administrative region of Canada, formerly encompassing all the country N of lat 60° N, except Yukon Territory and the northernmost parts of Québec Province and Newfoundland. As of April 1, 1999, the region was divided in two, with the new territory of Nunavut in the E and the remainder, still provisionally known as Northwest Territories, in the W. Unless otherwise indicated, data in this article refer to Northwest Territories as reconstituted in 1999.

Northwest Territories is bounded on the N by the Arctic Ocean; on the S by the provinces of Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia; and on the W by Yukon Territory. The irregular E boundary, dividing Northwest Territories from Nunavut, extends southward from the Arctic Ocean to S central Victoria Island, where it projects westward across the Wollaston Peninsula and Dolphin and Union Strait, reaching the mainland near the NE corner of Tuktut Nogait National Park; from there it follows a generally SE direction to Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary before dropping due S in a line that eventually forms the border between Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The region comprises an extensive mainland and several large Arctic islands, including Banks Island, part of Melville Island, and the W Queen Elizabeth Islands.

The Northwest Territories was acquired by Canada and entered the confederation on July 15, 1870. A vast, sparsely settled region, the Northwest Territories was formerly important mainly as a fur-trapping region. Since the 1950s, however, it has become increasingly significant for its mineral production.

LAND AND RESOURCES

Prior to April 1, 1999, the Northwest Territories, with a land area of 3,293,020 sq km (1,271,437 sq mi), covered more than one-third of Canada; more than 99% of the total was owned by the federal government. The creation of Nunavut, covering a land area of 2,121,102 sq km (818,959 sq mi), left Northwest Territories with an area of 1,171,918 sq km (452,478 sq mi). The area extends from the continental mainland to the Arctic Islands, several of which are larger than Canada's smallest province (Prince Edward Island). The largest island wholly within Northwest Territories is Banks, encompassing 70,028 sq km (27,038 sq mi). Elevations range from sea level to 2773 m (9098 ft) atop an unnamed peak near the Yukon border.

Physical Geography.

The region encompasses a great variety of surface features. The hilly and rocky Canadian Shield, extending into Northwest Territories, is bordered on the W by a N extension of the low-lying Interior Plains of North America. Farther W is the Western Mountain System, a rugged area with peaks averaging about 1524 m (about 5000 ft) in elevation. The islands of the N are characterized by plateaus and hills. Successive glaciations have stripped soil from most areas of the Northwest Territories, and where soil does exist, poor drainage and permanently frozen subsoil (permafrost) generally make it poor. Only in a few places in the S Interior Plains do soils offer any agricultural potential.

Rivers and Lakes.

The Canadian Shield is dotted with countless lakes, which are remnants of the vast ice sheets that once covered the area. At the W edge of the shield region are two of the largest lakes of North America: Great Bear Lake and Great Slave Lake. These two lakes and the majority of the W mainland drain N to the Arctic Ocean by the great Mackenzie R. By far the region's most important river, the Mackenzie flows NW and empties through an extensive delta into Mackenzie Bay. The Thelon R. in the SE is the most important of those flowing E to Hudson Bay.

Climate.

The climate ranges from subarctic to arctic. Long and very cold winters occur in all places; the mean January temperature is below –28.9° C (–20° F), and –51.1° C (–60° F) is often recorded. The lowest temperatures usually occur in the Mackenzie Valley rather than the Arctic Islands, where the climate is moderated by the surrounding waters. Summers in the Arctic Islands and along the continental coast are relatively cool (July average, 4.4° C/40° F) in contrast to the warm temperatures of the Mackenzie Valley and much of the mainland (July average, 15.6° C/60° F). The recorded temperature in the territories has ranged from –57.2° C (–71° F), at Fort Smith in 1917, to 39.4° C (102.9° F), also at Fort Smith in 1941. The sea is ice-covered much of the year, and in the extreme NW for the entire year. The low temperatures and the ice-sealed waters contribute to the low annual precipitation. At least half the precipitation occurs as snow.

Plants and Animals.

The tree line extends diagonally across the Northwest Territories and Nunavut from the mouth of the Mackenzie SE to Hudson Bay just S of the Manitoba border. Much of the area S of this line is treeless, however, because of surface rock in the E and high elevation in the W. Consequently, only about 19% of the total area is forested, and less than one-fourth of that is classified as productive. Spruce, pine, birch, and larch are the dominant trees, and the best stands are found along the Mackenzie R. and its S tributaries. N of the tree line and at higher elevations is arctic tundra, consisting of low shrubs and grasses.

