Torngat Mountains

Place of spirits

The Torngat Mountains rise along the northern tip of Labrador, on the boundary between Nunatsiavut (Labrador) and Nunavik (Quebec). Their name is usually explained as coming from tuurngait, the helping spirits of Inuit belief, so that it means something like "place of spirits"; Labrador traditions recorded in the early twentieth century associated the region with Torngarsoak, the great spirit. The coordinates given here mark the approximate centre of the range.

A homeland

Inuit and their predecessors have used the Torngat coast for thousands of years, hunting, fishing, and travelling through its fjords. In the twentieth century many Inuit families were relocated away from the northern Labrador coast, and the return of Inuit to the land through park base camps and programmes has been an important part of cultural renewal.

Co-management

Torngat Mountains National Park, created under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement (a park reserve from 2005 and a national park from 2008), is co-managed by Parks Canada and a board including Inuit of Nunatsiavut and Nunavik, and Inuit guides and bear guards work with visitors. It is an example of the land associated with spirits being cared for by the people whose tradition named it.