Banks Island

Banks Island, c.26,000 sq mi (67,340 sq km), NW Northwest Territories, Canada, in the Arctic Ocean, in the Arctic Archipelago. It is the westernmost of the group and is separated from the mainland by Amundsen Gulf. Banks Island, which has many lakes, is a hilly plateau rising to c.2,000 ft (610 m) in the south. Once inhabited by Inuit, it is now uninhabited except for occasional trappers. British explorer Sir Robert McClure discovered that it was an island in 1851. Canadian explorer Vilhjalmur Stefansson spent much time (1914–17) there and explored the interior.

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Banks Island

Island, Northwest Territories, Canada. The westernmost island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it lies northwest of Victoria Island and is separated from the mainland by Amundsen Gulf. About 250 mi (400 km) long, it has an area of 27,038 sq mi (70,028 sq km). First sighted by Sir William Parry's expedition in 1820, it was named for the naturalist Joseph Banks.

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Banks Island

1. an island of N Canada, in the Northwest Territories: the westernmost island of the Arctic Archipelago. Area: about 67 340 sq. km (26 000 sq. miles)

2. an island of W Canada, off British Columbia. Length: about 72 km (45 miles)