Which lake is the largest by area entirely within Canada?

Great Bear Lake is the largest lake located entirely within Canada.

It lies in Canada’s Northwest Territories, near the Arctic Circle, and covers roughly 31,000 square kilometres. Lake Superior and Lake Huron are larger, but both cross the Canada–United States border, so they do not qualify under the wording of this question.

Great Bear Lake is a glacial lake shaped by ice during the Pleistocene. Its waters drain through the Great Bear River into the Mackenzie River system, ultimately reaching the Arctic Ocean. The lake freezes from roughly November to July.

The lake has five major arms and supports the community of Délı̨nę on its western side. Its name reflects Indigenous history: the Sahtu Dene people and several nearby geographic names derive from terms associated with bears and the lake’s landscape.