Wilhelm August Graah

Wilhelm August Graah was a Danish naval officer and Arctic explorer. He was sent by King Frederick VI of Denmark to explore the east coast of Greenland and search for the lost Norse settlements. He sailed from Copenhagen in 1828 and reached Greenland in 1829. He used umiaks (skin boats) to navigate along the coast, encountering many difficulties and dangers from the ice, the weather, and the Inuit. He reached as far as 65° 18′ N, where he named an island Dannebrog Island, but he could not find any traces of the Norse. He returned to the west coast in 1830 and published his account of the expedition in 1832. He named the east coast King Frederick VI Coast and mapped about 550 km of previously unknown territory. He also described the culture and language of the east Greenland Inuit, who are now extinct. He died in Copenhagen in 1863.