Traditions of Nuuk
The capital of Greenland, where Inuit drum dancing, kayak skills and kaffemik gatherings keep the culture strong.
Nuuk is the capital of Greenland, a place of long winter darkness and midnight sun. The Greenlandic Inuit speak Kalaallisut, and keep traditions of hunting, drum dancing and storytelling. National Day, on 21 June, the summer solstice, is a time for parades in national dress and kaffemik, open-house coffee gatherings.
Kaffemik and national dress
A kaffemik is a family celebration where everyone is welcome, with coffee, cake and sometimes whale skin, mattak. Women wear the national costume, with a beaded collar, sealskin boots and a bright top, at festivals. The drum dance, qilaat, a ritual of song and drum, is practised again.
At the table
Seal, whale, reindeer, musk ox and Arctic char are traditional foods, and suaasat, a soup of meat and onions, is the national dish. Kiviaq is auk fermented in a sealskin. Coffee is served at every meeting. Greenlandic coffee is a flaming drink of whisky and Kahlúa.
Signature traditions of Nuuk
Also part of it, and being written: Greenlandic Inuit (The people.), Suaasat (The soup.), Greenland National Day (The national day.), Mattak (The skin and blubber of whale, eaten raw at gatherings.).
A trail idea for Nuuk
- Katuaq See the cultural centre.
- Greenland National Museum See kayaks and mummies.
- Old Nuuk Walk the colonial harbour.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, markets and festival dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
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