Akulivik ( iu, ᐊᑯᓕᕕᒃ) ( 2021 population 642) is an

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 Territorie ...

village in

Nunavik Nunavik (; ; iu, ᓄᓇᕕᒃ) comprises the northern third of the province of Quebec, part of the Nord-du-Québec region and nearly coterminous with Kativik. Covering a land area of north of the 55th parallel, it is the homeland of the ...

, in northern

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

, Canada. It is located on a peninsula that juts southwesterly into

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay ( crj, text=ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, translit=Wînipekw; crl, text=ᐐᓂᐹᒄ, translit=Wînipâkw; iu, text=ᑲᖏᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ ᐃᓗᐊ, translit=Kangiqsualuk ilua or iu, text=ᑕᓯᐅᔭᕐᔪᐊᖅ, translit=Tasiujarjuaq; french: b ...

across from Smith Island, Nunavut (Qikirtajuaq). Akulivik lies 1,850 km north of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

. Akulivik, meaning "central prong of a kakivak" in the Nunavik dialect of

Inuktitut Inuktitut (; , syllabics ; from , "person" + , "like", "in the manner of"), also Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the tree line, including parts of the provinces o ...

, takes its name from the surrounding geography. Located on a peninsula between two bays, the area evokes the shape of a

kakivak A kakivak is an Inuit leister that is used for spear fishing and fishing at the short range. It is comparable to a harpoon or a trident A trident is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm. The tr ...

, a traditional, trident-shaped spear used for fishing. Telephone and internet services are delivered by satellite. There is no hospital, but a clinic staffed by nurses provides non-critical care; otherwise air ambulances are available. Policing is done by the

Kativik Regional Police Force The Nunavik Police Service (NPS; french: Service de police du Nunavik, iu, ᓄᓇᕕᒻᒥ ᐳᓖᓰᑦ ᐱᒍᑦᔨᔨᖏᑦ) delivers regular policing services in the 14 remote northern villages of the Kativik Region. The headquarters of the N ...

History

Akulivik was incorporated as a community in 1976. The Inuit have lived in the area for thousands of years. In 1610, the explorer

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

passed by the island of Qikirtajuaq near present-day Akulivik. In 1922, the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...

established a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

on the site of today's settlement. The outpost was moved to the island of Qikirtajuaq in 1926. Between 1922 and 1955, the area where Akulivik is located today was the summer camp of Inuit who congregated around the trading post. In 1952, the post was closed, forcing the families to move to

Puvirnituq Puvirnituq ( iu, ᐳᕕᕐᓂᑐᖅ) is a northern village ( Inuit community) in Nunavik, on the Povungnituk River near its mouth on Hudson Bay in northern Quebec, Canada. Its population was 2,128 as of the 2021 Canadian census. Of all ot ...

, 100 km to the south. In 1973, one family moved back to the area. The following year, many others followed and, together, they built the village of Akulivik. On June 11, 2017, a resident named Illutak Anautak broke into three homes and stabbed five people, killing three and critically injuring two, among them a 10-year-old child. Anautak was shot and killed by police when attempting to break into a fourth home. His motives were unclear.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultu ...

, Akulivik had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Education

The

Kativik School Board The Kativik School Board (KSB; french: Commission scolaire Kativik, iu, ᑲᑎᕕᒃ ᐃᓕᓴᕐᓂᓕᕆᓂᖅ Kativik Ilisarniliriniq) is a school district with territory in Nunavik in northern Quebec; it has an office in the Saint-Laurent are ...

operates the Tukisiniarvik School. The Tukisiniarvik School has 167 students in classes from Kindergarten to Secondary V (Grade 11). Inuktitut remains the dominant language of the community. As in all the communities of Nunavik, Inuktitut is also the language of instruction at school until grade 3, at which point students choose between English or French as the language of instruction, and continue to study Inuktitut language and Inuit culture as separate subjects.

Transportation

Inaccessible by road, Akulivik is served by the small

Akulivik Airport Akulivik Airport is located southwest of Akulivik, Quebec, Canada. Akulivik is located on the western or Hudson Bay side of the Ungava Peninsula. The airport features a runway made of gravel. It is operated by the Kativik Regional Government ...

- AKV. Ice starts to form in late September and stays until late July, when the Bay becomes navigable. Large items are delivered by ship, including in building supplies,

snowmobiles A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

and

gasoline Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic c ...

, as well as a year's supply of

diesel fuel Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and ...

for the town generator. Thrice-weekly air service brings cargo including food and services to Akulivik.

References

External links