[10] John Simpson's native map dated 1855 has the name "Otkiawik", which was later misprinted on a British Admiralty chart as "Otkiovik.

Following a referendum approved by residents on October 6, 2016, the city's name was formally changed from Barrow to Utqiaġvik on December 1, 2016.

[12][13][14][15] City Council member Qaiyaan Harcharek said the name change supports the use of the Iñupiaq language and is part of a decolonization process.

Hundreds of years before the European Arctic explorers showed up... Barrow was more or less where it is now, a natural hunting place at the base of a peninsula that pokes out into the Beaufort Sea... Yankee whalers sailed here, learning about the bowhead whale from Iñupiat hunters... Later, the military came, setting up a radar station, and in 1947 a science center was founded at Barrow.

In 1935, famous humorist Will Rogers and pilot Wiley Post made an unplanned stop at Walakpa Bay, 15 mi (24 km) south of Utqiagvik, en route to the city.

Natural gas lines were brought to the town in 1965, eliminating the need for traditional heating sources such as whale blubber.

[22] During the Duck-in, the Iñupiat protested a federal hunting ban on ducks, which threatened their livelihood and access to food security.

[23] In 1988, Utqiagvik became the center of worldwide media attention when three California gray whales became trapped in the ice offshore.

No wind barriers or protected valleys exist where dense cold air can settle or form temperature inversions in the lower atmosphere, as commonly happens in the interior between the Brooks and the Alaska ranges.

Although Utqiagvik rarely records the lowest temperatures statewide during cold waves, extremely low wind chill and "white out" conditions from blowing snow are prevalent.

Even Sable Island, at around 44 degrees latitude and under the influence of the Gulf Stream, received 44 in (110 cm), or 20 percent more snowfall than Utqiagvik.

October is usually the month with the heaviest snowfall, with measurable amounts occurring on over half the days and a 1991−2020 normal total accumulation of 10.3 in (26 cm).

When the sun sets on November 18, it stays below the horizon until January 23, resulting in a polar night that lasts about 66 days.

[23][36] The Arctic region is warming at a rate that is three times the global average,[46] forcing major adjustments to life on the North Slope with regard to hunting and whaling practices over the prior millennium, as well as to habitation.

According to Dr. Harold Wanless of the University of Miami, an anticipated rise in sea level and consequent global warming is inevitable, meaning the existence of Utqiagvik at its current location is doomed in the relative geological short term.

Whale, seal, polar bear, walrus, waterfowl, caribou, and fish are harvested from the coast or nearby rivers and lakes.

[citation needed] The ABC TV special The Night They Saved Christmas was filmed here and first aired on December 13, 1984.

[60] Fran Tate, a local restaurant owner, was a frequent guest by telephone on a Chicago radio program, the Steve and Johnnie Show on WGN, during the 1990s.

A commercially successful film, named after and based upon the comic, was released on October 19, 2007, followed by a straight-to-video sequel on July 23, 2010.

[citation needed] Big Miracle, a 2012 film starring Drew Barrymore, is based on the true story of whales trapped under ice near Point Barrow and features scenes in and characters from the town.

[citation needed] In 2015, the NFL Network began an eight-part documentary series focusing on the Barrow High School Whalers football team.

[62] In 2023, the location was chosen as the starting point for season 8 of Nebula and YouTube series Jet Lag: The Game, a travel competition show.

The historic game, which was attended by former Miami Dolphins player Larry Csonka, was the first live Internet broadcast of a sporting event in the United States from north of the Arctic Circle.

[67] In 2017, the Barrow High School football team won its first-ever state championship by beating the Homer Mariners 20–14.

[70] The Whalers' boys' basketball team finished the 2014–2015 season with a 24–3 record, the highest win percentage in school history.

KBRW is also broadcast via FM repeaters in all of the North Slope Borough villages, from Kaktovik to Point Hope.

[76] Utqiagvik is served by Alaska Airlines with passenger jet service at the Wiley Post–Will Rogers Memorial Airport to and from Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Freight arrives by air cargo year-round and by ocean-going marine barges during the annual summer sealift.

Samuel Simmonds Memorial Hospital, located in the City of Utqiagvik, is the primary healthcare facility for the North Slope region of Alaska.

Because no roads lead in or out of Utqiagvik, individuals in surrounding communities and towns (including Point Hope, Prudhoe Bay, and Wainwright) must be airlifted in by plane, helicopter, or air ambulance.