Map of Nunavut
Nunavut is a first-level division of Canada. Its largest mapped city is Iqaluit, with about 6,124 people in the metropolitan area. The interactive map below is centred on Nunavut, and the tables list its 22 mapped cities along with the mountains, lakes, ports nearest to them.
- Cities Mapped
- 22
- Largest City
- Iqaluit
- Country
- Canada
- Highest Point Mapped
- 2,143 m
Interactive Map of Nunavut
About Nunavut
Nunavut is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated from the Northwest Territories in 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, which provided this territory to the Inuit for self-government. The boundaries were drawn in 1993. The creation of Nunavut resulted in the first major change to Canada's political map in half a century since the province of Newfoundland, known as Newfoundland and Labrador since 2001, was admitted in 1949.
Nunavut comprises a major portion of Northern Canada and most of the Arctic Archipelago. Its vast territory makes it the fifth-largest country subdivision in the world. Nunavut's capital and Canada's smallest capital by population, Iqaluit, formerly "Frobisher Bay", on Baffin Island in the east, was chosen by the 1995 Nunavut capital plebiscite. Other major communities include the regional centres of Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay.
Nunavut includes Ellesmere Island in the far north, the eastern and southern portions of Victoria Island in the west, and all islands in Hudson Bay, James Bay and Ungava Bay, including the western portion of Killiniq Island in the southeast and Akimiski Island far to the south of the rest of the territory. Nunavut is Canada's only geopolitical region that is not connected to the rest of North America via the Pan-American Highway.
Nunavut is the least densely populated major country sub-division in the world, not considering Antarctica, being even less densely populated than Greenland. With a population of 36,858 as of the 2021 Canadian census, up from 35,944 in 2016, consisting mostly of Inuit, and a land mass almost as large as Mexico, Nunavut's land area of 1,836,993.78 km2 (709,267.26 sq mi) has a population density of 0.022/km2 (0.056/sq mi).
Alert, Nunavut, is the world's northernmost continuously inhabited place. Eureka, a weather station on Ellesmere Island, has the lowest average annual temperature of any Canadian weather station.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Nunavut (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Nunavut in Depth
History
The region which is now mainland Nunavut was first populated approximately 4,500 years ago by the Pre-Dorset, a diverse Paleo-Eskimo culture that migrated eastward from the Bering Strait region.
The Pre-Dorset culture was succeeded by the Dorset culture about 2,800 years ago. Anthropologists and historians believe that the Dorset culture developed from the Pre-Dorset.
Helluland, which Norse explorers described visiting in their Sagas of Icelanders, has been associated with Nunavut's Baffin Island. Claims of contact between the Dorset and Norse are controversial.
The Thule people, ancestors of the modern Inuit, began migrating from Alaska in the 11th century into the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. By 1300, the geographic extent of Thule settlement included most of modern Nunavut.
Geography
Nunavut covers 1,836,993.78 km2 (709,267.26 sq mi) of land and 160,930 km2 (62,137 sq mi) of water in Northern Canada. The territory includes a substantial part of the mainland, most of the Arctic Archipelago, and the waters and islands of Hudson Bay, James Bay, and Ungava Bay; this includes the distant Belcher Islands and Akimiski Island, which were part of the Northwest Territories from which Nunavut was separated. This makes it the fifth-largest subnational entity or administrative division in the world. If Nunavut were a country, it would rank 15th in area.
Economy
The economy of Nunavut is driven by the Inuit and Territorial Government, mining, oil, gas, and mineral exploration, arts, crafts, hunting, fishing, whaling, tourism, transportation, housing development, military, research, and education. One college operates in Nunavut, the Nunavut Arctic College, and several Arctic research stations are located within the territory. The new Canadian High Arctic Research Station CHARS is planning for Cambridge Bay and high north Alert Bay Station.
Iqaluit hosts the annual Nunavut Mining Symposium every April, a trade show that showcases the many economic activities ongoing in Nunavut.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Nunavut (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Nunavut: Key Facts
| Population | 36,858 (2021) |
|---|---|
| Area | 2,038,722 km² |
| Capital | Iqaluit |
| Head of government | P.J. Akeeagok |
| Highest point | Barbeau Peak |
| Established | 1 April 1999 |
Facts from Wikidata Q2023 (CC0).
