Aboriginal subsistence whaling in Greenland: the case of Qeqertarsuaq Municipality in West Greenland

Abstract

Policy debates in the International Whaling Commission (IWC) about aboriginal subsistence whaling focus on the changing significance of whaling in the mixed economies of contemporary Inuit communities. In Greenland, Inuit hunters have taken whales for over 4000 yr as part of a multispecies pattern of marine harvesting. However, ecological dynamics, Euroamerican exploitation of the North Atlantic bowhead whale, Danish colonial policies, and growing linkages to the world economy have drastically altered whaling practices. Debates continue about the appropriateness of cash and commoditization in subsistence whaling and about the ability of indigenous management regimes to ensure the protection of whale stocks. This case study describes contemporary whaling in Qeqertarsuaq Municipality in West Greenland, demonstrating that despite significant changes, whaling is an integral part of Greenland's mixed economy and a vital component of Greenlandic Inuit cultural identity. The social organization of whaling continues to be kinship-based, and Greenlandic foods, including whale products, are prominent in local diets and in cultural celebrations. The research reveals that Greenlanders participate in whaling not to maximize profits but in order to sustain cultural traditions and to reduce dependency on tenuous links to the world economy. -Author