Alberta's Geographical Names Program
The Geographical Names Program (GNP) falls under the auspices of the Historic Resources Management Branch of the Alberta Culture and Community Spirit. It is run by one staff member whose responsibilities are fourfold:
1. To oversee the proper application of official names to geographical features in the province
If an individual or group wants to have a name applied to a geographical feature in Alberta, the GNP will inform the applicant of the rules and regulations, do any necessary field and documentary research, and submit the application to the group that rules on acceptance or rejection of names, the Board of the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation.
2. To maintain and augment the historical information in the Alberta Geographical Names Inventory
The inventory is a database with geographical and name origin information on all of the nearly 10,000 officially named places in the province. Although the GNP is responsible for co-ordinating the naming of geographical features only (i.e., mountain, rivers, lakes, hills, creeks, etc.), the database also includes locational and origin information on municipalities, provincial and national parks and other national reserves. Information in the landmark series of books, Place Names of Alberta Volumes I-IV, (1991-1996) and Concise Place Names of Alberta (2006) was drawn from the inventory. An ongoing mission is to research and add all historical and local names to the database. To date there are nearly five thousand local and historical names included on the Alberta Geographical Names Inventory database.
3. To work with other naming bodies at local, provincial, national and international levels
Each province in Canada has a sitting member on the national body, the Geographical Names Board of Canada.
4. To disseminate information about names and their origins
This is done through publications, speaking engagements, electronic media and responses to individual public requests.
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 Tail of the Frank Slide, Crowsnest Pass |
What's in a Name?
Let's start with some definitions:
Toponymy is the study of place names. It comes from two Greek words: topos meaning place and onoma meaning name
Geography is a science that deals with the description,
distribution, and interaction of the diverse physical, biological, and cultural
features of the earth's surface.
A gazetteer is a list of place names for a defined
jurisdiction that usually gives locations.
Local Histories are the histories of community
groups written by resident members. They provide a consistent and constantly used resource on the history of rural Alberta including naming information, local government histories, and family histories.
How places are named
Briefly, place names in Alberta have been influenced by a variety of factors including the aboriginal people, settlement patterns, natural landscape, and just plain imagination. Places can be named after events or people, be descriptive in nature, be a reminder of a place in a distant land, be named in another language, or be a combination of letters from more than one word.
A Look at Alberta's Combination Names
Combination names are formed from one or more letters of other words. As a naming convention they've been out of favour since the late 1960s. The custom has given way to the principles of local usage, descriptive naming and historical significance in determining names of geographical features. There are at least 56 combo words among Alberta place names, and here are just a few...
Anzac, south of Fort McMurray, was established in 1917 as a point on the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway line. The name is a combination of the first letters of World War I's Australia and New Zealand Army Corps
Cadomin, southeast of Hinton, owed its beginning to the big coal seam there in 1912. The name is an acronym for Canadian Dominion Mine, the developing company, and was coined by F.L.Hammond, the Cadomin Coal Company's first president.
Hemaruka came into being in 1925 when the CNR requested a name for a station 60 km east of Hanna, Alberta. The general manager, A.E. Warren, suggested using the first two letters of each of his daughters' names: Helen, Marjorie, Ruth and Kathleen.
Ukalta, by Smoky Lake, was the name of the post office here from 1934-1964. The area was settled by people from the Ukraine who created the name from a combination of the names of their former homeland and their new province, Alberta.
Marwayne, near Lloydminster, was named using a combination of the first syllable in the name of the pioneer Marfleet family and the first syllable of their town of origin, Wainfleet, Lincolnshire, England
Most Wanted Place Names
Did you know that there are some places whose naming origins are unknown? Here's how you can help. If you know anything about any of the names we've listed below, we would be most appreciative if you would share it with us. if you have information about any of the following:
- Economy Creek and Lake near DeBolt
- Frozenman Coulee northwest of Calgary
- Bolloque Lake and Creek southwest of Athabasca
- Putzy Creek northwest of Grande Cache
- Tay Lake and River southwest of Caroline
- A-H Lake mid-way northwest and southwest of Forts McMurray and Chipewyan
- Sweetheart Lake south of Fort McMurray
- Quitting Lake northeast of Slave Lake
- Lostpoint Lake northeast of Edmonton
How to contact the Geographical Names Program
If you have any questions or information about why and how places are
named, please contact:
Mathew Wangler
Historic Resources Management Branch
Alberta Culture and Community Spirit
8820 - 112 Street
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
T6G 2P8
Phone: 780-438-8503
Fax: 780-427-3956
or contact the Alberta Culture and Community Spirit website.