Thoughts From a "Lost Canadian" About Nunavut Day

Sadly, I missed Nunavut Day as it was July 9th and commemorates the passage of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement, establishing Canada’s largest and newest territory. This significant day honors the Inuit people’s self-determination and the unique culture of the Canadian Arctic. So, while I missed the actual Nunavut Day, today is a good day to celebrate this modern milestone as well by learning about Inuit traditions, supporting Indigenous businesses, and advocating for northern communities.

• In the Inuktitut language, the word Nunavut means "Our Land."
• Nunavut is the largest Indigenous land settlement in Canadian history. Carved out of the eastern portion of the Northwest Territories, it was created specifically to give the Inuit population self-governance and control over their traditional lands.
• To understand Nunavut’s history, it is important to know the background of the Northwest Territories. In 1870, Rupert’s Land and the Hudson’s Bay Company land were united with Canada and were known as the Northwest Territories. From 1876 till 1895, the Northwest Territories were divided into the provisional districts of Alberta, Keewatin, Athabasca, Franklin, Mackenzie, Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, Yukon, and Ungava.
• In 1880, the North American Arctic Islands claimed by Great Britain were added to the Territories. The Yukon District was separated into a territory in 1898, and the provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta were created in 1905. The boundaries of Keewatin, Mackenzie, and Franklin were defined by an order effective from January 1, 1920.
• The territory of Nunavut was created under Bill C-132 of the Statutes of Canada, assented to on June 10, 1993, and the Act was made effective on April 1, 1999. The map of Canada was also redrawn, with the Northwest Territories partitioned into two territories. This is how Nunavut, the homeland of Canada’s Inuit people, came into being. Consisting of the central and eastern Arctic regions, Nunavut is almost one-fifth of Canada’s total landmass.
• The capital and only community large enough to be called a "city" is Iqaluit on Baffin Island, which has a population of about 8,000.
• Nunavut recognizes four official languages: Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun, English, and French.

You will find my full post about Nunavut Day at this link.