Snæland
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Snæland | |
|---|---|
Dependency of Norden | |
 Flag | |
| Country |  Norden |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Erik Lassen |
| Area | |
| • Total | 978,662.4 km2 (377,863.7 sq mi) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 148,513 |
| • Density | 0.152/km2 (0.39/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Snælander |
| Time zone | SST |
Snæland (Snælander: qaqortoqnunaat) is an autonomous dependent territory of the Nordic Kingdom located within the North Agric Ocean. The territory is composed of two islands, the eponymous island of Snæland as well as the island of Vesturey where much of the population resides. With a population of only 148,513 people and a land area of 978,662.4 km2 (377,863.7 sq mi), the territory has one of the lowest population densities in Aurorum at just 0.152 people per square kilometre (0.39/sq mi). This low population density is primarily the result of the territory's location which exists almost entirely within the Arctic Circle, at around 66° north of the equator. This location ensures much of the territory is inhospitable, with almost 85% of Snæland covered in a permanent blanket of snow and ice.
Inhabited since the bronze age by Inuit cultures of Alvinia, the islands of Snæland and Vesturey were discovered by Nordic explorer Ornulf Askelsson during the Tenth Century. Thereafter followed the establishment of overseas Nordic colonies and settlements at the behest of the King of Hamarland Halfdal II. Disconnected from Berea, many of these colonies did not survive, and those that did developed independently, establishing a trading relationship with the Inuit tribes with an economy primarily based on fishing and whaling. By the Fourteenth Century however, the King of Vitmärige re-asserted sovereignty over the area by right of his inheritance of Hamarland. In the following centuries Snæland and Vesturey would be passed between Vitmar and Dalish control as they were used as a bargaining chip in negotiations for the many conflicts the two kingdom's endured. However, by the time of the Union of the Crowns in 1527, both islands would be firmly under Dalish authority.