FOREWORD

This toponymic study of Prince Edward Island by the Canadian Permanent Com- mittee on Geographical Names commemorates the entry of Canada’s smallest province into Confederation one hundred years ago. This is not the first such study of the province. That honour was earned by Robert Douglas in 1925, when the Geographic Board of Canada, the Committee’s predecessor, published his “Place Names of Prince Edward Island”, a standard reference work still used today.

Toponymy, the study of place names, is often looked upon as a somewhat esoteric field, of concern only to historians, linguists, geographers and mapmakers. But this is true only if place names are regarded simply as identifiers. In fact, they are much more. The origins of names assigned to specific places provide us with valuable insights into the history, the culture and the characteristics of the regions studied. With this in mind, the Committee’s research toponymist, Alan Rayburn, has investigated the origins and use of more than 1,600 Prince Edward Island names. The Douglas study, used as a base, has been revised and up-dated. A large number of additional names have been included.

It is the hope of the Committee that this special study will be useful, not only to scholars and scientists, but to the general public. Whether the reader is a resident of Prince Edward Island, or a visitor to Canada’s ‘Garden of the Gulf’, this publica- tion presents an opportunity to gain further knowledge of the province’s heritage and character.

Jean-Paul Drolet, Chairman, Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names.

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