The Dorset Paleoeskimo arrived in Newfoundland approximately 2,000 years ago. 1,500 to 900 years ago, the Paleoeskimo groups lived in the Eastern Canadian Arctic. The term "paleoeskimo" literally means "Prehistoric Eskimo" and is used to distinguish these Eastern Arctic groups from modern Inuit. Remains of Paleoeskimo settlements are found from Greenland and Ellesmere Island in the High Arctic, south to Baffin Island, Labrador, the shores of Hudson Bay and to their southernmost extreme, the Island of Newfoundland.
The Paleoeskimo obtained their name from Cape Dorset on Baffin Island where the culture was first identified. There are differing viewpoints among archaeologists whether the Dorset are the direct descendants of the earlier Groswater culture. Dr. Priscilla Renouf of Memorial University of Newfoundland, who is studying the Paleoeskimo cultures, believes they are.
Links to other
aspects of the Dorsets: