The Inupiat (singular: Iñupiaq), also known as Alaskan Inuit, are a group of Alaska Natives whose traditional territory roughly spans northeast from Norton Sound on the Bering Sea to the northernmost part of the Canada–United States border. Their current communities include 34 villages across Iñupiat Nunaat (Iñupiaq lands), including seven Alaskan villages in the North Slope Borough, affiliated with the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation; eleven villages in Northwest Arctic Borough; and sixteen villages affiliated with the Bering Straits Regional Corporation. They often claim to be the first people of the Kauwerak.

Inupiat (IPA: [iɲupiɐt]) is the plural form of the name for the people (e.g., the Inupiat live in several communities.). The singular form is Iñupiaq (IPA: [iɲupiɑq]) (e.g., She is an Iñupiaq), which can also refer to the language (e.g., She speaks Iñupiaq). In English, both Iñupiat and Iñupiaq are used as modifiers (e.g., An Inupiat/Iñupiaq librarian, Inupiat/Iñupiaq songs). The language is called Iñupiatun in Iñupiatun and frequently in English as well. Iñupiak (IPA: [iɲupiɐk]) is the dual form.

The roots are iñuk "person" and -piaq "real", i.e., an endonym meaning "real people".

The Inupiat are made up of the following communities

In 1971, the Alaskan Native Claims Settlement Act established thirteen Alaskan Native Regional Corporations. The purpose of the regional corporations were to create institutions in which Native Alaskans would generate venues to provide services for its members, who were incorporated as "shareholders". Three regional corporations are located in the lands of the Iñupiat:

Prior to colonization, the Iñupiat exercised sovereignty based on complex social structures and order. Despite the transfer of land from Russia to the U.S. and eventual annexation of Alaska, Iñupiat sovereignty continues to be articulated in various ways. A limited form of this sovereignty has been recognized by Federal Indian Law, which outlines the relationship between the federal government and American Indians. The Federal Indian Law recognized Tribal governments as having limited self-determination. In 1993, the federal government extended federal recognition to Alaskan Natives tribes. Tribal governments created avenues for tribes to contract with the federal government to manage programs that directly benefit Native peoples. Throughout Inupiat lands, there are various regional and village tribal governments. The tribal governments vary in structure and services provided, but often are related to the social well-being of the communities. Services included but are not limited to education, housing, tribal services, and supporting healthy families and cultural connection to place and community.

The following Alaska Native tribal entities for the Iñupiat are recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs:

Inuit, the language and the people, extend borders and dialects across the Circumpolar North. Inuit are the Native inhabitants of Northern Alaska, Canada, and Greenland. The Inuit languages form a dialect continuum and have differing names depending on the region it is spoken in. In Northern Alaskan, the Inuit language is called Iñupiatun. Within Iñupiatun, there are four major dialects: North Slope, Malimiut, Bering Straits, and Qawiaraq. Before European contact, the Iñupiaq dialects flourished. Due to harsh assimilation efforts in Native American boarding schools, Natives were punished for speaking their language. Now only 2,000 of the approximately 24,500 Inupiat can speak their Native tongue.