Monday, July 23, 2007

Greenland or Bust

Senator Boxer took a weekend trip to Greenland to see the "effects" of global warming. Wonder if while she was there she asked how the country got its name?
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2 comments:

shannon w kirkpatrick said...

the fisherman who discovered what is now called 'Iceland' found it to be a gorgeous place with green and livable lands. Not wanting to attract too many people to the island, they named it 'Iceland' to scare people away. Greenland, which is mostly ice, got the good name to lure people there.

25/7/07 10:41 PM
Cajun Tiger said...

That story is spread around but the more accepted story is this which happened during the Middle Ages Warming Period which was even warmer than it is today by a couple of degrees.

In the 960s Erik the Red, a fiery Norwegian, was exiled from his home in Norway. He went to Iceland, where he married Thjodhildur. He was later banished from there for three years. Erik headed west and discovered a land with an inviting fjord landscape and fertile, green valleys. He was greatly impressed by the land's resources, and he returned to Iceland and spoke about this land, which he called "the green land".
In 986 he set out from Iceland at the head of 25 ships, heading for Greenland. There were 500 men and women on board. Of the 25 ships only 14 reached their destination.

25/7/07 10:53 PM

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