Ellesmere Island

Ellesmere Island
Native name:
Umingmak Nuna
Ellesmere Island is located in Nunavut
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island is located in Canada
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island
Geography
LocationNorthern Canada
Coordinates79°50′N 78°00′W / 79.833°N 78.000°W / 79.833; -78.000 (Ellesmere Island)[1]
ArchipelagoQueen Elizabeth Islands
Area196,236 km2 (75,767 sq mi)
Area rank10th
Length830 km (516 mi)
Width645 km (400.8 mi)
Highest elevation2,616 m (8583 ft)
Highest pointBarbeau Peak
Administration
Canada
TerritoryNunavut
Largest settlementGrise Fiord (pop. 144)
Demographics
Population144 (2021)
Pop. density0.00073/km2 (0.00189/sq mi)
Additional information
Area code(s)867

Ellesmere Island (Inuktitut: ᐅᒥᖕᒪᒃ ᓄᓇ, romanizedUmingmak Nuna, lit.'land of muskoxen'; French: île d'Ellesmere)[2] is Canada's northernmost and third largest island, and the tenth largest in the world. It comprises an area of 196,236 km2 (75,767 sq mi),[3] slightly smaller than Great Britain, and the total length of the island is 830 km (520 mi).

Lying within the Arctic Archipelago, Ellesmere Island is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands. Cape Columbia at 83°06′41″N 069°57′13″W / 83.11139°N 69.95361°W / 83.11139; -69.95361 (Cape Columbia)[4] is the most northerly point of land in Canada and one of the most northern points of land on the planet (the most northerly point of land on Earth is the nearby Kaffeklubben Island of Greenland).

The Arctic Cordillera mountain system covers much of Ellesmere Island, making it the most mountainous in the Arctic Archipelago. More than one-fifth of the island is protected as Quttinirpaaq National Park.

In 2021, the population of Ellesmere Island was recorded at 144.[5] There are three settlements: Alert, Eureka, and Grise Fiord. Ellesmere Island is administered as part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region in the Canadian territory of Nunavut.

  1. ^ "Ellesmere Island". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dick was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference area was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Cape Columbia". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2021census was invoked but never defined (see the help page).