Catholic Church in Greenland first churches in the western hemisphere, and after much effort the people of Greenland received a bishop. The church thrived with the Norse colony which saw its peak in the 14th century, and had an active relationship with Scandinavia and the European continent; the church also participated in the European exploration of the Americas. The abandonment of the colony around 1450 ended any church presence in Greenland and the Protestant Reformation in Denmark effectively shut Greenland from any Catholic presence until the 20th century, when freedom of religion was declared and a small permanent Catholic presence reestablished. Catholicism was introduced
Basque Country (autonomous community) designer; Cristóbal Balenciaga, fashion designer; Xabi Alonso and Mikel Arteta, footballers; Edurne Pasaban, first woman to climb all of the fourteen eight-thousander peaks in the World; Elena Arzak, best female chef in the world (2012); Jon Kortajarena male model; Jose-Maria Cundin, artist; Fernando Savater philosopher; Miguel de Unamuno, essayist, novelist, poet, playwright, philosopher. Basque Country (autonomous community) The Basque Country (; ; ; ), officially the Basque Autonomous Community (, EAE; , CAV) is an autonomous community in northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay, and Gipuzkoa. The Basque Country or Basque Autonomous Community was granted the