Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is in Canada.

It sits by the big Atlantic Ocean. It has an island and a large land area. The two parts are split by a narrow sea.

The weather can be very cold and windy. It often has lots of rain and fog. Many people live on the island. Most people there speak English.

You might see boats catching food in the sea. It is a very special place.

Newfoundland and Labrador is a province in Canada.

It is the easternmost part of the country. The province has two main parts. One part is an island called Newfoundland.

The other part is a large land area called Labrador. A narrow sea called the Strait of Belle Isle sits between them.

The weather can be quite tough. It is often windy, rainy, or foggy. Some parts of Labrador are very cold. This is called a polar tundra climate. Most people in the province speak English. Many families have roots in England or Ireland.

St. John's is the largest city. It is also the capital. About 40% of the people live there. Long ago, the land had different names. One name used by explorers was "new founde land." In the Inuktitut language, Newfoundland means "place of many shoals." Labrador means "the big land." The province has many mountains and rocks. Some mountains are part of the Appalachian range.

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province in Canada.

It sits in the Atlantic region of North America. The province has two main parts separated by the Strait of Belle Isle. One part is the island of Newfoundland. The other part is the large land area known as Labrador.

Newfoundland is roughly shaped like a triangle. Labrador is also mostly triangular in shape. The province includes over 7,000 tiny islands. It makes up about 4 percent of the total area of Canada.

The weather in this province can be very tough. High winds, snow, rain, and fog are common. These conditions can make travel by road or air very hard.

The island of Newfoundland has a cool summer climate. Because it is near the ocean, the weather changes often. Northern Labrador has a polar tundra climate. This means it is very cold. Southern Labrador has a subarctic climate. The sea helps keep winter temperatures slightly higher than the land.

People have lived in this land for a very long time. About 9,000 years ago, the Maritime Archaic peoples settled there.

They were hunters who lived along the Atlantic coast. Later, the Dorset culture lived in the area too. They used sleds and boats like kayaks. In Labrador, the Inuit people arrived around 1300 to 1500.

They moved from western Alaska to the High Arctic. The Innu people also lived in the area. They hunted caribou and deer in the forests.

Many people in the province come from English and Irish settlers. Most of these people arrived between the 1600s and 1800s.

Today, about 97 percent of residents speak English as their first language. St. John's is the capital city and the largest city. It is home to about 40 percent of the people in the province. Before 1949, Newfoundland was its own separate place in the British Empire. It joined the Canadian Confederation on March 31, 1949. The name was changed to Newfoundland and Labrador in 2001.

The land itself is full of amazing geology. The Long Range Mountains are on the west coast of Newfoundland. These mountains are part of the Appalachian range. Labrador is part of the Canadian Shield. This is a huge area made of very old rock. In Gros Morne National Park, you can see how tectonic plates shape the Earth. This park is even a World Heritage Site. The names of the places tell stories about the past. One name comes from the explorer João Fernandes Lavrador.

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada.

It sits within the Atlantic region of North America. The province is composed of two distinct geographical parts. One part is the island of Newfoundland. The other part is the continental region of Labrador. These two areas are separated by the Strait of Belle Isle. The province also includes over 7,000 tiny islands. Together, they make up 4.06 percent of Canada's total land area.

The geography of the province is shaped by different landforms. Newfoundland is roughly triangular in shape. Its highest point is Cabox. Labrador is also roughly triangular. The western border of Labrador follows the drainage divide of the Labrador Peninsula. This divide separates rivers flowing into the Atlantic from those flowing into Quebec. Labrador's northern tip shares a short border with Nunavut on Killiniq Island. It also has a maritime border with Greenland.

Geology plays a major role in the landscape. The Long Range Mountains on the west coast of Newfoundland are part of the Appalachian Mountains. Labrador forms the easternmost part of the Canadian Shield. This is a vast area of ancient metamorphic rock. Tectonic plates have collided to shape much of the province. Gros Morne National Park shows these tectonic processes clearly. Because of this, it is a designated World Heritage Site.

The climate varies across the province. Newfoundland generally has a cool summer subtype. This is a humid continental climate caused by proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. No part of the island is more than 110 kilometers from the sea. In contrast, Northern Labrador has a polar tundra climate. Southern Labrador has a subarctic climate.

Weather can be very challenging. High winds, snow, rain, and fog are frequent. These conditions often make travel by road, air, or ferry impossible.

Human history in the region began thousands of years ago. The Maritime Archaic peoples were the first to settle Newfoundland.

They were sea-mammal hunters who lived there from about 7000 BC to 1500 BC. Later, the Dorset culture occupied the area. They used sleds and boats similar to kayaks. The Inuit arrived in Labrador between 1300 and 1500.

They moved from western Alaska across the High Arctic. The Innu people also inhabited the area, focusing on hunting caribou and deer.

The province's modern history involves a change in government. Until 1949, the Dominion of Newfoundland was a separate part of the British Empire. In 1933, the House of Assembly voted to dissolve itself. This happened due to the Great Depression and the First World War. A British-appointed Commission of Government took control. On March 31, 1949, Newfoundland joined the Canadian Confederation. It was the tenth and most recent province to join.

The name of the province changed recently. In 1999, the government introduced an amendment to include Labrador. This was to recognize Labrador as an equal partner. The name change became official on December 6, 2001. This followed approval from the House of Commons and the Senate.

Today, the province is very linguistically homogeneous. About 97.0 percent of residents report English as their native language. St. John's is the capital and largest city. It holds about 40 percent of the province's population.