ß98 W. Thalbitzek 



Ali froöi's information to the efltect that the Eskimo had aheady roamed about 

 in South Greenland at the time лvhen the landnam took place. I imagine that 

 the southernmost Eskimo, that have immigrated before the Icelanders, have 

 been staying on the east coast during the first period of the Scandinavian colo- 

 nization and have therefore remained unknown until they began to appear 

 on the islands and in the fjords of the southern West Greenland, attracted by 

 the memories of the old hunting districts that had been abandoned over there 

 by their ancestors^ After some time of peaceful intercourse with the foreign 

 people strife and fights arose. In the 15th century the Eskimo felt their sup- 

 eriority and at last carried out a planned attack on the scattered families of 

 the decayed colonies of the remaining Norsemen^). But in spite of such events, 

 that have happened sporadically both before and since, there may have existed 

 a fairly close connection between the two people. The Icelander may probably 

 have taken possession of his Eskimo-girl as has certainly later been the custom 

 of the European sailors, and he has had the advantage of being able to keep 

 her on his farm. From the historical tales of the Greenland Eskimo it is evi- 

 dent that the foreigners (the QaLLunaait) have sometimes carried off the Eskimo 

 women^. From the mixed marriages of later times a new race has arisen, though 

 however very small in number; later on the true natives of the country, who^ 

 for a time were suppressed, have triumphed and the few individuals of a mixed 

 race have become merged in the pure Eskimo population which immigrated 

 in constantly increasing numbers. Any visible sign of a foreign mixture had 

 disappeared a century later; Davis and later explorers up to Hans Egede at any 

 rate did not discover a sign of white blood in the natives on this coast. But 

 a mere superficial impression of the external appearance of the people is naturally 

 of hardly any consequence for the science. — 



Besides the Icelandic sources we have the Eskimo traditions about the 

 meeting with the Icelanders in the middle ages and the pursuit of the last 



rious incidents mentioned in Tliorgil's journey along the east coast are very 

 liliely only the half-effaced reminiscences of real experiences or meetings Avith 

 the natives of this coast, showing that the southern part of it was inhabited 

 by the Eskimo already at that time. See especially traits pointing to this on 

 pp. 101, 107, 109 and 117 in the translation of the saga in Grønl. hist. Mindes- 

 mærker, vol. II. 



^) The hunting in South West Greenland has comprised for example reindeer 

 which at that time occurred in quantities in the Julianehaab district according 

 to Ivarr Bäröarson (see Winge 1902, p. 321), cf. the name Hreinsey "the reindeer- 

 island because the reindeer are numerous there" (Ivarr В.), which is identified 

 with the island Akia near the mouth of Julianehaabsfjord (F. Jonsson 1899 pp. 

 292 and 326) ; whereas the reindeer have now long been exterminated both here 

 and on the east coast. 



-) Sometimes also the reverse was the case, namelj^ when the Eskimo carried of 

 a QaLLunaaq-Avoman, see Rink (1866), tale No. 70, pp. 207 — 209. 



^) On the other hand, I do not understand why Solberg (1907) p. Г)6 is of opinion 

 that the Eskimo colonization on the north-eastern coast of Greenland must 

 necessarily stand in indirect connection with the destruction of the Scandinavian 

 colony on the лvest coast, and that in agreement herewith he considers this 

 colonization in the arctic north-east Greenland as an episode dating from the late 

 middle-ages. This is certainly quite independent of these later events and has 

 probabl}' taken place much earlier. As pointed out b}' Nathorst (1900), Isachsen 

 (1903; p. l.')l, Stolpe (190(5) p. 105 and Steensby (1910) it is the Eskimo hunting 

 of musk-oxen which has attracted them from the Canadian archipelago and east- 

 wards north of Greenland rigiit over to tiie East coast. 



