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{{Short description|Canadians of Scottish descent or heritage}}
{{Infobox Ethnic group
{{Refimprove|date=May 2024}}
|group = Scottish Canadians
{{Infobox ethnic group
|image = [[Image:JaMAC.jpg|84px]][[Image:Alexander Mackenzie portrait.jpg|73px]][[Image:Naismith.jpg|94px]][[Image:Alexander MacKenzie by Thomas Lawrence (c.1800).jpg|100px]]
| group = Scottish Canadians
|caption = <small>Notable Scottish Canadians: [[John A. Macdonald]], [[Alexander Mackenzie|Alexander Mackenzie (prime minister)]], [[James Naismith]] and [[Sir Alexander Mackenzie (explorer)]]
| native_name = ''Canadiens écossais''<br/>''Canèidianaich Albannach''
|poptime = '''Scottish'''<br>'''4,719,850 Canadians'''<br><small> 15.10% of the population of Canada
| native_name_lang =
|popplace = [[Ontario]], [[Western Canada]], [[Atlantic Canada]], [[Quebec]]
| flag = {{flagicon|Scotland}} {{flagicon|Canada}}
|langs = [[Canadian English]], [[Canadian Gaelic]], [[Canadian French]],
| image = Scottish Canadians by census division.svg
|rels = [[Anglican]], [[Baptist]], [[Presbyterian]], [[Roman Catholic]], [[United Church of Canada|United]]
| image_caption = <div style="text-align: center>Scottish Canadians as a proportion of the population by census division</div>
|related = [[Scottish people|Scottish]], [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]], [[Scottish American]]s, [[Ulster Scots]]
| total = '''4,799,010'''<ref name="population2016"/><br/> '''13.9%''' of the total Canadian population (2016)
| popplace = {{flagu|Canada}}
| region1 = '''[[Provinces and territories of Canada|Provinces]]:'''
| region2 = {{flag|Ontario}}
| pop2 = 2,101,100
| region3 = {{flag|British Columbia}}
| pop3 = 828,145
| region4 = {{flag|Alberta}}
| pop4 = 661,265
| region5 = {{flag|Nova Scotia}}
| pop5 = 288,180
| region6 = {{flag|Manitoba}}
| pop6 = 209,170
| region7 = {{flag|Quebec}}
| pop7 = 202,515
| region8 = {{flag|New Brunswick}}
| pop8 = 142,560
| region9 = {{flag|Prince Edward Island}}
| pop9 = 50,685

| langs = [[Canadian English|English]], [[Scottish Gaelic]]
([[Canadian Gaelic|Canadian Gaelic dialect]]), [[Canadian French|French]], [[Scots language|Scots]]
| rels = [[Christianity]] (including [[Presbyterian]], [[Anglican]], [[Baptist]], [[Roman Catholic]], [[United Church of Canada|United]])<br>Other religions{{sfn|Fraser|1995|p=76}}
| related = [[Scottish people|Scottish]], [[English people|English]], [[Scotch-Irish American|Scotch-Irish]], [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]], [[Ulster Scots Canadians]], [[English Canadians]], [[English Americans]], [[Scottish Americans]], Lowland Scots, [[Ulster Scots people|Ulster Scots]], other [[English Canadians|British Canadians]]
}}
}}


'''Scottish Canadians''' are people of [[Scottish descent]] or [[cultural heritage|heritage]] living in [[Canada]]. As the third-largest [[ethnic group]] in Canada and among the first to settle in Canada, Scottish people have made a large impact on Canadian culture since colonial times. According to the [[Canada 2001 Census|2001 Census of Canada]], the number of Canadians claiming full or partial Scottish descent is 4,157,210, or 14.03% of the nation's total population, however this is said to be a major underestimation.
'''Scottish Canadians''' are people of [[Scottish people|Scottish descent]] or [[cultural heritage|heritage]] living in Canada. As the third-largest [[ethnic group]] in Canada and amongst the first Europeans to settle in the country, Scottish people have made a large impact on Canadian culture since colonial times. According to the [[Canada 2016 Census|2016 Census of Canada]], the number of [[Canadians]] claiming full or partial Scottish descent is 4,799,010,<ref name="statcan1">{{cite web |url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/imm/Table.cfm?Lang=E&T=31&Geo=01&SO=4D|title=Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity Highlight Tables|date=25 October 2017|publisher=statcan.gc.ca}}</ref> or 13.93% of the nation's total population. [[Prince Edward Island]] has the highest population of Scottish descendants at 41%.


The [[Scots-Irish Canadian]]s are a similar ethnic group. They descended from Lowland Scots and Northern English people via [[Ulster]] and so some observe many of the same traditions as Scots.
==Scottish settlement of Canada==
Scottish people have a long history in Canada, dating back several centuries. Many towns, rivers and mountains have been named in honour of Scottish explorers and traders&mdash;such as Mackenzie Bay and Calgary. Most notably, the [[Atlantic ocean|Atlantic]] province of [[Nova Scotia]] is [[Latin]] for New Scotland.


Categorically, Scottish Canadians comprise a subgroup of [[British Canadians]] which is a further subgroup of [[European Canadians]].{{efn|name="BritishIsles"|[[Statistics Canada]] [[Census in Canada|demi-decadal censuses]] officially use the name "British Isles Origins" for the various nationalities and ethnicities that are in the region. See 2016,<ref name="population2016"/> 2011,<ref name="population2011"/> or 2006<ref name="population2006"/> censuses as examples}}
Scots formed the vanguard of the movement of Europeans across the continent. In more modern times, emigrants from Scotland have played a leading role in the social, political and economic history of Canada, being prominent in [[bank|banking]], [[labour union]]s, and [[politics]]. <ref>http://www.sfu.ca/scottish/history.html Simon Fraser University </ref>


== History ==
The first documented source of Scots in what would become Canada comes from the [[Saga of Eric the Red]] and the Viking expedition of 1010 [[AD]] to Vinland (literally, the land of wine), which is now the island of [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]]. The Viking prince [[Thorfinn Karlsefni]] led an expedition to Vinland and took with him 160 Viking men, three ships, and two Scottish slaves, a man named Haki and a woman named Hekja, who were reputed to be as swift as deer.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/darkages/oddities_darkages.shtml BBC - History - Scottish History<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>. When the [[longship]]s moored along the coast, they sent the slaves ashore to run along the waterfront to gauge whether it was safe for the rest of the crew to follow. After the Scots survived a day of without being attacked, by either human or animal, the Vikings deemed it safe to spend the night ashore. The expedition was abandoned three years later; the original sagas were passed on in an oral tradition and then written down 250 years later.
{{Historical populations
| title = Scottish Canadian<br>Population History
| type = Canada
| footnote = ''Source: [[Statistics Canada]]''<br /><ref name="population1871to1971">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=1999-07-29 |title=Historical statistics of Canada, section A: Population and migration - ARCHIVED |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/11-516-X |access-date=2022-09-23 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|17}}<ref name="population1901to1961">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title=1961 Census of Canada : population : vol. I - part 2 = 1961 Recensement du Canada : population: vol. I - partie 2. Ethnic groups. |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.831160/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|3}}<ref name="population1971">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title=1971 Census of Canada: population : vol. I - part 3 = Recensement du Canada 1971 : population : vol. I - partie 3. Introduction to volume I (part 3). |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.834326/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|20}}<ref name="population1981">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title=1981 Census of Canada: volume 1 - national series: population = Recensement du Canada de 1981: volume 1 - série nationale : population. Ethnic origin. |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.837638/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|20}}<ref name="population1986">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title=Census Canada 1986 Profile of ethnic groups |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.676331/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|104}}<ref name="population1986B">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title= 1986 Census of Canada: Ethnic Diversity In Canada. |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.576036/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|45}}<ref name="population1991">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-04-03 |title= 1991 Census: The nation. Ethnic origin. |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.676069/publication.html |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>{{rp|60}}<ref name="population1996">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2019-06-04 |title= Data tables, 1996 Census Population by Ethnic Origin (188) and Sex (3), Showing Single and Multiple Responses (3), for Canada, Provinces, Territories and Census Metropolitan Areas, 1996 Census (20% Sample Data) |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/English/census96/data/tables/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=1&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=1&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=5216&PRID=0&PTYPE=89103&S=0&SHOWALL=No&SUB=0&Temporal=2006&THEME=9&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF= |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref><ref name="population2001">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2013-12-23
|title= Ethnic Origin (232), Sex (3) and Single and Multiple Responses (3) for Population, for Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2001 Census - 20% Sample Data |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/English/census01/products/standard/themes/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=1&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=1&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=62911&PRID=0&PTYPE=55440&S=0&SHOWALL=No&SUB=0&Temporal=2006&THEME=44&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF= |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref><ref name="population2006">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2020-05-01
|title= Ethnic Origin (247), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3) and Sex (3) for the Population of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2006 Census - 20% Sample Data |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=1&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=1&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=92333&PRID=0&PTYPE=88971&S=0&SHOWALL=No&SUB=0&Temporal=2006&THEME=80&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF= |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref><ref name="population2011">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2019-01-23
|title= Ethnic Origin (264), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2011 National Household Survey |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/dp-pd/dt-td/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=0&PID=105396&PRID=0&PTYPE=105277&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2013&THEME=95&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF= |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref><ref name="population2016">{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2019-06-17
|title= Ethnic Origin (279), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age (12) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces and Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2016 Census - 25% Sample Data |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/dt-td/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=110528&PRID=10&PTYPE=109445&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2017&THEME=120&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF= |access-date=2022-09-19 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref><br>{{smaller|''Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.''<br>''Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.''}}
|1871|549946
|1881|699863
|1901|800154
|1911|1027015
|1921|1173625
|1931|1346350
|1941|1403974
|1951|1547470
|1961|1902302
|1971|1720390
|1981|1415200
|1986|3918055
|1991|4248365
|1996|4260840
|2001|4157210
|2006|4354155
|2011|4714970
|2016|4799005
}}
=== Early Scottish settlement ===
Scottish people have a long history in Canada, dating back several centuries.
Many towns, rivers, and mountains have been named in honour of Scottish explorers and traders such as [[Mackenzie Bay, Canada|Mackenzie Bay]] in the [[Yukon]] (named for Sir [[Alexander Mackenzie (explorer)|Alexander Mackenzie]]), and others are named after locations in Scotland, such as [[Calgary]] (named after a Scottish beach), or [[Banff, Alberta]] named after [[Banff, Aberdeenshire]]. Most notably, the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] province of [[Nova Scotia]] is [[Latin]] for "New Scotland". Once Scots formed the vanguard of the movement of Europeans across the continent. In more modern times, immigrants from Scotland have played a leading role in the social, political, and economic history of Canada, being prominent in [[bank]]ing, [[labour union]]s, and [[politics]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sfu.ca/scottish/history.html |title=Scottish Studies - History |access-date=2017-09-11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080416174029/http://www.sfu.ca/scottish/history.html |archive-date=2008-04-16 }} Simon Fraser University</ref>


The first documented source of Scots in what would become Canada comes from the [[Saga of Eric the Red]] and the [[Viking]] expedition of 1010 AD to [[Vinland]] (literally, the land of meadows), which is believed to refer to the island of [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]]. The Viking prince [[Thorfinn Karlsefni]] took two Scottish slaves to Vinland.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/darkages/oddities_darkages.shtml|title=BBC – History – Scottish History|first=British Broadcasting|last=Corporation|website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref> When the [[longship]]s moored along the coast, they sent the slaves ashore to run along the waterfront to gauge whether it was safe for the rest of the crew to follow. After the Scots survived a day without being attacked, by either human or animal, the Vikings deemed it safe to spend the night ashore. The expedition was abandoned three years later; the original sagas were passed on in an oral tradition and then written down 250 years later.
An apocryphal voyage in 1398 by a captain named [[Zichmni]], believed to be [[Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney]], who was of joint Norse-Scottish title and family, is also claimed to have reached Atlantic Canada as well as New England.


