What Nova Scotia is known for

Nova Scotia is a Canadian Province located on the easternmost side of the country and jutting out into the Atlantic ocean. Its name is Latin for "New Scotland." As one of the first areas established in Canada, the province has cultural heritage from many places worldwide extending back hundreds of years. The indigenous people there, known as the Mi'kmaq people, lived there for thousands of years before that. In total, Nova Scotia is home to more than one hundred distinct ethnicities and cultures. This diversity and the province's history are celebrated and memorialized today through festivals and museums. The Multicultural Association of Nova Scotia hosts the extensive annual Multicultural Festival honoring Nova Scotia's cultural influences each year in Halifax.[4] 

The Halifax Regional Municipality is Nova Scotia's provincial capital. It houses nearly half the Provinces population as well as many of its attractions. Museums, historic properties, restaurants, pubs, shopping, events, the waterfront, the bay, and the Halifax Seaport Farmer's Market are some of the draws to the city.[10] Cape Breton Island is the second-largest Municipality in Nova Scotia and offers a comprehensive of outdoor recreational activities such as the Highlands National Park, as well as indoor ones. Other places of note in the province include Lunenburg, Sydney, Dartmouth, Yarmouth, Glace-Bay, New Glasgow, Truro, and Annapolis Royal.[11]

There are 28 museums and thirteen National Historic Sites located in Nova Scotia. Halifax's Maritime Museum of the Atlantic showcases the province's history in sailing and shipbuilding through small vessels to the Titanic. The Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, on the Lunenburg waterfront, explores the extensive coastal fishing heritage of the Mi'kmaq indigenous people, the various European colonists, and the present-day industry. Sherbrooke Village, in Sherbrooke, is a living history site where visitors can dress in 1860s attire and explore the life of a colonist living next to St. Mary's River as they interact with live actors. Fundy's Geological Museum in Parrsboro allows visitors to learn about and view fossils at geological sites and the Fossil Research Lab. The Baile nan Gàidheal (Highland Village Museum), located in Scotchtown on Cape Breton Island, is a 43-acre living museum showcasing the Gaelic culture and language. It hosts lessons and activities about the Gaelic culture with live actors and hosts, as well as expansive views of the Bras d'Or Lake.[6]

The Bay of Fundy itself is a significant contributor to the area's prominence in paleontology and historical geography. The tides there are the highest in the world, rising and falling as much as 16 meters (56 feet) every single day. This extreme tide change has unearthed millions of years of geological history in the form of fossils, the evolution of life, minerals, and semi-precious gems. Due to its unique conditions, the bay is also home to various species of whales and birds. Today, the area has been established as the Fundy National Park of Canada. Whale and bird watching, boat tours, seas-side hiking, raft expeditions, and historic geological sites are all available at the National Park.[5] 

Sable Island is another point of interest in Nova Scotia. It is home to only five year-round residents, though the population increases during the summer months. Only two people have been birthed on the island since 1920. It is also notorious for causing shipwrecks for those trying to port there. More than 350 such shipwrecks have been recorded. Up until the 1900s, many lighthouses were erected there, housing lighthouse keepers and shipwreck rescue teams.[8]

Many visitors go to Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site, called "land of the fairies" by the Mi'kmaw native peoples. The lighthouse at Peggy's Cove is one of the most famous globally, and there are more than 150 total lighthouses in the province. Various wineries and breweries dot the countryside, serving the world's only "Tidal Bay" wine. Twelve whale species call the waters around Nova Scotia home, drawing thousands of tourists yearly. The Cabot Trail, a 298-kilometer highway on Cape Breton Island, is considered one of the world's foremost scenic drives. It has access to nearly 30 additional hiking trails. Nova Scotia fisheries catch more than 50,000 tonnes of lobsters each year and serve it "almost just as many ways." More visitors wanting seafood cuisine, there is "The Lobster Trail" with more than 40 restaurants on its path.[9]

Since the eighteenth century, Nova Scotians have been known as "Bluenosers." Many residents there once grew and sold Irish bluenose potatoes. When the sailors and anglers exporting these goods brought them to their destinations, their noses were often stained blue from their blue mitts stained the same color.[8]

Despite its relatively small size compared to other Canadian provinces, Nova Scotia's population size ranks second in the country. As of 2020, 979,115 people lived in Nova Scotia. The population density is 17 people per square kilometer. Nearly half of all Nova Scotians live in the Halifax Municipality, followed by a tenth on Cape Breton Island.  28% of the people have Scottish or English heritage; 20% have Irish; 18% have French; 10% are Aboriginal people; 10% have German; 4% have Dutch; 2% are Black; 1% have Italian; 1% has Acadian. There are more than 145 distinct ethnic groups in Nova Scotia.[8]

