Atlantic Canada

Last updated
Atlantic Canada
Provinces de l'Atlantique (French)
Atlantic provinces in Canada.svg
Atlantic Canada (red) within the rest of Canada
Country Canada
Composition
Most populous municipality Halifax
Area
  Total488,000 km2 (188,000 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)
  Total2,409,874
  Density4/km2 (10/sq mi)

Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (French : provinces de l'Atlantique), is the region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec. The four provinces are New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. [1] As of 2021, the landmass of the four Atlantic provinces was approximately 488,000 km2 (188,000 sq mi), and had a population of over 2.4 million people. The provinces combined had an approximate GDP of $121.888 billion in 2011. [2] The term Atlantic Canada was popularized following the admission of Newfoundland as a Canadian province in 1949.

Contents

History

French map of New France and Atlantic Canada, published around 1799 Partie de l'Amerique septent%3F qui comprend la Nouvelle France ou le Canada CTASC.jpg
French map of New France and Atlantic Canada, published around 1799
Historical map showing parts of Atlantic Canada Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia by Sidney Hall CTASC.jpg
Historical map showing parts of Atlantic Canada

The Atlantic Provinces are the historical territories of the Mi'kmaq, Naskapi, Beothuk and Nunatsiavut peoples. [3] [4] [5] [6] The people of Nunatsiavut are the Labrador inuit (Labradormiut), who are descended from the Thule people. [6] Acadia, a colony of New France, was established in areas of present day Atlantic Canada in 1604, under the leadership of Samuel de Champlain and Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons. [7] The French would form alliances with many indigenous groups within Atlantic Canada, including the Mi'kmaq of Acadia, who joined the Wabanaki Confederacy, important allies to New France. [8]

The first premier of Newfoundland, Joey Smallwood, coined the term "Atlantic Canada" when the Dominion of Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949. [9] He believed that it would have been presumptuous for Newfoundland to assume that it could include itself within the existing term "Maritime provinces," used to describe the cultural similarities shared by New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia, which entered Confederation during the 19th century (New Brunswick and Nova Scotia were founding members of the Dominion of Canada in 1867, and Prince Edward Island joined in 1873). [10]

Geography

Although Quebec has a physical Atlantic coast on the Gulf of St. Lawrence, it is generally not considered an Atlantic Province; instead, it is classified as part of Central Canada, along with Ontario. [1]

Atlantic and Central Canada together are also known as Eastern Canada. Atlantic Canada includes a section of the Appalachian Mountains known as the Appalachian Uplands. [11] In each Atlantic province, Upland regions have been divided into three highland areas. The mountain range results in coastal regions being fjorded. Some areas contain glaciofluvial deposits. [12] [13]

The following tables use Statistics Canada's 2021 census data.

Municipal geography

MunicipalityProvinceMetropolitan (CMA/CA) land area (km2)Municipal land area (km2)Urban (population centre) land area (km2)References
Halifax Nova Scotia 7,276.225,475.57238.29 [14] [15] [16]
St. John's Newfoundland and Labrador 931.56446.02178 [17] [18] [19]
Moncton New Brunswick 2,562.47140.67110.73 [20] [21] [22]
Saint John New Brunswick 3,505.66315.5970.05 [23] [24] [25]
Fredericton New Brunswick 6,014.66133.9389.60 [26] [27] [28]
Cape Breton Nova Scotia 2,457.212,419.7030.91 [29] [30] [31]
Charlottetown Prince Edward Island 1,112.4344.2757.56 [32] [33] [34]
Truro Nova Scotia 2,732.5337.5231.52 [35] [36] [37]
New Glasgow Nova Scotia 2,066.479.9629.82 [38] [39] [40]
Bathurst New Brunswick 2,100.0591.6227.92 [41] [42] [43]
Corner Brook Newfoundland and Labrador 1,122.58147.8821.60 [44] [45] [46]
Miramichi New Brunswick 7,564.06178.9827.78 [47] [48] [49]
Kentville Nova Scotia 607.0517.0827.98 [50] [51] [52]
Edmundston New Brunswick 1,582.36106.8419.06 [53] [54] [55]
Summerside Prince Edward Island 125.1228.2116.97 [56] [57] [58]
Grand Falls-Windsor Newfoundland and Labrador 54.8454.8412.34 [59] [60] [61]

Provincial geography

ProvinceLand area (km2)References
New Brunswick 71,248.50 [62]
Newfoundland and Labrador 358,170.37 [63]
Nova Scotia 52,824.71 [64]
Prince Edward Island 5,681.18 [65]
Flag of New Brunswick.svg
Flag of New Brunswick
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg
Flag of Prince Edward Island
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg
Flag of Nova Scotia
Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg
Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador

Demographics

The following tables provide 2021 census figures for "Metropolitan Areas" (built from entire municipalities) and "Population Centres" (limited to actual continuously-built-up areas) in Atlantic Canada. The list includes communities above 15,000, by Metropolitan Area population, or 10,000 by Population Centre population.

Municipal populations

MunicipalityProvinceType of MunicipalityPopulation of Metropolitan Area (CA/CMA)Population of MunicipalityPopulation of Urban AreaReferences
Halifax Nova Scotia Municipality465,703439,819348,634 [14] [15] [16]
St. John's Newfoundland and Labrador City212,579110,525185,565 [17] [18] [19]
Moncton New Brunswick City157,71779,470119,785 [20] [21] [22]
Saint John New Brunswick City130,61369,89563,447 [23] [24] [25]
Fredericton New Brunswick City108,61063,11664,614 [26] [27] [28]
Cape Breton Nova Scotia Municipality98,31893,69430,960 [29] [30] [31]
Charlottetown Prince Edward Island City78,85838,80952,390 [32] [33] [34]
Truro Nova Scotia Town46,15712,95423,583 [35] [36] [37]
New Glasgow Nova Scotia Town34,3979,47119,316 [38] [39] [40]
Bathurst New Brunswick City31,38712,15715,985 [41] [42] [43]
Corner Brook Newfoundland and Labrador City29,76219,33319,129 [44] [45] [46]
Miramichi New Brunswick City27,59317,69211,594 [47] [48] [49]
Kentville Nova Scotia Town26,9296,63014,905 [50] [51] [52]
Edmundston New Brunswick City22,14416,43713,125 [53] [54] [55]
Summerside Prince Edward Island City18,15716,00114,952 [56] [57] [58]
Grand Falls-Windsor Newfoundland and Labrador Town13,85313,85311,986 [59] [60] [61]

Provincial populations

ProvincePopulationPopulation density (people per km2)Reference
New Brunswick 775,61010 [62]
Newfoundland and Labrador 510,5501 [63]
Nova Scotia 969,38318 [64]
Prince Edward Island 154,33127 [65]

Economy

Atlantic Canada's primary natural resource industries include fishing, hydroelectricity, forestry, and mining. [66] The Atlantic provinces contribute to around 75% of Canada's fish production, with many coastal communities primarily dependent on fisheries. [67] The access point for many of such fisheries being the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Atlantic continental shelf. [68]

Nova Scotia produces 75% of Canada's gypsum. Salt and iron is also mined in the Atlantic provinces. [69] [66]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolfville</span> Town in Nova Scotia, Canada

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acadians</span> Descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Labrador</span> Mainland portion of Newfoundland and Labrador

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mi'kmaq</span> Indigenous ethnic group of eastern North America

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Further reading

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