In the forested areas, typical mammals include caribou, moose, grizzly and black bear, wolf, lynx, beaver, marten, and muskrat. A herd of wood bison is established at Wood Buffalo National Park, which straddles the Alberta border. In the tundra are caribou, musk ox, polar bear, and arctic fox. Seal, walrus, and narwhal are important sea mammals. Whales, formerly abundant in Arctic waters, have been reduced by hunting to a population dominated by the relatively small beluga whale. Large numbers of migratory birds nest and raise their young during the short arctic summer, flying S in autumn. The region's freshwater fish include lake trout, whitefish, pickerel, northern pike, arctic char, and grayling.

Mineral Resources.

The Northwest Territories is rich in mineral resources. These include gold and diamonds, found in the vicinity of Yellowknife on the N shore of Great Slave Lake; zinc and lead on the S shore of Great Bear Lake; and petroleum and natural gas in the Mackenzie Valley and the Beaufort Sea.        W.C.W.

POPULATION

According to the 2001 census, the Northwest Territories had 37,360 inhabitants, a decline of 5.8% from 1996. In 1996, 39,672 persons lived within the boundaries of the Northwest Territories as redefined in April 1999, and 24,730 lived within Nunavut.

Within the new boundaries, the overall population density of Northwest Territories was only about 1 person for every 30 sq km (about 1 per 11 sq mi) of land area. The population of the territory in 2001 was comparatively diverse, with 11,225 North American Indians, 4005 Inuit, and some 3680 Métis (persons of mixed aboriginal and European ancestry) living there. English was the lone mother tongue of about 76% of the population; only about 2% had French as their sole first language. In addition to the three main religious groups, Roman Catholic (with 16,940 members), Anglican (5510) and United Church of Canada (2230), 180 persons identified themselves as Muslim. More than 40% of the population lives in Yellowknife, the territorial capital.

EDUCATION AND CULTURAL ACTIVITY

The Northwest Territories has made great strides during the past few decades to provide for a unified educational system; the establishment of cultural facilities, however, has not been pursued with equal speed.

Education.

Missionaries to the Northwest Territories supplied all the educational facilities until the 1950s, when the Canadian government accepted responsibility for the education of the territories' dispersed population. In 1969 the territorial department of education was created, and in the late 1990s the Northwest Territories had 47 elementary and secondary schools with a combined annual enrollment of about 9800 students. Because of the great distances separating small settlements, many of the newer schools were built as centralized residential educational facilities. Aurora College (1995) has its main campus in Fort Smith.

Cultural Institutions.

Because the population in the territories is small and widely distributed, cultural facilities and activities are severely limited. Two museums of note do exist, however: the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre (1979), with exhibits relating to the region's history and culture, in Yellowknife; and the Northern Life Museum and National Exhibition Centre, also with displays pertaining to regional history and the Indian and Inuit cultures, in Fort Smith.

Sports and Recreation.

Fishing, hunting, and boating are the most popular sports in the Northwest Territories, a land filled with lakes and rivers. Yellowknife hosts the annual Caribou Carnival, which includes the Canadian Championship Dog Derby. The region has numerous bird and wildlife sanctuaries.

Communications.

Television and radio programming is locally produced and supplied by satellite. The region had seven newspapers of all types in the late 1990s.

GOVERNMENT

Northwest Territories retained its name and governmental structure immediately following the establishment of Nunavut. A new mace was introduced in 2000, but the extant flag, coat of arms, and constitution remained in place, pending further study.

Executive.

The chief executive of the Northwest Territories is the premier, who presides over an eight-member executive council (cabinet) and the Legislative Assembly. Representing the interests of the federal government is a commissioner, who operates under instructions periodically given by the Canadian governor-general in council or by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.

Legislature.

The unicameral Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly contains 19 seats. Members of the legislature are popularly elected on a nonpartisan basis to serve 4-year terms.

Judiciary.

The highest court is the supreme court, in Yellowknife. The court of appeal, also in Yellowknife, includes appellate judges from Alberta and Saskatchewan, the chief justice of the Northwest Territories and the judges of the supreme court. The territorial court includes small claims, youth, family, and citizenship courts. All judges are appointed by the Canadian governor-general in council.

Local Government.

Northwest Territories consists of two regions, Inuvik and Fort Smith. Local governmental units in the late 1990s included one city (Yellowknife), four towns, one village, ten hamlets, three settlements, and four charter communities.

National Representation.

The Northwest Territories is represented in the Canadian Parliament by one senator appointed by the Canadian governor-general in council, and by one member of the House of Commons, popularly elected to a term of up to five years.

