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NAME

This Canadian province is named after both the Italian explorer and colonist Christopher Columbus and the British Empire. With public discourse in Canada over the years lending itself to Truth and Reconciliation (see blog post, “National Day For Truth And Reconciliation”), the name, British Columbia, has been challenged. As a result, citizens (Indigenous and otherwise) and government officials are considering changing the province’s name. A couple of the ideas that have been proposed include S'ólh Téméxw (pronounced “sohl-toh-mok”; meaning “our land” in the Indigenous language of Halkomelem) and Illaheechuk (pronounced “ih-luh-hee-chuk”; meaning “where land meets water” in the Indigenous language of Chinook). For now, however, the name, British Columbia (or B.C.), remains.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Beautiful British Columbia: the slogan of the Canadian province does not speak far from the truth; beauty is everywhere there. From its breathtaking landscapes to its oceanic city skylines, B.C. is a land of much wonder.

Located in the region of Western Canada, British Columbia is the country’s third largest province in land mass, measuring at 944,735 km² (more than three times the size of Italy). It borders three Canadian regions (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Alberta), four American states (Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana), and shares a 27,000-kilometre coastline with the Pacific Ocean. Despite all of this land, only 5,581,127 (as of 2023) people call this province their home, 50% of which are located in the southern city of Vancouver.

NATURE

The majority of British Columbia is a series of cordilleras, such as the Rocky Mountains and the Coast Mountains, which are largely covered by thick forests. As such, there are many volcanoes in the province, particularly near the coast, which is broken up into a forestial archipelago. Despite the copious amount of stone, the northeast region of the province is characterized by its plains.

PLANTS

Within and among the many forests of B.C. are a variety of plant species. Some of the most notable, however, include: the tallest coniferous trees in Canada, such as cedars, a variety of firs (Fraser, Douglas, Balsam), pine trees and monkey puzzle trees, as well as palm trees, ferns, rhododendron, magnolias, cherry blossoms, and mountain crocuses.

WILDLIFE

In addition to the diversity of plants is the diversity of animal species. Though British Columbia is often referred to by Canadians as Grizzly Bear Country–due to its large population of grizzly bears–it also boasts as a habitat for various other animals: eagles, owls, swans, hummingbirds, bats, deer, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, wolves, coyotes, cougars, lynxes, martens, raccoons, badgers, beavers, sea otters, rats, and rattlesnakes. Among these land creatures also exist creatures of the ocean, such as whales (humpback whale, orca), dolphins, jellyfish, octopi, sea lions, and salmon.

As with many parts of Canada, human civilization lives closely with the wild, so it should be noted that seeing wildlife in towns or even large cities is generally common. As such, it is important to take caution when appropriate in order to avoid animal attacks. One way that British Columbians do this is by reporting sightings of dangerous wildlife (e.g. bears, wolves, cougars, etc.).

CLIMATE

Despite the varied nature and wildlife found along the province’s coast and within its interior, British Columbia has a more temperate climate compared to other Canadian regions.

Along the shores, a coastal climate provides a wet, precipitous environment, allowing for sub-tropical rainforests to inhabit the southwestern reaches. As such, coastal weather in B.C. typically ranges in the winter from -10 C to +10 C and from +20 C to +25 C in the summer.

As for interior B.C., winters see colder weather with temperatures ranging from -20 C to -10 C on average; regarding its summers, the temperatures are more or less similar to that of the province’s coast.

NATURAL DISASTERS

As British Columbia’s coast lies on the San Andreas fault line, the most common natural disaster of British Columbia is earthquakes. Experienced almost daily–though many go unnoticed–most earthquakes in the province measure below a 4.0 on the Riechter scale. According to 2023 reports, there were 24 earthquakes that measured above 4.0 in the region.

In addition to earthquakes, other natural disasters that can take place in B.C. (depending on area) include: tsunamis, rainstorms, flooding, snowstorms, avalanches, rockslides, and extreme fog.

CITY LIVING

As previously mentioned, Vancouver accomodates around 50% of the province’s population at 2.6 million inhabitants, making it the third largest city in Canada and the number one largest city of the province. In addition to these superlatives, Vancouver is measured to be the most expensive city to live in (in terms of real estate) in North America, it has the second largest film industry in the world coming second only to Hollywood in the United States, and it serves as Canada’s gateway to Asia and Oceania, allowing for a strong aviation industry, as well as an ever-booming tourism industry.

TOURISM

Popular tourism destinations in British Columbia include: Tofino, the surfing capital of Canada; Victoria, the capital city of the province, also known as the City of Gardens; Stanley Park, a forestial park in Vancouver which is surrounded by ocean and is larger than Central Park in New York City; Whistler, home of the 2010 Winter Olympics; the Okanagan Valley, the perfect place for wine enthusiasts; and much more…!

