British Columbia

British Columbia
Colombie-Britannique  (French)[1][2]
Motto(s): 
Latin: Splendor sine occasu
(English: Splendour without diminishment)
Coordinates: 54°00′00″N 125°00′00″W / 54.00000°N 125.00000°W / 54.00000; -125.00000
CountryCanada
ConfederationJuly 20, 1871 (7th)
CapitalVictoria
Largest cityVancouver
Largest metroMetro Vancouver
Government
 • TypeConstitutional monarchy
 • Lieutenant GovernorJanet Austin
 • PremierDavid Eby (NDP)
LegislatureLegislative Assembly of British Columbia
Federal representationParliament of Canada
House seats42 of 338 (12.4%)
Senate seats6 of 105 (5.7%)
Area
 • Total944,735 km2 (364,764 sq mi)
 • Land925,186 km2 (357,216 sq mi)
 • Water19,548.9 km2 (7,547.9 sq mi)  2.1%
 • RankRanked 5th
 9.5% of Canada
Population
 (2016)
 • Total4,648,055 [3]
 • Estimate 
(2020 Q4)
5,145,851 [4]
 • RankRanked 3rd
 • Density5.02/km2 (13.0/sq mi)
DemonymBritish Columbian[5]
Official languagesEnglish (de facto)
GDP
 • Rank4th
 • Total (2015)CA$249.981 billion[6]
 • Per capitaCA$53,267 (8th)
HDI
 • HDI (2018)0.930[7]Very high (2nd)
Time zones
most of provinceUTC−08:00 (Pacific)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−07:00 (Pacific DST)
far easternUTC−07:00 (Mountain)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−06:00 (Mountain DST)
Postal abbr.
BC
Postal code prefix
ISO 3166 codeCA-BC
FlowerPacific dogwood
TreeWestern red cedar
BirdSteller's jay
Rankings include all provinces and territories

British Columbia (BC) is a province in Canada. It was originally two separate colonies of Great Britain, the colony of Vancouver Island, and the colony of British Columbia. British Columbia joined the Canadian Confederation In 1871. The capital of British Columbia is Victoria, but the city with the most people is Vancouver and the city with the largest area is Abbotsford.

  1. Government of Canada, Natural Resources Canada. "Place names - British Columbia / Colombie-Britannique". www4.rncan.gc.ca. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  2. "BC Geographical Names". apps.gov.bc.ca. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  3. "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, 2016 and 2011censuses". Statistics Canada. February 8, 2017. Retrieved February 8, 2012.
  4. "Population by year of Canada of Canada and territories". Statistics Canada. June 14, 2018. Archived from the original on June 19, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  5. According to the Oxford Guide to Canadian English Usage (ISBN 0-19-541619-8; p. 335), BCer(s) is an informal demonym that is sometimes used for residents of BC
  6. "Gross domestic product, expenditure-based, by province and territory (2015)". Statistics Canada. November 9, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2017.
  7. "Sub-national HDI - Subnational HDI - Global Data Lab". globaldatalab.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.

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