Explorer, ethnologist and writer, born in Jakobshavn (now Ilulissat), Greenland, where his father was a vicar. His mother was of Inuit descent, and he learnt to master kayak, dogsledge and the Greenlandic language. Having attended school and university in Copenhagen, he took part in his first Greenland expedition in 1902-04, and in 1910 he established the Thule station (present-day Qaanaaq) at Cape York. From 1912 to 1933 the Thule station was made the starting point of 7 expeditions, of which the 5th (1921-24) stretched from Greenland to the Pacific Ocean. He crossed arctic North America by dogledge and wrote down the myths and songs of all the tribes he visited. During the 7th expedition (1931-33) he fell ill and was transported to Copenhagen where he died shortly before Christmas.
Explorer, ethnologist and writer, born in Jakobshavn (now Ilulissat), Greenland, where his father was a vicar. His mother was of Inuit descent, and he learnt to master kayak, dogsledge and the Greenlandic language. Having attended school and university in Copenhagen, he took part in his first Greenland expedition in 1902-04, and in 1910 he established the Thule station (present-day Qaanaaq) at Cape York. From 1912 to 1933 the Thule station was made the starting point of 7 expeditions, of which the 5th (1921-24) stretched from Greenland to the Pacific Ocean. He crossed arctic North America by dogledge and wrote down the myths and songs of all the tribes he visited. During the 7th expedition (1931-33) he fell ill and was transported to Copenhagen where he died shortly before Christmas.
Bio by: Erik Skytte
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