The most eastern province of Canada has two parts, the island of Newfoundland and a nearby part of the mainland called Labrador. Originally called simply Newfoundland, the province has been officially called Newfoundland and Labrador since 2001. The capital of the province is Saint John's.

Geography

The island of Newfoundland lies in the Atlantic Ocean. The narrow Strait of Belle Isle separates the island from Labrador, to the northwest. Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia lie to the west and southwest.

Many bays and coves line Newfoundland's coast. The Long Range Mountains run through the west. At the island's southeast corner is the Avalon Peninsula, the easternmost point in North America.

Labrador is a rugged chunk of land that borders northeastern Quebec. It is more than two and a half times the size of Newfoundland. The Torngat Mountains in the north include some of the highest peaks in eastern Canada.

People

The majority of the province's people live on the island of Newfoundland. Most of the people's ancestors came from England or Ireland. Smaller numbers of residents have Scottish, French, American Indian, or Inuit origins. Nearly everyone speaks English, but some people speak mainly French.

Saint John's, located on Avalon Peninsula, is the province's only large city. Built in the early 1600s, Water Street in Saint John's may be the oldest street in North America. The one university in the province, Memorial University, is also in Saint John's. Labrador City is an important mining center in southwestern Labrador.

Economy

Services, including finance, public administration, and health, are the largest part of the province's economy. Oil reserves and iron, gold, copper, and nickel mines also bring in billions of dollars. Supplies of fish and trees feed a large manufacturing industry. Factories produce wood, paper, and fish products. Construction and tourism are growing industries. Because the province has a short growing season and little fertile land, there are few farms.

History

Among the first inhabitants of Labrador were the Algonquian-speaking Innu. The now extinct Beothuk people lived on Newfoundland. Inuit and Micmac peoples also migrated to the region.

The first Europeans to visit Labrador were the Vikings, sailors from Northern Europe. Some Vikings had settled in Greenland, to the east of Newfoundland. In about AD 1000 a few Vikings sailed west, discovered Newfoundland, and built a settlement there. The settlement lasted only a few years.

In 1497 the Italian explorer John Cabot landed somewhere in Newfoundland and Labrador or on a nearby island. He described the place he landed as the “new founde lande.” England, France, and Portugal soon fought over the right to fish there. By the 1700s Newfoundland belonged to England. The island gained self-government in the 1800s. In 1927 Labrador came under the island's government. Newfoundland refused to join Canada until 1949, when it became the 10th Canadian province.