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Which Old Place Names Hide Nunavut UFO Files?

Older UFO files often use names such as Frobisher Bay, Cape Dorset or Coppermine instead of today's Nunavut community names.

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On this page

  • Current and historical community name pairs
  • Spelling variants and ambiguous regional labels
  • Building a practical search list for each community
Preview for Which Old Place Names Hide Nunavut UFO Files?

Introduction

One of the easiest ways to miss historical UFO reports from what is now Nunavut is to search only for modern community names. Most Canadian federal UFO files were created before Nunavut became a separate territory on 1 April 1999, when its communities were administered as part of the Northwest Territories. In addition, several settlements were officially renamed during the twentieth century. As a result, archival records may describe the same place under different names, spellings or administrative labels. Searching only for “Iqaluit” or “Nunavut” can therefore overlook reports filed decades earlier under names such as “Frobisher Bay” or broader regional descriptions.[Canada]canada.caCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknownCanadaCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknown - Canada.caMarch 2, 2026

Old Place Names illustration 1

For anyone tracing Nunavut sightings through Canada’s federal UFO collections, understanding historical place names is not simply a matter of local history. It is a practical search technique that often determines whether a report can be found at all.

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The most valuable search strategy is to pair every modern community with its principal historical name, then search both versions separately because archival indexes are not always updated retrospectively.

Current communityCommon historical name(s) found in older recordsWhy it mattersIqaluitFrobisher Bay, FrobisherMost pre-1987 records use the former official name rather than Iqaluit.[GeoNames]geonames.nrcan.gc.caGeo Names Place namesPlace names - Iqaluit… DorsetFederal records from the main UFO reporting period almost always use Cape Dorset.KugluktukCoppermineEarlier aviation, RCMP and government files generally refer to Coppermine.ArviatEskimo PointOlder government documents frequently use the former settlement name.SanirajakHall BeachHistorical aviation and defence records normally retain Hall Beach.NaujaatRepulse BayOlder northern records commonly use Repulse Bay.KugaarukPelly BayPre-renaming documents generally use Pelly Bay.TaloyoakSpence BayEarlier reports frequently use Spence Bay.

These historical names appear not because the reports concern different places, but because they reflect the official names used when the records were created. Later digitisation projects generally preserved the original wording rather than rewriting locations into modern terminology.[Canada]canada.caCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknownCanadaCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknown - Canada.caMarch 2, 2026

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Why Frobisher Bay deserves special attention

The strongest example is Iqaluit.

The community was officially known as Frobisher Bay until the restoration of the Inuit name Iqaluit in 1987. Canada’s geographical names database records both “Frobisher” and “Frobisher Bay” as previously official settlement names associated with today’s city.[GeoNames]geonames.nrcan.gc.caGeo Names Place namesPlace names - Iqaluit…

This creates several potential sources of confusion when searching UFO archives:

  • A document may refer to Frobisher Bay meaning the settlement.
  • Another may refer to Frobisher Bay meaning the large geographic bay.
  • Some records simply use Frobisher.
  • Later references may instead use Iqaluit.

Searching only one version risks missing records indexed under another. This is particularly important because Library and Archives Canada indexes reports largely according to the location stated in the original document rather than applying modern place-name standards.[canada.ca]canada.caCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknownCanadaCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknown - Canada.caMarch 2, 2026

Old Place Names illustration 2

Spelling variants and broad regional labels

Historical UFO files often use geographic descriptions rather than community names, especially when reports came from aircraft, weather stations or remote camps.

Useful alternative searches include:

  • Baffin Island
  • Eastern Arctic
  • Arctic Archipelago
  • Northwest Territories
  • Hudson Bay coast
  • Foxe Basin
  • Boothia Peninsula

These labels may describe an observation whose nearest modern community lies within Nunavut, even though the territory itself is never mentioned because it did not yet exist. Library and Archives Canada also notes that only about half of its UFO documents identify a specific location, making broader geographic searches worthwhile.[Canada]canada.caCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknownCanadaCanada's UFOs: The search for the unknown - Canada.caMarch 2, 2026

Spelling inconsistencies are another obstacle. Older typed reports, telegrams and handwritten notes may abbreviate community names, omit punctuation or use locally accepted spellings that were never formal standards. Because many catalogue searches require close textual matches, trying several variants often produces additional results.

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Building a practical search list

A reliable workflow is to search progressively rather than relying on a single keyword.

For each modern Nunavut community:

Old Place Names illustration 3

  1. Search the current community name.
  2. Search every former official name.
  3. Search “Northwest Territories” together with the historical name.
  4. Search the wider geographic region if the community search produces few results.
  5. Browse records by department when location searches fail, particularly Department of Transport, Department of National Defence and RCMP collections, since reports may have been filed according to the receiving agency rather than the observation site. Canada

For example, someone researching historical sightings around present-day Kinngait should search:

The same principle applies to Iqaluit by searching both “Iqaluit” and “Frobisher Bay”, then expanding to broader regional terms if necessary.

