Yukon (), or (erroneously
The Yukon), is the westernmost and smallest of
Canada's three federal
territories. It was named after the
Yukon River, Yukon meaning "Great River" in
Gwich’in.
The territory was created in 1898 as the
Yukon Territory. The federal government's most recent update of the
Yukon Act in 2003 confirmed "Yukon", rather than "Yukon Territory", as the current usage standard.
At 5,959 metres (19,551 ft), Yukon's
Mount Logan, in
Kluane National Park and Reserve, is the highest mountain in Canada and the second highest of
North America (after
Mount McKinley in the
U.S. state of
Alaska).
Geography and ecology
thumb|left|250px|Map of the Yukon.The sparsely populated Yukon abounds with snow-melt lakes and perennial snow-capped mountains. Although the climate is Arctic and subarctic and very dry, with long, cold winters, the long sunshine hours in short summer allow hardy crops and vegetables, along with a profusion of flowers and fruit to blossom.
The territory is the approximate shape of a
right triangle, bordering the
U.S. state of
Alaska to the west for 1,210 km (752 miles) mostly along longitude 141° W, the
Northwest Territories to the east and
British Columbia to the south. Its northern coast is on the
Beaufort Sea. Its ragged eastern boundary mostly follows the
divide between the Yukon Basin and the
Mackenzie River drainage basin to the east in the Mackenzie mountains. Its capital is
Whitehorse.
Canada's highest point, Mount Logan (), is found in the territory's southwest. Mount Logan and a large part of the Yukon's southwest are in
Kluane National Park and Reserve, a UNESCO
World Heritage Site. Other national parks include
Ivvavik National Park and
Vuntut National Park in the north.
Most of the territory is in the watershed of its namesake, the Yukon River. The southern Yukon is dotted with a large number of large, long and narrow glacier-fed alpine lakes, most of which flow into the Yukon River system. The larger lakes include
Teslin Lake,
Atlin Lake,
Tagish Lake,
Marsh Lake,
Lake Laberge,
Kusawa Lake and
Kluane Lake.
Bennett Lake on the
Klondike Gold Rush trail is a lake flowing into Nares Lake, with the greater part of its area within the Yukon.
Other watersheds include the Mackenzie River and the
Alsek–
Tatshenshini, as well as a number of rivers flowing directly into the Beaufort Sea. The two main Yukon rivers flowing into the Mackenzie in the Northwest Territories are the
Liard River in the southeast and the
Peel River and its tributaries in the northeast.
Notable widespread tree species within the Yukon are the
Black Spruce and
White Spruce. Many trees are stunted because of the short growing season and severe climate.
The capital,
Whitehorse, is also the largest city, with about two-thirds of the population; the second largest is
Dawson City, (pop. 1,250) which was the capital until 1952.
History
thumb|left|Richardson Mountains in the backgroundLong before the arrival of
Europeans, central and northern Yukon escaped
glaciation as it was part of Beringia (
Bering land bridge). The
volcanic eruption of
Mount Churchill near the
Alaska border blanketed southern Yukon with a layer of
ash which can still be seen along the
Klondike Highway. Coastal and inland
First Nations already had extensive trading networks and European incursions into the area only began early in the
19th century with the
fur trade, followed by
missionaries and the
Western Union Telegraph Expedition.
By the end of the 19th century gold miners were trickling in on rumours of gold, driving a population increase justifying the setting up of a police force, just in time for the start of the
Klondike Gold Rush in 1897. The increased population coming with the gold rush led to the separation of the Yukon district from the Northwest Territories and the formation of the separate Yukon Territory in 1898.
Demographics
Ethnicity
According to the
2001 Canadian census, the largest ethnic group in Yukon is
English (27.1%), followed by
First Nations (22.3%),
Scottish (21.9%),
Irish (19.1%),
German (14.3%), and
French (13.4%) – although over a quarter of all respondents also identified their ethnicity as "Canadian."
Language
The
2006 Canadian census showed a population of 30,372.
Of the 29,940 singular responses to the census question concerning 'mother tongue' the most commonly reported languages were:
There were also 130 responses of both English and a 'non-official language'; 10 of both French and a 'non-official language'; 110 of both English and French; and about 175 people who either did not respond to the question, or reported multiple non-official languages, or else gave some other unenumerated response. Yukon's official languages are shown in bold. Figures shown are for the number of single-language responses and the percentage of total single-language responses.
The Language Act of Yukon "recognises the significance" of aboriginal languages in Yukon; however, only English and French are available for laws, court proceedings, and legislative assembly proceedings.
