“Greenland Past and Present”
Sunday 4 October 2026, at the Scandinavian Community Centre
The Scandinavian Cultural Society will feature Greenland in its Leif Erikson Day celebration this fall. Greenland, a mostly independent land under the Danish crown, is one of our family of Nordic countries. It has been much in international news lately, but it seems that many people do not know much about the country. So we plan to examine this interesting Nordic country and celebrate its achievements in our fall program.
On Leif Erikson Day, we honour Leif Erikson himself as the first known European to discover our land. We recognize his achievements and celebrate this spirit of discovery among people of Nordic heritage. Leif Erikson traveled in a tiny ship, across dangerous waters, toward unknown lands. We are inspired by his vision, courage, and persistence and we want to draw attention to those among us who achieve such goals.
Our program will present information on various facets of Greenland’s past and present. Greenland was the home of Leif Erikson himself — What better excuse for celebrating it? Two of the Icelandic Sagas tell Leif’s story. Their details differ. The debate over which version is more accurate, or even if either of them 
have any credibility, goes on. Archaeology, centuries-old historical records, and critical thinking from historians have been helpful in attempting to confirm the story. We will review this latest evidence in our program.
Greenland is a large island nation with a small population, but its economy must thrive in the 21st century. Though the ice-covered interior is almost inaccessible, habitable coastal areas support fishing, mining, hydropower, tourism, sheep farming, reindeer herding, with limited agriculture. Despite its challenges, Greenland appears to be coveted by other nations. We are looking for presentations from experts who can talk about Greenland’s resources, history, and economy.
Greenland’s climate demands extensive human adaptation and cultural ingenuity. Predecessors of Inuit people arrived in Greenland around 2500 BC and successive waves of indigenous Arctic people have persisted there ever since. The medieval Norse colony survived 500 years but ultimately disappeared. How do Greenlanders, mostly of Inuit and Danish ethnicity, manage their lives today?
Finally, we’d like to learn about some Greenlandic individuals who have drawn attention to themselves by discovering, creating, and performing in and beyond their country. Some of them may live around us in BC.
Our festival will be enhanced by several displays. Our Librarian, Pia Christensen, will arrange a book display from our library. We hope to have a show of Greenland art and a sample of folkdance traditions in Greenland. We also plan a buffet supper which you may attend by donation. It will have a Greenlandic flavor – though we may have difficulty catching the seal!
Please come on Sunday, October 4. We’ll start with an Opening Reception and refreshments at 1 p.m. The program will continue into the early evening. We will need your help as usual to set up and take down and especially to organize the best program. You may have suggestions about topics you might enjoy or know of people who might make presentations or display their work please let us know. You are all part of the Scandinavian Cultural Society.
–Carolyn Thauberger
