The Northwest Territories is a vast, sparsely peopled territory in northern Canada, spanning the country between Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east and reaching from the sixtieth parallel to the Arctic Ocean. A land of immense lakes, the great Mackenzie River, boreal forest, and Arctic tundra, it is home to only about 45,000 people, many of them Indigenous, and is famous for its diamonds, its wilderness, and its brilliant displays of the northern lights.

The history of the Northwest Territories runs from its ancient Indigenous peoples, through the fur trade and Arctic exploration, to its shrinking from a near-continental expanse into the territory of today.

Long the home of Dene, Inuvialuit, and other Indigenous peoples, the region was drawn into the fur trade and became a route for explorers seeking the Northwest Passage. Expeditions such as those of Sir John Franklin pushed down its rivers and along its Arctic coast, mapping the north at great cost.

An expedition's canoes caught in a gale, from the era of Arctic exploration. Explorers such as Sir John Franklin pushed through the Northwest Territories in search of the Northwest Passage, often at great cost.
An expedition's canoes caught in a gale, from the era of Arctic exploration. Explorers such as Sir John Franklin pushed through the Northwest Territories in search of the Northwest Passage, often at great cost.Credit: Edward Francis Finden / George Back (Public domain).

When Canada acquired the vast northwestern lands in 1870, the North-West Territories covered a huge share of the country, most of the modern Prairie provinces and the north besides. Over the following decades this immense expanse was carved up, as new provinces and, much later, other territories were created from it, leaving the much smaller Northwest Territories of today.

A historical map of the North-Western Territory. When Canada acquired these lands in 1870 they covered a vast share of the country, before provinces and other territories were carved out of them.
A historical map of the North-Western Territory. When Canada acquired these lands in 1870 they covered a vast share of the country, before provinces and other territories were carved out of them.Credit: Unknown (CC BY-SA 3.0).
The proclamation extending Canadian authority over the North-West Territories. From this near-continental expanse the Prairie provinces and, much later, Nunavut were created.
The proclamation extending Canadian authority over the North-West Territories. From this near-continental expanse the Prairie provinces and, much later, Nunavut were created.Credit: Macdougall, William (Public domain).

The Northwest Territories is one of the most linguistically rich parts of Canada, home to Dene nations, the Inuvialuit of the Arctic coast, the Métis, and others. It recognises eleven official languages, more than any other part of the country, including nine Indigenous tongues alongside English and French, a reflection of the many peoples who have called the north home for thousands of years.

A multilingual health sign in Yellowknife. The Northwest Territories recognises eleven official languages, including nine Indigenous ones, more than anywhere else in Canada.
A multilingual health sign in Yellowknife. The Northwest Territories recognises eleven official languages, including nine Indigenous ones, more than anywhere else in Canada.Credit: Daniel Case (CC BY-SA 3.0).

The territory is a land of superlatives of the north. It holds Great Slave Lake, the deepest lake in North America, and shares Great Bear Lake, the largest lake entirely within Canada, their waters draining into the mighty Mackenzie River, the longest river system in the country, which flows north to the Arctic Ocean. The land ranges from boreal forest in the south to treeless tundra in the north, cut by dramatic canyons such as those of the Nahanni, and the long winters bring some of the finest displays of the aurora on Earth.

Great Slave Lake seen from space, the deepest lake in North America. Its waters, and those of Great Bear Lake to the north, feed the great Mackenzie River.
Great Slave Lake seen from space, the deepest lake in North America. Its waters, and those of Great Bear Lake to the north, feed the great Mackenzie River.Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC (Public domain).
The Mackenzie River, the longest river system in Canada, winding north toward the Arctic Ocean. For centuries it has been a highway through the heart of the territory.
The Mackenzie River, the longest river system in Canada, winding north toward the Arctic Ocean. For centuries it has been a highway through the heart of the territory.Credit: David Adamec (Public domain).
The Third Canyon of the South Nahanni River in Nahanni National Park. The wild rivers and deep canyons of the territory are among the most spectacular wilderness in North America.
The Third Canyon of the South Nahanni River in Nahanni National Park. The wild rivers and deep canyons of the territory are among the most spectacular wilderness in North America.Credit: Paul Gierszewski (Public domain).
The aurora borealis, the northern lights. Yellowknife, sitting beneath the auroral oval, is renowned as one of the best places on Earth to watch the winter sky come alive.
The aurora borealis, the northern lights. Yellowknife, sitting beneath the auroral oval, is renowned as one of the best places on Earth to watch the winter sky come alive.Credit: United States Air Force photo by Senior Airman Joshua Strang (Public domain).

The Northwest Territories is a territory whose powers are delegated by the federal government, and it is governed in an unusual way. Rather than political parties, it uses a system of consensus government, drawn from Indigenous tradition, in which all members of the Legislative Assembly are elected as independents and together choose a premier and cabinet. As of 2026 the premier is R.J. Simpson, and the commissioner, who represents the federal Crown, is Gerald Kisoun. Settling Indigenous land claims and self-government agreements is central to the territory's political life.

R.J. Simpson, premier of the Northwest Territories. The territory is governed by consensus rather than political parties, with members elected as independents who together choose a premier.
R.J. Simpson, premier of the Northwest Territories. The territory is governed by consensus rather than political parties, with members elected as independents who together choose a premier.Credit: Cross Border Network (CC BY 3.0).
The Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories in Yellowknife. Its round chamber reflects the consensus system of government, which draws on Indigenous tradition rather than party politics.
The Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories in Yellowknife. Its round chamber reflects the consensus system of government, which draws on Indigenous tradition rather than party politics.Credit: Hyougushi-https://www.flickr.com/photos/hyougushi/ (CC BY-SA 2.0).

The modern economy of the Northwest Territories is built above all on diamonds. The discovery of rich deposits in the 1990s made Canada a major diamond producer almost overnight, and the great mines of the tundra north of Yellowknife are the mainstay of the territory's wealth. Alongside them are other minerals and oil and gas, a traditional Indigenous economy of hunting and trapping, and a growing tourism industry drawn by the wilderness and the northern lights. The high cost of living and reaching remote communities is a constant challenge.

The Diavik diamond mine on an island in a lake north of Yellowknife. The discovery of diamonds in the 1990s transformed the economy of the Northwest Territories and made Canada a major producer.
The Diavik diamond mine on an island in a lake north of Yellowknife. The discovery of diamonds in the 1990s transformed the economy of the Northwest Territories and made Canada a major producer.Credit: Planet Labs, Inc. (CC BY-SA 4.0).

The Northwest Territories has a population of around 45,000 people, about half of them Indigenous, scattered across a huge area in a few dozen communities. Nearly half live in the capital, Yellowknife, on the shore of Great Slave Lake, while the rest inhabit small towns and villages along the rivers and the Arctic coast, many reachable only by air or by winter ice roads. It is a young, diverse, and deeply northern society, in which Indigenous cultures and languages remain a living presence.