Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia
Nouvelle-Écosse  (French)[1]
Alba Nuadh  (Scottish Gaelic)[2]
Motto(s): 
Munit Hæc et Altera Vincit  (Latin)
"One defends and the other conquers"
Coordinates: 45°N 63°W / 45°N 63°W / 45; -63[3]
CountryCanada
Confederation1 July 1867 (1st, with New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec)
CapitalHalifax
Largest cityHalifax
Largest metroHalifax
Government
 • TypeParliamentary constitutional monarchy
 • Lieutenant GovernorMike Savage
 • PremierTim Houston (PC)
LegislatureNova Scotia House of Assembly
Federal representationParliament of Canada
House seats11 of 338 (3.3%)
Senate seats10 of 105 (9.5%)
Area
 • Total55,284 km2 (21,345 sq mi)
 • Land52,942 km2 (20,441 sq mi)
 • Water2,342 km2 (904 sq mi)  4.2%
 • RankRanked 12th
 0.6% of Canada
Population
 (2021)
 • Total969,383[4]
 • Estimate 
(2025 Q3)
1,093,245[5]
 • RankRanked 7th
 • Density18.31/km2 (47.4/sq mi)
Demonym(s)Nova Scotian, Bluenoser
Official languagesCanadian English (de jure)[6]
First Language: Mi'kmawi'simk[7][8]

Recognized Regional Languages:

Canadian French, Canadian Gaelic
GDP
 • Rank7th
 • Total (2020)CA$46.849 billion[9]
 • Per capitaCA$52,390 (12th)
HDI
 • HDI (2019)0.903[10]Very high (11th)
Time zoneUTC-04:00 (Atlantic)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-03:00 (ADT)
Postal abbr.
NS
Postal code prefix
B
ISO 3166 codeCA-NS
FlowerMayflower
TreeRed spruce
BirdOsprey
Rankings include all provinces and territories

Nova Scotia (/ˈnvə ˈskʃə/ NOH-vuh SKOH-shuh); French pronunciation: [nuvɛl‿ikos]) is a small province found on the east coast of Canada. The name "Nova Scotia" is Latin for "New Scotland". The capital and largest city is Halifax.

People who live in Nova Scotia are called Nova Scotians. There are over 1 million of them; over 500,000 of whom live in Halifax.

What is now Nova Scotia used to be controlled by the Mik'maq. The French settled among them at Port Royal after 1600, and called the land part of Acadia, with Port Royal as its capital. In 1710, after a war, the British captured Port Royal and went on to capture the rest of the peninsula. It was the first time that the British had captured and held a French colony.

On 6 December 1917, about 2,000 people were killed in the Halifax Explosion.

Nova Scotia's government is a democracy. Tim Houston is the premier and Mike Savage is the lieutenant governor.

References

  1. Government of Canada, Natural Resources Canada. "Place names – Nouvelle-Écosse / Nova Scotia". www4.rncan.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  2. Province of Nova Scotia, Gaelic Affairs. "Nova Scotia/Alba Nuadh". gaelic.novascotia.ca. Archived from the original on 23 April 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  3. "Nova Scotia". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  4. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories". Statistics Canada. 9 February 2022. Archived from the original on 9 February 2022. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  5. "Population estimates, quarterly". Statistics Canada. September 24, 2025. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
  6. "The Legal Context of Canada's Official Languages". University of Ottawa. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  7. "Legislation Enshrines Mi'kmaw as Nova Scotia's First Language". Province of Nova Scotia (in English and Mi'kmaw). L'nu Affairs. 7 April 2022. Archived from the original on 2 May 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  8. Mi'kmaw Language Act, SNS 2022, c. 5.
  9. "Gross domestic product, expenditure-based, provincial and territorial, annual (x 1,000,000)". Statistics Canada. 9 November 2021. Archived from the original on 23 April 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  10. "Sub-national HDI – Global Data Lab". globaldatalab.org. Archived from the original on 18 July 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.

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