The water masses and circulation in the area of the Northeast Water Polynya, located on the East Greenland Shelf north of 79¿N, are described on the basis of an R/V Polarstern cruise during spring and summer 1993. The baroclinic flow shows northward components close to the East Greenland coast and eastward components at the northern limit of the polynya. An anticyclonic half circle is formed by this and the southward flowing East Greenland Current. In the south the circle is not closed. The upper water column, occupied by Polar Water, is affected by this circulation pattern, while deeper waters in the trough system of the area seem to spread independently. Different types of deep waters are found in different troughs, all being of Atlantic origin, though they seem not to be directly connected to Return Atlantic Water. It is shown that what is called Polar Water must be formed, at least partly, on the Greenland Shelf and that deepwater formation does not occur in the investigated area. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1995