[[File:Censusdivisions-ethnic.png|thumb|left|Self-identified Scottish Canadians are a plurality in parts of [[Nova Scotia]] and [[Prince Edward Island]] (areas coloured in cyan).]]
The first attempts in earnest to entice Scottish settlers to Canada began as early as 1622, when [[Sir William Alexander]] obtained permission from [[King James VI]] of Scotland (James I of England) to establish a "new Scotland"&mdash;the origin of the name Nova Scotia. However, only a small number of Scottish families settled in Canada, prior to the conquest of [[New France]] in 1759. Those who did make a home on Canadian soil were Highlanders who sought political and religious asylum following the failed [[Jacobite rising|Jacobite]] uprisings in Scotland in 1715 and 1745.
An apocryphal voyage in 1398 by a captain named [[Zichmni]], believed to be [[Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney]], is also claimed to have reached Atlantic Canada as well as New England.


==== Push factors ====
Most of these Scots settled in what is now the Atlantic coast. A large group of [[Ulster Scots]], many of whom had first settled in [[New Hampshire]], moved to [[Truro, Nova Scotia]] in 1761. Their descendants have provided many of the country's leading justices, statesmen, clergymen, businessmen and scholars{{Fact|date=March 2007}}. In 1772 a wave of Scots began to arrive in [[Prince Edward Island]], and in 1773 the ship ''[[Hector (ship)|Hector]]'' brought 200 Scots to [[Pictou]], beginning a new stream of Highland emigration&mdash;the town's slogan is "The Birthplace of New Scotland". At the end of the 18th century, [[Cape Breton Island]] had become a centre of Scottish settlement, where only [[Scottish Gaelic]] was spoken.
{{Main|Jacobite risings|Highland Clearances|Lowland Clearances|Highland Potato Famine}}


Troubles back in Scotland in the 18th and 19th centuries generated a steady flow of emigrants. Some sought political asylum following the failed [[Jacobitism|Jacobite]] risings in [[Jacobite rising of 1689|1688]], [[Jacobite rising of 1715|1715]], and [[Jacobite rising of 1745|1745]]. The [[Gàidhealtachd]] was traditionally Catholic, and many Gaels came to Canada after facing eviction for their religious beliefs.{{sfn|MacKay|1996|p=vii}}{{sfn|Campey|2007|pages=60–61}}
Around this time, a handful of English-speaking Scottish Lowlanders joined the Scottish exodus to Canada. Likewise, a number of Scottish United Empire Loyalists who had fled the United States in 1783 arrived in Glengarry (in eastern [[Ontario]]) and Nova Scotia. In 1803, Lord Selkirk, who was sympathetic to the plight of the dispossessed crofters, brought 800 colonists to Prince Edward Island. In 1812 he also founded the Red River settlement in what is now [[Manitoba]].


Those immigrants who arrived after 1759 were mainly Highland farmers who had been forced off their [[croft (land)|crofts]] (rented land) during the [[Highland Clearances|Highland]] and [[Lowland Clearances]] to make way for sheep grazing due to the [[British Agricultural Revolution]].
[[Prince Edward Island]] (PEI) was also heavily influenced by Scottish settlers. One prominent settler in PEI was John Macdonald of Glenaladale, who conceived the idea of sending Highlanders out to Nova Scotia on a grand scale after Culloden. The name Macdonald still dominates on the island, which received a large influx of Scots during the [[American Revolution]] and another Gaelic-speaking group of Highlanders in 1813 from the estates of Lord Selkirk.


Others came as a result of famine. In 1846, potato crops were blighted by the same fungal disease responsible for the [[Great Irish Famine]], and most Highland [[crofters]] were very dependent on potatoes as a source of food. Crofters were expected to work in appalling conditions, and although some landlords worked to lessen the effects of the famine on their tenants, many landlords simply resorted to eviction. In particular, John Gordon of Cluny became the target of criticism in newspapers when many of his crofters were reduced to living on the streets of [[Inverness]]. Gordon resorted to hiring a fleet of ships and forcibly transporting his [[Hebridean]] crofters to Canada, where they were conveniently abandoned on Canadian authorities. Some more sympathetic landlords supplied a free passage to what was hoped to be a better life. Crop failures continued into the 1850s and famine relief programmes became semi-permanent operations. During the ten years following 1847, from throughout the Highlands, over 16,000 crofters were shipped overseas to Canada and Australia.
[[New Brunswick]] also became the home for many Scots. In 1761, a Highland regiment garrisoned [[Fort Frederick (Kingston)|Fort Frederick]]. The surrounding lands surveyed by Captain Bruce in 1762 attracted many Scottish traders when William Davidson of Caithness arrived to settle two years later. Their numbers were swelled by the arrival of thousands of loyalists of Scottish origin both during and after the American Revolution.


==== Pull factors ====
One of the New Brunswick and Canada's most famous regiments was "The King's First American Regiment" founded in 1776. It was composed mostly of Highlanders, many of whom fought with their traditional kilts to the sound of the pipes. The regiment distinguished itself when it defeated Washington's forces at the Battle of Brandywine. When it disbanded after the War, most of its members settled in New Brunswick. A continual influx of immigrants from Scotland and Ulster meant that by 1843 there were over 30,000 Scots in New Brunswick.
Canada had plenty of land and jobs and new opportunities, which created a pull factor. The government made certain potential immigrants know of the advantages, sending agents to recruit Irish and Scottish emigrants to settle in western Canada between 1867 and the 1920s. The Canadian government hoped to develop the economy in the sparsely populated western part of the country. It set up offices in towns in Ireland and Scotland, and agents went up and down the land pasting up attractive posters, giving lectures, handing out pamphlets and trying one-on-one to persuade farmers and laborers of the virtues of life in Canada. Although many people agreed to emigrate, the agents faced competition from the United States, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa, and opponents of emigration warned of hardship in Canada. The agents did not create 'emigration fever,' but they did tap into a sense of restlessness that, if nurtured, could result in a decision to emigrate.{{sfn|Harper|2004}}


=== Large-scale migration ===
==Forced Migration==
Bumsted (1981) notes that between 1760 and 1860, millions of people emigrated from Great Britain. Before 1815, emigration was discouraged, but emigration from Scotland to the Maritime Provinces constituted one of the principal components of the exodus; by 1815, Scots formed one of the three major ethnic groups there. Most of the emigrants were unskilled Gaelic-speaking farmers, who gathered in isolated communities. The Maritimes attracted them because of the opportunity there to be left alone to pursue the traditional way of life.{{sfn|Bumsted|1981}}


A large group of [[Ulster Scots people|Ulster Scots]], many of whom had first settled in [[New Hampshire]], moved to [[Truro, Nova Scotia]] in 1761. In 1772, a wave of Gaels began to arrive in [[Prince Edward Island]], and in 1773 the ship ''[[Hector (immigration ship)|Hector]]'' brought 200 Gaels to [[Pictou]], beginning a new stream of Highland emigration&nbsp;— the town's slogan is "The Birthplace of New Scotland". At the end of the 18th century, [[Cape Breton Island]] had become a centre of Scottish Gaelic settlement, where only [[Scottish Gaelic]] was spoken.{{cn|date=April 2024}}
{{main|Jacobite Risings|Highland Clearances|Lowland Clearances|Highland Potato Famine}}


A number of Scottish [[loyalists]] to the British crown, who had fled the United States in 1783, arrived in [[Glengarry County]] (in eastern [[Ontario]]) and Nova Scotia. In 1803, Lord [[Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk]], who was sympathetic to the plight of the dispossessed [[crofter]]s (tenant farmers in the Highlands), brought 800 colonists to Prince Edward Island. In 1811, he founded the [[Red River Colony]] as a Scottish colonization project on an area of 300,000 square kilometres (120,000 sq mi) in what would later be the province of [[Manitoba]] — land that was granted by the [[Hudson's Bay Company]], in what is referred to as the [[Selkirk Concession]].{{cn|date=April 2024}}
Between the 18th and 19th centuries a steady flow of emigrants from Scotland arrived in North America. Some sought political and religious asylum following the failed [[Jacobite rising|Jacobite]] uprisings in 1688, 1715 and 1745. Those immigrants who arrived after 1759 were mainly Highland farmers who had been forced off their [[croft (land)|crofts]] (rented land) during the [[Highland Clearances|Highland]] and [[Lowland Clearances]] to make way for sheep grazing due to the [[British Agricultural Revolution]].


[[Prince Edward Island]] (PEI) was also heavily influenced by Scottish Gaelic settlers. One prominent settler in PEI was [[John MacDonald of Glenaladale]], who conceived the idea of sending Gaels to Nova Scotia on a grand scale after Culloden. The name Macdonald still dominates on the island, which received a large influx of settlers, predominantly Catholics from the Highlands, in the late 18th century. Another large group of Gaels arrived in 1803. This migration, primarily from the [[Isle of Skye]], was organized by the [[Earl of Selkirk]].
Others came as a result of famine. In 1846, potato crops were blighted by the same fungal disease responsible for the [[Great Irish Famine]], and most Highland [[crofters]] were very dependent on potatoes as a source of food. Crofters were expected to work in appalling conditions, and although some landlords worked to lessen the effects of the famine on their tenants, many landlords simply resorted to eviction. In particular, [[John Gordon of Cluny]] became the target of criticism in newspapers when many of his crofters were reduced to living on the streets of [[Inverness]]. Gordon resorted to hiring a fleet of ships and forcibly transporting his [[Hebridean]] crofters to Canada, where they were conveniently abandoned on Canadian authorities. Some more sympathetic landlords supplied a free passage to what was hoped to be a better life.


[[New Brunswick]] became the home for many Scots. In 1761, a Highland regiment garrisoned [[Fort Frederick (Saint John, New Brunswick)|Fort Frederick]]. The surrounding lands surveyed by Captain Bruce in 1762 attracted many Scottish traders when William Davidson of Caithness arrived to settle two years later. Their numbers were swelled by the arrival of thousands of loyalists of Scottish origin both during and after the American Revolution.
Crop failures continued into the 1850s and famine relief programmes became semi-permanent operations. During the ten years following 1847, from throughout the Highlands, over 16,000 crofters were shipped overseas to Canada and Australia.


One of the New Brunswick and Canada's most famous regiments was "The King's First American Regiment" founded in 1776. It was composed mostly of Highlanders, many of whom fought with their traditional [[kilt]]s to the sound of [[Great Highland bagpipe|bagpipes]]. The regiment distinguished itself when it defeated Washington's forces at the [[Battle of Brandywine]]. When it disbanded after the War, most of its members settled in New Brunswick. A continual influx of immigrants from Scotland and Ulster meant that by 1843, there were over 30,000 Scots in New Brunswick.{{sfn|Campbell|Bryce|1911|p=131}}
==Cultural influence==
[[Image:Flag of Nova Scotia.svg|thumb|right|The [[flag of Nova Scotia]].]]
===Nova Scotia===
{{see also|Music of Nova Scotia|Canadian Gaelic|Cape Breton English|Maritimer English}}


[[Canadian Gaelic]] was spoken as the first language in much of "Anglophone" Canada, such as [[Nova Scotia]], [[Prince Edward Island]], and [[Glengarry County]] in Ontario. Gaelic was the third most commonly spoken language in Canada.<ref>Jonathan Dembling. "Gaelic in Canada: new evidence from an old census." In ''Cànan & Cultar/Language & Culture: Rannsachadh na Gàidhlig 3'', edited by Wilson McLeod, James Fraser and Anja Gunderloch, 203-14. Edinburgh: Dunedin Academic Press, 2006.</ref>
Despite the peninsula's small size, the Scots have influenced the cultural mix of [[Nova Scotia]] for centuries and constitute the largest ethnic group in the province, at 29.3% of its population. Nova Scotia is [[Latin]] for "New Scotland", and its flag was designed as a combination of the Scottish [[Flag of Scotland|Saltire]] and the [[Royal Standard of Scotland]].