ECONOMY

British Columbia is well known by Canadians for producing and exporting many goods. Some of its primary industries include: film, forestry, mining, wine, tourism, and business.

DEMOGRAPHICS

British Columbia’s official language is English. It is home to over 34 Indigenous languages (including Kwak’wala, Haida, Halkomelem), as well as the Franco-Columbian community. Approximately 5.8% of the population is bilingual in English and French.

25% of British Columbia’s population is made up of immigrants (not including holders of citizenship, first generation Canadians, etc.), with particularly high percentages of nationals from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, India, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Iran. To give a clearer image of this diversity, 45% of the population of the city of Vancouver is of Asian descent.

FOOD

Due to British Columbia’s diverse population, there is virtually an unlimited amount of international cuisines that are consumed on the daily. Due to this culinary variety, it is not uncommon to eat a dish from a different country for each meal of the day. Some of these dishes are traditional to the nations they come from, while others are unique fusions native to the Canadian province. Such foods include:

• B.C. rolls

  • an uramaki sushi roll that contains barbecued salmon (or salmon skin) and cucumber, topped with a sweet sauce

• California rolls

  • despite this food’s name, it is a British Columbian/Japanese fusion of an uramaki sushi roll; it contains crab, avocado and cucumber, and is often rolled in toasted sesame seeds and/or fish roe

• Japadogs

  • Japanese-inspired hotdogs that are prepared a variety of ways; toppings often include: dried seaweed, fried onions, Japanese mayonnaise, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, pickled ginger, yakisoba, tonkatsu, okonomiyaki, rice, etc.

• Salmon (Wild Pacific, Sockeye)

• Fresh fruit from the Okanagan Valley

  • peaches, nectarines, cherries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cranberries, etc.

• Nanaimo bars

  • a dessert bar made in three layers: a buttery chocolate coconut crust, a vanilla custard, and a solid chocolate top

Have you ever been to British Columbia? What did you notice while you were there? Let me know in the comments below.

To learn about more Canadian provinces, check out our blog post entitled, “Profile: Alberta.”

RELATED ARTICLES

• Profile: Alberta

• Profile: Saskatchewan

• Profile: Manitoba (coming soon)

• Profile: Ontario (coming soon)

• Profile: Quebec (coming soon)

SOURCES:

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/geography-of-british-columbia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/plants-animals-ecosystems/wildlife

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mammals_of_British_Columbia

https://mapfight.xyz/map/british.columbia/

https://earthquakelist.org/canada/british-columbia/

https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm

https://www.eatthistown.ca/iconic-foods-of-canada-british-columbia/

https://www.foodnetwork.ca/article/must-try-british-columbia-recipes/

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/aboriginal-people-languages

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-name-change-1.6126983

ATTRIBUTION:

Mount Robson photo courtesy of Zeljko Kozomara - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Windy Bay Forest photo courtesy of Sam Beebe, CC BY 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Chesterman Beach photo courtesy of 604now.com.

Monkey Puzzle Tree photo courtesy of https://kwiaciaty.blogspot.com/2019/01/monkey-puzzle-tree.html

Palm tree photo courtesy of Patrick Verdier, Free On Line Photos - Photo, Copyrighted free use, WikiMedia Commons.

Rhododendron photo courtesy of Atudu - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Magnolia photo courtesy of Zp, CC BY-SA 3.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Cherry Blossom photo courtesy of SLIMHANNYA - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Hummingbird photo courtesy of Charles J. Sharp - Own work, from Sharp Photography, sharpphotography, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Bat photo courtesy of Latorilla at English Wikipedia. - Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons., CC BY-SA 3.0.

Bighorn Sheep photo courtesy of Jwanamaker - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Cougar photo courtesy of National Park Service, Public Domain, WikiMedia Commons.

Lynx photo courtesy of By Michael Zahra, CC BY-SA 3.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Orca photo courtesy of Robert Pittman - NOAA, Public Domain, WikiMedia Commons.

Jellyfish photo courtesy of Dan90266, CC BY-SA 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Sea lion photo courtesy of Rhododendrites - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Tofino Surfing photo courtesy of Tourism Tofino.

Victoria photo courtesy of Seabourn.com.

Okanagan Valley photo courtesy of Mack Male, CC BY-SA 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

BC Rolls photo courtesy of Underbar dk - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

California Roll photo courtesy of Tim Reckmann from Hamm, Deutschland - California Sushi, CC BY 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Kusomayo Japadog photo courtesy of Dan from Vancouver, Canada - Japadog - Terimayo, CC BY 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Smoked Pacific Salmon Jerky photo courtesy of Beeblebrox - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Cherry photo courtesy of spurekar - Cherry season, CC BY 2.0, WikiMedia Commons.

Nanaimo Bars photo courtesy of CanadianLiving.com.