Myths and Legends

Greenland’s myths and legends are imbued with the country’s natural landscape, darkness and the harshness of the hunter’s life.

TALES FROM A HARDY SOCIETY

In former times, belief in spirits and witchcraft was well-rooted in the Inuit people. The harsh nature, the winter darkness and the violent storms outside the turf huts and igloos provided plenty of opportunity to tell tales in the self-built homes which were heated only by oil lamps and body heat.

It was a society where people lived close together, but isolated from other local communities. So it gave rise to excitement and pleasure when good storytellers retold classic tales and when visitors from outside had something new to recount.

A NATURE ENDOWED WITH SPIRITS AND THE TRANSMIGRATION OF SOULS

The early Inuits believed that nature was endowed with the spirits. Every single stone, piece of straw, animal and organism was alive and had a soul. They also believed that the human soul could migrate from animal to animal, and this led to a lot of imaginative stories.

In fact, this belief is not really so surprising for a people who lived so close to nature and who were completely dependent on nature’s living resources.

"In former times, belief in spirits and witchcraft was well-rooted in the Inuit people."

Package Tours

Greenland Tours: Northern Lights & Icebergs

Greenland Tours

Northern Lights & Icebergs

4 days in Ilulissat incl. dog sledding & Northern Lights tour

Greenland Tours: Hearts of the Inuit

Greenland Tours

Hearts of the Inuit

6 days during winter in Disko Bay with Inuit settlement visit

Blue Ice Explorer: Traditional kayak experience – 1 day

Blue Ice Explorer

Traditional kayak experience - 1 day

Explore the old inuit culture by paddling in a kayak built using the traditional, greenlandic methods.

Arctic Umiaq Line: Discover Greenland from the sea

Arctic Umiaq Line

Discover Greenland from the sea

The coastal ship Sarfaq Ittuk sails from southern Greenland up along Greenland’s west coast to Disko Bay.

STORIES WITH MORALS

For countless generations the narrative tradition was the only way of communicating the Inuits’ traditions and lifestyles. The stories of the Inuits’ outlook with regard to religion and life often contained morals with categorical commandments and prohibitions.

The stories thus helped to establish norms for people’s behaviour. For hundreds of years – perhaps even thousands – stories such as Navaranaaq, Kaassassuk and other well-known legends were passed on by word of mouth amongst the Inuit people in Alaska, across Canada and to Greenland, until eventually they were written down by people such as Knud Rasmussen.

COLLECTION OF MYTHS AND LEGENDS

The Arctic explorer Knud Rasmussen, who was born and grew up in Greenland, collected the Greenlandic myths and legends throughout the many years in which he travelled and lived in Greenland, as a result of which a large part of the country’s cultural history became available to readers in the rest of the world.

Today the book ‘Greenlandic Myths and Legends’ is read by a wide circle of people interested in myths. Both public and private companies in Greenland still look to the old tales for inspiration with regard to names, logos and art.

By Visit Greenland

Behind Greenland's largest travel site is the Visit Greenland that is 100% owned by the Government of Greenland, who is responsible for marketing the country's adventures and opportunities for guests wishing to visit the world's largest island

https://visitgreenland.com

Keep Exploring

Things to Do

Browse culture and nature (outdoor, hunting, fishing, cruises) related activities, as well as combination of both types.

Plan your trip

Read about practical information on how to get to Greenland, how to get around, when to travel or where to stay.

Destinations

Explore the regions and towns around Greenland and dig deeper into the experiences in each destination.

About Greenland

All about art, music, history, as well as animals, climate change and other interesting information about Greenland.