Northwest Arctic Borough is a county-equivalent borough in Alaska, United States, above the Arctic Circle along the Chukchi Sea coast. It had a population of 7,793 at the 2020 census and covers 35,573 square miles (92,130 km2) of land, centred near 67°00′N 160°00′W.
Kotzebue is the borough seat, and its postal code is 99752. The borough has 10 incorporated cities and 2 census-designated places, no organized townships, and runs on Alaska Standard Time (UTC−9, UTC−8 during daylight saving).
Towns & Villages in Northwest Arctic Borough
Twelve named places make up the borough: 10 incorporated cities and 2 census-designated places (CDPs), all Iñupiat communities linked to Kotzebue by air and, in winter, by snowmachine trail rather than road. There is no road network connecting the villages to the outside world.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kotzebue | City · seat | 3,102 | 99752 |
| Noorvik | City | — | 99763 |
| Selawik | City | — | 99770 |
| Kiana | City | — | 99749 |
| Buckland | City | — | 99727 |
| Ambler | City | — | 99786 |
| Kivalina | City | — | 99750 |
| Shungnak | City | — | 99773 |
| Deering | City | — | 99736 |
| Kobuk | City | — | 99751 |
| Noatak | CDP | — | 99760 |
| Red Dog Mine | CDP | — | — |
Kotzebue is by far the largest community and the only one reachable by scheduled jet service; the other 11 are Iñupiat villages of a few hundred residents each along the Kobuk and Noatak rivers and the Chukchi and Kotzebue Sound coastlines. Red Dog Mine is a company camp tied to the zinc mine of the same name rather than a traditional village, and shares Kotzebue’s 99752 ZIP for mail purposes.
ZIP Codes
- 99752 — Kotzebue (also serves Red Dog Mine)
- 99763 — Noorvik
- 99770 — Selawik
- 99749 — Kiana
- 99727 — Buckland
- 99786 — Ambler
- 99750 — Kivalina
- 99773 — Shungnak
- 99736 — Deering
- 99751 — Kobuk
- 99760 — Noatak
Every incorporated village keeps its own post office and ZIP; only Red Dog Mine has no separate code of its own.
Geography
The borough sits entirely above the Arctic Circle on Alaska’s northwest coast, bordering the Chukchi Sea and Kotzebue Sound. The Kobuk and Noatak rivers drain the interior, running west toward Kotzebue Sound through broad river valleys, tundra, and the Baird and Schwatka mountain ranges; Kobuk Valley National Park and the Noatak National Preserve both lie within the borough. Roughly 15 percent of the total area is water, split between the two sounds and thousands of tundra lakes and river channels.
Northwest Arctic Borough borders the North Slope Borough to the north, the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area to the east and southeast, and the Nome Census Area to the south; none of the three has a rewritten profile live on this site yet.
Demographics
The borough’s 2020 population of 7,793 works out to roughly 0.2 people per square mile, one of the lowest densities of any county-equivalent in the country. Kotzebue and Noorvik are the two largest communities. The population is overwhelmingly Alaska Native, mostly Iñupiat, and Iñupiaq is still spoken at home in several of the villages. Median household income runs well below the Alaska median of $88,121, reflecting a largely subsistence and public-sector cash economy rather than the state’s oil-driven wage base.
Economy & Local Life
The Red Dog Mine, one of the world’s largest zinc producers, anchors the borough’s cash economy and is developed and operated in partnership with NANA Regional Corporation, the Alaska Native regional corporation for the Iñupiat of Northwest Alaska. Government, the Maniilaq Health Center in Kotzebue, and the Northwest Arctic Borough School District are the other major employers. Subsistence hunting, fishing, and whaling remain central to household life across the villages, supplementing store-bought goods that arrive by barge in summer and by air year-round.
History
Northwest Arctic Borough incorporated on June 2, 1986, after residents of Kotzebue and the surrounding villages voted to form a home-rule borough whose boundaries match the NANA Regional Corporation’s region under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Kotzebue itself, known in Iñupiaq as Qikiqtaġruk, has served as a seasonal Iñupiat trading and meeting site for centuries before becoming the borough’s administrative center. The borough’s name simply describes its location: the northwest corner of Alaska, entirely inside the Arctic Circle.
Getting There
No highway reaches Northwest Arctic Borough; every community depends on air travel, and in winter on snowmachine and ice-road trails between villages.
- Kotzebue — 549 miles northwest of Anchorage by air
- Nome — 180 miles southwest of Kotzebue by air
- Fairbanks — 400 miles east of Kotzebue by air
- Utqiagvik (Barrow) — 330 miles north of Kotzebue by air
Ralph Wien Memorial Airport in Kotzebue is the borough’s air hub, with scheduled jet service to Anchorage and Nome and connections on to the outlying villages by smaller aircraft.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Northwest Arctic Borough?
It is in far northwest Alaska, above the Arctic Circle, along the Chukchi Sea and Kotzebue Sound.
What is the population of Northwest Arctic Borough?
7,793 residents at the 2020 census.
How big is Northwest Arctic Borough?
35,573 square miles (92,130 km2) of land, one of the largest county-equivalents in the United States.
What is the county seat of Northwest Arctic Borough?
Kotzebue is the borough seat.
How many towns and villages are in Northwest Arctic Borough?
Twelve: 10 incorporated cities and 2 census-designated places.
What ZIP codes are in Northwest Arctic Borough?
11 ZIP codes, one per village, led by Kotzebue’s 99752.
Is Northwest Arctic Borough connected by road?
No. Every community is accessible only by air, or by boat and snowmachine trail between villages.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Alaska.