Qeqqata is a new municipality in western Greenland

Greenland

Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

, operational from 1 January 2009. The municipality was named after its location in central-western part of the country. Its population is 9,677 as of January 2010. The administrative center of the municipality is in Sisimiut

Sisimiut

Sisimiut is a town in central-western Greenland, located on the coast of Davis Strait, approximately north of Nuuk. It is the administrative center of the Qeqqata Municipality and the second-largest town in Greenland, with a population of 5,460 people as of 2010. The site of the present-day town...

 (formerly called Holsteinsborg). It consists of the previously unincorporated area of Kangerlussuaq

Kangerlussuaq

Kangerlussuaq is a settlement in western Greenland in the Qeqqata municipality, located at the head of a fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub, being the site of Greenland's largest commercial airport....

, as well as two former municipalities of western Greenland:

• Maniitsoq Municipality
  Maniitsoq Municipality
  Maniitsoq Municipality was a municipality in Greenland until 31 December 2008. Its administrative center was Maniitsoq. It was incorporated along with Sisimiut Municipality into the new Qeqqata municipality on 1 January 2009....
  
  
• Sisimiut Municipality
  Sisimiut Municipality
  Sisimiut Municipality was a municipality in Greenland until 31 December 2008. Its administrative center was Sisimiut. Within its borders were also the settlements of Itilleq and Sarfannguaq, as well as the settlement of Kangerlussuaq, which has Greenland's largest airport. It was incorporated...
  
  

Geography

In the south and east, the municipality is flanked by the Sermersooq

Sermersooq

Sermersooq is a new municipality in Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. It is home to Nuuk , the capital of Greenland, and is the most populous municipality in the country, with 21,232 inhabitants as of January 2010...

 municipality, although settlements and associated trade is concentrated mainly alongside the coast

Coast

A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs...

. In the north, it is bordered by the Qaasuitsup

Qaasuitsup

Qaasuitsup is a new municipality in Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. As of January 2010 its population is 17,749. The administrative center of the municipality is in Ilulissat...

 municipality. The waters of the western coast are that of the Davis Strait

Davis Strait

Davis Strait is a northern arm of the Labrador Sea. It lies between mid-western Greenland and Nunavut, Canada's Baffin Island. The strait was named for the English explorer John Davis , who explored the area while seeking a Northwest Passage....

, separating Greenland from Baffin Island

Baffin Island

Baffin Island in the Canadian territory of Nunavut is the largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is and its population is about 11,000...

. With the area of 115500 square kilometre it is the second-smallest municipality of Greenland after Kujalleq

Kujalleq

Kujalleq is a new municipality in the southern tip of Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. With 7,589 inhabitants as of January 2010, it is the least-populated municipality in Greenland. The administrative center of the municipality is in Qaqortoq...

.

Towns and settlements

• Atammik
  Atammik
  Atammik is a settlement in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Located on the shores of Davis Strait, it had 197 inhabitants in 2010. It is the southernmost settlement in the municipality...
  
  
• Itilleq
  Itilleq
  Itilleq is a settlement in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Located 45 km south of Sisimiut on the shores of Davis Strait, it had 112 inhabitants in 2010.- History :...
  
  
• Kangaamiut
  Kangaamiut
  Kangaamiut is a settlement in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland, with a population of 357 as of 2010.- Geography :...
  
  
• Kangerlussuaq
  Kangerlussuaq
  Kangerlussuaq is a settlement in western Greenland in the Qeqqata municipality, located at the head of a fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub, being the site of Greenland's largest commercial airport....
  
   (Søndre Strømfjord)
• Maniitsoq
  Maniitsoq
  Maniitsoq is a town in the Qeqqata municipality in western Greenland. With 2,784 inhabitants as of 2010, it is the sixth-largest town in Greenland...
  
   (Sukkertoppen)
• Napasoq
  Napasoq
  Napasoq is an island settlement in the Qeqqata municipality, in central-western Greenland. Located on a small island on the shores of Davis Strait, it had 85 inhabitants in 2010.- Population :...
  
  
• Sarfannguit
  Sarfannguit
  Sarfannguit is a settlement in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Its population is 126 as of 2010...
  
  
• Sisimiut
  Sisimiut
  Sisimiut is a town in central-western Greenland, located on the coast of Davis Strait, approximately north of Nuuk. It is the administrative center of the Qeqqata Municipality and the second-largest town in Greenland, with a population of 5,460 people as of 2010. The site of the present-day town...
  
  (Holsteinsborg)