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Grise Fiord, Nunavut (Aujuittuq)
Map showing location of Grise Fiord
Coordinates: 76°25′03″N, 82°53′38″W
Settled	1953
Population (2006)
- Hamlet	141
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	867

Grise Fiord, (Inuktitut: Aujuittuq, Inuktitut syllabics: ᐊᐅᔪᐃᑦᑐᖅ) is a small Inuit hamlet in the territory of Nunavut. As of the 2006 census the population was 141 a decrease of 13.5% from the 2001 census.^[1]

Contents 1 Geography 1.1 Transportation 1.2 Climate 2 History 2.1 Settlement 2.2 Telephone Network 2.3 Naming 3 See also 4 References 4.1 Other Settlements on Ellesmere Island 5 External links

Grise Fiord is the northernmost civilian settlement in North America, but was eclipsed by Alert as the world's northernmost community when Environment Canada and the Canadian Forces began to station permanent personnel there.

Located at the southern tip of Ellesmere Island, Grise Fiord is one of three permanent settlements on the island. Grise Fiord lies 1160 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle.

Grise Fiord is connected to the rest of the world by Grise Fiord Airport.

The climate in Grise Fiord is extremely cold. Grise Fiord has an arctic climate, which means that there are less than 250 mm precipitation, and temperature stays well below zero degree Celsius for more than eight months of the year, and below +10°C the other months.

The lowest recorded temperature in Grise Fiord was -62.2 °C. The highest was 22.3 °C.^{[citation needed]}

The settlement was created by the Canadian government in the year 1953 to assert sovereignty in the area. Inuit families from northern Quebec were relocated and promised homes and game to hunt, but the relocated people discovered no buildings and very little familiar wildlife. They also had to endure weeks of daytime darkness in the winter and sunlight in the nights during summers, unlike northern Quebec.

In 1970, Bell Canada established what was then the world's most northerly telephone exchange (operated since 1992 by Northwestel).

Grise Fiord was named by Otto Sverdrup from Norway. The name means "pig inlet" in Norwegian. Grise Fiord's Inuit name is "Aujuittuq" which means "place that never thaws."

• Northernmost settlements

1. ^ 2006 census

• Alert, Nunavut
• Eureka, Nunavut

• Grise Fiord HomePage

Coordinates: 76°25′03″N, 082°53′38″W