Aasiaat

Aasiaat (aːsiaːt) or Ausiait, formerly Egedesminde, is a town in the Qeqertalik municipality in western Greenland, located on its namesake island in the heart of Aasiaat Archipelago at the southern end of Disko Bay. With a population of 2,980 as of 2021, it is Greenland's fifth-largest town. In Greenlandic, Aasiaat means "Spiders" (Edderkopper). The exact explanation for this is yet to be determined because of the lack of historical facts of the origin of the name. The most common assumption is that when the town was founded as a mere settlement, it was abundant with spiders. Alternatively it might be a relic of Inuit mythology, wherein spiders bring good luck. Like in the rest of Greenland, spiders are rarely seen in the town in modern times. Aasiaat is sometimes referred to as the Town of the Whales, since marine mammals such as whales and seals are a common sight. Archaeological projects in the region have suggested human habitation in the region that includes Aasiaat as far back as the 5th millennium BC. The earliest modern settlers dated to around 1200; these were probably subsistence hunters. These inhabitants hunted harp seals and capelin (ammassaat) near Sydøst Bay in the spring. In the summer, they moved to Nassuttooq for reindeer and halibut. During autumn, the people of Disko Bay returned home to hunt small harp seals. In the winter, the bay froze over, and they hunted narwhals and Beluga whales. These early people designed and built their own kayaks and umiaks when the water freed up; in the winter, they used qamutiiks. The settlement that would become Aasiaat was founded in 1759 by Niels Egede, son of Hans Egede, a Norwegian missionary. Named Egedesminde Colony after him, it was located north of Nordre Strømfjord, and was 125 km south of Aasiaat's current location. The town was moved to its current site in 1763. Most villagers were whalers, and the smallpox germs they carried to the region ravaged the native population, especially during the 1770s. Aasiaat saw much growth in the first half of the 20th century.