Edna Agnes Ekhivalak Elias (born c. 1955) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
politician from
Kugluktuk
Kugluktuk (, ; Inuktitut syllabics: ; ), formerly known as Coppermine until 1 January 1996, is a hamlet located at the mouth of the Coppermine River in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut, Canada, on Coronation Gulf, southwest of Victoria Island. I ...
,
Nunavut
Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...
. On 12 May 2010 she was appointed as the fourth
commissioner of Nunavut
The commissioner of Nunavut ( iu, ᑲᒥᓯᓇ ᓄᓇᕗᒧᑦ; Inuinnaqtun: ''Kamisinauyuq Nunavunmut''; french: Commissaire du Nunavut) is the Government of Canada's representative in the territory of Nunavut. The current commissioner since Janu ...
by
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...
.
Her term ended on 11 May 2015.
Elias, who was in 2009 appointed to
Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
Uqausinnginnik Taiguusiliuqtiit (the Inuit Language Authority), has also served as the mayor of Kugluktuk and principal of Jimmy Hikok Ilihakvik (primary school), as well as teaching in
Arctic Bay
Arctic Bay ( Inuktitut syllabics: ᐃᒃᐱᐊᕐᔪᒃ, ''Ikpiarjuk'' "the pocket") is an Inuit hamlet located in the northern part of the Borden Peninsula on Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. Arctic Bay is located ...
and working as an
executive assistant
A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...
for
Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated
Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI; , ) is the legal representative of the Inuit of Nunavut for the purposes of native treaty rights and treaty negotiation. The presidents of NTI, Makivik Corporation, Nunatsiavut, and the Inuvialuit Regional Cor ...
in
Cambridge Bay
Cambridge Bay (Inuinnaqtun: ''Iqaluktuuttiaq'' Inuktitut: ᐃᖃᓗᒃᑑᑦᑎᐊᖅ; 2021 population 1,760; population centre 1,403) is a hamlet located on Victoria Island in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is the largest settl ...
.
Prior to division of the
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
in 1999 she was the head of the Department of Culture and Employment's language bureau.
Elias, who is fluent in
Inuinnaqtun
Inuinnaqtun (; natively meaning ''like the real human beings/peoples''), is an indigenous Inuit language. It is spoken in the central Canadian Arctic. It is related very closely to Inuktitut, and some scholars, such as Richard Condon, believe th ...
, has stated that her goal as commissioner will be to promote education and the
Inuit language
The Inuit languages are a closely related group of indigenous American languages traditionally spoken across the North American Arctic and adjacent subarctic, reaching farthest south in Labrador. The related Yupik languages (spoken in western ...
s.
In December 2011, it was announced that Elias, along with Elisabeth Hadlari, Donna Olsen-Hakongak, Crystal Qaumariaq, Jeannie Ehaloak, all of Cambridge Bay, and Jamie McInnis of Calgary would try to raise $70,000 for the Alberta Cancer Foundation to help support breast cancer research and the
Cross Cancer Institute
Cross Cancer Institute is the comprehensive cancer centre for northern Alberta. The institute, named for Wallace Warren Cross, is located in Edmonton near the southwest corner of the University of Alberta, and is one of two tertiary cancer centr ...
in Edmonton. To raise the money the six women planned to walk across the
Coronation Gulf
Coronation Gulf lies between Victoria Island and mainland Nunavut in Canada. To the northwest it connects with Dolphin and Union Strait and thence the Beaufort Sea and Arctic Ocean; to the northeast it connects with Dease Strait and thence Queen M ...
from
Umingmaktok
Umingmaktok (Inuinnaqtun: ''Umingmaktuuq'', "he or she caught a muskox") is a now abandoned settlement located in Bathurst Inlet in the Kitikmeot of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. The community was previously known as Bay Chimo and the Inui ...
to Cambridge Bay, approximately , in May 2012. The group hoped to walk between a day and taking 5 to 6 days to reach Cambridge Bay in time for the Frolics which are held over the
Victoria Day
Victoria Day (french: Fête de la Reine, lit=Celebration of the Queen) is a federal Canadian public holiday celebrated on the last Monday preceding May 25. Initially in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday, it has since been celebrated as the offi ...
weekend. Average temperatures in Cambridge Bay during May are .
Elias was made a Member of the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the ...
in 2019.
She was made a Member of the
Order of Nunavut
The Order of Nunavut (french: Ordre du Nunavut, iu, ᓄᓇᕗᒻᒥ ᐃᓕᓴᖅᓯᔾᔪᑦ ᐅᔭᒥᒃ, italic=no, translit=Nunavumni Ilisaqsijjutujamik, ikt, Nangariyauyunut Nunavunmi) is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian territory ...
in 2010 by virtue of her office as Commissioner of Nunavut.
Elias is the great-granddaughter of
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...
whaler, trapper, and trader,
Christian Klengenberg
Christian Klengenberg Jorgensen ( da, Christian Klengenberg Jørgensen) (21 December 1869 – 4 May 1931), was a Danish whaler, trapper, and trader, active for 34 years in Alaska (Point Hope and Utqiagvik) and Northern Canada (Herschel Island, t ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elias, Edna
1950s births
Living people
Commissioners of Nunavut
Inuit politicians
People from Kugluktuk
Mayors of Kugluktuk
Canadian people of Danish descent
Women mayors of places in Nunavut
Canadian Inuit women
Inuit from the Northwest Territories
Inuit from Nunavut
Members of the Order of Canada