Greenland was named by Erik the Red, an extra-cantankerous Viking, who was kicked out from Norway and Iceland in turn and made landfall in 981 in south Greenland, parts of which are very green and lush (after all, sheep are raised there). It's certainly greener than the north of Iceland which Erik had left but he did have an ulterior motive for choosing the name: he wanted to entice people there. After three years in Greenland, he returned in 986 with 25 ships and 700 people. Fourteen of the ships, with their cargo of humans and animals, arrived and stayed, founding the colonization of Greenland by Europeans.
Iceland was called Iceland probably because of the many small ice masses that break off the big valley glaciers in the southeast of the country and float around in the meltwater lakes at their snouts.
And no, the Greenland ice cap (the Inland Ice) does not look green from a distance. It's pure white and a magnificent sight, whether it's overcast or CAVU.
Rockhound
Last edited by Rockhound; 9th May 2002 at 03:24.