History of Nunavut: Empires and States
The atlas records 3 polities whose mapped territory included part of Nunavut, from British Colonial Empire in 1911 CE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.
| Polity | Period here |
|---|---|
| British Colonial Empire | 1911–1931 CE |
| The British Empire | 1911–1931 CE |
| Canada | 1932–2024 CE |
Historical Maps of Nunavut
Nunavut on the world map in each year one of these states held it:
Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.
Visiting Nunavut
Nunavut is a territory in northern Canada which contains Canada's northernmost lands. With only 37,000 inhabitants, Nunavut covers a land area larger than Mexico, divided between mainland North America and an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean.
As of 2016, almost 85% of the people are part of an indigenous group called the Inuit. They used to be called Eskimos, but this word is no longer used in Canada, and is considered offensive by some. The singular form of "Inuit" is "Inuk" ("he is Inuk" vs "they are Inuit").
Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Nunavut (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Largest Cities in Nunavut
22 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.
| # | Name | Population | Region | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iqaluit | 6,124 | Nunavut | Admin-1 capital |
| 2 | Rankin Inlet | 2,472 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 3 | Arviat | 1,868 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 4 | Igloolik | 1,612 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 5 | Baker Lake | 1,584 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 6 | Pond Inlet | 1,549 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 7 | Cambridge Bay | 1,477 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 8 | Cape Dorset | 1,326 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 9 | Pangnirtung | 1,320 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 10 | Kugluktuk | 1,302 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 11 | Gjoa Haven | 1,109 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 12 | Naujaat | 1,000 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 13 | Coral Harbour | 834 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 14 | Taloyoak | 774 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 15 | Hall Beach | 654 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 16 | Arctic Bay | 604 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 17 | Kimmirut | 385 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 18 | Chesterfield Inlet | 374 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 19 | Resolute | 250 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 20 | Alert | 125 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 21 | Grise Fiord | 23 | Nunavut | Populated place |
| 22 | Ennadai | — | Nunavut | Historic place |
Highest Mountains in Nunavut
2 mountains mapped. Ranked by summit elevation above sea level. A summit on a border is listed under both countries. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Elevation | Feet | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mount Odin | 2,143 m | 7,031 ft | North America |
| 2 | Qiajivik Mtn | 1,963 m | 6,440 ft | North America |
Largest Lakes in Nunavut
6 lakes mapped. Ranked by mapped surface area. A lake on a border is listed under each country it lies in, with the area of the whole lake. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Surface Area | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nueltin Lake | 2,463 km² | Lake |
| 2 | Baker Lake | 1,867 km² | Lake |
| 3 | Aberdeen Lake | 1,833 km² | Lake |
| 4 | Kasba Lake | 1,455 km² | Lake |
| 5 | Tehek Lake | 522 km² | Lake |
| 6 | Washburn Lake | 254 km² | Lake |
Ports in Nunavut
5 ports mapped. Ranked by approach channel depth, the figure that limits which ships can call. Harbours link to their write-up on the page of the sea or coast they lie on. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Channel Depth | Class | Sea | Max Vessel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Resolute Bay | 31.1 m | Very Small | Arctic Canada, Hudson Bay & Greenland | point_of_interest |
| 2 | Pond Inlet | 5.5 m | Minor | Arctic Canada, Hudson Bay & Greenland | point_of_interest |
| 3 | Cape Young | — | Very Small | Alaska, British Columbia & Bering Sea | point_of_interest |
| 4 | Bernard Harbor | — | Small | Arctic Canada, Hudson Bay & Greenland | point_of_interest |
| 5 | Lady Franklin Point | — | Very Small | Arctic Canada, Hudson Bay & Greenland | point_of_interest |
Nunavut: Quick Answers
- Where is Nunavut?
- Nunavut is a first-level division of Canada, in North America. Its mapped cities centre on 67.8580° N, 86.3493° W.
- What is the largest city in Nunavut?
- Iqaluit is the largest city mapped in Nunavut, with a metropolitan population of about 6,124.
- How many cities are in Nunavut?
- YearMaps maps 22 cities and towns in Nunavut, with a combined metropolitan population of about 26,766. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.
- What is the highest mountain in Nunavut?
- The highest summit mapped in Nunavut is Mount Odin at 2,143 m.
- What is the largest lake in Nunavut?
- The largest lake mapped in or beside Nunavut is Nueltin Lake, at about 2,463 km².