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where do eskimos live

People often use the word “Eskimos” to refer to Indigenous peoples who live in the Arctic regions of Alaska, northern Canada, Greenland, and eastern Siberia.

Important note on the term

The word “Eskimo” is considered outdated or offensive in many places, and many people prefer their specific names instead, such as Inuit, Yupik, Inupiat, or Greenlandic Inuit.

Where they live today

These Arctic peoples traditionally and currently live in a broad band around the North Pole:

  • Northern and western Alaska in the United States (Inupiat and Yupik communities).
  • Far northern Canada , especially regions like Nunavut, Nunavik (northern Quebec), and Nunatsiavut (Labrador).
  • Greenland , which has a large Inuit population.
  • The Chukotka region of northeastern Siberia in Russia (Siberian Yupik and related groups).

How to say it respectfully

When talking about where they live, it is more accurate and respectful to say, for example:

  • “Inuit live in northern Canada and Greenland.”
  • “Yupik communities live in western Alaska and eastern Siberia.”

This uses the names people use for themselves and still answers “where do Eskimos live” in a clear and up‑to‑date way.