View source for Labrador

{{Short description|Mainland portion of Newfoundland and Labrador}}
{{about|the region in Canada|the breed of dog|Labrador Retriever|other uses}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name                     = Labrador
| other_name               = 
| official_name            = 
| settlement_type          = 
| image_skyline            = 
| image_caption            = 
| image_flag               = Flag of Labrador.svg
| image_shield             = 
| motto                    = {{langnf|la|Munus splendidum mox explebitur|Our splendid task will soon be fulfilled}}
| anthem                   = "[[Ode to Labrador]]"{{center|[[File:Oh Christmas Tree.ogg]]}}
| nickname                 = "The Big Land"
| etymology                = [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]]
| subdivision_type         = Country
| subdivision_name         = Canada
| subdivision_type1        = [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Province]]
| subdivision_name1        = [[Newfoundland and Labrador]]
| subdivision_type2        = 
| subdivision_name2        = 
| subdivision_type3        = 
| subdivision_name3        = 
| subdivision_type4        = 
| subdivision_name4        = 
| image_map                = File:Labrador-Region.PNG
| map_caption              = Labrador (red) within Canada
| pushpin_map              = 
| pushpin_relief           = 
| pushpin_map_caption      = 
| coordinates              = {{coord|54|N|62|W|type:adm1st_region:CA-NL_source:http://www4.rncan.gc.ca/search-place-names/unique/ABNSV|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_footnotes    = 
| established_title        = Ceded to Great Britain by the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris]]
| established_date         = 1763
| established_title1       = Became part of the [[Province of Lower Canada]]
| established_date1        = 1791
| established_title2       = Transferred to [[Newfoundland Colony]]
| established_date2        = 1809
| area_footnotes           = 
| area_total_km2           = 294,330
| area_total_sq_mi         = 
| area_land_sq_mi          = 
| area_water_sq_mi         = 
| elevation_footnotes      = 
| elevation_m              = 
| elevation_ft             = 
| population_as_of         = 2021
| population_footnotes     = 
| population_total         = 26,655
| population_density_km2   = auto
| population_density_sq_mi = 
| population_demonym       = 
| timezone1                = [[Atlantic Standard Time|AST]]
| utc_offset1              = −4
| timezone1_DST            = ADT
| utc_offset1_DST          = −3
| timezone2                = [[Newfoundland Standard Time|NST]]
| utc_offset2              = −3:30
| timezone2_DST            = NDT
| utc_offset2_DST          = −2:30
| postal_code_type         = 
| postal_code              = 
| area_code_type           = 
| area_code                = 
| geocode                  = 
| iso_code                 = 
| blank_name               = [[Parliament of Canada|MP]]
| blank_info               = [[Yvonne Jones|1]]
| blank1_name              = [[Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly|MHA]]
| blank1_info              = 4
| blank2_name              = Ethnic groups
| blank2_info              = [[English people|English]], [[Innu]],<ref name="Impacts of Non-Indigenous Activities on the Innu" /> [[Inuit]], [[NunatuKavut people|Métis]]
| website                  = 
}}
'''Labrador''' ({{IPAc-en|'|l|æ|b|r|ə|d|ɔːr}}) is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of [[Newfoundland and Labrador]].<ref name="Labrador peninsula (Toponymy)">{{cite web |title=Labrador peninsula (Toponymy) |url=https://toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/Fiche.aspx?no_seq=285985 |website=Gouvernement of Quebec |publisher=Commission de Toponymy Quebec |access-date=31 August 2024 |language=fr |date=18 June 1993 |quote=Over the years, many variations have been used: Terraagricule (1558); Land of Labor (1575); Estotilandt (1597) or Estotilande (1656); Terra Cortereale (1597); New Britain (1656).}}</ref>  It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its population. It is separated from the island of [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] by the [[Strait of Belle Isle]]. It is the largest and northernmost geographical region in the four [[Atlantic Canada|Atlantic provinces]].<ref name="Albert Peter Low and the exploration of Quebec-Labrador">{{cite web |author1=Fabien Caron |title=Albert Peter Low and the exploration of Quebec-Labrador |url=https://www.erudit.org/fr/revues/cgq/1965-v9-n18-cgq2593/020595ar.pdf |website=Érudit |publisher=Center for Nordic Studies, Laval University |access-date=23 August 2024 |pages=16 |language=en, fr |date=1965 |quote=... he had the consuming curiosity of the born explorer which must always see the other side of the hill or the other end of the river.}}</ref>

Labrador occupies most of the eastern part of the [[Labrador Peninsula]]. It is bordered to the west and south by the province of [[Quebec]]. Labrador also shares a small land border with the territory of [[Nunavut]] on [[Killiniq Island]].

