

Politics

Avannaata's municipal council consists of 17 members, elected every four years.Avannaata.gl
"Kommunalbestyrelsen"

Municipal council

Administrative divisions

Ilulissat area

* Ilulissat (Jacobshavn) * Ilimanaq (Claushavn) * Oqaatsut (Hollandshuk) * Qeqertaq (Øen) * Saqqaq (Solsiden)

Qaanaaq area

* Qaanaaq (Thule) * Qeqertat * Savissivik * Siorapaluk

Uummannaq area

* Uummannaq * Ikerasak * Illorsuit * Niaqornat * Nuugaatsiaq * Qaarsut * Saattut * Ukkusissat

Upernavik area

Upernavik Kanunarinaqiniiaaq (known as Upernavik) is a small town in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland, located on a small island of the same name. With 1,064 inhabitants as of 2024, it is the twelfth-largest town in Greenland. It c ...

* Aappilattoq * Innaarsuit * Kangersuatsiaq (Prøven) * Kullorsuaq * Naajaat * Nutaarmiut * Nuussuaq (Kraulshavn) * Tasiusaq * Tussaaq * Upernavik Kujalleq (Søndre Upernavik)

Language

''Kalaallisut'', the West Greenlandic dialect, is spoken in the towns and settlements of the western and northwestern coasts. Inuktun is also spoken in and around Qaanaaq.

References and notes

Ilulissat Disko Bay Municipalities of Greenland Upernavik Archipelago Uummannaq Fjord States and territories established in 2018 2018 establishments in Denmark {{Greenland-geo-stub