In a year described as one of 'flux' for Greenland, the NGO Greenland Rising is taking a novel approach to showcase the resilience and cultural heritage of the island's Kalaallit people. Co-founded by Ivalu Kajussen and John Toomey, the organization has launched a Piseq (traditional song-poem) contest, aiming to draw attention to the accomplishments of the native Kalaallit culture, which they say is being overshadowed by the machinations of Europe and America.
Twice a week, the group utilizes AI tools such as ChatGPT, Vibe, Pond5, Gemini, and Claude Cowork to create videos depicting native peoples undergoing life transitions—birth, weddings, returns from fishing trips, Mitaartut (Greenland's 'Halloween'), funerals, tribal conclaves, Meetings of the Elders, and Arctic Palerfik (dogsled races). Contestants are invited to write two or three sentences expressing the emotional and psychological essence of each video in their own style. Greenland Rising then translates these into Kalaallisut and formats them as Piseqs with AI assistance. The resulting works are posted in both languages to the group's Substack and to siku.org, the indigenous website for Inuit in Greenland, Canada, and the U.S.
Judges evaluate the submissions, and winners are honored with the Angakkoq Prize, named after the Kalaallit word for Shaman. The contest draws on a rich history of Piseqs, which often emerged from traditional song-poem 'duels.' Historically, when two Kalaallit had a dispute, they would face each other and voice poetic insults, with the rival who 'lost his cool' first being deemed the winner by observing tribal members. The result had permanent legal standing and became part of the tribe's oral tradition. Greenland Rising hopes that Europe and the U.S. might adopt this method to resolve disagreements peacefully.
For those interested in learning more about Piseqs and Greenland's literature, the organization recommends collections such as Collections of Ammassalik Songs by Knud Rasmussen, Greenlandic Oral Traditions: Collection, Reframing, and Reinvention by Kirsten Thisted, and Inuit: the Story of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference by Aqqaluk Lynge. More details about the contest can be found on their Substack at https://theheroaward.substack.com/p/helping-greenland-and-you-too.
