List of city nicknames in Canada
Many of Canada's cities and communities are known by various aliases, slogans, sobriquets, and other nicknames to the general population at either the local, regional, national or international scales, often due to marketing campaigns and widespread usage in the media. Some nicknames are officially adopted by municipal governments, tourism boards or chambers of commerce while others are unofficial, and some are current while others are antiquated. Some nicknames are positive, while others are derisive, disparaging or derogatory.
City nicknames can help establish a civic identity, promote civic pride, build civic unity, market the community, and attract residents and businesses.[1] They are also believed to have economic value, but their economic value is difficult to measure.[1]
Contents
Cities by province
Alberta
- Edmonton
- "The Big E"[8]
- "Canada's Festival City" or "Festival City", an unofficial city slogan[9][10]
- "Canada's Richest Mixed Farming District", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "City of Champions", unofficial slogan popularized by former mayor Laurence Decore's characterization of the community's response to the 1987 Edmonton tornado[9]
- "Crossroads of the World", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "Deadmonton", a disparaging term used by British reporter, Robert Philip, during the 2001 World Championships in Athletics (although the term was coined earlier), painting Edmonton as a boring place,[11] and re-emerging in 2011 due to an increasing amount of homicide[12]
- "E-Town"[13]
- "Edmonchuck"[14] or "The Chuck",[11] in reference to Edmonton's large Ukrainian population
- "Gateway to the North", an unofficial city slogan[9][15]
- "Heart of Canada's Great North West", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "Official Host City of the Turn of the Century", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "The Oil Capital of Canada", Edmonton's only official slogan adopted by city council, which dates back to 1947[9]
- "River City"[16]
- "Smart City", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "Top of the World", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- "Volunteer Capital of Canada", an unofficial city slogan[9]
- Fort McMurray
- "Fort Mac"[17]
- "Fort MacMoney"[18] or "Fort McMoney"[19]
- "Fort McMordor",[18] a reference to the nearby Athabasca oil sands[citation needed]
- "St. John's North"[18]
- Grande Prairie
- "Swan City"[21]
- Lethbridge
- "The Windy City"[24]
- Medicine Hat
- "The City with All Hell for a Basement", derived from a quote by Rudyard Kipling referring to Medicine Hat's natural gas reserves[25][26]
- "The City with Energy"[25]
- "The Gas City"[25]
- "The Hat"[27]
- "An Oasis on the Prairies"[25]
- "Saamis", from which Medicine Hat's name is derived, a Blackfoot word for medicine man's hat[25]
- Red Deer
- "Dead Rear",[28] a spoonerism
- Whitecourt
- "Snowmobile Capital of Alberta"[29]
British Columbia
- Abbotsford
- "Berry Capital of Canada"[30]
- "City in the Country"[31]
- "Raspberry Capital of Canada",[32] although the neighbourhood of Clearbrook specifically is known for its raspberries[33]
- Campbell River
- "Salmon Capital of the World",[34] although nearby Port Alberni also claims this title[35]
- Port Alberni
- "Salmon Capital of the World",[35] although nearby Campbell River also claims this title[34]
- Port Coquitlam
- "PoCo"[46]
- Powell River
- "Pearl of the Sunshine Coast"[47]
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Manitoba
- Churchill
- "Polar Bear Capital of the World", used as a tourist attraction slogan due to the population of polar bears[54]
- Winnipeg
- "Chicago of the North"[59]
- "Gateway to the West"[60]
- "Negativipeg", labelled by Burton Cummings after he was assaulted at a 7-Eleven[61]
- "The Peg"[62]
- "Slurpee Capital of the World"[63]
- "Winnerpeg", often used when the Winnipeg Jets win[64]
- "Winterpeg", due to Winnipeg's very long and cold winters[65]
- "The Wholesale City"[66][67][68]
New Brunswick
- Saint John
- "Canada's Most Irish City", due to its role as a destination for Irish immigrants during the Great Irish Famine[73]
- "Canada's Original City",[74] referring to Saint John being the first incorporated city in Canada[75]
- "Fundy City"[76]
- "Loyalist City", due to its role as a destination for American British supporters following the American Revolution[73]
