History of Nunavut

Prior to the colonization of the continent by Europeans, the lands encompassing present-day Nunavut were inhabited by several historical cultural groups, including the Pre-Dorset, the Dorsets, the Thule and their descendants, the Inuit.

After the Deed of Surrender was signed in 1870, ownership of Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory was transferred from the Hudson's Bay Company to the government of Canada.

The historically dominant model posited by Robert McGhee holds that changes in bowhead whale populations brought about by the Medieval Warm Period drew Thule hunters westward.

[7] While Thule settlers may have adopted Dorset harpoon and hunting technology, there is virtually no evidence confirming contact between the two populations.

Other explorers in search of the elusive Northwest Passage followed in the 17th century, including Henry Hudson, William Baffin and Robert Bylot.

[11] Rudimentary governance and social services were administered via trading posts owned by the HBC or religious organizations led by Christian missionaries.

Despite the Northwest Territories government theoretically exercising control of the region, Nunavut was generally left alone until the aftermath of World War II.

Efforts to assert sovereignty in the High Arctic during the Cold War, i.e. the area's strategic geopolitical position, were part of the reason the federal government decided to forcibly relocate Inuit from northern Quebec to Resolute and Grise Fiord.

They were told that they would be returned home after a year if they wished, but this offer was later withdrawn as it would damage Canada's claims to sovereignty in the area and the Inuit were forced to stay.

Eventually, the Inuit learned the local beluga whale migration routes and were able to survive in the area, hunting over a range of 18,000 km2 (6,900 sq mi) each year.

On April 14, 1982, a plebiscite on division was held throughout the Northwest Territories with a majority of the residents voting in favour and the federal government gave a conditional agreement seven months later.