Place Names of Newfoundland and Labrador

Explore the hidden stories, strange origins, and fascinating histories of Newfoundland and Labrador's place names, from Dildo to Dover and Nain to Nipper’s Harbour. On your journey you might learn how to cure gout in the stomach, raise a glass at The King of Clubs, and rub elbows with charcoal burners, heartbreakers, and the wife of Mad King George. You might even find the best spot to have a baby while paddling a canoe.

In the thousands of years that people have inhabited and visited Newfoundland and Labrador, Indigenous peoples, Basque whale hunters, French explorers, and Devon merchants have all left their mark on the map. But do you know which town father was a possible murder victim? Or which outport got its name from a stranger who showed up wearing three jackets? Or the community called after the patron saint of comedians?

Place Names of Newfoundland and Labrador is an entertaining and at times cheeky look at the towns we love and why we call them what we do.