ECONOMY

Since World War II, minerals have displaced furs as the major economic resources of the Northwest Territories. Mining, tourism, commercial fishing, and transportation and service activities now provide the region's economic base. Trapping, although still carried on by some Indians and Inuit throughout the area, is of declining importance. For many indigenous peoples, handicraft work, such as soapstone carving, is now considered more important. The Canadian government supplies more than two-thirds of the annual territorial budget.

Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing.

Arable land is found in the S Northwest Territories. Agriculture, however, is of negligible importance because it is economically unprofitable in the harsh physical environment. A small number of reindeer are raised in the N Mackenzie Valley. Forestry is only of limited importance, with timber cut for local use. Extensive forest tracts in the Slave and Liard river valleys in the S may be significant for the future growth of forestry. Fishing is also not a major sector of the region's economy. Lake trout and whitefish are caught commercially in Great Slave Lake and other lakes.

Mining and Manufacturing.

Mining accounts for more than 25% of the annual gross domestic product in the Northwest Territories. Silver is extracted in the vicinity of Great Bear Lake, and gold in the Yellowknife area. A project to mine diamonds near Lac de Gras, about 300 km (about 186 mi) NE of Yellowknife, was approved in 1996.

Petroleum has been extracted near Norman Wells in the Mackenzie Valley since the 1920s. Natural gas is also produced at this field as well as at others near the S border. Petroleum and natural gas have been found in the Mackenzie delta and offshore in the Beaufort Sea.

The manufacturing sector of the economy is small and mostly limited to the processing of raw materials.

Tourism.

Because of its physical isolation, the Northwest Territories has a small tourist industry, although tens of thousands of tourists do visit the territories annually. Special attractions include excellent sport fishing, unspoiled wilderness areas, and unique arctic landscapes. Two national park areas—Nahanni and Wood Buffalo—provide recreational opportunities.

Transportation.

The waterways of the Northwest Territories provided transportation for the region's early fur trade. Since the 1920s, air transportation has become dominant throughout the area. In addition, roads and one railroad have been constructed in the Mackenzie Valley, where the best developed transportation services are found. Linkage with the Alberta and continental highway systems is provided by the Mackenzie Highway, which extends 127 km (79 mi) N from the Alberta border to Hay River and 435 km (270 mi) down the Mackenzie R. to Fort Simpson. The Liard Highway, which extends SE from Fort Simpson to connect with the Alaska Highway, was officially opened in 1984. The Yellowknife Highway (346 km/215 mi) branches off beyond Hay River to reach the territorial capital, Yellowknife. In 1979 the Dempster Highway linked Inuvik in the Mackenzie delta with Dawson in the Yukon; about 250 km (about 155 mi) of its length is in the territories. RailLink Mackenzie Northern, including the former Great Slave Lake Railway, provides freight service to Hay River.

From the base port of Hay River, tugs and barges operate along the Mackenzie R. and on Great Slave Lake. Tuktoyaktuk, the N terminus of this service, provides an outlet to the Arctic Ocean. The river, however, is ice-free only three or four months a year. Major airports in the Northwest Territories provide flights to Canada's other provincial capitals. An E-W service also links Yellowknife with Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, and with Whitehorse in the Yukon. Yellowknife is the busiest airport; another important airport is located at Inuvik. From these points, smaller “bush planes” provide charter service to all parts of the region. By the mid-1980s improvements had been made to the airports and aviation support services of most communities in the Northwest Territories with populations of more than 100.

Energy.

Electricity-generating plants in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut have a total capacity of 199,000 kw and produce about 570 million kwh of electricity each year. About 45% of the electricity is produced by hydroelectric installations; most of the remaining power is diesel generated. Major hydroelectric plants are located on the Snare R. N of Yellowknife and on the Taltson R. N of Fort Smith. Major diesel-electric plants are located at Inuvik and Yellowknife. Most isolated communities have small diesel plants.        W.C.W.

HISTORY

From the year 1000 to 1350, Europeans from Greenland and Iceland probably made many landfalls on the eastern shores of the Canadian arctic zone, and it is believed that the Scottish-born explorer Sir Henry Sinclair, earl of Orkney (c. 1340–1400), landed on Baffin Island in 1398. The first official explorer of the region was the English navigator Sir Martin Frobisher, who sighted in 1576 what is now known as Frobisher Bay on Baffin Island and mistook it for the entrance to the Northwest Passage between Europe and the Orient. Henry Hudson, John Davis, William Baffin, Luke Foxe (1586–1635), Thomas James (1593?–1635?), and numerous other English explorers traversed the area of Hudson Bay and many of the northern islands from 1585 to 1632 in search of the Northwest Passage. In 1670 the Hudson's Bay Company was given a fur-trading charter by the government of England for the entire Hudson Bay drainage area, then known as Rupert's Land. A company employee, the Canadian explorer Henry Kelsey (1670?–1729?), was the first European to penetrate into the interior of the continent from Hudson Bay.