The [[indigenous peoples]] of Labrador include the Northern [[Inuit]] of [[Nunatsiavut]], the Southern [[Métis]] of [[NunatuKavut]], and the [[Innu]] of [[Nitassinan]].<ref name="Impacts of Non-Indigenous Activities on the Innu" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Nitassinan: The Innu Struggle to Reclaim Their Homeland |publisher=[[Douglas & McIntyre]] |date=December 1991 |page=240 |last=Wadden |first=Marie |author-link=Marie Wadden |isbn=978-1-55365-731-6 |url=http://www.dmpibooks.com/book/nitassinan |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121161501/http://www.dmpibooks.com/book/nitassinan |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-01-21 |access-date=2012-11-19}}</ref>

==Etymology==
Labrador is named after [[João Fernandes Lavrador]], a Portuguese explorer who sailed along the coasts of the [[Labrador Peninsula]] in 1498–99.<ref name="Major">[[Kevin Major]], ''[[iarchive:asneartoheavenby0000majo|As Near to Heaven by Sea: A History of Newfoundland and Labrador]]'', 2001, {{ISBN|0-14-027864-8}}</ref>

Labrador's name in the [[Inuttitut]]/[[Inuktitut]] language (spoken in [[Nunatsiavut]]) is {{lang|iu-Latn|Nunatsuak}} ({{Lang|iu|ᓄᓇᑦᓱᐊᒃ}}), meaning "the big land" (a common English nickname for Labrador<ref>{{Cite web |title=Four of the best places to visit in The Big Land |url=https://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/trip-ideas/travel-stories/four-of-the-best-places-to-visit-in-the-big-land |access-date=June 18, 2022 |website=Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada – Official Tourism Website |language=en |archive-date=June 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625073039/https://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/trip-ideas/travel-stories/four-of-the-best-places-to-visit-in-the-big-land |url-status=live }}</ref>).

==Geography==
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2023}}
[[Image:Labrador fullmap.gif|thumb|left|Map of Labrador]]
Labrador has a roughly triangular shape that encompasses the easternmost section of the [[Canadian Shield]], a sweeping geographical region of thin soil and abundant mineral resources. Its western border with Quebec is the drainage divide of the Labrador Peninsula. Lands that drain into the [[Atlantic Ocean]] are part of Labrador, while lands that drain into [[Hudson Bay]] are part of Quebec. Labrador's extreme northern tip, at 60°22′N, shares a short border with Nunavut on Killiniq Island. Labrador also has a maritime border with Greenland. Northern Labrador's climate is classified as [[Polar climate|polar]], while Southern Labrador's climate is classified as [[Subarctic climate|subarctic]].

Labrador can be divided into four geographical regions: the North Coast, Central Labrador, Western Labrador, and the South Coast. Each of those regions is described below.

