Nunavut
/ˌnuːnəˈvʊt/noun
A territory of northern Canada established in 1999, inhabited primarily by Inuit.
Did you know?Nunavut was created in 1999 after decades of Inuit political advocacy, making its name an official assertion of Inuit homeland and self-government.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Eskimo-Aleut
PEA
*nuna
“Reconstructed term for land or country”
Proto-Inuit
Proto-Inuit
*nuna
“Land or inhabited country”
Pre-modern Inuit languages
Inuit
nuna
“Land, country, or territory”
Modern Inuktitut
Inuktitut
nunavut
“Our land, formed from nuna (land) plus -vut (our)”
1999
English
Nunavut
“Official name of the Canadian territory created on April 1, 1999”
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