== Demography ==
Nova Scotia was briefly colonized by Scottish settlers in 1620, though by 1624 the Scottish settlers had been removed by treaty and the area was turned over to the French until the mid-1700s. Settlement was greatly accelerated by the resettlement of Loyalists in Nova Scotia during the period following the end of the American revolutionary war, as well as the [[Highland Clearances]]
{{image frame

|content={{Graph:Chart
The Gaelic and Celtic influences of Scottish immigrants continue to play an important role in defining the cultural life of the province, especially in its music. Today, however, only about 150&ndash;200 Nova Scotians are fluent in [[Canadian Gaelic]], and about 750&ndash;1000 in all of Canada.<ref>[[Canada 2001 Census]]. ''[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/standard/themes/RetrieveProductTable.cfm?Temporal=2001&PID=55536&APATH=3&METH=1&PTYPE=55440&THEME=41&FOCUS=0&AID=0&PLACENAME=0&PROVINCE=0&SEARCH=0&GC=0&GK=0&VID=0&FL=0&RL=0&FREE=0&GID=431515 Detailed Language Spoken at Home]''. Accessed [[January 12]], [[2008]].</ref> However, the Nova Scotian Office of Gaelic Affairs estimates there are currently around 2000 speakers in the province and notes the enduring impact of institutions such as the [[Gaelic College]] in Cape Breton.<ref>[http://www.gov.ns.ca/oga/aboutgaelic.asp?lang=en ''Oifis Iomairtean na Gaidhlig/Office of Gaelic Affairs]</ref>
|height=333

|width=666
[[Dalhousie University]], the largest university in the [[Maritimes|Maritime provinces]], was founded in 1818 by [[George Ramsay]] as the only Gaelic college in Canada. [[St. Francis Xavier University]] was also founded by a Scot&mdash;[[Colin Francis MacKinnon]], a [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] [[bishop (Catholic Church)|bishop]].
|xAxisTitle=Year

|yAxisMin=0
[[Image:Flag of Montreal.svg|thumb|right|200px|[[Flag of Montreal]]]]
|yAxisMax=9598010<!-- Max is based on double ethnic Scottish population as per latest census data (2016). -->

|xGrid=
===Quebec===
|yAxisTitle=Population (millions)
{{see also|Scots-Quebecer}}
|yGrid=

|y1Title=Canada
Scots have long and historic ties with the province of [[Quebec]]. When the ''[[Don de Dieu (ship)|Don de Dieu]]'' sailed up the [[St. Lawrence River]] during the first wave of colonization of French Canada, it was piloted by a Scot, Abraham Martin. The first British governor of Quebec was also a Scot, [[James Murray (British Army officer)|James Murray]]. He received the keys to the city gates from the French commander, Major de Ramezay, who was himself of Scottish descent, as many Scots had been employed by the French since the time of the [[Auld Alliance]].
|type=line

|showSymbols=
Large groups of Scots, chiefly from [[Ross-shire]], arrived on the ship ''Nephton'' in 1802 to settle in Quebec. Many of their descendents have become prominent in the business, financial and religious activities of [[Montreal]]. Many early settlers from [[Tryon County, New York]] came here, in what was then wilderness. They were joined by many Highlanders during the Revolution, and after the War had ended, by a whole regiment of the "King's Royals."
|x=1871, 1881, 1901, 1911, 1921, 1931, 1941, 1951, 1961, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016

|y1=549946, 699863, 800154, 1027015, 1173625, 1346350, 1403974, 1547470, 1902302, 1720390, 1415200, 3918055, 4248365, 4260840, 4157210, 4354155, 4714970, 4799005
[[Image:James McGill.JPG|thumb|123px|right|[[James McGill]]]]
|colors=red,lightblue,pink,blue,lightgreen,orange}}
[[McGill University]], one of Canada's largest universities, was founded in 1821 with revenue from the estate bequeathed by [[James McGill]], a merchant and politician who had emigrated from [[Glasgow]]. Its first head was Scotsman John Bethune, a pupil of Strachan (who was prevented from assuming the position only by a delay in its foundation). Another wealthy Scot, Mr. Peter Redpath, was responsible for financing the museum, the library and a University chair.
|caption=Canadians of Scottish descent total population (1871−2016)<br>{{smaller|''Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.''<br>''Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.''}}
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}}
{{image frame
|content={{Graph:Chart
|height=333
|width=666
|xAxisTitle=Year
|yAxisMin=0
|yAxisMax=27.852<!-- Max is based on double ethnic Scottish percentage as per latest census data (2016). -->
|xGrid=
|yAxisTitle=Percentage
|yGrid=
|y1Title=Canada
|type=line
|showSymbols=
|x=1871, 1881, 1901, 1911, 1921, 1931, 1941, 1951, 1961, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016
|y1=15.777, 16.183, 14.897, 14.251, 13.355, 12.975, 12.201, 11.046, 10.43, 7.976, 5.876, 15.658, 15.738, 14.936, 14.026, 13.937, 14.352, 13.926
|colors=red,lightblue,pink,blue,lightgreen,orange}}
|caption=Canadians of Scottish descent percentage of the total population (1871−2016)<br>{{smaller|''Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.''<br>''Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.''}}
|border=no
}}
=== Population ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Scottish Canadian Population History<br>1871−2016
|-
!Year
!Population
!% of total population
|-
|1871<br><ref name="population1871to1971"/>{{rp|17}}
| align="right" |549,946
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 549946 | 3485761 | 3 }}
|-
|1881<br><ref name="population1871to1971"/>{{rp|17}}
| align="right" |699,863
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 699863 | 4324810 | 3 }}
|-
|1901<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |800,154
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 800154 | 5371315 | 3 }}
|-
|1911<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,027,015
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1027015 | 7206643 | 3 }}
|-
|1921<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,173,625
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1173625 | 8787949 | 3 }}
|-
|1931<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,346,350
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1346350 | 10376786 | 3 }}
|-
|1941<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,403,974
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1403974 | 11506655 | 3 }}
|-
|1951<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,547,470
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1547470 | 14009429 | 3 }}
|-
|1961<br><ref name="population1901to1961"/>{{rp|3}}
| align="right" |1,902,302
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1902302 | 18238247 | 3 }}
|-
|1971<br><ref name="population1971"/>{{rp|20}}
| align="right" |1,720,390
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1720390 | 21568310 | 3 }}
|-
|1981<br><ref name="population1981"/>{{rp|20}}
| align="right" |1,415,200
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 1415200 | 24083495 | 3 }}
|-
|1986<br><ref name="population1986"/>{{rp|104}}<ref name="population1986B"/>{{rp|45}}
| align="right" |3,918,055
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 3918055 | 25022010 | 3 }}
|-
|1991<br><ref name="population1991"/>{{rp|60}}
| align="right" |4,248,365
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4248365 | 26994045 | 3 }}
|-
|1996<br><ref name="population1996"/>
| align="right" |4,260,840
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4260840 | 28528125 | 3 }}
|-
|2001<br><ref name="population2001"/>
| align="right" |4,157,210
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4157210 | 29639035 | 3 }}
|-
|2006<br><ref name="population2006"/>
| align="right" |4,354,155
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4354155 | 31241030 | 3 }}
|-
|2011<br><ref name="population2011"/>
| align="right" |4,714,970
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4714970 | 32852325 | 3 }}
|-
|2016<br><ref name="population2016"/>
| align="right" |4,799,005
| align="right" |{{Percentage | 4799005 | 34460065 | 3 }}
|}


== Geographical distribution ==
===Ontario===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
The chief Scottish town in [[Glengarry County, Ontario|Glengarry]] was Cornwall, located in modern-day [[Ontario]]. It was reinforced in 1786 when The McDonald arrived at Quebec from Greenock with 520 new pioneers. Soon immigrants came from all parts of Scotland to make it one of the most important Scots-Canadian communities. The Glengarry clansmen managed to get away from their homelands before the British Government's embargo during the war with Napoleon. Many other retired officials from the Hudson's Bay Company joined the Glengarry Settlements.
|+ Scottish Canadians by [[Provinces and territories of Canada|province and territory]] (2001−2016)
Another famous Scottish area that came to exert great influence in Ontario was the [[Perth, Ontario|Perth Settlement]], another region of purely Scottish and military origin. Unemployment and suffering following the end of the [[Napoleonic Wars]] caused the British government to reverse its former policies and actively encourage emigration. In 1815, three loaded transports set sail from Greenock for Upper Canada: the ''Atlas'', the ''Baptiste Merchant'' and the ''Borothy''. After the [[War of 1812]] ended, many soldiers from the disbanded regiments joined them. In 1816, more arrivals from [[Ulster]] helped swell the Scottish element. Many Perth families became prominent in both provincial and national governments.
! rowspan="2" |[[Provinces and territories of Canada|Province/Territory]]

! colspan="2" |2016<ref name="population2016"/>
An educational institution of Scottish origin is [[Queens University]] in Kingston "the Aberdeen of Canada," founded largely through the dreams (and hard work) of noted scholar George Munroe Grant. Numerous educational institutions including high schools can be attributed to Scottish influences one being the [[Sir John A. Macdonald Collegiate Institute]] is a secondary school located in [[Scarborough, Ontario|Scarborough]], [[Ontario]]. The crest contains a map of Canada and the symbols of the Macdonald clan: a white coronet, a mailed fist, and crossed crosslets. Red, Royal Purple, and White, which predominate in the tartan of Sir John's family clan, Clanranald
! colspan="2" |2011<ref name="population2011"/>

! colspan="2" |2006<ref name="population2006"/>
[[Image:LastSpike Craigellachie BC Canada.jpg|thumb|left||[[Lord Strathcona]] drives the [[Last Spike (Canadian Pacific Railway)|last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway]] at [[Craigellachie, British Columbia|Craigellachie]], [[7 November]] [[1885]].]]
! colspan="2" |2001<ref name="population2001"/>

===British Columbia===

Scottish influence has been an important part of the cultural mix in metropolitan [[Vancouver]] and [[British Columbia]]. The St. Andrew's and Caledonian Society of Vancouver was founded in 1886, the same year as the city. On St. Andrew's Day, 1887, the society held a grand St. Andrew's Ball in McDonough Hall at the southeast corner of Hastings and Columbia and almost half the city's population attended. The city still celebrates Scottish Heritage week which concludes with the BC Highland Games.

Many local place names are of Scottish origin. The district of Dollarton was named for Captain Robert Dollar. West Vancouver's first European settler, John Lawson, planted holly by the side of the "burn" or river flowing across his property; he coined "Hollyburn" as the name for his place. Iona Island was formerly called McMillan Island, after a pioneer Scots settler, Donald McMillan. Part of West Vancouver is named after Dundarave Castle in Scotland. In 1905 at what is now West 41st Avenue in Vancouver, a young Scottish couple named MacKinnon who had recently settled in the district were invited to name the new station. She adapted the name Kerrisdale from her old family home, Kerrydale, in Gairloch, Scotland. Kerrydale means "little seat of the fairies."

Other evidence of the Scottish influence on the development of Greater Vancouver can be found in the names of parks, creeks and other geographical features throughout the metropolitan area, the most notable of which is the [[Fraser River]].

==Demographics==
The following statistics are from the [[Canada 2006 Census|2006 Census of Canada]].<ref>[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/ethnic/pages/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=2&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=3&Display=All].

