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Arctic Bay (2006 Population: 690) (Inuktitut syllabics: ᐃᒃᐱᐊᕐᔪᒃ, ikpiarjuk) is an Inuit hamlet located in the northern part of the Borden Peninsula on Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. The 2008 Rand McNally Road Atlas shows a new name of Tununirusiq, but its status as official is not known. Arctic Bay is located in the Eastern Time Zone although it is quite close to the time zone boundary. The predominant languages are Inuktitut and English. As of the 2006 census the population has increased by 6.8% from the 2001 census. The Arctic Bay area has been occupied for nearly 5000 years by Inuit nomads migrating from the west. In 1872, a European whaling ship, the Arctic, captained by Willie Adams, passed through and gave the area its English name. The Inuit name for Arctic Bay is "Ikpiarjuk" which means "the pocket" in English. This name describes the high hills that surround the almost landlocked bay. To the southeast, the flat-topped King George V mountain dominates the landscape of the hamlet. The community is served by annual supply sealift, and by Arctic Bay Airport in emergencies. There is also a road connecting it to Nanisivik, a mining community just inland that is being closed up. Residents had hoped to boost their housing and public facilities with buildings relocated from Nanisivik, but those hopes were dashed due to lead-zinc contamination. However, a church was relocated from Nanisivik to Arctic Bay in April 2007. Scheduled flights to and from Arctic Bay arrive at Nanisivik Airport. Currently, regular flights to the Nanisivik airport are available through First Air from Iqaluit and Resolute. The community is serviced by a single K-12 school, Inuujaq School, that has an enrollment around 200 students. The area is popular for sport hunters coming to hunt polar bears although this may change with the listing of the polar bear as a threatened species. The current mayor is Andrew Taqtu who is well known for his preservation of traditional hunting skills as shown on a BBC film A Boy Amoung Polar Bears. Arctic Bay is home to the annual Midnight Sun Marathon, which is one of the northernmost contests held in the world. It has the lowest tidal range in Canada. Inuujaq school is a kindergarten to grade 12 school. There is also an Arctic College host site where the Nunavut Teachers Education Program (NTEP)is being taught. In 2009 many of the NTEP graduates, who are locals, will become teachers in levels from Kindergarten to grade 7. As the only outsiders in the community are government workers, the student population is almost entirely Inuit and the first language spoken is Inuktitut. Like most high schools in Nunavut, Inuujaq uses the Alberta educational curriculum. However, one challenge faced by educators in this community is that most students read at a lower level, lower than their Albertan counterparts (as of 2007). As with most schools in Nunavut, the school is under the partial authority of the locally elected District Education Authority (DEA) who design policy as well as make decisions regarding discipline, spending, and cultural activities. Inuujaq School was recently involved in a Toronto YMCA exchange (March of 2006). Did a lot of fundraising and then 15 children from Ikpiarjuk made their way to Toronto with two adult community members, for 7 days. Then, 15 people from Toronto traveled to Ikpiarjuk for 9 days to experience the land and culture. While in Arcitc Bay students participated in the annual fishing derby; camping out at Ikpikituarjuk over the May long weekend. Also students enjoyed the 24 hour light experience and an Arctic Bay festival on the ice. Sites visited in Ontario included the CN Tower, the Hockey Hall of Fame, MuchMusic, Niagara Falls, and the Harriet Tubman Church in St. Catharines. Research Tips
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