Do the Maritimes share the same level of cultural affinity as New England? (employment, move to)
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Like New England is a region made up of several states, the Maritimes is a region comprised of three provinces. There are many cultural similarities between New England and the Maritimes, given their geographical proximity, but my question is: is there the same level of cultural affinity towards the Maritimes as there is in New England?
Folks from all New England states identify with New England, even though there are noted cultural differences between subregions (Northern & Southern New England) and states (especially Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire). Is there the same identification with the Maritimes as a region?
Yes, there is something you might call a Maritime identity, which of course co-exists with provincial rivalries too. But a lot of stuff like media and various services are region-wide as opposed to confined to each province.
Another twist is that very roughly 15% of the region is French-speaking Acadian. They're concentrated in certain parts of New Brunswick but you can also find pockets of them all over the region. Acadians' identity is Acadian first but they also usually identify as Maritimers too.
Yes, there is something you might call a Maritime identity, which of course co-exists with provincial rivalries too. But a lot of stuff like media and various services are region-wide as opposed to confined to each province.
Another twist is that very roughly 15% of the region is French-speaking Acadian. They're concentrated in certain parts of New Brunswick but you can also find pockets of them all over the region. Acadians' identity is Acadian first but they also usually identify as Maritimers too.
Agree. I’ve noticed that people near the US border in New Brunswick tend to have close ties
to people in NE Maine. Could be over stating, you’re from New Brunswick, I’ll differ to your
better knowledge of the region.
Yes, there is something you might call a Maritime identity, which of course co-exists with provincial rivalries too. But a lot of stuff like media and various services are region-wide as opposed to confined to each province.
Another twist is that very roughly 15% of the region is French-speaking Acadian. They're concentrated in certain parts of New Brunswick but you can also find pockets of them all over the region. Acadians' identity is Acadian first but they also usually identify as Maritimers too.
Speaking of the Acadians, do they have a different identity from the Quebecois? What's the historical difference? Also, I heard that the Acadians of Nova Scotia were expelled by the British, and they mostly moved to Coastal Louisiana, where they became the Cajuns. Why didn't those Acadians just move to Quebec instead?
Agree. I’ve noticed that people near the US border in New Brunswick tend to have close ties
to people in NE Maine. Could be over stating, you’re from New Brunswick, I’ll differ to your
better knowledge of the region.
Speaking of the Acadians, do they have a different identity from the Quebecois? What's the historical difference? Also, I heard that the Acadians of Nova Scotia were expelled by the British, and they mostly moved to Coastal Louisiana, where they became the Cajuns. Why didn't those Acadians just move to Quebec instead?
Acadia was a separate colony from "Canada" which is what the French colony that became Quebec was known at the time. The colonists weren't even from the same regions of France. Yes, there were some linkages between the two but due to the limitations of transportation systems in that era they still remained fairly distinct. Even to this day the accents in Quebec and Acadia are quite different, and no one here would mistake one for the other.
It's said that about 1 million people in Quebec are descended from Acadians, which is three time as many people as the Acadian population of the Maritimes. Many have knowledge of their Acadian roots but they're generally fully integrated into Quebec society.
There are quite a few people in the Boston area who are directly from the Maritimes or whose families had earlier immigrated from the Maritimes... both Acadian and non-Acadian. Metro Boston has historically been a magnet for employment for people from this part of Canada, but this is no longer the case due to changes in immigration and employment laws implemented in the States some time ago.
Were the Maritimes ever considered part of New England? Heard Nova Scotia was once the 14th American colony. Are the Maritimes as culturally similar to New England as British Columbia is to Washington state?
Were the Maritimes ever considered part of New England? Heard Nova Scotia was once the 14th American colony.
I don't know that Nova Scotia was ever under a common British administration with the 13 colonies to the south?
It's also true that from the 1710s to the 1750s there was a lot of flip flopping between French control and British control of various parts of the Canadian Maritimes.
Eventually though the British established effective control of the entire region, which is when they plotted and carried out the expulsion of the Acadians (beginning in 1755).
In addition to the jurisdictional instability, the Maritimes also differed from the 13 colonies in that demographically they were predominantly French for most if not all of that period.
What is today Quebec remained under French control until 1763.
When the Americans rebelled against the British in the 1770s, they made some overtures in what is now Canada (including French-speaking Quebec) in the hopes that the (future) Canadians would join the party, but they declined.
. Are the Maritimes as culturally similar to New England as British Columbia is to Washington state?
No two comparisons are perfect but I would say that it's in that range.
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