{| border="1" cellpadding="2" class="wikitable sortable"
|+Canadians of Scottish descent
|-
|-
![[Population|{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}]]
!Province/territory
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!Number of respondents
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!Percentage of respondents
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Ontario.svg|20px]] [[Ontario]]
|[[Prince Edward Island]]
| 2,107,295
|align=center|54,290
| {{Percentage | 2107295 | 13242160 | 2 }}
|align=center|41%
| 2,080,545
| {{Percentage | 2080545 | 12651790 | 2 }}
| 2,101,100
| {{Percentage | 2101100 | 12028895 | 2 }}
| 1,843,110
| {{Percentage | 1843110 | 11285545 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of British Columbia.svg|20px]] [[British Columbia]]
|[[Nova Scotia]]
| 860,775
|align=center|288,180
| {{Percentage | 860775 | 4560240 | 2 }}
|align=center|32%
| 833,290
| {{Percentage | 833290 | 4324455 | 2 }}
| 828,145
| {{Percentage | 828145 | 4074385 | 2 }}
| 748,905
| {{Percentage | 748905 | 3868875 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Alberta.svg|20px]] [[Alberta]]
|[[Yukon]]
| 704,200
|align=center|7,005
| {{Percentage | 704200 | 3978150 | 2 }}
|align=center|23%
| 670,955
| {{Percentage | 670955 | 3567975 | 2 }}
| 661,265
| {{Percentage | 661265 | 3256355 | 2 }}
| 556,575
| {{Percentage | 556575 | 2941150 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Nova Scotia.svg|20px]] [[Nova Scotia]]
|[[Alberta]]
| 272,880
|align=center|661,265
| {{Percentage | 272880 | 908340 | 2 }}
|align=center|20%
| 282,805
| {{Percentage | 282805 | 906170 | 2 }}
| 288,180
| {{Percentage | 288180 | 903090 | 2 }}
| 263,060
| {{Percentage | 263060 | 897565 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Quebec.svg|20px]] [[Quebec]]
|[[British Columbia]]
| 215,025
|align=center|828,145
| {{Percentage | 215025 | 7965450 | 2 }}
|align=center|20%
| 196,670
| {{Percentage | 196670 | 7732520 | 2 }}
| 202,515
| {{Percentage | 202515 | 7435905 | 2 }}
| 156,140
| {{Percentage | 156140 | 7125580 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Manitoba.svg|20px]] [[Manitoba]]
|[[New Brunswick]]
| 208,060
|align=center|142,560
| {{Percentage | 208060 | 1240700 | 2 }}
|align=center|20%
| 210,815
| {{Percentage | 210815 | 1174345 | 2 }}
| 209,170
| {{Percentage | 209170 | 1133515 | 2 }}
| 195,570
| {{Percentage | 195570 | 1103695 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[Saskatchewan]]
|[[File:Flag of Saskatchewan.svg|20px]] [[Saskatchewan]]
| 193,330
|align=center|182,790
| {{Percentage | 193330 | 1070560 | 2 }}
|align=center|19%
| 190,450
| {{Percentage | 190450 | 1008760 | 2 }}
| 182,790
| {{Percentage | 182790 | 953850 | 2 }}
| 172,300
| {{Percentage | 172300 | 963150 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of New Brunswick.svg|20px]] [[New Brunswick]]
|[[Manitoba]]
| 134,455
|align=center|209,170
| {{Percentage | 134455 | 730710 | 2 }}
|align=center|18%
| 146,230
| {{Percentage | 146230 | 735835 | 2 }}
| 142,560
| {{Percentage | 142560 | 719650 | 2 }}
| 127,635
| {{Percentage | 127635 | 719710 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg|20px]] [[Prince Edward Island]]
|[[Ontario]]
| 50,685
|align=center|2,101,100
| {{Percentage | 50685 | 139685 | 2 }}
|align=center|17%
| 53,960
| {{Percentage | 53960 | 137375 | 2 }}
| 54,290
| {{Percentage | 54290 | 134205 | 2 }}
| 50,700
| {{Percentage | 50700 | 133385 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg|20px]] [[Newfoundland and Labrador]]
|[[Northwest Territories]]
| 34,650
|align=center|6,050
| {{Percentage | 34650 | 512250 | 2 }}
|align=center|15%
| 32,810
| {{Percentage | 32810 | 507265 | 2 }}
| 34,925
| {{Percentage | 34925 | 500610 | 2 }}
| 30,295
| {{Percentage | 30295 | 508075 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Yukon.svg|20px]] [[Yukon]]
|[[Newfoundland and Labrador]]
| 8,295
|align=center|34,920
| {{Percentage | 8295 | 35110 | 2 }}
|align=center|7%
| 8,340
| {{Percentage | 8340 | 33320 | 2 }}
| 7,005
| {{Percentage | 7005 | 30195 | 2 }}
| 6,245
| {{Percentage | 6245 | 28525 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg|20px]] [[Northwest Territories]]
|[[Nunavut]]
| 6,090
|align=center|2,025
| {{Percentage | 6090 | 41135 | 2 }}
|align=center|7%
| 5,685
| {{Percentage | 5685 | 40800 | 2 }}
| 5,875
| {{Percentage | 5875 | 41055 | 2 }}
| 5,190
| {{Percentage | 5190 | 37105 | 2 }}
|-
|-
|[[File:Flag of Nunavut.svg|20px]] [[Nunavut]]
|[[Quebec]]
| 3,265
|align=center|202,515
| {{Percentage | 3265 | 35580 | 2 }}
|align=center|3%
| 2,420
|-class="sortbottom"
| {{Percentage | 2420 | 31695 | 2 }}
|'''[[Canada]]'''
| 2,025
|align=center|'''4,719,850'''
| {{Percentage | 2025 | 29325 | 2 }}
|align=center|'''15.1%'''
| 1,475
| {{Percentage | 1475 | 26665 | 2 }}
|-
|[[File:Flag of Canada.svg|20px]] '''Canada'''
| '''4,799,005'''
| '''{{Percentage | 4799005 | 34460065 | 2 }}'''
| '''4,714,970'''
| '''{{Percentage | 4714970 | 32852320 | 2 }}'''
| '''4,719,850'''
| '''{{Percentage | 4719850 | 31241030 | 2 }}'''
| '''4,157,210'''
| '''{{Percentage | 4157210 | 29639035 | 2 }}'''
|}
|}


=== Nova Scotia ===
[[Image:Tartan of Nova Scotia.png|thumb|right|The tartan of Nova Scotia, the first official provincial tartan in Canada.]]
[[File:Flag of Nova Scotia.svg|thumb|right|260px|The [[flag of Nova Scotia]]]]
{{See also|Music of Nova Scotia|Celtic music in Canada|Canadian Gaelic|Cape Breton English|Maritimer English}}

The Scots have influenced the cultural mix of [[Nova Scotia]] for centuries and constitute the largest ethnic group in the province, at 29.3% of its population. The name of Nova Scotia literally means ''"New Scotland"'' in Latin, and its flag was designed as a combination of the Scottish [[Flag of Scotland|Saltire]] and the [[Royal Arms of Scotland]].

Nova Scotia was briefly colonized by Scottish settlers in 1620, although by 1624 the Scottish settlers had been removed by treaty and the area was turned over to the French until the middle of the 18th century. Scottish settlement greatly accelerated during the resettlement of Loyalists in Nova Scotia following the end of the American revolutionary war, and especially following the [[Highland Clearances]] in Scotland.

The Gaelic influences of Scottish immigrants continue to play an important role in defining the cultural life of the province, especially in its music. According to the 2006 census about 900 Nova Scotians are fluent in [[Gaelic languages]] (the census does not distinguish between [[Scottish Gaelic]]/[[Canadian Gaelic]] and [[Irish Gaelic]]), and about 6,015 in all of Canada.<ref>[[Canada 2006 Census]]. ''[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/topics/RetrieveProductTable.cfm?ALEVEL=3&APATH=3&CATNO=&DETAIL=0&DIM=&DS=99&FL=0&FREE=0&GAL=0&GC=99&GK=NA&GRP=1&IPS=&METH=0&ORDER=1&PID=89189&PTYPE=88971&RL=0&S=1&ShowAll=No&StartRow=1&SUB=705&Temporal=2006&Theme=70&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=&GID=837937]''. Accessed October 1, 2008.</ref> However, the Nova Scotian Office of Gaelic Affairs estimates there are currently around 2000 [[Scottish Gaelic]] speakers in the province and notes the enduring impact of institutions such as the [[Gaelic College]] in [[Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia|Cape Breton]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gov.ns.ca/oga/aboutgaelic.asp?lang=en|title=''Oifis Iomairtean na Gaidhlig/Office of Gaelic Affairs|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081029055757/http://www.gov.ns.ca/oga/aboutgaelic.asp?lang=en|archive-date=2008-10-29}}</ref>

[[Dalhousie University]] in [[Halifax Regional Municipality|Halifax]], the largest university in the [[Maritimes|Maritime provinces]], was founded in 1818 by Scottish aristocrat [[George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie|George Ramsay]] as the only Gaelic college in Canada.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} [[St. Francis Xavier University]] in [[Antigonish]] was also founded by a Scot&nbsp;— [[Colin Francis MacKinnon]], a Catholic bishop.

Murdoch (1998) notes that the popular image of Cape Breton Island as a last bastion of Gaelic culture distorts the complex history of the island since the 16th century. The original [[Mi'kmaq people|Micmac]] inhabitants, Acadian French, Irish, Loyalists from New England, Lowland Scots and English have all contributed to a history which has included cultural, religious, and political conflict as well as cooperation and synthesis. The Highland Scots became the largest community in the early 19th century, and their heritage in music, folklore, and language has survived government indifference, but it is now threatened by a synthetic marketable 'tartan clan doll culture' aimed primarily at tourists.<ref name="auto1"/>

[[File:Flag of Montreal.svg|thumb|right|200px|[[Flag of Montreal]]]]

=== Quebec ===
{{See also|Scots-Quebecer}}

Scots have long and historic ties with the province of [[Quebec]]. The early Scots who arrived in the province were crofters and fishermen. When the ''[[Don de Dieu]]'' sailed up the [[St. Lawrence River]] during the first wave of colonization of French Canada, it was piloted by a Scot, Abraham Martin. The first British governor of Quebec was also a Scot, [[James Murray (Quebec governor)|James Murray]]. He received the keys to the city gates from the French commander, Major de Ramezay, who was himself of Scottish descent, as many Scots had been employed by the French since the time of the [[Auld Alliance]].{{cn|date=April 2024}}

Large groups of Scots, chiefly from [[Ross-shire]], arrived on the ship ''Nephton'' in 1802 to settle in Quebec. Many of their descendants have become prominent in the business, financial and religious activities of [[Montreal]]. Many early settlers from [[Tryon County, New York]] came here, in what was then wilderness. They were joined by many Highlanders during the Revolution, and after the War had ended, by a whole regiment of the "King's Royals."{{cn|date=April 2024}}

[[File:James McGill.JPG|thumb|123px|right|[[James McGill]]]]
[[McGill University]] was founded in 1821 with revenue from the estate bequeathed by [[James McGill]], a merchant and politician who had emigrated from [[Glasgow]]. Its first head was Scotsman John Bethune, a pupil of Strachan (who was prevented from assuming the position only by a delay in its foundation). Another wealthy Scot, Peter Redpath, was responsible for financing the museum, the library and a University chair.{{cn|date=April 2024}}

=== Ontario ===
{{See also|Glengarry County, Ontario|Glengarry Highland Games|Canadian Gaelic|Eastern Ontario}}

[[Glengarry County, Ontario|Glengarry County]] in modern day-[[Ontario]] is a historic region with much Scottish or [[Gaels|Gaelic]] background. This is because it is the site of where many [[Scottish Highlands|Gaels]] settled after the [[Highland Clearances]]. [[Scottish Gaelic]] / [[Canadian Gaelic]] is a spoken language in the county, but the number of speakers has declined to a great degree. Maxville Public School in [[Glengarry County, Ontario|Maxville, Glengarry]] still offers the language. Also known in the region are the [[Glengarry Highland Games]] where many Scottish competitions are held to celebrate [[Culture of Scotland|Scottish Culture]]. The chief Scottish town in [[Glengarry County, Ontario|Glengarry]] was Cornwall, located in modern-day [[Ontario]]. It was reinforced in 1786 when The ship McDonald arrived at Quebec from Greenock with 520 new pioneers. Soon immigrants came from all parts of Scotland to make it one of the most important Scots-Canadian communities. The Glengarry clansmen managed to get away from their homelands before the British Government's embargo during the war with Napoleon. Many other retired officials from the Hudson's Bay Company joined the Glengarry Settlements.
Another famous Scottish area that came to exert great influence in Ontario was the [[Perth, Ontario|Perth Settlement]], another region of Scottish and military origin. Unemployment and suffering following the end of the [[Napoleonic Wars]] caused the British government to reverse its former policies and actively encourage emigration. In 1815, three loaded transports set sail from Greenock for Upper Canada: the ''Atlas'', the ''Baptiste Merchant'' and the ''Borothy''. After the [[War of 1812]] ended, many soldiers from the disbanded regiments joined them. In 1816, some [[Ulster Scots people|Scots-Irish]] from [[Ulster]] arrived in the area. Many Perth families became prominent in both provincial and national governments.

An educational institution of Scottish origin is [[Queen's University at Kingston|Queen's University]] in Kingston "the Aberdeen of Canada", founded largely through the efforts of noted scholar George Munroe Grant. Numerous educational institutions have Scottish influence, one being [[Sir John A. Macdonald Collegiate Institute]], a secondary school located in [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]]. The crest contains a map of Canada and the symbols of the Macdonald clan: a white coronet, a mailed fist, and crossed crosslets. Red, Royal Purple, and White, which predominate in the tartan of Sir John's family clan, Clanranald.

