1 Official languages

The territory's Official Languages Act recognizes eight official languages, more than any other political division in Canada:

• Chipewyan;
• Cree;
• Dogrib or Tli Cho;
• English;
• French;
• Gwich'in;
• Inuktitut, including
  • Inuktitut proper,
  • Inuvialuktun
  • Inuinnaqtun;
• Slavey, including
  • North Slavey and
  • South Slavey;

Citizens of the NWT have a right to use any of the above languages:

• when receiving services from the government;
• in court;
• in debates and proceedings of the legislature.

External link: Language Commissioner of the Northwest Territories

2 History

The Northwest Territories were created in 1870, when the Hudson's Bay Company transferred Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory to the government of Canada. These formed the Northwest Territories. This immense region comprised all of modern Canada except British Columbia, the coast of the Great Lakes, the Saint Lawrence River valley and the southern third of Quebec, the Maritimes, Newfoundland, and the Labrador coast. It also excluded the Arctic Islands except the southern half of Baffin Island; these remained under direct British rule until 1880.

After the transfer, the Territories were gradually whittled away. The province of Manitoba was created in 1870, a tiny square around Winnipeg, and then enlarged in 1881 to a square region composing the modern province's south.

In 1876, the District of Keewatin , at the centre of the territory, was separated from it. In 1882 and again in 1896, the remaining portion was divided into the following districts (corresponding to the following modern-day areas):

• Alberta (southern Alberta);
• Assiniboia (southern Saskatchewan);
• Athabaska (northern Alberta and Saskatchewan);
• Franklin (the Arctic islands and Boothia and Melville Peninsula s);
• Mackenzie (mainland NWT and western Nunavut);
• Saskatchewan (central Saskatchewan);
• Ungava (modern-day northern Quebec and inland Labrador).

Keewatin would be returned to the NWT in 1905.

Main article: Districts of the Northwest Territories

In the meantime, Ontario was enlarged northwestward in 1882. Quebec was also extended, in 1898, and Yukon was created in the same year to deal with the Gold Rush . Alberta and Saskatchewan were created in 1905, and Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec acquired the last of their modern territories from the NWT in 1912. This left only the districts of Mackenzie, Franklin, and Keewatin. However, in 1925 the boundaries of the NWT were extended all the way to the North Pole on the sector principle, vastly expanding its territory onto the northern ice cap.

Between 1925 and 1999, the Northwest Territories measured 3 439 296 km² - larger than India.

Finally, on April 1, 1999, the eastern three-fifths of the Northwest Territories (including all of Keewatin district and much of Mackenzie and Franklin) became a separate territory called Nunavut.

There was some discussion of changing the name of the Northwest Territories after the separation of Nunavut, possibly to a term from an Aboriginal language. One proposal is "Denendeh" ("our land" in Dene). The idea is favoured by former premier Stephen Kakfwi among others, but a poll conducted prior to division showed strong support for retaining the name "Northwest Territories." Other proposals in the poll included "Restavut", "Sumavut", "Allavut" (puns based on the similarity of the name Nunavut to the English phrase "none of it") and the second-place finisher "Bob". [1] [2]

3 Politics

As a territory, the Northwest Territories has fewer rights than the provinces do. During his term, Premier Kakfwi pushed to have the federal government accord more rights to the territory, including having a greater share of the returns from the territory's natural resources go to the territory. [3] Devolution of powers to the territory is an issue in the Northwest Territories general election, 2003.

The Commissioner of the NWT is the chief executive and is appointed by the federal Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. The position used to be more administrative and governmental but with the devolution of more and more powers to the elected assembly since 1967 the position has become symbolic. Since 1985 the Commissioner no longer chairs meetings of the Executive Council (or cabinet) and the federal government has instructed commissioners to behave like a provincial lieutenant-governor. Unlike lieutenant-governors, the commissioner is not a formal represntative of the Queen of Canada.

The territory enjoys vast geological resources including diamonds, gold, and natural gas. In particular, NWT diamonds are touted as an ethical alternative that allays risks of supporting conflicts by purchasing blood diamonds.

However, their exploitation has raised environmental concerns, not least the potential havoc that a spill from tailings ponds would cause to unspoiled wilderness areas such as the Nahanni River , a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

3.1 Aboriginal issues

Aboriginal issues in the NWT include the fate of the Dene who, in the 1940s, were employed to carry radioactive uranium ore from the mines near Deline (then called Port Radium). Their cancer rates skyrocketed due to lack of safety procedures that were available to their white colleagues.

Another issue is historic racial tension based on the bloody history between the Dene and the Inuit, who nevertheless have taken recent steps towards reconciliation.

Land claims in the NWT culminated with the creation of the Inuit homeland of Nunavut, the result of the largest land claim in Canadian history.

Another land claims agreement with the Dogrib nation created a region within the NWT called Tli Cho, between Great Bear and Great Slave Lakes, which will give the Dogrib their own legislative bodies, taxes, resource royalties, and other affairs, though the NWT will still maintain control over such areas as health and education. This area includes the only diamond mines in Canada.

4 See also

• Canada
• Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
• Provinces and territories of Canada
• List of cities in Canada
• List of Northwest Territories lieutenant-governors
• List of Northwest Territories commissioners
• List of Northwest Territories premiers
• List of Northwest Territories highways
• List of communities in the Northwest Territories
• List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols
• Nunavut

Provinces and territories of Canada
Provinces: British Columbia | Alberta | Saskatchewan | Manitoba | Ontario | Quebec | New Brunswick | Nova Scotia | Prince Edward Island | Newfoundland and Labrador
Territories: Yukon | Northwest Territories | Nunavut

Northwest Territories

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