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Arviat, Nunavut (Canada)

ᐊᕐᕕᐊᑦ

image by Arnaud Leroy, 16 November 2005
Source: Arviat town hall

Description of the flag

See also:

Description of the flag

The symbolism of the flag is given on flickr.com as follows:

Blue for the sky and sea.
White for the snow.
The central shape represents the half moon shaped Inuit women's knife called the "ulu".
Below the "ulu" is a pair of traditional Inuit snow goggles use to prevent snow blindness while travelling on the land during the winter.
Around the "ulu" (left and right top quadrants) are a pair of men's snow knifes used to cut the blocks of snow needed to build igloos.
Around the "ulu"'s bottom (in the left and right quadrants) are a pair of traditional spears used in seal hunting during the winter or for fishing during the summer.

The Arviat fact sheet on the Nunavik government's website has been updated and says the following about the town:

Arviat can be found on old maps as Eskimo Point. The name Arviat comes from "arviq", Inuktitut for “bowhead whale.” The community was named for a nearby island that is shaped like a bowhead. The Hudson Bay Company established a trading post at Arviat in the 1920s and a Catholic mission followed shortly thereafter. The area had previously been used by the Pallirmiut Inuit to hunt for seals, walrus and whales.

Ivan Sache, 17 April 2009