Abstract

Inuit elders hold a wealth of knowledge about the history and formation of their communities in what is now called Nunavik, as many of them have seen these communities from their genesis, and through development, to the present day. As Qallunaat started establishing trading posts or military bases around the early twentieth century (1920s), most settlements were established by the mid century (1950s), before formally inaugurating or legally incorporating towards the end of the century (1980s). My grandmother Alacie Naluiyuk was born on Pujjunaq in 1946, an island that is now a part of the Nunavut Territory. She was born on the land in an iglu and raised in a semi-nomadic manner with her family before eventually settling with other families in the area today called Salluit. She lived in a Western-style wooden house for the first time later in her youth and witnessed the first Western houses being built in her community, and also observed the introduction of governmental public service establishments built and led by Qallunaat. She however also saw the emergence of Inuit-led organizations and initiatives as a response to colonialism and structural violence. Alacie Naluiyuk has seen and experienced firsthand the social and cultural shifts that Inuit have faced since the temporary and permanent settlement of Qallunaat and Ui-Uiit (non-Inuit and/or anglophone and francophone European settlers and their descendants, respectively). In this thesis I draw on Alacie’s oral history and lived experiences to explore the ways in which Inuit have navigated and adapted to the intricate colonial cultural and infrastructural fabric that constitutes the community today.