We Are Nova Scotian

We Are Nova Scotian

Even though Nova Scotia is Canada’s second smallest province, our people share a rich tapestry of culture and heritage that shapes who we are and where we live.

For millennia, the Mi’kmaq have made their home here. In the 1600s, the French arrived to become the first permanent European settlers. The 1700s brought farmers and fishermen from England, Ireland and New England who were later joined by Loyalists who, in the aftermath of the American Revolution, left the newly-formed United States for Nova Scotia. Scottish Gaels came too; layering our society with a distinctive cultural identity that was influential beyond their numbers and is still very much in evidence today.

Black Refugees from the War of 1812 solidified an African-American presence in villages made stronger by their churches. In the early 1900s, industrial and service workers from England, Eastern Europe, areas of the Mediterranean and the Caribbean broadened our ethnic diversity when they flocked to coal, steel and manufacturing towns.

Germans, who were a small but influential migration in the mid-1700s, came again in the 1950s and in the decades following, joined by Dutch, both primarily seeking opportunities to farm. Throughout all of this, Nova Scotia’s strategic location on the Atlantic coast meant that many military personnel of a variety of ethnic origins have called this place home.

Today, our sheltered bays and inlets continue to welcome newcomers to our shores, solidifying our enviable reputation for hospitality and our acceptance of difference. Our legacy of migration can be found in our physical surroundings, in our communities and in the varied and dynamic nature of our cultural expression.

Influenced by the beauty of the land, captivated by a relationship with the sea, and inspired by the desire to not only preserve our roots, but also, invite new roots to grow, Nova Scotians are enriched by who we were and who we have yet to become.

To find out how the work of the Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage contributes to Nova Scotia’s social agenda, visit the Inside the Department section of this website.

Today, our sheltered bays and inlets continue to welcome newcomers to our shores, solidifying our enviable reputation for hospitality and acceptance of difference.