When voting for mayor and council on Oct. 28, Cambridge Bay residents will also be asked whether they'd prefer to rename the community Iqaluktuuttiaq, the traditional Inuit name meaning "place of many fish."
Jodie Wilson/Wikimedia Commons photo
The outcome of the non-binding plebiscite will be brought to the hamlet's next mayor and council for consideration, said senior administrative officer Marla Limousin.
Cambridge Bay is named in honour of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge. Adolphus (February 24, 1774 - July 8, 1850) was the seventh son of England's King George III.
To some people, the name Cambridge Bay represents lingering colonialism, said Limousin.
The idea for the potential name change was raised by elders at "Seeds for the Future" community planning sessions, according to Limousin.
Some residents have pointed out that they prefer the spelling Ikaluktutiak, but Iqaluktuuttiaq was arrived at in consultation with the Government of Nunavut and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, which is taking steps to standardize the Inuit language.
Other Nunavut communities have reverted to Inuit names over the years such as Naujaat (formerly Repulse Bay), Qikiqtarjuaq (formerly Broughton Island) and Kugaaruk (formerly Pelly Bay).