- "Port City", due to its role in the shipbuilding industry in the 19th century[73]
Newfoundland and Labrador
Nova Scotia
- Antigonish
- "The 'Nish"[81]
Ontario
- Brampton
- "Bramladesh", a derogatory nickname in reference to the large South Asian community, particularly those from Bangladesh[82]
- "Flower City"[83]
- Cambridge
- "The Tri-City", referring to the adjacent cities of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge[84]
- Kingston
- "The Limestone City", in reference to the large number of historical buildings constructed from local limestone.[90]
- Mississauga
- "Sauga"[92]
- Niagara Falls
- "Honeymoon Capital of the World"[93]
- Peterborough
- "Electric City"[101]
- Sault Ste. Marie
- "The Soo" [102]
- Scarborough (part of Toronto since 1998)
- Toronto:<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>
Prince Edward Island
- Charlottetown
- "Birthplace of Confederation"[119]
Quebec
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- "Québec's Metropolis", "La Métropole du Québec" in French[120]
- "The City of Saints" [111]
- "La métropole", French for "The Metropolis"[121]
- "La ville aux cent clochers", French for "The City of a Hundred Steeples"[122]
- "Sin City", a historical nickname from the prohibition-era[123]
- "La Vieille Capitale"[124]
Saskatchewan
- Prince Albert
- "P.A." [126]
- Swift Current
- "Speedy Creek" [126]
Cities by territory
Northwest Territories
- Yellowknife
- "Diamond Capital of North America"[133]
Yukon
- Dawson City
- "Paris of the North"[134]
- Whitehorse
- "The Wilderness City"[135]
See also
- List of Canadian provinces' largest cities
- List of provincial and territorial nicknames in Canada
- List of city nicknames in the United States
- Lists of nicknames – nickname list articles on Wikipedia
References
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- ↑ Rudyard Kipling said:
This part of the country seems to have all hell for a basement, and the only trap door appears to be in Medicine Hat. And don’t you ever think of changing the name of your town. It's all your own and the only hat of its kind on earth.
Source: Brennan, Brian. Boondoggles, Bonanzas and other Alberta Stories.. Calgary: Fifth House Publishers, 2003, p. 43.[1]
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- ↑ Show your love for New Westminster
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- ↑ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/how-brampton-demonstrates-the-new-vision-of-canada/article12581170/?page=all
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"Despite its Forest City moniker, London trails many Ontario municipalities in forest cover..."
- ↑ https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/jrhockey-buzzing-the-net/mississauga-majors-owner-might-change-ohl-team-name-154700709.html
- ↑ http://niagarafallsupclose.com/niagara-falls-known-as-the-honeymoon-capital-of-the-world/
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"But here we are after 30 games and the Leafs find themselves looking down in the Northeast Division standings at their archrivals from Bytown."
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- ↑ http://www.peterborough-on.worldweb.com/
- ↑ http://www.factacular.com/subjects/City_Nicknames
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- ↑ http://www.portofthunderbay.com/article/canadas-gateway-to-the-west-271.asp
- ↑ http://www.chroniclejournal.com/news/great-war-subject-of-gigantic-project/article_c26e4315-8bd7-5c5d-a931-ba6ed4ed5719.html?mode=jqm
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20070809121412/http://www.thunderbay.ca/docs/business/1012.pdf
- ↑ 111.0 111.1 City nicknames
- ↑ Why is Toronto called 'Hogtown?'
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- ↑ http://m.thestar.com/#/article/news/gta/2014/07/17/drakes_got_the_6_sense_when_it_comes_to_branding_the_city.html
- ↑ @UW
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- ↑ http://www1.uwindsor.ca/history/windsor-history
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- ↑ [9] From the number of marching bands in Moose Jaw.
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- ↑ Trans Canada Highway
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- ↑ http://www.ddcorp.ca/careers/life-in-yellowknife
- ↑ http://cityofdawson.com/history-pages/john-gould/paris-of-the-north
- ↑ http://www.city.whitehorse.yk.ca/index.aspx?page=262