Guldborg Chemnitz
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27 January 1919
Guldborg Chemnitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | Marie Guldborg Chemnitz 27 January 1919 Qassimiut, Greenland |
| Died | 2003 (aged 83–84) |
| Occupations | |
| Spouse |
Finn Christoffersen
(m. 1942–1954) |
| Children | 4 |
| Mother | Kathrine Chemnitz |
| Relatives | Lars Chemnitz (brother) |
| Family | Chemnitz family |
| Awards | Order of the Dannebrog, 1987 Nersornaat, 1998 |
Marie Guldborg Chemnitz (27 January 1919 – 2003), known as Guldborg Chemnitz, was a Greenlandic interpreter, politician, and women's rights advocate.[1][2]
Marie Guldborg Chemnitz was born on 27 January 1919 in Qassimiut to Jørgen Niels Peter Chemnitz, an interpreter and member of the Greenland Provincial Council, and Kathrine Chemnitz, a women's rights activist, member of the Greenland Commission and a leading figure in the Union of Greenlandic Women's Associations[a] (APK).[1][3] The eldest of six children, Chemnitz was the elder sister of Jørgen Chemnitz, an interpreter and politician, and Lars Chemnitz, a politician.[3] Through her father Chemnitz was a member of the Greenlandic branch of the Chemnitz family.[4]
In 1934, at the age of 15, she went to Denmark in order to learn Danish.[1] Later returning to Greenland, from 1936 to 1938 Chemnitz studied at the girl's Efterskole in Aasiaat.[1] Through the Committee for the Education of Greenlanders (Komitéen for Grønlænderinders Uddannelse) Chemnitz began studying at a teacher training college in Denmark.[1] However, due to the threat of second world war Chemnitz returned to Greenland in 1939.[1]
Career
In 1948, Chemnitz was appointed as an interpreter to the Legal Expedition (Den juridiske ekspedition), a delegation of three Danish jurists sent by the Greenland Administration to investigate Greenland's legal culture and practices.[1][5][6] Chemnitz also acted as a cultural mediator and research assistant for the jurists.[1] Chemnitz later worked as an interpreter at the High Court of Greenland.[1] From 1951 to 1954 Chemnitz was an elected official of the Nuuk municipal council.[1][7] Chemnitz was elected again in 1983, under the Atassut party.[1]
In 1964, Chemnitz passed the translator exam (Translatøreksamen), making her the first Greenlandic woman to do so.[1] The same year Chemnitz settled in Copenhagen and worked as a translator at the Ministry of Greenland until 1968.[1] Returning to Nuuk, Chemnitz continued her work as a translator at the Secretariat of the Greenland Council until 1972.[1] During 1972 to 1975 Chemnitz was a translator at the Social Research Committee in Copenhagen.[1] Chemnitz briefly worked as a consultant at APK during 1975 to 1976, before becoming the head of secretariat at the Greenland Education Association from 1976 to 1979.[1] From 1979 to 1987, Chemnitz was an interpreter at the High Commissioner of Greenland.[1]
Chemnitz was a chairman of the special Greenland Committee of the Danish Commission of the Status of Women in Society, and was a member of the Danish Equal Status Council.[7] Chemnitz was associated with social research in Greenland and with aiding the understanding between Greenland and Denmark.[7]
Awards
In 1964, Chemnitz was awarded the Antonius Prize (Antoniusprisen) for her work to promote an understanding between Denmark and Greenland.[1]
In 1987, Chemnitz was made a Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog and in 1998 was awarded the Nersornaat in silver.[1]