===North Coast===
From Cape Chidley to [[Hamilton Inlet]], the long, thin, northern tip of Labrador holds the [[Torngat Mountains]], named after an Inuit spirit believed to inhabit them. The mountains stretch along the coast from Port Manvers to [[Cape Chidley]], the northernmost point of Labrador. The Torngat Mountain range is also home to [[Mount Caubvick]], the highest point in the province. This area is predominantly Inuit, with the exception of a small Innu community, [[Natuashish]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Innu of Labrador: From Davis Inlet to Natuashish |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/natuashish.html |website=CBC News |access-date=October 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041217030423/https://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/natuashish.html |archive-date=Dec 17, 2004 |date=December 14, 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/natuashish-struggling-with-the-hangovers-of-old-davis-inlet |title=Natuashish: Struggling with the hangovers of old Davis Inlet |publisher=CBC |date=Feb 8, 2005 |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |archive-date=March 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220318171634/https://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/natuashish-struggling-with-the-hangovers-of-old-davis-inlet |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="power">{{cite web |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/hunting-demons/article23331533/ |title=A decade after the people of Davis Inlet were relocated, they are still hunting demons |publisher=The Globe and Mail |date=March 6, 2015 |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |first=Peter |last=Power |archive-date=August 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815221858/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/hunting-demons/article23331533/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/band-money-fuelling-addictions-sources-1.542082 |title=Band money fuelling addictions: sources |date=Feb 9, 2005 |publisher=CBC News |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107002923/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/band-money-fuelling-addictions-sources-1.542082 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/labrador-innu-leaders-pocketing-band-money-audit-1.542105 |title=Labrador Innu leaders pocketing band money: audit |date=Oct 26, 2005 |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |publisher=CBC News |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107002910/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/labrador-innu-leaders-pocketing-band-money-audit-1.542105 |url-status=live }}</ref> The North Coast is the most isolated region of Labrador, with [[snowmobile]]s, boats, and planes being the only modern modes of transportation. The largest community in this region is [[Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador|Nain]].<ref name="mun.ca">{{cite web |url=https://www.mun.ca/labmetis/pdf/toponymy%20final%20report.pdf |title=Toponymic and Cartographic Research Conducted for the Labrador Métis Nation |website=mun.ca |date=September 2008 |access-date=26 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104223307/http://www.mun.ca/labmetis/pdf/toponymy%20final%20report.pdf |archive-date=2018-01-04 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

====Nunatsiavut====
[[Nunatsiavut]] is an Inuit self-government region in Labrador created on June 23, 2005.<ref name="assent">{{Cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/labrador-inuit-land-claim-passes-last-hurdle-1.559601 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070321084602/https://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/06/24/labrador-inuit-050624.html |title=Labrador Inuit land claim passes last hurdle |publisher=CBC News |date=June 24, 2005 |access-date=April 22, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-date=March 21, 2007}}</ref><ref name="cabinet">{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/labrador-s-5-000-inuit-take-charge-of-our-beautiful-land-1.545347 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070501130528/http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/12/01/inuit-rule20051201.html |title=Labrador's 5,000 Inuit take charge of 'our beautiful land' |publisher=CBC News |date=December 1, 2005 |access-date=April 22, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-date=May 1, 2007}}</ref><ref name="LILCA">{{Cite web |url=http://www.laa.gov.nl.ca/laa/land_claims/index.html |title=Land Claims |publisher=Department of Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs, [[Government of Newfoundland and Labrador]] |access-date=April 23, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100511010327/http://www.laa.gov.nl.ca/laa/land_claims/index.html |archive-date=May 11, 2010}}</ref> The settlement area comprises the majority of Labrador's North Coast, while the land-use area also includes land farther to the interior and in Central Labrador. Nain is the administrative centre.
[[File:Kiglapait Mountains, Labrador.jpg|thumb|Icy Labrador coast and [[Kiglapait Mountains]] on the north coast of Labrador]]

===Central Labrador===
[[Central Labrador]] extends from the shores of [[Lake Melville]] into the interior. It contains the [[Churchill River (Atlantic)|Churchill River]], the largest river in Labrador and one of the largest in Canada. The hydroelectric dam at [[Churchill Falls]] is the second-largest underground power station in the world. Most of the supply is bought by [[Hydro-Québec]] under a long-term contract. The [[Lower Churchill Project]] will develop the remaining potential of the river and supply it to provincial consumers. Known as "the heart of the Big Land", the area's population comprises people from all groups and regions of Labrador.

