Qikiqtagruk

Qikiqtaġruk occupies a narrow peninsula in Kotzebue Sound, near the mouths of the Kobuk, Noatak and Selawik river systems. Its Iñupiaq name describes a place almost surrounded by water. The Qikiqtaġruŋmiut lived at a crossroads of routes linking the Arctic coast, the interior and the Bering Strait. In the early nineteenth century a great annual trade gathering was held at Sisualik across the sound. People travelled there in skin boats to exchange furs, foods and goods from distant regions, strengthening relationships among communities spread across the north.