Ivujivik, Quebec
Encyclopedia
Ivujivik is the northernmost settlement in the Canadian Province of Quebec
. It is also the northernmost settlement in any Canadian province. All settlements farther north are in territories.
region of the province, some 2000 kilometres (1,242.7 mi) north of Montreal
. It is only 28 kilometres (17.4 mi) south-west from Cape Wolstenholme
, the northern-most tip of the Ungava Peninsula
, which is in turn the northern-most part of the Labrador Peninsula
. It is near Digges Sound
, where Hudson Strait
meets Hudson Bay
. The municipal boundaries include an area of 35.21 square kilometers.
The area is ice-free for 20 working days a year in the summer. There are no road links to the North American road system, nor is this (or any other) Nunavik community linked by road to any of the other villages in the region. The village is served by Ivujivik Airport
.
The village itself is located on a small sandy cove between imposing cliffs that drop steeply into Digges Sound. Here the strong currents from Hudson Bay and the Hudson Strait clash, sometimes even crushing trapped animals between the ice floes. Directly north across the sound are West and East Digges Islands
. Further north in the Hudson Strait are Nottingham
and Salisbury Islands.
. (The data was not available for 2006.) As with many Inuit
villages, there is a large youth contingent. 42.9% of the population is below the age of fifteen. The median age is 19.1.
As of 2001, unemployment was at 18.2 percent. The median income for the same census was $14,624 (in Canadian dollars.) 72 percent of the workforce walked or biked to work. (This information for 2006 is not yet available.)
Population trend:
, ancestors of today's Inuit
, from Baffin Island. This place would have been the starting point of Inuit migration into Quebec, explaining the presence of the Inuit along the coast of Hudson Bay. On nearby Digges Island was the spot of the first encounter between Europeans and the Inuit of Nunavik. This occurred in 1610 on Henry Hudson
's last mission.
The Hudson's Bay Company
established a trading post on Erik Cove near Cape Wolstenholme in 1909. A Catholic mission was established on the village's current site in 1938. But both locations only remained seasonal camps. In 1947, the HBC post at Erik Cove closed and a new outpost was set up in Ivujivik. This marked the beginning of the modern village as nomadic Inuit finally began to settle permanently. Not until the 1960s began the Government of Canada delivering of health and social services. In 1962, the Inuit established a cooperative that has allowed the community to better structure its local economy and develop new activities such as sculpture, crafts, and tourism focusing on hunting and fishing.
This was one of several Inuit villages that refused to sign the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement
. In protest, they formed the Inuuqatigiit Tunngavingat Nunamini (ITN) movement. Nonetheless, it is represented today (together with most other communities in the region) by the Kativik Regional Government
.
attack outside the local youth center by sacrificing her body in place of the children. A local hunter named Sirqualuk Ainalik heard and ran towards the sounds and took a rifle and saved her by shooting the bear down as it attacked Lydia. The reason she managed to fight off the bear is thought to have been because of a phenomenon called hysterical strength
. The presence of a polar bear in a populated area is an unusual occurrence. Angiyou was awarded the Medal of Bravery by the Governor General
for her actions.
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. It is also the northernmost settlement in any Canadian province. All settlements farther north are in territories.
Geography
Ivujivik is located in the NunavikNunavik
Nunavik comprises the northern third of the province of Quebec, Canada. Covering a land area of 443,684.71 km² north of the 55th parallel, it is the homeland of the Inuit of Quebec...
region of the province, some 2000 kilometres (1,242.7 mi) north of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. It is only 28 kilometres (17.4 mi) south-west from Cape Wolstenholme
Cape Wolstenholme
Cape Wolstenholme is the extreme northern-most point of the Canadian province of Quebec. Located on the Hudson Strait, about north-east of Quebec's northern-most settlement of Ivujivik, it is also the northern-most tip of the Ungava Peninsula, which is in turn the northern-most part of the...
, the northern-most tip of the Ungava Peninsula
Ungava Peninsula
The Ungava Peninsula of Nunavik, Quebec, Canada, is bounded by Hudson Bay to the west, Hudson Strait to the north, and Ungava Bay to the east. The Ungava Peninsula is part of the Labrador Peninsula and covers about 252,000 km²...
, which is in turn the northern-most part of the Labrador Peninsula
Labrador Peninsula
The Labrador Peninsula is a large peninsula in eastern Canada. It is bounded by the Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the south-east...
. It is near Digges Sound
Digges Sound
Digges Sound is a Canadian Arctic waterway in Qikiqtaaluk, Nunavut, Canada. The sound is located at the juncture where the Hudson Strait meets northeastern Hudson Bay close to the northern tip of the Ungava Peninsula, between Digges Islands and Cape Wolstenholme...
, where Hudson Strait
Hudson Strait
Hudson Strait links the Atlantic Ocean to Hudson Bay in Canada. It lies between Baffin Island and the northern coast of Quebec, its eastern entrance marked by Cape Chidley and Resolution Island. It is long...
meets Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
. The municipal boundaries include an area of 35.21 square kilometers.