Central Labrador is also home to [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]]. Once a refuelling point for plane convoys to Europe during [[World War II]], [[CFB Goose Bay]] is now operated as a [[NATO]] tactical flight training site.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/natos-invasion-air-combat-training-and-its-impact-innu |title=NATO's Invasion: Air Combat Training and its Impact on the Innu |date=December 1986 |website=culturalsurvival.org |access-date=2022-01-07 |archive-date=2022-01-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107005835/https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/natos-invasion-air-combat-training-and-its-impact-innu |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/when-outrage-scarce-commodity-low-flying-maneuvers-over |title=When Outrage Is A Scarce Commodity: Low-flying Maneuvers over Innu lands in Labrador |date=December 2000 |website=culturalsurvival.org |access-date=2022-01-07 |archive-date=2022-01-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107005830/https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/when-outrage-scarce-commodity-low-flying-maneuvers-over |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Gaudi |first1=John |title=New children's book is based on Innu protests of low-level flying in Labrador |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/nutauis-cap-innu-protests-low-level-flying-1.5391228 |publisher=CBC News |date=Dec 14, 2019 |access-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107005829/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/nutauis-cap-innu-protests-low-level-flying-1.5391228 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Swardson |first1=Anne |title=Indians in Labrador Press for End to Low-Level Flight Training |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1994/03/17/indians-in-labrador-press-for-end-to-low-level-flight-training/e2f06fa6-9a23-4b41-8390-6f1bccbb8a75/ |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=Nov 27, 2020 |date=March 17, 1994 |archive-date=November 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104231309/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1994/03/17/indians-in-labrador-press-for-end-to-low-level-flight-training/e2f06fa6-9a23-4b41-8390-6f1bccbb8a75/ |url-status=live }}</ref> It was an alternate landing zone for the United States' [[Space Shuttle]].<ref name="STSCanada">{{cite web|title=Transport Canada NASA Space Shuttle Emergency Landing Site Contingency Plan |url=http://www.tc.gc.ca/Publications/en/TP12952/PDF/HR/TP12952E.pdf|publisher=Transport Canada|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517012846/http://www.tc.gc.ca/Publications/EN/TP12952/PDF/HR/TP12952E.PDF|archivedate=17 May 2013}}</ref> Other major communities in the area are [[North West River, Newfoundland and Labrador|North West River]]<ref>{{cite book |last1=Watts |first1=Beatrice |title=Cable Car of North River & Sheshatshit |date=1984 |publisher=Them Days (booklet) |pages=8}}</ref> and the large [[Innu]] [[Indian reserve|reserve]] known as [[Sheshatshiu]].<ref name="Reserve Creation at Sheshatshiu">{{cite web |url=https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100018929/1100100018930 |title=Reserve Creation at Sheshatshiu |date=25 May 2021 |publisher=Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada |access-date=7 January 2022 |archive-date=14 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014042429/https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100018929/1100100018930 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Western Labrador===
[[File:Open_pit_iron_mine,_Labrador.jpg|right|thumb|Open pit [[Iron Ore Company of Canada|iron mine]] in Labrador West]]
The highlands above the Churchill Falls were once an ancient hunting ground for the [[Innu]] First Nations and settled trappers of Labrador. After the construction of the hydroelectric dam at Churchill Falls in 1970, the [[Smallwood Reservoir]] has flooded much of the old hunting land—submerging several grave sites and trapping cabins in the process.<ref>{{cite web |title=Churchill River |url=http://www.cangeoeducation.ca/resources/rivers_of_canada/churchill_river/default.asp |website=Canadian Geographic Education |access-date=21 July 2019 |archive-date=1 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200201124628/http://www.cangeoeducation.ca/resources/rivers_of_canada/churchill_river/default.asp |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Western Labrador is also home to the [[Iron Ore Company of Canada]], which operates a large iron ore mine in [[Labrador City]]. Together with the small community of [[Wabush]], the two towns are known as "Labrador West".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.labradorwest.com/default.php?display=cid160 |title=Labrador West<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2009-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110527143220/http://www.labradorwest.com/default.php?display=cid160 |archive-date=2011-05-27 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===South Coast===
====NunatuKavut====
From Hamilton Inlet to [[Cape St. Charles]]/[[St. Lewis, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. Lewis]], [[NunatuKavut]] is the territory of the [[NunatuKavummiut]] or Central-Southern Labrador Inuit (formerly known as the Labrador [[Métis]]).<ref name="unveiling_nunatukavut">{{cite web |url=http://www.nunatukavut.ca/home/files/pg/unveiling_nunatukavut.pdf |title=Unveiling Nunatukavut |first1=D. Bruce |last1=Clarke |first2=Gregory E. |last2=Mitchell |date=2010 |website=NunatuKavut Community Council |access-date=March 28, 2020 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328075057/http://www.nunatukavut.ca/home/files/pg/unveiling_nunatukavut.pdf |archive-date=March 28, 2019}}</ref> It includes portions of Central and Western Labrador, but more NunatuKavummiut reside in its South Coast portion: it is peppered with tiny Inuit fishing communities, of which [[Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador|Cartwright]] is the largest.