Religion
Yukon's population is highly secularized. The largest denominations by number of adherents according to the 2001 census were the
Roman Catholic Church with 5,985 (21 %); the
Anglican Church of Canada with 3,795 (13 %); and the
United Church of Canada with 2,105 (7 %).
Economy
Yukon's historical major industry has been
mining (
lead,
zinc,
silver,
gold,
asbestos and
copper). The government acquired the land from the
Hudson's Bay Company in 1870 and split it from the
Northwest Territories in 1898 to fill the need for local government created by the population influx of the gold rush.
Thousands of these prospectors flooded the territory, creating a colourful period recorded by authors such as
Robert W. Service and
Jack London. The memory of this period and the early days of the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as well as the territory's scenic wonders and outdoor recreation opportunities, makes
tourism the second most important industry.
Manufacturing, including furniture, clothing, and handicrafts, follows in importance, along with
hydroelectricity. The traditional industries of
trapping and
fishing have declined. Today, the government sector is by far the biggest employer in the territory, directly employing approximately 5,000 out of a labour force of 12,500.
Tourism
thumb|200px|left|The Yukon SignYukon's tourism motto is "Larger than life". The Yukon's major appeal is its nearly pristine nature. Tourism relies heavily on this, and there are many organised
outfitters and
guides available to
hunters and
anglers and nature lovers of all sorts. Sports enthusiasts can paddle lakes and rivers with
canoes and
kayaks, ride or walk trails,
ski or
snowboard in an organized setting or access the
backcountry by air or
snowmobile, climb the highest peaks of
North America or take a family hike up smaller mountains, or try
ice climbing and
dog sledding. Yukon also has a wide array of cultural and sporting events and infrastructures that attract
artists, participants and tourists from all parts of the world (
Yukon International Storytelling Festival, Frostbite Music Festival, Dawson Music Festival,
Yukon Quest, Sourdough Rendezvous, the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre, Northern Lights Centre, Klondike Gold Rush memorials and activities, "Takhini Hot Springs", and the Whitehorse fish ladder.
There are many opportunities to experience pre-colonial lifestyles by learning about Yukon's First Nations. Wildlife and nature observation is exceptional and a wide variety of large
mammals,
birds, and
fish are easily accessible, whether or not within Yukon's many territorial
parks (Herschel Island Qikiqtaruk Territorial Park, Tombstone Territorial Park, Fishing Branch Ni'iinlii'njik Park, Coal River Springs Territorial Park) and
national parks (
Kluane National Park and Reserve,
Vuntut National Park,
Ivvavik National Park) and
reserves, or nearby
Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park in
British Columbia.
On the long, cold, and clear nights of winter, nature provides the ultimate natural spectacle in the form of
aurora borealis.
Transportation
Before modern forms of transportation, the rivers and mountain passes were the main transportation routes for the coastal
Tlingit people trading with the Athabascans of which the
Chilkoot Pass and
Dalton Trail, as well as the first Europeans.
From the Gold Rush until the 1950s, riverboats plied the Yukon River, mostly between Whitehorse and Dawson City, with some making their way further to Alaska and over to the
Bering Sea, and other tributaries of Yukon River such as the
Stewart River. Most of the riverboats were owned by the British-Yukon Navigation Company, an arm of the
White Pass and Yukon Route, which also operated a
narrow gauge railway between
Skagway, Alaska, and Whitehorse. The railway ceased operation in the 1980s with the first closure of the
Faro mine. It is now run during the summer months for the tourism season, with operations as far as
Carcross.
Today, major land routes include the
Alaska Highway, the
Klondike Highway (between Skagway and Dawson City), the
Haines Highway (between
Haines, Alaska, and
Haines Junction), and the
Dempster Highway (linking
Inuvik, Northwest Territories to the Klondike Highway), all paved except for the Dempster. Other highways with less traffic include the "
Robert Campbell Highway" link ing
Carmacks (on the Klondike Highway) to
Watson Lake (Alaska Highway) via Faro and
Ross River, and the "
Silver Trail" linking the old silver mining communities of
Mayo,
Elsa and
Keno City to the Klondike Highway at the Stewart River bridge. Air travel is the only way to reach the far north community of Old Crow.
Whitehorse International Airport serves as the air transport infrastructure hub, with direct flights to
Vancouver,
Calgary,
Edmonton,
Fairbanks, and
Frankfurt (summer months). Every Yukon community is served by an
airport. The communities of Dawson City, Old Crow, and Inuvik, have regular passenger service through
Air North. Air charter businesses exist primarily to serve the tourism and mining exploration industries.