[[File:LastSpike Craigellachie BC Canada.jpg|thumb|left|[[Lord Strathcona]] drives the [[Last Spike (Canadian Pacific Railway)|last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway]] at [[Craigellachie, British Columbia|Craigellachie]], November 7, 1885.]]

=== British Columbia ===

Owing to the role that the [[Hudson's Bay Company]], a company dominated by a Scottish managerial class, played in the colonial settlement of [[British Columbia]], many of the leading early colonial officials were Scottish or of Scottish descent such as Sir James Douglas (whose father was from Scotland), William Fraser Tolmie, and John Ross.

Scottish influence has been an important part of the cultural mix both in metropolitan [[Vancouver]] and wider British Columbian society. The St. Andrew's and Caledonian Society of Vancouver, for example, was founded in 1886, the same year as the city. On St. Andrew's Day, 1887, the society held a grand St. Andrew's Ball in McDonough Hall at the southeast corner of Hastings and Columbia and almost half the city's population attended. The city still celebrates Scottish Heritage week which concludes with the BC Highland Games.

In Victoria, two of the city's most recognizable landmarks, [[Craigdarroch Castle]] and [[Hatley Castle]], were commissioned by the Scottish-born Dunsmuir family, whose coal-baron patriarch [[Robert Dunsmuir]] immigrated from Scotland to become one of Vancouver Island's richest businessmen. These two castles brought [[Scottish Baronial]] architecture to very prominent landmarks in Victoria, both of which have been designated as National Historic Sites for their significance to the city. Robert's son [[James Dunsmuir]] would go on to become the Premier of British Columbia, and later the Lieutenant Governor General.

[[File:Craigdarroch Castle just after sunset - view from the south, Victoria, Canada 01.jpg|thumb|left|Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria, an example of Scottish Baronial architecture in Canada]]

Many local place names in Vancouver are of Scottish origin. The district of Dollarton, for example, was named for Captain Robert Dollar. West Vancouver's first European settler, John Lawson, planted holly by the side of the "burn" or river flowing across his property; he coined "Hollyburn" as the name for his place. Iona Island was formerly called McMillan Island, after a Scottish settler named Donald McMillan. Part of West Vancouver is named after Dundarave Castle in Scotland. In 1905, at what is now West 41st Avenue in Vancouver, a young Scottish couple who had recently settled in the district with the last name MacKinnon were invited to name the new station. Mrs. MacKinnon was asked by the [[British Columbia Electric Railway]] manager R.H. Sterling to name the interurban tram stop at Wilson Road (today West 41st Avenue). She chose to call it "Kerry's Dale", after the name of her family home, Kerrydale, in Gairloch, Scotland. Kerrysdale means "little seat of the fairies." It was quickly corrupted to Kerrisdale.

Other evidence of the Scottish influence on the development of British Columbia can be found in the names of streets, parks, creeks and other geographical features throughout the province, the most notable of which are the [[Fraser River]] and Mount Douglas (PKOLS).

== Culture ==
Today Canada is awash in Scottish memorabilia, as Rae (2005) shows. The [[Tartan day]]s, [[clan gathering]]s, [[highland games]], and showings of films like ''[[Braveheart]]'' indicate a sense of [[Scottishness]] that is informed by stories, narratives, or myths of the homeland's rural, masculinist, resistant past.<ref>Rae (2005)</ref>

Other Canadians reject [[tartanism]] as a superficial and commercialized expression of Gaelic identity,<ref name="auto1">Steve Murdoch, "Cape Breton: Canada's 'Highland' Island?" ''Northern Scotland'' 1998 18: 31-42</ref> and embrace [[Scottish Gaelic]] language and culture through the auspices of organizations such as the Atlantic Gaelic Academy and the Gaelic College. The Comhairle na Gàidhlig is an organization devoted to "creating an environment that makes Nova Scotia a place where Gaelic language, culture, and communities thrive."<ref>{{cite web|title=Mission Statement|url=http://www.gaelic.ca/about.html|publisher=Gaelic Council of Nova Scotia|access-date=14 January 2017}}</ref>

==Provincial and territorial tartans==
==Provincial and territorial tartans==
{{main|Official tartans in Canada}}
{{Main|Official tartans in Canada}}
[[File:Tartan of Nova Scotia.png|thumb|right|The tartan of Nova Scotia is the first official provincial tartan in Canada.]]
Every province and territory has an officially recognized [[tartan]], except for Quebec, whose tartan is unofficial, and Nunavat, which has no tartan. Tartans were first brought to Canada by Scottish settlers, and the first province to officially adopt a tartan was [[Nova Scotia]] in 1955. Several of the tartans are registered in the books of the Court of the [[Lord Lyon]], King of Arms of Scotland.<ref>Government of Canada. ''[http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp/sc-cs/o6_e.cfm Symbols of Canada — Tartans]''. Accessed [[January 13]], [[2008]].</ref>
Every province and territory has an officially recognized [[tartan]], except for Quebec, whose tartan is unofficial, and Nunavut, which has no tartan. Tartans were first brought to Canada by Scottish settlers, and the first province to officially adopt a tartan was [[Nova Scotia]] in 1955. Several of the tartans are registered in the books of the Court of the [[Lord Lyon]], King of Arms of Scotland.<ref>Government of Canada. ''[http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp/sc-cs/o6_e.cfm Symbols of Canada&nbsp;— Tartans]''. Accessed January 13, 2008.</ref>


==Notable Scottish-Canadians==
==Notable Scottish-Canadians==
{{Main|List of Scottish Canadians}}


The list of Scots who influenced Canada's history is indeed a long one. The explorer [[Alexander MacKenzie]] completed the first known transcontinental crossing of America north of Mexico. [[John Sandfield Macdonald]] (1812-1872) became prime minister of the province of Canada in 1862 and the first [[premier of Ontario]] in 1867. [[Sir John A. Macdonald]] (1815-1891), who emigrated in 1820, became the first prime minister of the Dominion of Canada, leading the country through its period of early growth. Under his leadership, the dominion expanded to include Manitoba, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island.
The list of Scots who influenced Canada's history is indeed a long one. The explorer [[Alexander Mackenzie (explorer)|Alexander MacKenzie]] completed the first known transcontinental crossing of America north of Mexico. [[John Sandfield Macdonald]] (1812–1872) became Premier of the Province of Canada in 1862 and the first [[Premier of Ontario]] in 1867. Sir [[John A. Macdonald]] (1815–1891), who emigrated in 1820, became the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, leading the country through its period of early growth. Under his leadership, the dominion expanded to include Manitoba, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island.


[[Alexander Mackenzie]] was the first Liberal Prime Minister of Canada (1873-78). Another Scot, [[William Lyon Mackenzie]], who led the revolt in Upper Canada against the Canadian government in 1858, became a symbol of Canadian radicalism. His rebellion dramatized the need to reform the country's outmoded constitution and led to the 1841 Confederation of Canadian provinces. Another Scot, [[William McDougall (politician)|William McDougall]], was known as one of the fathers of the Confederation; [[Richard McBride|Sir Richard McBride]] (1870-1917) was from 1903-1915 the Premier of British Columbia, where his was the first government under the new system of political parties. McBride was also known for his tireless work on behalf of the extension of the [[Pacific Great Eastern Railroad]], which was to bind British Columbia together the way the CPR had Canada.<!--AFAIK McBride was Anglo-Irish/Ulster-Scots; does that count? Or was he Scots-Scots for sure?-->.
[[Alexander Mackenzie (politician)|Alexander Mackenzie]] was the first Liberal Prime Minister of Canada (1873–78). Another Scot, [[William Lyon Mackenzie]], who led the [[Upper Canada Rebellion|revolt in Upper Canada]] against the colonial government in 1838, became a symbol of Canadian radicalism. His rebellion dramatized the need to reform the colony's outmoded constitution and led to the [[Act of Union 1840|1841 union]] of Upper Canada and Lower Canada. Another Scot, [[William McDougall (politician, born 1822)|William McDougall]], was known as one of the fathers of the Confederation; [[Richard McBride|Sir Richard McBride]] (1870–1917) was from 1903 to 1915 the Premier of British Columbia, where his was the first government under the new system of political parties. McBride was also known for his tireless work on behalf of the extension of the [[Pacific Great Eastern Railroad]], which was to bind British Columbia together the way the CPR had Canada.<!--AFAIK McBride was Anglo-Irish/Ulster-Scots; does that count? Or was he Scots-Scots for sure?-->.


In this century, perhaps the most well-known Canadian politician, particularly revered in Britain for his contribution to the allied cause in World War II, was [[William Lyon MacKenzie King]] (1874-1950), who was very proud of his Scots background. King was three time Prime Minister of Canada, doing much to help preserve the unity of the French and English populations in his vast country. The first full time Minister of Labour, King was the leader of the Liberal Party for over 30 years. His last term as Prime Minister was from 1935 to 1948.
In the 20th century, perhaps the most well-known Canadian politician, particularly revered in Britain for his contribution to the allied cause in World War II, was [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] (1874–1950), who was very proud of his Scots background. King was three time Prime Minister of Canada, doing much to help preserve the unity of the French and English populations in his vast country. The first full-time Minister of Labour, King was the leader of the Liberal Party for over 30 years. His last term as prime minister was from 1935 to 1948.


Established as one of the major ethnic components of the Canadian population during the period 1815-1870, Scots dominated in many areas other than education and politics. Economic affairs also took their interest, and they largely controlled the trade in furs, timber, banking and railroad management. Almost one-quarter of Canada's industrial leaders in the 1920s had been born in Scotland, and another quarter had Scottish-born fathers.
Established as one of the major ethnic components of the Canadian population during the period 1815–1870, Scots dominated in many areas other than education and politics. Economic affairs also took their interest, and they largely controlled the trade in furs, timber, banking and railroad management. Almost one-quarter of Canada's industrial leaders in the 1920s had been born in Scotland, and another quarter had Scottish-born fathers.


It is important to remember that the Scots had a long tradition of struggle to maintain a separate identity in the face of a simultaneous pressure to integrate into a foreign society. Thus over the years, they had gained considerable experience in the ambivalence of being both accommodating and distinctive. Substantial numbers of Scots continued to immigrant to Canada after 1870. The early 20th century saw a great boom in the numbers leaving Scotland for Canada. As one of many ethnic groups in Canada, the Scots have managed to retain their separate identity.
It is important to remember that the Scots had a long tradition of struggle to maintain a separate identity in the face of a simultaneous pressure to integrate into a foreign society. Thus over the years, they had gained considerable experience in the ambivalence of being both accommodating and distinctive. Substantial numbers of Scots continued to immigrate to Canada after 1870. The early 20th century saw a great boom in the numbers leaving Scotland for Canada. As one of many ethnic groups in Canada, the Scots have managed to retain their separate identity, as well as adopting other religious practices such as deism.{{sfn|Fraser|1995|p=76}}
<!--I suggest this list be broken up by province; and where the heck are Kim, Larry and Tom Campbell; Gordo's the least notable of the three, other than that he's in office at present...


and how about Colonel Macleod's efforts to colonize and organize Alberta and the thousands of Scots who have lived and live there? Surprising that there's so much about infinitesimally unimportant parks in Vancouver neighbourhoods and not a word about the enormous Scots presence and history in southern Alberta.
For over 200 years, they have entered the country in a constant flow. Their presence has been powerful enough to influence most strongly the dominant Anglo-Canadian culture; their numbers alone do not reflect their enormous influence on Canadian politics, education, religion and business. Never intimidated by the majority, the long, long history of their struggles in the homeland made the Scots an indomitable and formidable race in the new lands.
-->

