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 Sweeper Parts Yellowknife - Yellowknife, North West Territories is located on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake and serves as the capital city. The city is situated south of the Arctic Circle by 400 km. Known as the 'Copper Indians', the Dene Tribe of the region named the city and the waters around the city of Yellowknife. The population in the city of Yellowknife is culturally diverse. There are 11 official languages within the Northwest Territories, but just approximately five are spoken in Yellowknife. These five include Dogrib, Dene suline, French, English as well as South and North Slavery.
The region was initially settled in the year 1935, when prospectors were drawn to the area when gold was discovered. The city of Yellowknife had grown into the key centre within the region and was established as the capital of the Northwest Territories. The city of Yellowknife was bustling with economic activity that was mostly centered around gold production until 1980, when the city shifted towards being a centre of government services. Due to the plummeting price of gold and the increased operating expenses the last gold mine in the city was closed in the year 2004.
Yellowknife is the territories central hub for industries like for example education, mining, health, tourism, government and commerce activity. The economy suffered through a read decline during the 1990's after the closure of several gold mines and the 1999 downsizing of the government labor force. The diamond boom, that started in 1991 when a diamond mine was discovered just north of the city of Yellowknife, has played a major role in the cities recovery. BHP Billiton owns and operates the Ekati Diamond Mine that opened in the year 1998 and during the year 2003 a secondary mine, Diavik Diamond Mine, was opened. In the year 2004 the city was ranked 3rd within Canada with a production value of around C$2.1 billion and 6th in the country by weight, coming out with 2,524 kg. During 2007 De Beer's Lake Diamond Mine, a third mine, went into production. Construction of a forth mine, also owned by De Beers, was started in 2010 and is estimated to start production in the year 2012.
The city's top businesses comprise Territorial and Federal Governments, Diavik Diamond Mines Incorporated, Harry Winston Diamond Corporation, First Air, the city of Yellowknife, RTL Robinson Trucking, Northwest Tel and BHP Billiton. Approximately 7,633 jobs are in the Government sector.
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