Cambridge Bay is a hamlet located in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut, Canada. The traditional Inuinnaqtun name for the area is Ikaluktuutuiak ("good fishing place"). Located on the south coast of Victoria Island with a population of approximately 1,350, Cambridge Bay is a transportation and administrative center for the western Kitikmeot Region. The population is approximately 80% Inuit.
The area was a traditional hunting and fishing location and archeological sites are commonly found. Caribou, musk ox, arctic char, trout and ringed seal were the primary and remain important food sources today.
Cambridge Bay was the site of RCMP and Hudson's Bay Company outposts established during the 1920s. Following World War II a loran tower was built at the present location of Cambridge Bay and a DEW Line site established in 1955. The military presence and the services and economy this represented acted as a magnet for Inuit who had previously used the area as a temporary site for meeting, hunting, fishing and trade, and a permanent community was soon established.