The Hudson's Bay Co. and its rival, the North West Co. (of Montréal), were responsible for much of the exploration in the region during the 18th century. Peter Pond (1740–1807), an American explorer in the employ of the North West Co., mapped (1768–88) the region of Great Slave Lake. Sir Alexander Mackenzie, a Scottish explorer working for the same company, became the first European (1789) to canoe to the Arctic Ocean down the river that now bears his name. Later he headed west and achieved another first, reaching the Pacific Ocean by land. The British explorer Samuel Hearne (1745–92) of the Hudson's Bay Co. traveled (1770–71) overland from Fort Churchill (in what is now Manitoba) to the mouth of the Coppermine River on the Arctic Ocean.

The search for the Northwest Passage was continued during the 19th century. Many explorers in the employ of the Hudson's Bay Co. and also many official expeditions sponsored by the British government explored (1800–59) most of the Arctic region. The noted British navigator Sir John Franklin explored more than 3200 km (more than 2000 mi) of the Arctic coast; he was lost with his crew while seeking the passage in 1845. The remains of Franklin's ship and crew were not found until 1859; in that interval, about 40 search vessels brought back detailed descriptions of Arctic waters.

From British to Canadian Sovereignty.

In 1870, Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory were transferred to Canada. All the islands in the North American arctic zone that had been claimed by Britain were transferred to Canada in 1880. Portions of this vast region were used to form the province of Manitoba in 1870; the district of Keewatin in 1876; the districts of Franklin and Mackenzie in 1895; and the Yukon Territory in 1898. The provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were formed from the remaining area in 1905, and the newly defined Northwest Territories emerged. In 1912 the boundaries of Manitoba, Ontario, and Québec were extended northward to Hudson Bay and Hudson Strait.

20th-Century Development.

Oil was discovered at Norman Wells in 1920, and during World War II oil production was increased greatly under the Canol project, which was sponsored jointly by the U.S. and Canada. Pitchblende and silver were discovered in 1930 on the eastern shore of Great Bear Lake; radium and uranium from the pitchblende helped make Canada one of the principal world sources of fissionable material. In the Yellowknife area, on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, gold was discovered in 1933; it remains a major source of mining revenue. Another important mineral development occurred at Pine Point, on the south shore of Great Slave Lake. Exploitation of large deposits of high-grade zinc and lead ores vastly increased the value of mineral output.

The seat of government was transferred from Ottawa to Yellowknife in 1967. During the next three decades the territory experienced a great increase in education facilities and public health and welfare programs. A network of radar warning stations, known popularly as the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line and maintained jointly by the U.S. and Canada, extends in part across the Arctic Archipelago and its adjacent waters.

Strong demand for crude petroleum and natural gas prompted exploration along the Canadian frontier in the early 1970s. Major oil and gas discoveries were made in the Mackenzie River delta and in the Beaufort Sea. To facilitate oil and natural-gas exploration in the region, in early 1973 Canada started the construction of an all-weather highway to run from the Alberta-Northwest Territories border to Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic Ocean, east of the mouth of the Mackenzie River. A Canadian-U.S. accord in 1977 permitting construction of the Alcan natural-gas pipeline from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, through the Yukon Territory to the lower U.S., was a victory for environmentalists and natives of the Northwest Territories. They had influenced the defeat of an alternative route, along the Mackenzie River.

Nunavut.

Under a plan announced in December 1991 and approved by referendum in May 1992, the Northwest Territories was reorganized into two separate territories in order to provide a homeland for the Inuit. As of April 1, 1999, the E region became Nunavut, a territory governed by the Inuit and with its capital at Iqaluit (known as Frobisher Bay until 1987). For the time being, the W region kept the name Northwest Territories and the same governmental structure, in part because the tasks of choosing a new name and drafting a new constitution became unexpectedly contentious. In January 2000 the Legislative Assembly chose Stephen Kakfwi (1950–    ) as premier of the Northwest Territories. Following provincial elections in November 2003, the legislature chose Joe Handley (1943–    ) as Kakfwi's successor.      Rev. by P.R., PAUL FREDERIC WILLIAM RUTHERFORD, M.A., Ph.D.

For further information on this topic, see the Bibliography, section 1117. Northwest and Yukon Territories.