Wanderlust World Wanderlust World When it comes to islands, Greenland stands alone at the top. Spanning approximately 2,166,086 square kilometers (836,330 square miles), it is the largest island on Earth—nearly three times the size of Texas.
Greenland sits between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, northeast of Canada and northwest of Iceland. Despite its massive size, about 80% of its surface is covered by a permanent ice sheet, leaving only the coastal fringes habitable.
Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. It governs most of its domestic affairs, while Denmark handles defense and foreign policy. The capital, Nuuk, is home to roughly one-third of the island's 56,000 residents.
Greenland's strategic location and vast natural resources (rare earth minerals, potential oil, and fisheries) have drawn increasing global attention. Its melting ice sheet also makes it a critical focal point for climate change research and sea-level rise projections.
Though often mistaken for a continent due to its size, Greenland is definitively an island—and the largest one by a wide margin.