The area is ice-free for 20 working days a year in the summer. There are no road links to the North American road system, nor is this (or any other) Nunavik community linked by road to any of the other villages in the region. The village is served by Ivujivik Airport
Ivujivik Airport
Ivujivik Airport, , is located on the shore of Hudson Bay in Ivujivik, Quebec, Canada....
.
The village itself is located on a small sandy cove between imposing cliffs that drop steeply into Digges Sound. Here the strong currents from Hudson Bay and the Hudson Strait clash, sometimes even crushing trapped animals between the ice floes. Directly north across the sound are West and East Digges Islands
Digges Islands
The Digges Islands are members of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago in the territory of Nunavut. The two islands, West Digges and East Digges, are located in Digges Sound, an arm of Hudson Bay, where the strong currents of the bay meet Hudson Strait.The hamlet of Ivujivik, on the Ungava Peninsula,...
. Further north in the Hudson Strait are Nottingham
Nottingham Island
Nottingham Island is an uninhabited island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Hudson Strait, just north of the entrance into Hudson Bay.-History:...
and Salisbury Islands.
Demographics
As of the 2006 census, the population was 349. This represents a growth of over 17% in five years, the population having been 298 in 2001. They are divided into 63 households, all families, living in a total of 68 dwellings. The population density is 9.9 persons per square kilometer. In 2001, 285 of the 298 (about 96%) persons were considered aboriginalAboriginal peoples in Canada
Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
. (The data was not available for 2006.) As with many Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
villages, there is a large youth contingent. 42.9% of the population is below the age of fifteen. The median age is 19.1.
As of 2001, unemployment was at 18.2 percent. The median income for the same census was $14,624 (in Canadian dollars.) 72 percent of the workforce walked or biked to work. (This information for 2006 is not yet available.)
Population trend:
- Population in 2006: 349
- Population in 2001: 298
- Population in 1996: 274
- Population in 1991: 263
History
Archaeological dating estimates nearly 3000 years since the arrival in the area of Thule PeopleThule people
The Thule or proto-Inuit were the ancestors of all modern Inuit. They developed in coastal Alaska by AD 1000 and expanded eastwards across Canada, reaching Greenland by the 13th century. In the process, they replaced people of the earlier Dorset culture that had previously inhabited the region...
, ancestors of today's Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, from Baffin Island. This place would have been the starting point of Inuit migration into Quebec, explaining the presence of the Inuit along the coast of Hudson Bay. On nearby Digges Island was the spot of the first encounter between Europeans and the Inuit of Nunavik. This occurred in 1610 on Henry Hudson
Henry Hudson
Henry Hudson was an English sea explorer and navigator in the early 17th century. Hudson made two attempts on behalf of English merchants to find a prospective Northeast Passage to Cathay via a route above the Arctic Circle...
's last mission.
The Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
established a trading post on Erik Cove near Cape Wolstenholme in 1909. A Catholic mission was established on the village's current site in 1938. But both locations only remained seasonal camps. In 1947, the HBC post at Erik Cove closed and a new outpost was set up in Ivujivik. This marked the beginning of the modern village as nomadic Inuit finally began to settle permanently. Not until the 1960s began the Government of Canada delivering of health and social services. In 1962, the Inuit established a cooperative that has allowed the community to better structure its local economy and develop new activities such as sculpture, crafts, and tourism focusing on hunting and fishing.
This was one of several Inuit villages that refused to sign the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement
James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement
The James Bay And Northern Quebec Agreement was an Aboriginal land claim settlement, approved in 1975 by the Cree and Inuit of northern Quebec, and later slightly modified in 1978 by the Northeastern Quebec Agreement, through which Quebec's Naskapi First Nations joined the treaty...
. In protest, they formed the Inuuqatigiit Tunngavingat Nunamini (ITN) movement. Nonetheless, it is represented today (together with most other communities in the region) by the Kativik Regional Government
Kativik Regional Government
Kativik redirects here. For the statistical area, see Kativik .The Kativik Regional Government encompasses most of the Nunavik region of Quebec. Nunavik is the northern half of the Nord-du-Québec administrative region and includes all the territory north of the 55th parallel...
.
2006 bear attack
In February of 2006, Ivujivik resident Lydia Angiyou saved her seven year old son and two of his friends from a polar bearPolar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
attack outside the local youth center by sacrificing her body in place of the children. A local hunter named Sirqualuk Ainalik heard and ran towards the sounds and took a rifle and saved her by shooting the bear down as it attacked Lydia. The reason she managed to fight off the bear is thought to have been because of a phenomenon called hysterical strength
Hysterical strength
Hysterical strength describes displays of extreme strength by humans, beyond what is believed to be normal. It is a speculative term that is not recognized in medical academia; the concept has only a small body of anecdotal evidence to support it....
. The presence of a polar bear in a populated area is an unusual occurrence. Angiyou was awarded the Medal of Bravery by the Governor General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
for her actions.