Geography

Nova Scotia is one of four "Atlantic-Canada-provinces" and one of three Maritime provinces. It is located on the southeastern side of the country, next to the New Brunswick and the Prince Edward Island provinces. Nova Scotia's mainland is primarily forested and consists of the Nova Scotia peninsula—surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. One cannot get further than 42 miles from the ocean in the province.[8] Nova Scotia has more than 13,000 kilometers (around 8000 miles) of coastline, with an abundance of bays lining its shores.[9] Additionally, there are nearly 3,800 coastal islands within its boundaries. Cape Breton Island and Sable Island are among these islands. Because of this unique landscape, Nova Scotia is often referred to as "Canada's Ocean Playground." The province's total area is only 55,284 square kilometers (21,300 square miles), making it the second-smallest in the country, just above Prince Edwards Island.[8]

Nova Scotia's climate is significantly affected by its proximity to the ocean. It is considered a "modified continental climate" and receives all four seasons. The coasts, in contrast to further inland, have warmer winters and cooler summers.[2] In the humid summer—June to September—temperatures average 20 to 25 degrees Celcius (70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit), though they can get as hot as 30 to 32 degrees (86 to 90). The fall—September to November—cools off to 10 to 20 degrees Celcius (50 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit) but can get as cold as 0 to 10 degrees (30 to 50). Winter—December to March—is the coldest season, seeing temperatures drop as low as -15 to 5 degrees Celcius (5 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit). Spring—March to June—warms back up to similar temperatures as the fall season. The best time to visit is likely the summer, or the late spring and early fall, due to the warmer weather.[12]

Nova Scotia's precipitation is also greatly influenced by the ocean and varies throughout the province, though it is relatively high in volume. Annual rainfall averages are 1,500 mm (59 in) on the southern coast, 1,100 millimeters (43.5 inches) on the northern coast, and 2,000 mm (78 in) on cape Breton Island. Snowfall during the winter is rather extensive, with annual averages reaching 1,500 mm (59 in) on the southern coast, 2,500 mm (98 in) on the northern coast, and upwards of 4000 mm (157 in) on Cape Breton Island.[13]

History

The history of the Nova Scotia region dates back thousands of years. Evidence has been found of Palaeo-Indian settlements dating back 10,000 years. A few thousand years before that, the land was almost entirely covered in glaciers. As those melted away, shaping the land into what it is today, the first indigenous people followed herds of caribou and other migratory herds into the land. Their descendants are known as the Mi'kmaq people. They lived in semi-nomadic tribes that subsisted primarily from hunting and fishing.[1]

Viking people made first contact from Europe to the land in the early 1000s, and by the 15th century, Europeans had opened several fisheries on the Nova Scotia coastline. They even started trading with the aboriginal people there. The first permanent colonial settlement in the area, established in the early 1600s, was a French one called Port Royal. After several decades of fighting between French and English settlers, the English finally claimed the land in 1713, though conflicts persisted for an additional fifty years. A New England poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, romanticized a particularly significant hostile exchange between the two peoples in his Evangeline poem.[2]

There was some talk of supporting the revolution during the American Revolutionary War, but ultimately, Nova Scotia remained passive. In 1848, under the direction of Joseph Howe, the nowadays province became the first British colony to have a "responsible government."[3] For most of the 19th century, the colony prospered through its trade with the U.S.A and Canadian colonies. This trade prosperity only increased as the American Civil War transpired. However, the region became over-industrialized, and the civil war came to a close, causing Nova Scotia to become economically dependent on the Candian colonies.[2] 

This dependency led to the colony's accedence to the Canadian confederation on July 1, 1867, through the British North American Act. However, Joseph Howe led movements against this union for nearly a decade, causing many people to vote against it. The anti-union campaign gained traction for a brief time, and it seemed that Nova Scotia might not recognize the act. Regardless, the land ultimately remained a Canadian province due to London's determination the union be successful.[1]

During both World Wars, Nova Scotia's economy was boosted once more as Halifax became a significant player in transporting supplies and soldiers to Europe. In World War I, however, Halifax was nearly destroyed when two ships crashed in the harbour. The resulting explosion became the most enormous "man-made" explosion in history—beaten by the atomic bomb—and killed more than 1,500 people.[2]

The economy is Nova Scotia was once driven primarily through coal mining. However, in 2001, the principal coal mines on Cape Breton Island in the Sydney-Glace Bay region were shut down. This shut-down led to increased production in fishing on the coasts, the Grand Bank, and even further out to sea—particularly for Lobsters, haddock, and scallop. Offshore oil and natural gas deposits have begun to be mined as well. Like fishing, lumber has always been a significant contributor to the area's economy, a fact that is still true today. Dairy and crop farming are common in the Annapolis and Cornwallis regions. Sydney Municipality extensively contributes to manufacturing—the most prominent industry in Nova Scotia's economy. Processed seafood, sugar, automobiles, and construction materials are among the province's manufacturing goods. Halifax has port facilities open year-round and is also a railroad terminus, making it influential in transporting goods and materials by sea and by land. Tourism is another of Nova Scotia's economic contributors.[7]