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Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada

Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:City_of_Iqaluit.jpg
Author: ADialla
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Iqaluit is the capital and principal city in the territory of Nunavut in northern Canada. The city covers 52.5 sq km (20.27 sq mi) and has a population of 6,700 people (2012 estimate), making it the smallest capital city in Canada.

Iqaluit was founded by the United States in 1942, during the Second World War. Originally named Frobisher Bay, Iqaluit was initiallyg an airbase for fighter aircrafts to refuel before making the flight across the Atlantic to support the war effort in Europe. At the time it was established, the area was a campsite for the Inuit.

After the United States military left Iqualuit in 1963, the town was administered by the Canadian government and was turned into a logistic center for the eastern Arctic region. This was when a proper town took shape. It had its first election in 1964, and the first mayor was appointed in 1979.

Frobisher Bay was officially renamed Iqaluit on 1 January 1987. The name, which means "place of many fish" in the Inuktitut language, has already been commonly used by the local Inuit population. In 1995, it was selected to be the future capital of Nunavut through a territory-wide referendum, and was given city status in 2001.

Iqaluit experiences an Arctic climate, even though it is well outside the Arctic Circle. Temperatures are usually very low throughout the year. July is the warmest month, but even then, the average high temperature is 11.6°C (52.9°F). January is the coldest month, when the average low temperature drops to -30.6°C (-23.1°F). August receives the most rain while October the most snow.

Visiting Iqaluit

When the weather permits, there are flights by Canadian North between Iqaluit and Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa. First Air also has flights between Iqaluit and Edmonton, Montreal and Ottawa.

Places of Interest in Iqaluit

  1. Baffin Regional Visitor Centre

  2. Crystal II

  3. Iqaluit Public Library

  4. Nunavut Legislature

  5. Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum

  6. St Jude's Anglican Cathedral

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About this website



Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.

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