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Nova Scotia CompassIndependent guide to the province

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History & Culture

The peoples and events that shaped Nova Scotia, from Mi'kma'ki to the present day.

The peoples of Nova Scotia

The Mi'kmaq

Nova Scotia lies within Mi'kma'ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq, who have lived in the region for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence at Debert points to human presence in the area some 13,000 years ago. The Peace and Friendship Treaties signed with the British Crown in the 18th century remain legally significant today.

Acadians

French settlers arrived in the early 1600s and developed a distinct society known as Acadie, farming the tidal marshes with an ingenious system of dykes. From 1755, British authorities forcibly deported much of the Acadian population, an event known as the Grand Dérangement. Some later returned, and Acadian communities thrive today on the French Shore, in Pubnico, in Chéticamp and on Isle Madame.

Scottish Gaels

The name Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". The ship Hector brought Highland settlers to Pictou in 1773, and many more followed, especially to Cape Breton. Gaelic language and music are still taught and celebrated, including at the Gaelic College in St. Anns.

Black Nova Scotians

African Nova Scotian history reaches back to the 1600s and includes enslaved people, Black Loyalists who arrived from 1783, Jamaican Maroons and Black refugees of the War of 1812. The province has more than 50 historic African Nova Scotian communities. The story of Africville, a Halifax community demolished in the 1960s, remains an important part of that history; the city formally apologized in 2010.

A short timeline

  1. 1605 The French establish Port-Royal, one of the earliest European settlements in northern North America.
  2. 1621 A Scottish royal charter gives the territory the name Nova Scotia.
  3. 1713 The Treaty of Utrecht transfers mainland Nova Scotia to Britain. France begins building Louisbourg on Cape Breton.
  4. 1749 The British found Halifax.
  5. 1755 The deportation of the Acadians begins.
  6. 1758 Louisbourg falls to British forces. Nova Scotia's first elected assembly meets in Halifax, the first in what is now Canada.
  7. 1783 Thousands of Loyalists, including Black Loyalists, arrive after the American Revolution.
  8. 1848 Nova Scotia becomes the first British colony outside the British Isles to achieve responsible government.
  9. 1867 Nova Scotia joins New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec to form the Dominion of Canada.
  10. 1912 Halifax plays a central role in the recovery of Titanic victims, many of whom are buried in the city.
  11. 1917 The Halifax Explosion, caused by a collision between two ships, devastates the city and kills around 2,000 people.
  12. 1921 The racing schooner Bluenose is launched at Lunenburg.
  13. 1928–1971 Pier 21 in Halifax serves as a main gateway for immigrants to Canada.

Music, art and language

Traditional fiddle music from Cape Breton is known around the world, and kitchen parties, or ceilidhs, are still part of community life. Well-known musicians with roots in the province include Anne Murray, Rita MacNeil, Natalie MacMaster and Ashley MacIsaac.

In visual art, folk painter Maud Lewis is the best-known name; her tiny painted house is preserved at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in Halifax. Writers linked to the province include Alistair MacLeod and the poet Elizabeth Bishop, who spent part of her childhood in Great Village.

English is the main language. French, Mi'kmaw and Gaelic all have a living presence, and you will see bilingual or Gaelic signs in some areas.

Sources and official information

Last reviewed November 4, 2026. Details such as schedules and opening dates change; please confirm with the operator before you travel. External sites are not operated by us.