<!--I suggest this list be broken up by province; and where the heck are Kim, Larry and Tom Campbell; Gordo's the least notable of the three, other than that he's in office at present...-->
<!--and how about Colonel Macleod's efforts to colonize and organize Alberta and the thousands of Scots who have lived and live there? Surprising that there's so much about infinitesimally unimportant parks in Vancouver neighbourhoods and not a word about the enormous Scots presence and history in southern Alberta.-->
===List of notable Scottish Canadians===
* [[Hugh Allan]] (1810-1882), financier and shipping magnate
* [[Montagu H. Allan]] (1860-1951), banker, ship owner, sportsman
* [[Richard B. Angus]], banker and philanthropist
* [[Gordon Campbell]], [[Premier of British Columbia]]
* [[Kim Campbell]], first female Prime Minister of Canada
* [[Wilf Carter]], Nova Scotia born country musician
* [[Neve Campbell]], actress (Scottish father)
* [[John William Dawson]] (1820-1899), scientist, educator
* [[Richard Dobie]] (1731-1805), fur trader, businessman
* [[William Davidson (lumberman)|William Davidson]], pioneer settler in [[New Brunswick]]
* [[James Douglas (Governor)|Sir James Douglas]], chief factor of the HBC's [[Columbia District]] (1843-1858) and Governor of the colonies of the [[Colony of Vancouver Island]] (1851-64) and the [[Colony of British Columbia]] (1858-62)
* [[Tommy Douglas]], [[Premier of Saskatchewan]] and first leader of the [[New Democratic Party]]
* [[Shirley Douglas]], actress (daughter of Tommy)
* [[William Dow]] (1800-1868), brewer and businessman
* [[George Alexander Drummond]] (1829-1910), entrepreneur
* [[Hugh Graham, 1st Baron Atholstan|Hugh Graham]] (1848-1938), newspaper publisher
* [[Alexander Keith]], brewer ([[Alexander Keith's]])
* [[Grace Annie Lockhart]], first woman in the British empire to graduate from university (May 25, 1875)
* [[Iain Hume]], Canadian international football (soccer) player
* [[Sir John A. Macdonald]], first [[Prime Minister of Canada]]
* [[Rodney MacDonald]], [[Premier of Nova Scotia]]
* [[Scott MacDonald]], Underground freedom fighter (unknown to general public)
* [[William Christopher Macdonald]], tobacco producer and philanthropist
* [[Peter MacKay]], [[Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada)|Minister of Foreign Affairs]]
* [[Robert Mackay]] (1840-1916), businessman, statesman
* [[Alexander MacKenzie]], explorer of the Canadian Northwest
* [[Alexander Mackenzie]], second Prime Minister of Canada
* [[William Lyon Mackenzie]], journalist and rebel
* [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]], longest serving [[Prime Minister of Canada]]
* [[Eric McCormack]] award-winning Canadian actor, television producer and writer. Best known for his role as [[Will Truman]] in the American comedy [[Will & Grace]].
* [[Alistair MacLeod]], (1936- ), writer, recipient of the [[Order of Canada]]
* [[Agnes Macphail]], first woman to sit in the [[Canadian House of Commons]]
* [[Todd McFarlane]], entrepreneur
* [[James McGill]] (1744-1813), fur trader, merchant
* [[Peter McGill]] (1789-1860), businessman, politician
* [[William McGillivray]] (1764-1825), fur trader
* [[Beverley McLachlin]], [[Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada]]
* [[Duncan McIntyre (businessman)|Duncan McIntyre]] (1834-1894), businessman
* [[Norman McLaren]], film animation pioneer
* [[Bobby McMahon]], football analyst for [[Fox Soccer Channel]].
* [[Simon McTavish]] (1750-1804), fur trader, saw mill and flour mill operator
* [[Colin Mochrie]], actor and comedian
* [[Henry Morgan (merchant)|Henry Morgan]] (1819-1893), built the first department store in Canada
* [[James Naismith]], inventor of basketball
* [[Alexander Walker Ogilvie]] (1829-1902), miller, statesman
* [[John Ogilvy (merchant)|John Ogilvy]] (1769-1819), merchant
* [[Roddy Piper]], [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]] Wrestler
* [[John Redpath]] (1796-1869), contractor, industrialist
* [[Peter Redpath]] (1821-1894), businessman
* [[Callum Keith Rennie]], actor
* [[George Simpson (administrator)|George Simpson]] (1787-1860), executive, fur trader
* [[Donald Alexander Smith]], 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal
* [[George Stephen]], 1st Baron Mount Stephen
* [[Daniel Sutherland]] (1756-1832), businessman
* [[Donald Sutherland]], actor
* [[Kiefer Sutherland]], actor
* [[John G. Williams]], Member of Parliament
* [[James Cockburn]], First Speaker of the House in Canada
([[Conservative Party of Canada|Conservative Party]])


==See also==
==See also==
{{portalpar|Canada}}
{{Portal|Canada|Scotland}}
*[[British Canadians]]
{{portalpar|Scotland}}
*[[Scottish diaspora]]
*[[Scottish placenames in Canada]]
*[[Scottish placenames in Canada]]
*[[Scots-Quebecer]]
*[[Scots-Quebecer]]
*[[Anglo-Métis]]
*[[Anglo-Métis]]
*[[English-Canadian]]
*[[English Canadians]]
*[[European Canadians]]
*[[Scottish people]]
*[[Scottish people]]
*[[Scottish American]]
*[[Scottish Americans]]
*[[Scots-Irish American|Scots-Irish Canadian]]
*[[Scots-Irish American#Ulster-Scottish Canadians|Ulster-Scottish Canadians]]
*[[Celtic music in Canada]]
*[[Celtic music in Canada]]
*[[Glengarry Highland Games]]

==References==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}
{{notelist}}
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite journal |last=Bumsted |first=J. M. |date=Spring 1981 |title=Scottish Emigration to the Maritimes 1770–1815: A New Look at an Old Theme |journal=Acadiensis |volume=10 |number=2 |pages=65–85 |jstor=30303376}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Campbell |first1=Wilfred |last2=Bryce |first2=George |year=1911 |title=The Scotsman in Canada |url=https://archive.org/details/scotsmanincanada01camp/ |publisher=The Musson Book Company}}
* {{cite book |last=Campey |first=Lucille H. |year=2007 |title=After the Hector: The Scottish Pioneers of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton 1773–1852 |edition=2nd |location=Toronto |publisher=National Heritage Books |isbn=978-1-55002-770-9}}
* {{cite book |last=Fraser |first=Brian J. |date=May 1995 |title=Church, College, and Clergy: A History of Theological Education at Knox College, Toronto, 1844–1994 |series=McGill–Queen's Studies in the History of Religion |publisher=[[McGill–Queen's University Press]] |isbn=9780773513518}}
* {{cite journal |last=Harper |first=Marjory |date=April 2004 |title=Enticing the Emigrant: Canadian Agents in Ireland and Scotland, c.1870–c.1920 |journal=[[The Scottish Historical Review]] |publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]] |volume=83 |number=1 |pages=41–58 |doi=10.3366/shr.2004.83.1.41 |jstor=25529754}}
* {{cite book |last=MacKay |first=Donald |year=1996 |title=Scotland Farewell: The People of the Hector |edition=illustrated |publisher=[[Dundurn Press]] |isbn=1-896219-12-8}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Bumsted |first=J. M. |date=27 August 2013 |title=Scottish Canadians |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/scots |encyclopedia=[[The Canadian Encyclopedia]] |publisher=[[Historica Canada]]}}
* Bumsted, J. M., "Scots", in Paul Robert Magocsi, ed., ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=dbUuX0mnvQMC&dq=Encyclopedia%20of%20Canada's%20Peoples&pg=PA1117 Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples]'' (1999) pp 1115–42, a comprehensive overview
* Calder, Jenni, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=IM8dtmX0pWoC&dq=Scottish%20Canadians&pg=PP1 Scots in Canada]'' 2003 Edinburgh Luath
* Campbell, Robert M., and Brian K. MacLean, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=-dOXr1lRCcAC&dq=Beyond%20the%20Atlantic%20Roar%3A%20A%20Study%20of%20the%20Nova%20Scotia%20Scots&pg=PP1 Beyond the Atlantic Roar: A Study of the Nova Scotia Scots]'' (1974)
* {{citation |last = Campey |first =Lucille H |year =2008 |title =An Unstoppable Force: The Scottish Exodus to Canada |url =https://books.google.com/books?id=Writa2bcjaEC&q=Canada&pg=PP1 |publisher=Dundurn Group |isbn= 9781550028119}}
* {{cite book |last=Campey |first=Lucille H. |title=The Scottish Pioneers of Upper Canada, 1784–1855: Glengarry and Beyond |date=2005 |location=Toronto |publisher=Natural Heritage Books |isbn=1897045018}}
* Cowan, Paul, "How the Scots Created Canada" (2007)
* [[John Kenneth Galbraith|Galbraith, John Kenneth]]. ''The Scotch'' (1984) in rural Ontario; memoir by famous economist
* Harper, Marjory & Evans, Nicholas J., 'Socio-economic Dislocation and Inter-war Emigration to Canada and the United States: A Scottish Snapshot', ''The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History'', Vol. 34, Is. 4, 2006, pp.&nbsp;529–552. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03086530600991456.
* Hunter, James, ''A Dance Called America: The Scottish Highlands, the United States and Canada'' (2nd ed. 1994), popular account
* Ray, Celeste, ed., ''Transatlantic Scots'' (2005)
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Rider |editor1-first=Peter E. |editor2-last=McNabb |editor2-first=Heather |year=2006 |title=Kingdom of the Mind: How the Scots Helped Make Canada |publisher=[[McGill–Queen's University Press]] |isbn=978-0-7735-7641-4 |jstor=j.ctt8155c}}
{{refend}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{commons category|Scottish diaspora in Canada}}
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/darkages/oddities_darkages.shtml Documentation of the first Scots to set foot in Canada.]
*[http://www.canadascotland.com Canadian Friends of Scotland Website]
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/darkages/oddities_darkages.shtml Documentation of the first Scots to set foot in Canada.]
*[http://www.multiculturalcanada.ca/ubcScot Multicultural Canada website] textual records, photographs and maps relating to Roderick Andrew MacDonell and the settlement of Clandonald, Alberta
*[http://www.abdn.ac.uk/emigration Scottish Emigration Database]


{{People of Canada}}
==References==

<references />
{{British diaspora}}


[[Category:Scottish diaspora|Canada]]
[[Category:Scottish diaspora by country|Canada]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Canada|Scottish]]
[[Category:European diaspora in Canada|Scottish]]
[[Category:Canadians of Scottish descent|*]]
[[Category:Canadian people of Scottish descent|*]]
[[Category:Scottish diaspora in Canada| ]]

Latest revision as of 07:55, 12 May 2024

Scottish Canadians
Canadiens écossais
Canèidianaich Albannach
Scotland Canada
Scottish Canadians as a proportion of the population by census division
Total population
4,799,010[1]
13.9% of the total Canadian population (2016)
Regions with significant populations
 Canada
 Ontario2,101,100
 British Columbia828,145
 Alberta661,265
 Nova Scotia288,180
 Manitoba209,170
 Quebec202,515
 New Brunswick142,560
 Prince Edward Island50,685
Languages
English, Scottish Gaelic (Canadian Gaelic dialect), French, Scots
Religion
Christianity (including Presbyterian, Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, United)
Other religions[2]
Related ethnic groups
Scottish, English, Scotch-Irish, Métis, Ulster Scots Canadians, English Canadians, English Americans, Scottish Americans, Lowland Scots, Ulster Scots, other British Canadians

Scottish Canadians are people of Scottish descent or heritage living in Canada. As the third-largest ethnic group in Canada and amongst the first Europeans to settle in the country, Scottish people have made a large impact on Canadian culture since colonial times. According to the 2016 Census of Canada, the number of Canadians claiming full or partial Scottish descent is 4,799,010,[3] or 13.93% of the nation's total population. Prince Edward Island has the highest population of Scottish descendants at 41%.

The Scots-Irish Canadians are a similar ethnic group. They descended from Lowland Scots and Northern English people via Ulster and so some observe many of the same traditions as Scots.

