Kotzebue, Alaska
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Kotzebue, Alaska Qikiqtaġruk |
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| City | |
Aerial view of Kotzebue
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| Motto: "Gateway to the Arctic" | |
 Location in Northwest Arctic Borough and the state of Alaska. |
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| Coordinates: 66°53′50″N 162°35′8″W / 66.89722°N 162.58556°WCoordinates: 66°53′50″N 162°35′8″W / 66.89722°N 162.58556°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Borough | Northwest Arctic |
| Incorporated | October 14, 1958 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Gayle Ralston |
| • State senator | Donny Olson (D) |
| • State rep. | Dean Westlake (D) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 28.7 sq mi (74.2 km2) |
| • Land | 27.0 sq mi (69.9 km2) |
| • Water | 1.7 sq mi (4.3 km2) |
| Elevation | 20 ft (6 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 3,201 |
| • Density | 110/sq mi (43/km2) |
| Time zone | AKST (UTC-9) |
| • Summer (DST) | AKDT (UTC-8) |
| ZIP code | 99752 |
| Area code | 907 |
| FIPS code | 02-41830 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1413378 |
| Website | City of Kotzebue, Alaska |
Kotzebue /ˈkoʊtsʌˌbjuː/ or Kikiktagruk (Qikiqtaġruk /qikiqtaʁʐuk/ in Iñupiaq) is a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the borough's seat, by far its largest community and the economic and transportation hub of the subregion of Alaska encompassing the borough. The population of the city was 3,201 as of the 2010 census.
There is archaeological evidence that Inupiat people have lived at Kotzebue since at least the 15th century. Owing to its location and relative size, Kotzebue served as a trading and gathering center for the various communities in the region. The Noatak, Selawik and Kobuk Rivers drain into the Kotzebue Sound near Kotzebue to form a center for transportation to points inland. In addition to people from interior villages, inhabitants of the Russian Far East came to trade at Kotzebue. Furs, seal-oil, hides, rifles, ammunition, and seal skins were some of the items traded. People also gathered for competitions like the current World Eskimo Indian Olympics. With the arrival of the whalers, traders, gold seekers, and missionaries the trading center expanded.
Kotzebue was originally known as Qikiqtaġruk, which means "big island" in Iñupiatun, the language of the Iñupiat. Kotzebue gets its name from the Kotzebue Sound, which was named after Otto von Kotzebue, a Baltic German who explored the sound while searching for the Northwest Passage in the service of Russia in 1818.
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