Iqaluit (pronounced [iqɑluit], ᐃᖃᓗᐃᑦ in Inuktitut syllabics; often pronounced /ɨˈkæljuːɨt/ in English) is the territorial capital and the largest community of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Iqaluit is located on the south coast of Baffin Island at the head of Frobisher Bay. As of the 2006 census the population was 6,184, an increase of 18.1 percent from the 2001 census; it has the lowest population of any capital city in Canada. Inhabitants o...
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Iqaluit (pronounced [iqɑluit], ᐃᖃᓗᐃᑦ in Inuktitut syllabics; often pronounced /ɨˈkæljuːɨt/ in English) is the territorial capital and the largest community of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Iqaluit is located on the south coast of Baffin Island at the head of Frobisher Bay. As of the 2006 census the population was 6,184, an increase of 18.1 percent from the 2001 census; it has the lowest population of any capital city in Canada. Inhabitants of Iqaluit are called Iqalummiut (singular: Iqalummiuq). Prior to 1987 the community was named Frobisher Bay.
Founded in 1942 as an American airbase, Iqaluit's first permanent inhabitant was Nakasuk, an Inuk guide who helped American planners to choose the site. One of Iqaluit's elementary schools is named after Nakasuk. Long regarded as a campsite and fishing spot by the Inuit, the place chosen had traditionally been named Iqaluit – "many fish" in Inuktitut – but Canadian and American authorities named it Frobisher Bay, after the name of the...
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