We are in the south-west coastal area of Nova Scotia now, slowly making our way to the east where we will catch a ferry to Newfoundland on Friday.
Nova Scotia is Latin for “New Scotland”. I don’t know for sure where the name came from, but in parts of the province road signs are in both English and Gaelic. Apparently a lot of Scots settled here.
At a glance on the map, Nova Scotia looks like an island, but it is actually connected to New Brunswick in the north west. Parts of the province are islands, with Cape Breton Island on the far north east the outstanding example.
The first European settlers were from France, and they called the area “Acadie”. They become known as “Acadians”. They built many settlements, built dykes to keep out the sea, farmed and lived here for many years. However, in the early 1700s when Britain and France were having one of the frequent spats, the British forcibly expelled the Acadians for fear that they were helping the French. Many of them went back to France (often to return when the political climate improved), some hid in the mountains, and some went to Louisiana. Over time in Louisiana, the word “Acadian” evolved into “Cajun”, with the obvious influence they have had there.
The Acadians who returned continue to have an important presence, and we toured at least two museums dedicated to them.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Dale // Sep 21, 2015 at 2:18 pm
I remember driving there and we never took any ferry boats so I knew it was connected.
2 Donna // Oct 4, 2015 at 12:24 pm
Are you going to write about the rest of your trip?
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