The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Greenland

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This page contains a list of the greatest Greenlandic Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 9 of which were born in Greenland. This makes Greenland the birth place of the 161st most number of Politicians behind Mauritius, and Togo.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Greenlandic Politicians of all time. This list of famous Greenlandic Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Greenlandic Politicians.

Photo of Lars-Emil Johansen

1. Lars-Emil Johansen (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 62.16, Lars-Emil Johansen is the most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages on wikipedia.

Lars-Emil Johansen (born 24 September 1946) is a Greenlandic politician who served as the second prime minister of Greenland from 1991 to 1997, and Speaker of the Inatsisartut from 2013 to 2018. Johansen was chairman of the political party Siumut (Forward) between 1987 and 1997, seated in the Landsting from its creation in 1979. Prior to the creation of the Landsting, he represented Greenland in the Parliament of Denmark from 1973, a position he regained in 2001 and held until 2011. He was also President of the West Nordic Council from 2015 to 2016.

Photo of Jonathan Motzfeldt

2. Jonathan Motzfeldt (1938 - 2010)

With an HPI of 61.67, Jonathan Motzfeldt is the 2nd most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Jonathan Jakob Jørgen Otto Motzfeldt (25 September 1938 – 28 October 2010) was a Greenlandic priest and politician. He is considered one of the leading figures in the establishment of Greenland Home Rule. Jonathan Motzfeldt was the first prime minister of Greenland. He was Greenland's prime minister from 1979 until 1991 and 1997 until 2002. He is Greenland's longest-serving prime minister and won the most elections of any Greenlandic Prime Minister. He is considered a centre-left politician and Greenland became a recognized country during his tenure.

Photo of Hans Enoksen

3. Hans Enoksen (1956 - 2025)

With an HPI of 60.74, Hans Enoksen is the 3rd most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Hans Enoksen (7 August 1956 – 17 September 2025) was a Greenlandic politician who was a member of the Parliament of Greenland beginning in 1995, and was prime minister of Greenland from 2002 to 2009, the third person to hold the position.

Photo of Kuupik Kleist

4. Kuupik Kleist (b. 1958)

With an HPI of 59.23, Kuupik Kleist is the 4th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 35 different languages.

Jakob Edvard Kuupik Kleist (born 31 March 1958) is a Greenlandic politician who served as the fourth prime minister of Greenland between 2009 and 2013. A member of the Inuit Ataqatigiit party, he was the first prime minister not affiliated with Siumut. Since 2018, he has served as the first chairman of the Arctic Indigenous Film Fund.

Photo of Kim Kielsen

5. Kim Kielsen (b. 1966)

With an HPI of 58.75, Kim Kielsen is the 5th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 35 different languages.

Kim Kielsen (born 30 November 1966) is a Greenlandic politician who has served as Speaker of the Inatsisartut since 2025, and as a member of the Inatsisartut since 2005. He was the leader of Siumut from 2014 to 2020, and the 6th Prime Minister of Greenland from 2014 to 2021.

Photo of Aleqa Hammond

6. Aleqa Hammond (b. 1965)

With an HPI of 56.86, Aleqa Hammond is the 6th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  Her biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Aleqa Hammond (born 23 September 1965) is a Greenlandic politician and former member of the Danish Folketing (parliament). Formerly the leader of the Siumut party, she became Greenland's first female prime minister after her party emerged as the largest parliamentary faction in the 2013 elections. In 2014 she stepped down as prime minister and leader of Siumut, following a case of misuse of public funds. She was expelled from Siumut on 23 August 2016 after yet another case of misuse of public funds and became an independent. On 31 March 2018 she announced that she would be running in the 2018 Greenlandic parliamentary election for the Siumut breakaway Nunatta Qitornai.

Photo of Thue Christiansen

7. Thue Christiansen (1940 - 2022)

With an HPI of 54.51, Thue Christiansen is the 7th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Thue Christiansen (25 February 1940 – 26 June 2022) was a Greenlandic teacher, visual artist, and politician. Christiansen is best known as the designer of the current flag of Greenland, which was adopted on 21 June 1985. A trained teacher, Christiansen was elected to the Inatsisartut for Siumut in 1979 when Greenland was granted home rule. He was the Greenlandic Minister of Culture and Education from 1979 until 1983. Christiansen died on 26 June 2022, at his home in Hals, Denmark. He was 82.

Photo of Múte Bourup Egede

8. Múte Bourup Egede (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 51.52, Múte Bourup Egede is the 8th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Múte Inequnaaluk Bourup Egede (Greenlandic: [mut͡sːi inɜquˈnaːluk ˈpou̯ʁɔp ˈeːəðə]; born 11 March 1987) is a Greenlandic politician who served as the 7th Prime Minister of Greenland from 2021 to 2025. He has also served as Chairman of the Inuit Ataqatigiit since December 2018, and a Member of the Inatsisartut since May 2015.

Photo of Jens-Frederik Nielsen

9. Jens-Frederik Nielsen (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 44.70, Jens-Frederik Nielsen is the 9th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Jens-Frederik Nielsen (born 22 June 1991) is a Greenlandic politician and former badminton player who has served as the Prime Minister of Greenland since 2025. He is the leader of the Demokraatit party, and he formerly served as the Minister of Labour and Mineral Resources during the Kielsen VII Cabinet of 2020 to 2021. Nielsen is the first member of the Demokraatit party to hold the office of prime minister.

Photo of Sara Olsvig

10. Sara Olsvig (b. 1978)

With an HPI of 42.35, Sara Olsvig is the 10th most famous Greenlandic Politician.  Her biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Sara Olsvig (born 26 September 1978) is a Greenlandic politician and former leader (2014–2018) of the Inuit Ataqatigiit political party. She occupied one of Greenland's two seats in the Danish Folketing, 15 September 2011 – 15 September 2014. As of 2022, she is chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council.

People

Pantheon has 10 people classified as Greenlandic politicians born between 1938 and 1991. Of these 10, 7 (70.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Greenlandic politicians include Lars-Emil Johansen, Kuupik Kleist, and Kim Kielsen. The most famous deceased Greenlandic politicians include Jonathan Motzfeldt, Hans Enoksen, and Thue Christiansen. As of April 2024, 1 new Greenlandic politicians have been added to Pantheon including Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

Living Greenlandic Politicians

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Deceased Greenlandic Politicians

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Newly Added Greenlandic Politicians (2025)

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Overlapping Lives

Which Politicians were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 3 most globally memorable Politicians since 1700.