Government and politics
thumb|Chief Isaac of the Han, Yukon Territory, ca. 1898In the 19th century, Yukon was a segment of the
Hudson's Bay Company-administered
North-Western Territory and then the Canadian-administered Northwest Territories. It only obtained a recognizable local government in 1895 when it became a separate
district of the Northwest Territories. In 1898, it was made a separate territory with its own commissioner and appointed Territorial Council.
Prior to 1979, the territory was administered by the
commissioner who was appointed by the federal
Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. The commissioner used to chair and had a role in appointing the territory's
Executive Council and had a day to day role in governing the territory. The elected
Territorial Council had a purely advisory role. In 1979, a significant degree of power was
devolved from the federal government and commissioner to the territorial legislature which, in that year, adopted a party system of
responsible government. This was done through a letter from
Jake Epp, the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development rather than through formal legislation.
In preparation for
responsible government, political parties were organised and ran candidates to the
Yukon Legislative Assembly for the first time in 1978. The
Progressive Conservatives won these elections and formed the first party government of Yukon in January 1979. The
Yukon New Democratic Party (NDP) formed the government from 1985 to 1992 under
Tony Penikett and again from 1996 under
Piers McDonald until being defeated in 2000. The conservatives returned to power in 1992 under
John Ostashek after having renamed themselves the
Yukon Party. The
Liberal government of
Pat Duncan was defeated in elections in November 2002, with
Dennis Fentie of the Yukon Party forming the government as
Premier.
The
Yukon Act, passed on April 1, 2003, formalised the powers of the Yukon government and devolved additional powers to the territorial government (e.g., control over land and natural resources). As of 2003, other than criminal prosecutions, the Yukon government has much of the same powers as provincial governments, and the other two territories are looking to obtaining the same powers. Today the role of commissioner is analogous to that of a provincial
lieutenant governor; however, unlike lieutenant-governors, commissioners are not formal representatives of the
Queen but are employees of the federal government.
Although there has been discussion in the past about Yukon becoming Canada's 11th province, it is generally felt that its population base is too sparse for this to occur at present.
At the federal level, the territory is presently represented in the
Parliament of Canada by a single
Member of Parliament and one
senator. Canadian territories' members of Parliament are full and equal voting representatives and residents of the territory enjoy the same rights as other Canadian citizens. One Yukon Member of Parliament —
Erik Nielsen — was the
Deputy Prime Minister under the government of
Brian Mulroney, while another —
Audrey McLaughlin — was the leader of the federal
New Democratic Party.
Yukon was one of nine jurisdictions in Canada to offer
same-sex marriage before the passage of Canada's
Civil Marriage Act.
Federal government representation
In the
Canadian House of Commons, Yukon is represented by
Larry Bagnell, representing the
Liberal Party. Mr. Bagnell was first elected to the House of Commons in 2000. Previous Members of Parliament include
Louise Hardy (NDP, 1997–2000),
Audrey McLaughlin (NDP, 1987–1997), Erik Nielsen (
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, 1957–1987),
James Aubrey Simmons (Liberal, 1949–1957).
Yukon has been represented by two Senators since the position was created in 1975. The
Senate of Canada position is currently held by
Daniel Lang, who was appointed on 22 December 2008. It was previously filled by
Ione Christensen, representing the Liberal Party. Appointed to the Senate in 1999 by Prime Minister
Jean Chrétien, Mrs. Christensen resigned in December 2006 to help her ailing husband. From 1975 to 1999,
Paul Lucier (Liberal) served as Senator for the Yukon. Lucier was appointed by Prime Minister
Pierre Trudeau.
First Nations governments
Much of the population of the territory is
First Nations. An
umbrella land claim agreement representing 7,000 members of fourteen different First Nations was signed with the federal government in 1992. Each of the individual First Nations then has to negotiate a specific land claim and a self-government agreement. As of December 2005, eleven of the 14 First Nations had a signed agreement. The fourteen First Nation governments are:
The territory once had an
Inuit settlement, located on
Herschel Island off the
Arctic coast. This settlement was dismantled in 1987 and its inhabitants relocated to the neighboring Northwest Territories. As a result of the
Inuvialuit Final Agreement, the island is now a territorial park and is known officially as
Qikiqtaruk Territorial Park, Qikiqtaruk being the name of the island in
Inuvialuktun. There are also 14 First Nations that speak 8 different languages.
Communities
Ten largest communities by population1 Part of "Metro" Whitehorse
Census AgglomerationSee also