====Labrador Straits====
From Cape Charles to the Quebec–Labrador coastal border, the Straits are known for their Labrador [[seagrass]] (as is NunatuKavut) and the multitude of icebergs that pass by the coast via the [[Labrador Current]].
[[File:Red Bay, Labrador, 2021.jpg|thumb|[[Red Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador|Red Bay]], Labrador]]
[[Red Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador|Red Bay]] is known as one of the best examples of a preserved 16th-century [[Basque whaling]] station. It is also the location of four 16th-century Spanish galleons. The [[lighthouse]] at [[Point Amour Lighthouse|Point Amour]] is the second-largest lighthouse in Canada. {{MV|Qajaq}}, a passenger ferry between the mainland and [[St. Barbe, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. Barbe]] on the island of [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]], is based in [[Blanc Sablon, Quebec]], near the Labrador border.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-02-25 |title=MV Apollo crashes into Quebec dock just weeks after it left Labrador |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/mv-apollo-damaged-godbout-1.5032969 |access-date=2022-01-07 |archive-date=2021-11-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211113071219/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/mv-apollo-damaged-godbout-1.5032969 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[L'Anse-au-Loup]] is the largest town on the Labrador Straits.<ref name="cp16">{{cite web |title=L'Anse au Loup, T [Census subdivision], Newfoundland and Labrador and Canada [Country] (table) Census Profile |url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=1010002&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=L%27Anse%20au%20Loup&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&TABID=1&B1=All |website=2016 Census |publisher=Statistics Canada |access-date=27 February 2018 |language=en}}</ref> [[L'Anse-au-Clair]] is a small town on the Labrador side of the border.

===Time zones of Labrador===
Most of Labrador (from [[Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador|Cartwright]] north and west) uses [[Atlantic Standard Time Zone|Atlantic Time]] (UTC−4 in winter, UTC−3 in summer). The south eastern tip nearest Newfoundland uses [[Newfoundland Standard Time Zone|Newfoundland Time]] (UTC−3:30 in winter, UTC−2:30 in summer) to stay co-ordinated with the more populous part of the province.

===Climate of Labrador===
{{further|Geography of Newfoundland and Labrador}}
Most of Labrador has a [[subarctic climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Dfc]]), but northern Labrador has a [[Tundra|tundra climate]] (ET) and Happy Valley - Goose Bay has a [[Humid continental climate|humid continental]] (Dfb) microclimate. Summers are typically cool to mild across Labrador and very rainy, and usually last from late June to the end of August. Autumn is generally short, lasting only a couple of weeks and is typically cool and cloudy. Winters are long, cold, and extremely snowy, due to the [[Icelandic Low]]. Springtime most years does not arrive until late April, with the last snow fall usually falling during early June. Labrador is a very cloudy place, with sunshine levels staying relatively low during spring and summer due to the amount of rain and clouds, before sharply dropping off during September as winter draws nearer.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}

===Natural features===
Labrador is home to a number of flora and fauna species. Most of the Upper Canadian and Lower Hudsonian [[mammal]]ian species are found in Labrador.<ref>''The American Naturalist'' (1898) Essex Institute, American Society of Naturalists</ref> Notably the [[Polar bear]] ({{Lang|la|Ursus maritimus}}) reaches the southeast of Labrador on its seasonal movements.<ref>C. Michael Hogan (2008) [https://web.archive.org/web/20081224205716/http://globaltwitcher.auderis.se/artspec_information.asp?thingid=36084 ''Polar Bear: Ursus maritimus'', Globaltwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg]</ref>

==History==
===Early history===
{{more citations needed|section|date=August 2022}}
Early settlement in Labrador was tied to the sea as demonstrated by the Innu (formerly called Montagnais) and Inuit, although these peoples also made significant forays throughout the interior.