Categorically, Scottish Canadians comprise a subgroup of British Canadians which is a further subgroup of European Canadians.[a]

History[edit]

Scottish Canadian
Population History
YearPop.±%
1871549,946—    
1881699,863+27.3%
1901800,154+14.3%
19111,027,015+28.4%
19211,173,625+14.3%
19311,346,350+14.7%
19411,403,974+4.3%
19511,547,470+10.2%
19611,902,302+22.9%
19711,720,390−9.6%
19811,415,200−17.7%
19863,918,055+176.9%
19914,248,365+8.4%
19964,260,840+0.3%
20014,157,210−2.4%
20064,354,155+4.7%
20114,714,970+8.3%
20164,799,005+1.8%
Source: Statistics Canada
[6]: 17 [7]: 3 [8]: 20 [9]: 20 [10]: 104 [11]: 45 [12]: 60 [13][14][5][4][1]
Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.
Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.

Early Scottish settlement[edit]

Scottish people have a long history in Canada, dating back several centuries. Many towns, rivers, and mountains have been named in honour of Scottish explorers and traders such as Mackenzie Bay in the Yukon (named for Sir Alexander Mackenzie), and others are named after locations in Scotland, such as Calgary (named after a Scottish beach), or Banff, Alberta named after Banff, Aberdeenshire. Most notably, the Atlantic province of Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Once Scots formed the vanguard of the movement of Europeans across the continent. In more modern times, immigrants from Scotland have played a leading role in the social, political, and economic history of Canada, being prominent in banking, labour unions, and politics.[15]

The first documented source of Scots in what would become Canada comes from the Saga of Eric the Red and the Viking expedition of 1010 AD to Vinland (literally, the land of meadows), which is believed to refer to the island of Newfoundland. The Viking prince Thorfinn Karlsefni took two Scottish slaves to Vinland.[16] When the longships moored along the coast, they sent the slaves ashore to run along the waterfront to gauge whether it was safe for the rest of the crew to follow. After the Scots survived a day without being attacked, by either human or animal, the Vikings deemed it safe to spend the night ashore. The expedition was abandoned three years later; the original sagas were passed on in an oral tradition and then written down 250 years later.

Self-identified Scottish Canadians are a plurality in parts of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island (areas coloured in cyan).

An apocryphal voyage in 1398 by a captain named Zichmni, believed to be Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, is also claimed to have reached Atlantic Canada as well as New England.

Push factors[edit]

Troubles back in Scotland in the 18th and 19th centuries generated a steady flow of emigrants. Some sought political asylum following the failed Jacobite risings in 1688, 1715, and 1745. The Gàidhealtachd was traditionally Catholic, and many Gaels came to Canada after facing eviction for their religious beliefs.[17][18]

Those immigrants who arrived after 1759 were mainly Highland farmers who had been forced off their crofts (rented land) during the Highland and Lowland Clearances to make way for sheep grazing due to the British Agricultural Revolution.

Others came as a result of famine. In 1846, potato crops were blighted by the same fungal disease responsible for the Great Irish Famine, and most Highland crofters were very dependent on potatoes as a source of food. Crofters were expected to work in appalling conditions, and although some landlords worked to lessen the effects of the famine on their tenants, many landlords simply resorted to eviction. In particular, John Gordon of Cluny became the target of criticism in newspapers when many of his crofters were reduced to living on the streets of Inverness. Gordon resorted to hiring a fleet of ships and forcibly transporting his Hebridean crofters to Canada, where they were conveniently abandoned on Canadian authorities. Some more sympathetic landlords supplied a free passage to what was hoped to be a better life. Crop failures continued into the 1850s and famine relief programmes became semi-permanent operations. During the ten years following 1847, from throughout the Highlands, over 16,000 crofters were shipped overseas to Canada and Australia.

Pull factors[edit]

Canada had plenty of land and jobs and new opportunities, which created a pull factor. The government made certain potential immigrants know of the advantages, sending agents to recruit Irish and Scottish emigrants to settle in western Canada between 1867 and the 1920s. The Canadian government hoped to develop the economy in the sparsely populated western part of the country. It set up offices in towns in Ireland and Scotland, and agents went up and down the land pasting up attractive posters, giving lectures, handing out pamphlets and trying one-on-one to persuade farmers and laborers of the virtues of life in Canada. Although many people agreed to emigrate, the agents faced competition from the United States, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa, and opponents of emigration warned of hardship in Canada. The agents did not create 'emigration fever,' but they did tap into a sense of restlessness that, if nurtured, could result in a decision to emigrate.[19]

Large-scale migration[edit]

Bumsted (1981) notes that between 1760 and 1860, millions of people emigrated from Great Britain. Before 1815, emigration was discouraged, but emigration from Scotland to the Maritime Provinces constituted one of the principal components of the exodus; by 1815, Scots formed one of the three major ethnic groups there. Most of the emigrants were unskilled Gaelic-speaking farmers, who gathered in isolated communities. The Maritimes attracted them because of the opportunity there to be left alone to pursue the traditional way of life.[20]

A large group of Ulster Scots, many of whom had first settled in New Hampshire, moved to Truro, Nova Scotia in 1761. In 1772, a wave of Gaels began to arrive in Prince Edward Island, and in 1773 the ship Hector brought 200 Gaels to Pictou, beginning a new stream of Highland emigration — the town's slogan is "The Birthplace of New Scotland". At the end of the 18th century, Cape Breton Island had become a centre of Scottish Gaelic settlement, where only Scottish Gaelic was spoken.[citation needed]

A number of Scottish loyalists to the British crown, who had fled the United States in 1783, arrived in Glengarry County (in eastern Ontario) and Nova Scotia. In 1803, Lord Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, who was sympathetic to the plight of the dispossessed crofters (tenant farmers in the Highlands), brought 800 colonists to Prince Edward Island. In 1811, he founded the Red River Colony as a Scottish colonization project on an area of 300,000 square kilometres (120,000 sq mi) in what would later be the province of Manitoba — land that was granted by the Hudson's Bay Company, in what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession.[citation needed]

Prince Edward Island (PEI) was also heavily influenced by Scottish Gaelic settlers. One prominent settler in PEI was John MacDonald of Glenaladale, who conceived the idea of sending Gaels to Nova Scotia on a grand scale after Culloden. The name Macdonald still dominates on the island, which received a large influx of settlers, predominantly Catholics from the Highlands, in the late 18th century. Another large group of Gaels arrived in 1803. This migration, primarily from the Isle of Skye, was organized by the Earl of Selkirk.

New Brunswick became the home for many Scots. In 1761, a Highland regiment garrisoned Fort Frederick. The surrounding lands surveyed by Captain Bruce in 1762 attracted many Scottish traders when William Davidson of Caithness arrived to settle two years later. Their numbers were swelled by the arrival of thousands of loyalists of Scottish origin both during and after the American Revolution.

One of the New Brunswick and Canada's most famous regiments was "The King's First American Regiment" founded in 1776. It was composed mostly of Highlanders, many of whom fought with their traditional kilts to the sound of bagpipes. The regiment distinguished itself when it defeated Washington's forces at the Battle of Brandywine. When it disbanded after the War, most of its members settled in New Brunswick. A continual influx of immigrants from Scotland and Ulster meant that by 1843, there were over 30,000 Scots in New Brunswick.[21]

Canadian Gaelic was spoken as the first language in much of "Anglophone" Canada, such as Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Glengarry County in Ontario. Gaelic was the third most commonly spoken language in Canada.[22]

Demography[edit]

Canadians of Scottish descent total population (1871−2016)
Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.
Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.
Canadians of Scottish descent percentage of the total population (1871−2016)
Note1: 1981 Canadian census did not include multiple ethnic origin responses, thus population is an undercount.
Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category.

Population[edit]

Scottish Canadian Population History
1871−2016
Year Population % of total population
1871
[6]: 17 
549,946 15.777%
1881
[6]: 17 
699,863 16.183%
1901
[7]: 3 
800,154 14.897%
1911
[7]: 3 
1,027,015 14.251%
1921
[7]: 3 
1,173,625 13.355%
1931
[7]: 3 
1,346,350 12.975%
1941
[7]: 3 
1,403,974 12.201%
1951
[7]: 3 
1,547,470 11.046%
1961
[7]: 3 
1,902,302 10.43%
1971
[8]: 20 
1,720,390 7.976%
1981
[9]: 20 
1,415,200 5.876%
1986
[10]: 104 [11]: 45 
3,918,055 15.658%
1991
[12]: 60 
4,248,365 15.738%
1996
[13]
4,260,840 14.936%
2001
[14]
4,157,210 14.026%
2006
[5]
4,354,155 13.937%
2011
[4]
4,714,970 14.352%
2016
[1]
4,799,005 13.926%

Geographical distribution[edit]

Scottish Canadians by province and territory (2001−2016)
Province/Territory 2016[1] 2011[4] 2006[5] 2001[14]
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Ontario 2,107,295 15.91% 2,080,545 16.44% 2,101,100 17.47% 1,843,110 16.33%
British Columbia 860,775 18.88% 833,290 19.27% 828,145 20.33% 748,905 19.36%
Alberta 704,200 17.7% 670,955 18.8% 661,265 20.31% 556,575 18.92%
Nova Scotia 272,880 30.04% 282,805 31.21% 288,180 31.91% 263,060 29.31%
Quebec 215,025 2.7% 196,670 2.54% 202,515 2.72% 156,140 2.19%
Manitoba 208,060 16.77% 210,815 17.95% 209,170 18.45% 195,570 17.72%
Saskatchewan 193,330 18.06% 190,450 18.88% 182,790 19.16% 172,300 17.89%
New Brunswick 134,455 18.4% 146,230 19.87% 142,560 19.81% 127,635 17.73%
Prince Edward Island 50,685 36.29% 53,960 39.28% 54,290 40.45% 50,700 38.01%
Newfoundland and Labrador 34,650 6.76% 32,810 6.47% 34,925 6.98% 30,295 5.96%
Yukon 8,295 23.63% 8,340 25.03% 7,005 23.2% 6,245 21.89%
Northwest Territories 6,090 14.8% 5,685 13.93% 5,875 14.31% 5,190 13.99%
Nunavut 3,265 9.18% 2,420 7.64% 2,025 6.91% 1,475 5.53%
Canada 4,799,005 13.93% 4,714,970 14.35% 4,719,850 15.11% 4,157,210 14.03%

Nova Scotia[edit]

The flag of Nova Scotia

The Scots have influenced the cultural mix of Nova Scotia for centuries and constitute the largest ethnic group in the province, at 29.3% of its population. The name of Nova Scotia literally means "New Scotland" in Latin, and its flag was designed as a combination of the Scottish Saltire and the Royal Arms of Scotland.

Nova Scotia was briefly colonized by Scottish settlers in 1620, although by 1624 the Scottish settlers had been removed by treaty and the area was turned over to the French until the middle of the 18th century. Scottish settlement greatly accelerated during the resettlement of Loyalists in Nova Scotia following the end of the American revolutionary war, and especially following the Highland Clearances in Scotland.

The Gaelic influences of Scottish immigrants continue to play an important role in defining the cultural life of the province, especially in its music. According to the 2006 census about 900 Nova Scotians are fluent in Gaelic languages (the census does not distinguish between Scottish Gaelic/Canadian Gaelic and Irish Gaelic), and about 6,015 in all of Canada.[23] However, the Nova Scotian Office of Gaelic Affairs estimates there are currently around 2000 Scottish Gaelic speakers in the province and notes the enduring impact of institutions such as the Gaelic College in Cape Breton.[24]

Dalhousie University in Halifax, the largest university in the Maritime provinces, was founded in 1818 by Scottish aristocrat George Ramsay as the only Gaelic college in Canada.[citation needed] St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish was also founded by a Scot — Colin Francis MacKinnon, a Catholic bishop.

