Det Grønlandske Selskab

Det Grønlandske Selskab ( German The Greenland Society ) is a scientific society founded in 1905 with headquarters in Charlottenlund in Gentofte north of Copenhagen , the purpose of which is to advise on Greenland-specific topics and to create and maintain good relations between Denmark and Greenland . It had about 850 members in 2012.

history

Morten P. Porsild (1952), early critic of the society

Det Grønlandske Selskab was founded on November 4th, 1905 by former Danish employees of the Greenland Administration. With a few exceptions, membership was originally only permitted to those persons who were active as trade administrators, doctors, priests or in a similar form for Den Kongelige Grønlandske Handel or Grønlands Styrelse in Greenland and whose knowledge of the country was hoped to serve Greenland's interests for the benefit of the population better represent political issues. After a few years membership was open to more and more people, from 1911 also women, whereby every membership application required the approval of the majority of the members. Around 1920, the biologist Morten P. Porsild , who worked in Greenland, criticized the society for its self-authorization, the continued unity and financing. In 1925 membership was finally granted to anyone who requested it, but a literal two-class society was introduced in which mere sympathizers for Greenland with no professional or scientific connection to the colony were found in the B class. After just one year, the two-class society was abolished again at the request of polar researcher Peter Freuchen and the company management now decided on the membership of new interested parties. Since 1946, institutions can also acquire support membership. Membership applications have only been checked since 1969, which means that membership has been open to everyone since then.

The members of society met about four to fifteen times a year in the first few decades to debate various social, economic and political, but also scientific topics or to celebrate festivities. Economic issues discussed at the sessions included fishing, hunting and sheep farming in Greenland and financial issues relating to Danes employed in Greenland. Politically, they dealt with the political reorganization of Greenland through the introduction of Grønlands Landsråd and the local councils decided in 1908 , with the foundation of Scoresbysund (today's Ittoqqortoormiit) in the mid-1920s , which had been discussed for years, and the dispute with Norway over fishing on Greenland's east coast. From 1922 criticism arose that society should not interfere so much in political issues and the dispute ended in 1924 with the resignation of chairman Louis Bobé . Other topics that were discussed were, for example, the language situation of the Greenlanders between Greenlandic and Danish , the health system and the infrastructure in Greenland. In summary, the goal of society's political influence prevailed.

The society began with a good five dozen members. In the decades that followed, the number of members rose sharply with the opening up to the outside world and the centralization of Greenland in Danish society after the Second World War. In the 1970s around 1300 people were members of Det Grønlandske Selskab, whereas today there are significantly fewer again.

Since 1954 the seat of the company was in Kraemers Hus in LE Bruuns Vej 10 in Charlottenlund , Gentofte . The building was the villa of the shipowner Christen Kraemer. Among other things, he and his wife had left a fund in favor of Greenland and Ejnar Mikkelsen , its chairman, bought the villa and had the Arctic Institute move in there and used part of it himself for society. Both institutions later moved to Copenhagen , while the Seniorklubben and the Aron art association stayed in Kraemers Hus. Det Grønlandske Selskab has been based there again since 2014.

The patron of Det Grønlandske Selskab is the Danish Crown Prince Frederik .

Publications

Det Grønlandske Selskab began to publish yearbooks in 1906 , 17 of which had been published by 1952. Since 1953, the year Greenland was decolonized, Tidsskriftet Grønland ( German Die Zeitschrift Grönland ) has been published every one to two months. All editions up to 2002 have been made available in digital form. Like the debates, both series deal with social, political, cultural, scientific and historical topics, with six yearbooks being new publications of older books by well-known Greenland researchers. Since 2012, the company has also published the online journal Polarfronten , which deals with current polar research. Special publications are also published regularly.

further activities

Det Grønlandske Selskab also organizes other lecture evenings in addition to the usual series of lectures in the Seniorklubben. The senior club was originally reserved for members who had worked in Greenland for 25 years, but now all members of society are allowed to participate.

The art association Aron , founded in 1999, is also part of Det Grønlandske Selskab. It is named after Aron von Kangeq , probably the most famous Greenland artist of the 19th century. The art association collects Greenland-related works of art and organizes gallery visits and film and theater screenings.

Rink medal

Minik Rosing (2017), recipient of the Rink Medal

Since 1960, the company has been awarding the Rink Medal ( Danish Rink-medaljen ), named after Hinrich Johannes Rink , one of the most important Greenland researchers, who was also active in trade, who served as an inspector for South Greenland at the end of the 1850s and was the first printing company in Greenland from which he published the first Greenland newspaper, the Atuagagdliutit . The medal is mainly awarded for scientific, but also other uses for the benefit of Greenland. The silver medal with a diameter of 6.5 cm was designed by the Dane Claes Lorenzen and the Greenlander Jens Rosing . Rink's portrait is on the front, while the back is adorned with a kayak , an umiaq and the company's logo. The following people have been awarded the Rink Medal so far: