Things You Should Know About Newfoundland

[ChromAzonyx108]

I'll break this up into parts so it doesn't get too long. Here's the first part.

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1. Mainlander vs Islander.

Typically we refer to anyone outside of the province is a mainlander, whereas people from the island of Newfoundland are called islanders. People from Labrador are Labradorians.

2. We are the most easterly province in Canada.

What’s that? You thought Ontario was in the east? You mainlander.

3. Maritimes vs Atlantic Canada.

Maritimes: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island (PEI)
Atlantic Canada: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, (PEI), and Newfoundland

4. What about Labrador?

If Newfoundland sometimes feels ignored by the rest of Canada, then Labrador has it worse.
Newfoundlanders be like: it’s a part of the mainland.
Other Canadians be like: it’s a part of Newfoundland.

5. Bay vs Town.

If someone in NL says they’re going to town then they probably mean St. John’s, our province’s capital. Whereas, if someone says they’re going around the bay, that could be just about anywhere else in the province that’s not St. John’s or a major community. Oh, and we refer to people in St. John’s as townies and people in smaller rural communities are referred to as baymen.

6. We have our own ‘N’ word.

Informally, and usually amongst ourselves, we refer to each other as Newfies. Formally, usually if you’re a mainlander and don’t know the person, we’re referred to as Newfoundlanders.

Here’s a couple of definitions of Newfie from urban dictionary:

A slang term for a person of Newfoundland, Canada's most easterly province. Mostly used by ignorant people or those who think the name is cute. The term is based on the belief that people from this province are dumb, uneducated, barbaric, poor, lazy and unemployed. Like all stereotypical phrases, it is far from the truth and as previously stated based on ignorance. Most Newfoundlanders find this term offensive. However, there are others who use it themselves.”

The Newfoundlander's equivalent of the word ‘nigger.’ That is to say, Newfoundlanders can call themselves and other Newfoundlanders ‘newfie’ but if anyone who is not from Newfoundland uses it, it is considered offensive.”

I also found this on Wikipedia, I never knew about it before:

In the 1970s, the Government of Alberta added the term 'Newfie' to a list of words not allowed to be used on personalised licence plates, reasoning that it was an ethnic slur and hateful. In 2006, a man from Newfoundland argued that it was also a source of pride, and fought to have the word removed from the list, and he eventually won. As of 2008, the ban has been lifted.”

7. Flags.

We have three flags:

I) Our official flag:

II) An unofficial flag, commonly seen in gift shops:

III) Labrador's unofficial flag:

8. Our accents may be difficult to understand.

In most parts of Canada there are two official languages: French and English. According to comedian Mark Critch, Newfoundland has three: French, English, and even we don’t know what we’re saying half the time. I mean, some Newfoundlanders sound like Boomhauer from 'King of the Hill.' Personally, sometimes I don’t even understand what my own brother is saying.

I'll end this part with a video on some Newfoundland sayings:

Things You Should Know About Newfoundland, Part 2

[vekin]

intresting mytake

[Imsmurter1]

I’d like to visit