🇬🇱 Sled dogs remain vital to life and culture in Greenland, new research shows

Nuuk, Greenland – March 16, 2026

A recent study shows that Greenland’s sled dogs—known as qimmit—remain essential partners in everyday life for many Inuit communities, even as climate change and modernization continue to transform the Arctic.

Published in Arctic Anthropology, the research highlights how human–qimmeq relationships continue to shape cultural life and knowledge across Greenland. At a time when sled-dog traditions are declining in some regions, the study underscores their ongoing importance in contemporary Inuit and Kalaallit society.

The study finds that sled dogs are not simply relics of the past or cultural symbols, but active participants in hunting, travel, and the transmission of cultural knowledge across generations.

The article, “From Sled Dogs to Cultural Icons: Human–Qimmit Relations in Greenland,” explores how relationships between people and sled dogs continue to shape life across northern and western Greenland.

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with hunters, mushers, and cultural knowledge holders, the research shows how qimmit support hunting practices, mobility, and intergenerational knowledge-sharing—even as environmental and social conditions change.

“Qimmit are not just working animals or heritage symbols—they remain partners in survival and cultural knowledge,” said Manumina Lund Jensen, Assistant Professor at Ilisimatusarfik – University of Greenland and lead author of the study.

The research also demonstrates how sled-dog culture is adapting to changing conditions, including warming temperatures, shifting sea-ice patterns, and increasing urbanization across Greenland.

The study emphasizes that sled-dog culture is a living tradition, shaped by the people who practice it. Supporting community knowledge and local agency, the authors argue, will be essential for its future.

Article details

Manumina Lund Jensen, Anne Katrine Gjerløff & Mette Mørup Schlütter
From Sled Dogs to Cultural Icons: Human–Qimmit Relations in Greenland
Arctic Anthropology, Vol. 60, Issue 2, February 2026
https://doi.org/10.3368/aa.60.2.228

Media contact

Manumina Lund Jensen
Assistant Professor
Ilisimatusarfik – University of Greenland
[email protected]
+299 48 52 00

Originally published on March 16, 2026 by University of Greenland.