Why historical names matter more than modern maps

Modern digital maps can unintentionally give the impression that historical records should use today’s geography. Canada’s federal UFO archive does not work that way. The files preserve the administrative and geographic language used when reports were submitted, sometimes decades before Nunavut was created.

Library and Archives Canada itself encourages researchers working with historical collections to search both current and historical community names because archival descriptions frequently retain the terminology used at the time the records were created. Although that guidance is published for broader archival research rather than specifically for UFO files, the same archival principle applies when tracing northern sightings. Canada

For anyone investigating Nunavut’s UFO history, the most effective search list is therefore a historical one. Using former settlement names alongside modern community names substantially increases the chance of locating reports that otherwise remain hidden behind the language of an earlier era.

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Endnotes

2. Source: canada.ca
Title: Project Naming
Link:https://www.canada.ca/en/library-archives/collection/research-help/indigenous-history/project-naming.html

Source snippet

Project Naming - Canada.caSeptember 24, 2025...

Published: September 24, 2025

3. Source: canada.ca
Title: Four regions make up
Link:https://www.canada.ca/en/library-archives/collection/research-help/indigenous-history/inuit-genealogy.html

Source snippet

Inuit genealogy - Canada.caApril 7, 2026 — INUIT GENEALOGY The term Inuit refers to the diverse Indigenous peoples who live in the Arctic...

Published: April 7, 2026

4. Source: canada.ca
Title: The American Government b
Link:https://www.canada.ca/en/library-archives/collection/research-help/indigenous-history/indigenous-terminology.html

Source snippet

First Nations, Inuit and Métis historical terminology - Canada.caJuly 30, 2025 — INUIT DEW LINE The Distant Early Warning Line, or DEW Li...

Published: July 30, 2025

5. Source: library-archives.canada.ca
Title: We need your help to identify people, places and ac
Link:https://library-archives.canada.ca/eng/collection/research-help/indigenous-heritage/Pages/project-naming.aspx?wbdisable=true

Source snippet

NamingJune 6, 2025 — PROJECT NAMING Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has photographs of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation Peoples th...

Published: June 6, 2025

6. Source: nunavut.ca
Link:https://www.nunavut.ca/en/kugluktuk

7. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: Geo Names Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=33e24964c6ce11d892e2080020a0f4c9&wbdisable=true

Source snippet

Place names - Iqaluit...

8. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: Geo Names Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=OAGBA

Source snippet

Place names - Frobisher Bay...

9. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: nrcan.gc.ca Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=33e24964c6ce11d892e2080020a0f4c9

Source snippet

names - IqaluitFebruary 16, 2021 — SEARCH THE CANADIAN GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES DATABASE (CGNDB) Content advisory: The Canadian Geographical Na...

Published: February 16, 2021

10. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: nrcan.gc.ca Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=OAGAZ&wbdisable=true

11. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: nrcan.gc.ca Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=OAGBB

12. Source: geonames.nrcan.gc.ca
Title: nrcan.gc.ca Place names
Link:https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique?id=OAGBD

13. Source: historymuseum.ca
Link:https://www.historymuseum.ca/collections/archive/3598549

Additional References

14. Source: prod-natural-resources.azure.cloud.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca
Link:https://prod-natural-resources.azure.cloud.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca/maps-tools-publications/maps/geographical-names-canada/origin-names-canada-its-provinces-territories

Source snippet

of the names of Canada and its provinces and territories - Natural Resources CanadaJanuary 8, 2025 — ORIGIN OF THE NAMES OF CANADA AND IT...

Published: January 8, 2025

15. Source: youtube.com
Title: UFO sighting in Northern Canada
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG6iN2UIfXA

Source snippet

The Summer of UFOs: Canada's 1975 Wave (with Chris Rutkowski)...

16. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oL4E6YRuvN0

Source snippet

What the Canadian government knows about UFOs...

17. Source: youtube.com
Title: What the Canadian government knows about UFOs
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntyUWhbtcqM

Source snippet

One of Canada's Strangest Sightings (S5) | The Proof Is Out There...

18. Source: kugluktuk.com
Link:https://www.kugluktuk.com/

19. Source: recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca
Link:https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/home/record?app=FonAndCol&idnumber=5138705

20. Source: youtube.com
Title: Did a UFO Crash at Clan Lake?
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5kKcOBEvG8

Source snippet

UFO sighting in Northern Canada - W5 speaks to eyewitnesses (1972)...

21. Source: nunatsiaq.com
Title: Nunavut minister signs off on name changes for two communities
Link:https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/nunavut-minister-signs-off-on-name-changes-for-two-communities/

22. Source: nunatsiaq.com
Title: Reclaim Inuktut names, NTI encourages Nunavut hamlets
Link:https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/reclaim-inuktut-names-nti-encourages-nunavut-hamlets/

23. Source: youtube.com
Title: One of Canada’s Strangest Sightings (S5) | The Proof Is Out There
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTr84e04SbE