Geography of Nunavut

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The Canadian territory of Nunavut covers about 1.9 million square kilometres of land and water including part of the mainland, most of the Arctic Islands, and all of the islands in Hudson Bay, James Bay, and Ungava Bay (including the Belcher Islands) which belonged to the Northwest Territories. This makes it the fourth largest subnational entity (statoid) in the world. If Nunavut were a country, it would rank 13th in area, after the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Nunavut has land borders with the Northwest Territories on several islands as well as the mainland, and a tiny land border with Newfoundland and Labrador on Killiniq Island.

The creation of Nunavut created Canada's only "four corners", at the intersection of the boundaries of Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, at 60°00' north, 102°00' west, on the southern shore of Kasba Lake. This is not the tourist spot it might be, as it is extremely remote and inaccessible, although there is a marker (albeit an out of date one) at the point, and some have made the trek. Nunavut's borders apear as though they were influenced by the shape of the Inukshuk, a symbol of Inuit heritage, but this is not the case. The border between Nunavut and the NWT reflect land claims agreements, while the provincial/territorial borders are those remaining from before division.

[edit] Physical geography

The highest point in Nunavut is Barbeau Peak on Ellesmere Island at a height of 2616 metres (8583 ft).

Geologically, Nunavut lies on the Canadian shield, with very thin soil lying on top of the bedrock, and many bare outcrops. This arrangement was caused by severe glaciation during the last ice age, which covered the Shield and scraped the rock clean. The extreme age of the base rock (Precambrian Era, over 540 million years old) is one the main factors for the rich veins of ores and minerals that have been found in the territory. The multitude of rivers and lakes in the entire region is caused by the watersheds of the area being so young and in a state of sorting themselves out with the added effect of post-glacial rebound. Virtually all of Nunavut's rivers drain into the Hudson Bay or the Arctic Ocean.

Arctic tundra (Koppen climate classification ET) covers virtually all of Nunavut, the only exceptions being a tiny area in the extreme southwest near the "four corners" alluded to above, where a marginal taiga forest exists, and small zones of permanent ice caps, found on some of the larger Arctic Islands (especially Baffin, Devon and Ellesmere) at sites having a relatively high elevation. Nunavut's vegetation is partially composed of rare berries, lichens, Arctic Willows, moss, tough grass, and small willow shrubs.

[edit] Demographics

See also List of communities in Nunavut

As of 2005, Nunavut has a population of approximately 30,000, of whom around 85% are native peoples, primarily Inuit. Nunavut's small and sparse population makes it unlikely the territory will be granted provincial status in the foreseeable future, although this may change if the Yukon, which is only marginally more populous, becomes a province.

10 Largest communites

Municipality	2001	1996
Iqaluit	5,236	4,220
Rankin Inlet	2,177	2,058
Arviat	1,899	1,559
Baker Lake	1,507	1,385
Cambridge Bay	1,309	1,351
Igloolik	1,286	1,174
Pangnirtung	1,276	1,243
Pond Inlet	1,220	1,154
Kugluktuk	1,212	1,201
Cape Dorset	1,148	1,118

It is a commonly-held misconception that Nunavut is made up of some of the former regions of the Northwest Territories, separated in their entirety. This is not the case; the dividing line did not follow region boundaries, although boundaries have been subsequently finessed so that three former NWT regions collectively constitute Nunavut. They serve as census divisions, but have no autonomous governments:

• Qikiqtaaluk Region (formerly "Baffin Region")
• Kivalliq Region (formerly "Keewatin Region")
• Kitikmeot Region

The former NWT's Baffin region was entirely transferred to Nunavut. The former Kitikmeot region is mostly in Nunavut, except two southwestern areas and the northwest corner of Victoria Island. Likewise, the former Keewatin region is largely in Nunavut, except a southwestern rectangle.

Fort Smith region and Inuvik region remain census divisions of the Northwest Territories. A small right triangle of the former Fort Smith region is in Nunavut now, while none of the Inuvik region was transferred to Nunavut.

The aforementioned regional divisions are distinct from the district system of dividing the Northwest Territories that dated to 1876 and was abolished when Nunavut was created. Nunavut encompasses the entirety of the District of Keewatin (which had differing boundaries from the Keewatin/Kivalliq regions), the majority of the District of Franklin and a small portion of the District of Mackenzie.

v • d • e Geography of the Provinces and territories of Canada
National	Geography of Canada • Canada's landforms
Provinces	British Columbia • Alberta • Saskatchewan • Manitoba • Ontario • Quebec • New Brunswick • Nova Scotia • Prince Edward Island • Newfoundland and Labrador
Territories	Yukon • Northwest Territories • Nunavut
See also	Regions of Canada • Islands • Rivers • Lakes • Mountains • Canadian National Parks