Kitaa, originally Vestgrønland ("West Greenland"), is a former
administrative division
Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...
of
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
. It was by far the most populated of the divisions, being home to almost 90% of the total population. The divisions were
de facto replaced by statistical regions after Greenland received
home rule
Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governan ...
in 1979.
It is bordered in the west by the
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 ...
,
Davis Strait
The Davis Strait (Danish language, Danish: ''Davisstrædet'') is a southern arm of the Arctic Ocean that lies north of the Labrador Sea. It lies between mid-western Greenland and Baffin Island in Nunavut, Canada. To the north is Baffin Bay. The ...
,
Labrador Sea
The Labrador Sea (; ) is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between the Labrador Peninsula and Greenland. The sea is flanked by continental shelf, continental shelves to the southwest, northwest, and northeast. It connects to the north with Baffi ...
and the
North Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
. To the east lies
Tunu.
All but three of the island territory's municipalities were located in West Greenland. These were (in geographical order, from south to north):
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Nanortalik
Nanortalik (, ), formerly Nennortalik, is a town in Nanortalik Island, Kujalleq municipalities of Greenland, municipality, southern Greenland. With 1,072 inhabitants as of 2024, it is the List of cities and towns in Greenland, eleventh-largest ...
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Qaqortoq
Qaqortoq (), also known as Julianehåb, is the capital city of the Kujalleq municipalities of Greenland, municipality in southern Greenland, located near Cape Thorvaldsen. With a population of 3,050 in 2020, it is the most populous town in sout ...
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Narsaq
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Ivittuut
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Paamiut
Paamiut, also known as Frederikshåb, is a town in southwestern Greenland in the Sermersooq municipalities of Greenland, municipality.
Geography
Paamiut is located on the coast of Labrador Sea in the southern end of a small estuary called Ku ...
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Nuuk
Nuuk (; , formerly ) is the capital and most populous city of Greenland, an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the territory's largest cultural and economic center. It is also the seat of gove ...
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Maniitsoq
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Sisimiut
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Kangaatsiaq
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Aasiaat
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Qasigiannguit
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Ilulissat
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Qeqertarsuaq
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Uummannaq
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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 ...
See also
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Subdivisions of ''Norden''
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Administrative divisions of Greenland
Greenland is divided into five municipalities and two unincorporated areas. The municipalities are Avannaata, Kujalleq, Qeqertalik, Qeqqata, and Sermersooq.Statistics Greenland''Greenland in Figures, 2014''/ref> Northeast Greenland National Park ...
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Isua greenstone belt (geology)
{{Greenland-geo-stub
Counties of Greenland
Baffin Bay
2008 disestablishments in Greenland