Murdoch (1998) notes that the popular image of Cape Breton Island as a last bastion of Gaelic culture distorts the complex history of the island since the 16th century. The original Micmac inhabitants, Acadian French, Irish, Loyalists from New England, Lowland Scots and English have all contributed to a history which has included cultural, religious, and political conflict as well as cooperation and synthesis. The Highland Scots became the largest community in the early 19th century, and their heritage in music, folklore, and language has survived government indifference, but it is now threatened by a synthetic marketable 'tartan clan doll culture' aimed primarily at tourists.[25]

Flag of Montreal

Quebec[edit]

Scots have long and historic ties with the province of Quebec. The early Scots who arrived in the province were crofters and fishermen. When the Don de Dieu sailed up the St. Lawrence River during the first wave of colonization of French Canada, it was piloted by a Scot, Abraham Martin. The first British governor of Quebec was also a Scot, James Murray. He received the keys to the city gates from the French commander, Major de Ramezay, who was himself of Scottish descent, as many Scots had been employed by the French since the time of the Auld Alliance.[citation needed]

Large groups of Scots, chiefly from Ross-shire, arrived on the ship Nephton in 1802 to settle in Quebec. Many of their descendants have become prominent in the business, financial and religious activities of Montreal. Many early settlers from Tryon County, New York came here, in what was then wilderness. They were joined by many Highlanders during the Revolution, and after the War had ended, by a whole regiment of the "King's Royals."[citation needed]

James McGill

McGill University was founded in 1821 with revenue from the estate bequeathed by James McGill, a merchant and politician who had emigrated from Glasgow. Its first head was Scotsman John Bethune, a pupil of Strachan (who was prevented from assuming the position only by a delay in its foundation). Another wealthy Scot, Peter Redpath, was responsible for financing the museum, the library and a University chair.[citation needed]

Ontario[edit]

Glengarry County in modern day-Ontario is a historic region with much Scottish or Gaelic background. This is because it is the site of where many Gaels settled after the Highland Clearances. Scottish Gaelic / Canadian Gaelic is a spoken language in the county, but the number of speakers has declined to a great degree. Maxville Public School in Maxville, Glengarry still offers the language. Also known in the region are the Glengarry Highland Games where many Scottish competitions are held to celebrate Scottish Culture. The chief Scottish town in Glengarry was Cornwall, located in modern-day Ontario. It was reinforced in 1786 when The ship McDonald arrived at Quebec from Greenock with 520 new pioneers. Soon immigrants came from all parts of Scotland to make it one of the most important Scots-Canadian communities. The Glengarry clansmen managed to get away from their homelands before the British Government's embargo during the war with Napoleon. Many other retired officials from the Hudson's Bay Company joined the Glengarry Settlements. Another famous Scottish area that came to exert great influence in Ontario was the Perth Settlement, another region of Scottish and military origin. Unemployment and suffering following the end of the Napoleonic Wars caused the British government to reverse its former policies and actively encourage emigration. In 1815, three loaded transports set sail from Greenock for Upper Canada: the Atlas, the Baptiste Merchant and the Borothy. After the War of 1812 ended, many soldiers from the disbanded regiments joined them. In 1816, some Scots-Irish from Ulster arrived in the area. Many Perth families became prominent in both provincial and national governments.

An educational institution of Scottish origin is Queen's University in Kingston "the Aberdeen of Canada", founded largely through the efforts of noted scholar George Munroe Grant. Numerous educational institutions have Scottish influence, one being Sir John A. Macdonald Collegiate Institute, a secondary school located in Toronto, Ontario. The crest contains a map of Canada and the symbols of the Macdonald clan: a white coronet, a mailed fist, and crossed crosslets. Red, Royal Purple, and White, which predominate in the tartan of Sir John's family clan, Clanranald.

Lord Strathcona drives the last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway at Craigellachie, November 7, 1885.

British Columbia[edit]

Owing to the role that the Hudson's Bay Company, a company dominated by a Scottish managerial class, played in the colonial settlement of British Columbia, many of the leading early colonial officials were Scottish or of Scottish descent such as Sir James Douglas (whose father was from Scotland), William Fraser Tolmie, and John Ross.

Scottish influence has been an important part of the cultural mix both in metropolitan Vancouver and wider British Columbian society. The St. Andrew's and Caledonian Society of Vancouver, for example, was founded in 1886, the same year as the city. On St. Andrew's Day, 1887, the society held a grand St. Andrew's Ball in McDonough Hall at the southeast corner of Hastings and Columbia and almost half the city's population attended. The city still celebrates Scottish Heritage week which concludes with the BC Highland Games.

In Victoria, two of the city's most recognizable landmarks, Craigdarroch Castle and Hatley Castle, were commissioned by the Scottish-born Dunsmuir family, whose coal-baron patriarch Robert Dunsmuir immigrated from Scotland to become one of Vancouver Island's richest businessmen. These two castles brought Scottish Baronial architecture to very prominent landmarks in Victoria, both of which have been designated as National Historic Sites for their significance to the city. Robert's son James Dunsmuir would go on to become the Premier of British Columbia, and later the Lieutenant Governor General.

Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria, an example of Scottish Baronial architecture in Canada

Many local place names in Vancouver are of Scottish origin. The district of Dollarton, for example, was named for Captain Robert Dollar. West Vancouver's first European settler, John Lawson, planted holly by the side of the "burn" or river flowing across his property; he coined "Hollyburn" as the name for his place. Iona Island was formerly called McMillan Island, after a Scottish settler named Donald McMillan. Part of West Vancouver is named after Dundarave Castle in Scotland. In 1905, at what is now West 41st Avenue in Vancouver, a young Scottish couple who had recently settled in the district with the last name MacKinnon were invited to name the new station. Mrs. MacKinnon was asked by the British Columbia Electric Railway manager R.H. Sterling to name the interurban tram stop at Wilson Road (today West 41st Avenue). She chose to call it "Kerry's Dale", after the name of her family home, Kerrydale, in Gairloch, Scotland. Kerrysdale means "little seat of the fairies." It was quickly corrupted to Kerrisdale.

Other evidence of the Scottish influence on the development of British Columbia can be found in the names of streets, parks, creeks and other geographical features throughout the province, the most notable of which are the Fraser River and Mount Douglas (PKOLS).

Culture[edit]

Today Canada is awash in Scottish memorabilia, as Rae (2005) shows. The Tartan days, clan gatherings, highland games, and showings of films like Braveheart indicate a sense of Scottishness that is informed by stories, narratives, or myths of the homeland's rural, masculinist, resistant past.[26]

Other Canadians reject tartanism as a superficial and commercialized expression of Gaelic identity,[25] and embrace Scottish Gaelic language and culture through the auspices of organizations such as the Atlantic Gaelic Academy and the Gaelic College. The Comhairle na Gàidhlig is an organization devoted to "creating an environment that makes Nova Scotia a place where Gaelic language, culture, and communities thrive."[27]

Provincial and territorial tartans[edit]

The tartan of Nova Scotia is the first official provincial tartan in Canada.

Every province and territory has an officially recognized tartan, except for Quebec, whose tartan is unofficial, and Nunavut, which has no tartan. Tartans were first brought to Canada by Scottish settlers, and the first province to officially adopt a tartan was Nova Scotia in 1955. Several of the tartans are registered in the books of the Court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms of Scotland.[28]

Notable Scottish-Canadians[edit]

The list of Scots who influenced Canada's history is indeed a long one. The explorer Alexander MacKenzie completed the first known transcontinental crossing of America north of Mexico. John Sandfield Macdonald (1812–1872) became Premier of the Province of Canada in 1862 and the first Premier of Ontario in 1867. Sir John A. Macdonald (1815–1891), who emigrated in 1820, became the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, leading the country through its period of early growth. Under his leadership, the dominion expanded to include Manitoba, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island.

Alexander Mackenzie was the first Liberal Prime Minister of Canada (1873–78). Another Scot, William Lyon Mackenzie, who led the revolt in Upper Canada against the colonial government in 1838, became a symbol of Canadian radicalism. His rebellion dramatized the need to reform the colony's outmoded constitution and led to the 1841 union of Upper Canada and Lower Canada. Another Scot, William McDougall, was known as one of the fathers of the Confederation; Sir Richard McBride (1870–1917) was from 1903 to 1915 the Premier of British Columbia, where his was the first government under the new system of political parties. McBride was also known for his tireless work on behalf of the extension of the Pacific Great Eastern Railroad, which was to bind British Columbia together the way the CPR had Canada..

In the 20th century, perhaps the most well-known Canadian politician, particularly revered in Britain for his contribution to the allied cause in World War II, was William Lyon Mackenzie King (1874–1950), who was very proud of his Scots background. King was three time Prime Minister of Canada, doing much to help preserve the unity of the French and English populations in his vast country. The first full-time Minister of Labour, King was the leader of the Liberal Party for over 30 years. His last term as prime minister was from 1935 to 1948.

Established as one of the major ethnic components of the Canadian population during the period 1815–1870, Scots dominated in many areas other than education and politics. Economic affairs also took their interest, and they largely controlled the trade in furs, timber, banking and railroad management. Almost one-quarter of Canada's industrial leaders in the 1920s had been born in Scotland, and another quarter had Scottish-born fathers.

It is important to remember that the Scots had a long tradition of struggle to maintain a separate identity in the face of a simultaneous pressure to integrate into a foreign society. Thus over the years, they had gained considerable experience in the ambivalence of being both accommodating and distinctive. Substantial numbers of Scots continued to immigrate to Canada after 1870. The early 20th century saw a great boom in the numbers leaving Scotland for Canada. As one of many ethnic groups in Canada, the Scots have managed to retain their separate identity, as well as adopting other religious practices such as deism.[2]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Statistics Canada demi-decadal censuses officially use the name "British Isles Origins" for the various nationalities and ethnicities that are in the region. See 2016,[1] 2011,[4] or 2006[5] censuses as examples

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-06-17). "Ethnic Origin (279), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age (12) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces and Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2016 Census - 25% Sample Data". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  2. ^ a b Fraser 1995, p. 76.
  3. ^ "Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity Highlight Tables". statcan.gc.ca. 25 October 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-01-23). "Ethnic Origin (264), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2011 National Household Survey". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  5. ^ a b c d Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2020-05-01). "Ethnic Origin (247), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3) and Sex (3) for the Population of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2006 Census - 20% Sample Data". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  6. ^ a b c Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (1999-07-29). "Historical statistics of Canada, section A: Population and migration - ARCHIVED". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-23.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1961 Census of Canada : population : vol. I - part 2 = 1961 Recensement du Canada : population: vol. I - partie 2. Ethnic groups". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  8. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1971 Census of Canada: population : vol. I - part 3 = Recensement du Canada 1971 : population : vol. I - partie 3. Introduction to volume I (part 3)". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  9. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1981 Census of Canada: volume 1 - national series: population = Recensement du Canada de 1981: volume 1 - série nationale : population. Ethnic origin". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  10. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "Census Canada 1986 Profile of ethnic groups". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  11. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1986 Census of Canada: Ethnic Diversity In Canada". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  12. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1991 Census: The nation. Ethnic origin". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  13. ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-06-04). "Data tables, 1996 Census Population by Ethnic Origin (188) and Sex (3), Showing Single and Multiple Responses (3), for Canada, Provinces, Territories and Census Metropolitan Areas, 1996 Census (20% Sample Data)". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  14. ^ a b c Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-12-23). "Ethnic Origin (232), Sex (3) and Single and Multiple Responses (3) for Population, for Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2001 Census - 20% Sample Data". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-19.
  15. ^ "Scottish Studies - History". Archived from the original on 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2017-09-11. Simon Fraser University
  16. ^ Corporation, British Broadcasting. "BBC – History – Scottish History". www.bbc.co.uk.
  17. ^ MacKay 1996, p. vii.
  18. ^ Campey 2007, pp. 60–61.
  19. ^ Harper 2004.
  20. ^ Bumsted 1981.
  21. ^ Campbell & Bryce 1911, p. 131.
  22. ^ Jonathan Dembling. "Gaelic in Canada: new evidence from an old census." In Cànan & Cultar/Language & Culture: Rannsachadh na Gàidhlig 3, edited by Wilson McLeod, James Fraser and Anja Gunderloch, 203-14. Edinburgh: Dunedin Academic Press, 2006.
  23. ^ Canada 2006 Census. [1]. Accessed October 1, 2008.
  24. ^ "Oifis Iomairtean na Gaidhlig/Office of Gaelic Affairs". Archived from the original on 2008-10-29.
  25. ^ a b Steve Murdoch, "Cape Breton: Canada's 'Highland' Island?" Northern Scotland 1998 18: 31-42
  26. ^ Rae (2005)
  27. ^ "Mission Statement". Gaelic Council of Nova Scotia. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  28. ^ Government of Canada. Symbols of Canada — Tartans. Accessed January 13, 2008.

Bibliography[edit]

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]