The coat of arms of the territory of Nunavut was granted by a warrant of

Roméo LeBlanc Roméo-Adrien LeBlanc (December 18, 1927June 24, 2009) was a Canadian journalist, politician and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 25th since Canadian Confederation. LeBlanc was born and educated in New Brunswick, and also ...

Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada (french: gouverneure générale du Canada) is the federal viceregal representative of the . The is head of state of Canada and the 14 other Commonwealth realms, but resides in oldest and most populous realm ...

, dated 31 March 1999, one day before the territory of

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...

, Canada, was created. The same document specified the

flag of Nunavut The official flag of Nunavut was proclaimed on 1 April 1999, along with the territory of Nunavut in Canada. It features a red inuksuk—a traditional Inuit land marker—and a blue star, which represents the ''Niqirtsuituq'', the North Star, a ...

Overview

The symbol was designed in collaboration with

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 ...

elders, leaders, artists, groups, and the general population of the territory. Each symbol was chosen individually from the 800 submissions for the flag and coat of arms that were received. Five draft designs were created in collaboration between the heraldic artist at the Canadian Heraldic Authority and

Andrew Qappik Andrew Qappik (born February 25, 1964 in Nunataq, Northwest Territories, now Nunavut) is a Canadian Inuk graphic artist currently residing in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. Qappik is known for his printmaking and his contribution to the Nunavut coat of ...

, an Inuit artist from Pangnirtung. The shield is blue and gold, symbolizing the riches of the land. According to the blazon, the shield should be presented on a

roundel A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of dif ...

shaped shield, rather than the traditional escutcheon shape in European

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...

. In chief is a representation of the

midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...

and of the

North Star Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude that ...

, or ''Niqirtsuituk''. Below are a '' qulliq'', a stone lamp representing the warmth of home and community, and an

inukshuk An inuksuk (plural inuksuit) or inukshuk (from the iu, ᐃᓄᒃᓱᒃ, plural ; alternatively in Inuinnaqtun, in Iñupiaq, in Greenlandic) is a type of stone landmark or cairn built by, and for the use of, Inuit, Iñupiat, Kalaallit, Y ...

(''inukhuk'', ''inuksuk''), a stone monument serving as a guidepost and a symbol of the territory. The crest, an

igloo An igloo (Inuit languages: , Inuktitut syllabics (plural: )), also known as a snow house or snow hut, is a type of shelter built of suitable snow. Although igloos are often associated with all Inuit, they were traditionally used only b ...

(''iglu''), represents traditional life, survival, and the Nunavut government assembled in the

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

. It is ensigned with a crown representing royal sovereignty. The supporters, a

caribou Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...

and

narwhal The narwhal, also known as a narwhale (''Monodon monoceros''), is a medium-sized toothed whale that possesses a large " tusk" from a protruding canine tooth. It lives year-round in the Arctic waters around Greenland, Canada and Russia. It is ...

, represent sustenance and natural resources of the land and sea. They stand on a compartment with Arctic poppies, dwarf fireweed, and Arctic heather, alongside an

iceberg An iceberg is a piece of freshwater ice more than 15 m long that has broken off a glacier or an ice shelf and is floating freely in open (salt) water. Smaller chunks of floating glacially-derived ice are called "growlers" or "bergy bits". The ...

at sea. The motto, written in Inuktitut syllabary, is ''Nunavut Sannginivut'' (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ ᓴᙱᓂᕗᑦ, or, Our Land, Our Strength). The letters patent are quite unique, having been presented in English, French,

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 ...

, and Inuinnaqtun.

Blazon

Heraldic

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The ...

describes the coat of arms of Nunavut as: :''On a circular

shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of ...

: Or Dexter a qulliq

Sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaza ...

inflamed

Gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...

sinister an inuksuk Azure on a chief also Azure above five bezants in arc reversed issuant from the lower chief a mullet Niqirtsuituq Or;'' :''And for a Crest: On a wreath

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...

and Azure an ''iglu'' affronty Argent windowed Or and ensigned by the Royal Crown proper;'' :''and for a

Motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. M ...

: ''ᓄᓇᕗᑦ ᓴᙱᓂᕗᑦ'', meaning "Nunavut Our Strength";'' :''and for

Supporters In heraldry, supporters, sometimes referred to as ''attendants'', are figures or objects usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. Early forms of supporters are found in medieval seals. However, unlike the c ...

: On a compartment dexter of Land set with Arctic poppies, dwarf

fireweed ''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. ...

and Arctic heather proper sinister ice floes Argent set on

barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 195 ...

wavy Azure and Argent dexter a caribou sinister a narwhal both proper.''

Gallery

File:Shield of arms of Nunavut.svg, The arms of Nunavut is depicted on a traditional round shield File:Badge of the Commissioner of Nunavut.svg, The Badge for the Commissioner of Nunavut File:Crest of Nunavut.svg, The crest of Nunavut is an igloo royally crowned

External links

About the Flag and Coat of Arms (Government of Nunavut)

Creation of the Coat of Arms and Flag of Nunavut (Governor General of Canada)

Arms and flag of Nunavut
in the online Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges {{Heraldry in Canada Territorial symbols of Nunavut

Overview

Blazon

Gallery

See also

External links