Portal:Nova Scotia

Sunday, April 12, 2026

Introduction

Flag and Arms of Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is a province in the Maritimes region of Canada, located on the nation's east coast. With an estimated population of over 1 million as of 2025, Nova Scotia is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. Nova Scotia is also the second-most densely populated province in Canada, and the second smallest province by area. The province comprises the Nova Scotia peninsula and Cape Breton Island, as well as 3,800 other coastal islands. The province is connected to the rest of Canada by the Isthmus of Chignecto, on which the province's sole land border, with New Brunswick, is located.

Nova Scotia's capital and largest city is Halifax, which is home to over 45% of the province's population as of the 2021 census. Halifax is the twelfth-largest census metropolitan area in Canada, the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada, and Canada's second-largest coastal municipality after Vancouver.

In subsequent years, the British began settling "foreign Protestants" in the region and deported the French-speaking Acadians en masse. During the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), thousands of Loyalists settled in Nova Scotia. (Full article...)

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1702 map of Port Royal

The siege of Port Royal consisted of two separate attempts in 1707 by the British New England Colonies to conquer the French colony of Acadia by capturing its capital of Port-Royal during Queen Anne's War. Both attempts were made by colonial troops and were led by officers inexperienced in siege warfare. Led by governor of Acadia Daniel d'Auger de Subercase, the French garrison at Port-Royal easily withstood both attempts, assisted by Acadian militia and the Wabanaki Confederacy outside the fort.

The first siege began on June 6, 1707, and lasted 11 days. Provincial troops led by Colonel John March were able to establish positions near Port-Royal's fort, but March's engineer claimed the necessary cannons could not be landed, and the British force withdrew amid disagreements in their war council. The second siege began August 22, and was never able to establish secure camps, owing to spirited defensive sorties organized by Subercase. (Full article...)

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Polished agate nodule from Malawi, Africa

Agate (/ˈæɡɪt/ AG-it) is a variously translucent, banded variety of chalcedony. Agate stones are characterized by alternating bands of different colored chalcedony and may also include visible quartz crystals. They are common in nature and can be found globally in a large number of different varieties. There are some varieties of chalcedony without bands that are commonly called agate (moss agate, fire agate, etc.); however, these are not true agates. Moreover, not every banded chalcedony is an agate; for example, banded chert forms via different processes and is opaque. Agates primarily form as nodules within volcanic rock, but they can also form in veins or silicified fossils. Agate has been popular as a gemstone in jewelry for thousands of years, and today it is also popular as a collector's stone. Some duller agates sold commercially are artificially treated to enhance their color. (Full article...)

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Joseph Howe PC (December 13, 1804 – June 1, 1873) was a Nova Scotian journalist, politician, public servant, and poet. Howe is often ranked as one of Nova Scotia's most admired politicians and his considerable skills as a journalist and writer have made him a provincial legend.

He was born the son of John Howe and Mary Edes at Halifax and inherited from his loyalist father an undying love for Great Britain and her Empire. At age 23, the self-taught but widely read Howe purchased the Novascotian, soon making it into a popular and influential newspaper. He reported extensively on debates in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly and travelled to every part of the province writing about its geography and people. In 1835, Howe was charged with seditious libel, a serious criminal offence, after the Novascotian published a letter attacking Halifax politicians and police for pocketing public money. Howe addressed the jury for more than six hours, citing numerous examples of civic corruption. The judge called for Howe's conviction, but swayed by his passionate address, jurors acquitted him in what is considered a landmark case in the struggle for a free press in Canada. (Full article...)

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Image 1Welcome sign visible when entering Nova Scotia from New Brunswick by road
Image 2Women walking from Africville towards Halifax
Image 3The Bluenose II is a replica of the fishing and racing schooner Bluenose
Image 4North Sydney, Nova Scotia circa 1900
Image 5Peggys Point Lighthouse
Image 6Wreckage of Fairey Swordfish aircraft HS404 at the Naval Air Gunnery School, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, 1943
Image 7Halifax from Citadel Hill in 1901
Image 8Children tobogganing in Halifax during the reconstruction (1917 or 1918)
Image 9Université Sainte-Anne is a French-language university in Pointe-de-l'Église, Nova Scotia
Image 10The Order of Nova Scotia is the highest honour amongst all those conferred by the Nova Scotia Crown
Image 11The Pride of Baltimore II off the coast of Lunenburg in 2008
Image 12Guardhouse at the Fortress of Louisbourg
Image 13The Lunenburg Academy in 2008
Image 14Winter on Hollis Street, Halifax (1947)
Image 15The Halifax–Dartmouth Ferry Service is the oldest saltwater ferry in North America
Image 16Wrecked homes on Campbell Road following the Halifax Explosion

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Panoramic view of the Caribou Ferry Terminal

Credit: Gordon Leggett

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Help expand stub articles: There are numerous stub articles relating to Nova Scotia. You can help by expanding them. See Nova Scotia stubs for a list.
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