It is believed that the [[Norsemen]] were the first Europeans to sight Labrador around 1000 AD. The area was known as ''[[Markland]]'' in [[Greenlandic Norse]] and its inhabitants were known as the ''[[Skrælings]]''.[[File:Fours de fonte d'huile de baleine.jpg|thumb|right|Model of [[History of the Basques#Basque sailors|Basque]] whale oil melting factory at [[Red Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador|Red Bay]]]]In 1499 and 1500, the Portuguese explorers [[João Fernandes Lavrador]] and [[Pero de Barcelos]] reached what was probably now Labrador, which is believed to be the origin of its name.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vtZtMBLJ7GgC&pg=PA464 |title=Foundations of the Portuguese empire |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |author=Bailey W. Diffie and George D. Winius |page=464 |year=1977 |isbn=0-8166-0782-6 |access-date=August 13, 2010}}</ref> [[Visconte Maggiolo|Maggiolo's World Map]], 1511, shows a solid Eurasian continent running from Scandinavia around the North Pole, including Asia's arctic coast, to Newfoundland-Labrador and Greenland. On the extreme northeast promontory of North America, Maggiolo place names include ''Terra de los Ingres'' (Land of the English), and ''Terra de Lavorador de rey de portugall'' (Land of Lavrador of the King of Portugal). Farther south are the phrases ''Terra de corte real e de rey de portugall'' (Land of the Royal Court and of the King of Portugal) and ''Terra de pescaria'' (Land for Fishing). In the 1532 Wolfenbüttel map, believed to be the work of [[Diogo Ribeiro (cartographer)|Diogo Ribeiro]], along the coast of Greenland, the following legend was added: ''As he who first sighted it was a farmer from the Azores Islands, this name remains attached to that country.'' This is believed to be João Fernandes. For the first seven decades or so of the sixteenth century, the name Labrador was sometimes also applied to what is now known as Greenland.<ref>See {{cite book |first=James A. |last=Williamson |title=The Cabot Voyages and Bristol Discovery under Henry VII |location=London |year=1962 |pages=98, 120–1, 312–17 |oclc=808696}}</ref> Labrador ("lavrador" in Portuguese) means husbandman or farmer of a tract of land (from "labor" in Latin) – the land of the labourer. European settlement was largely concentrated in coastal communities, particularly those south of St. Lewis and Cape Charles, and are among Canada's oldest European settlements.

In 1542, Basque mariners came ashore at a natural harbour on the northeast coast of the Strait of Belle Isle. They gave this "new land" its Latin name ''Terranova''. A whaling station was set up around the bay, which they called ''Butus'' and is now named Red Bay after the red terracotta roof tiles they brought with them. A whaling ship, the ''San Juan'', sank there in 1565 and was raised in 1978.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/north-america/canada/articles/Red-Bay-a-corner-of-Canada-that-is-forever-Basque |last=Richardson |first=Nigel |title=A corner of Canada that is forever Basque |date=1 June 2015 |newspaper=Daily Telegraph |location=London |access-date=12 January 2017 |archive-date=16 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116154257/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/north-america/canada/articles/Red-Bay-a-corner-of-Canada-that-is-forever-Basque/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Moravian Church, Nain, NL, exterior.JPG|thumb|[[Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador|Nain]] was established in 1771 by [[Moravian Church|Moravian]] missionaries]]The [[Moravian Brethren]] of [[Herrnhut]], [[Saxony]], first came to the Labrador Coast in 1760 to minister to the migratory Inuit tribes there. They founded Nain, Okak, Hebron, Hopedale and Makkovik. Quite poor, both European and First Nations settlements along coastal Labrador came to benefit from cargo and relief vessels that were operated as part of the [[Grenfell Mission]] (see [[Wilfred Grenfell]]). Throughout the 20th century, coastal freighters and ferries operated initially by the [[Newfoundland Railway]] and later [[Canadian National Railway]]/[[CN Marine]]/[[Marine Atlantic]] became a critical lifeline for communities on the coast, which for the majority of that century did not have any road connection with the rest of North America.

Labrador was part of [[New France]] until the [[Seven Years' War]]. By the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)]], which ended the war, New France (including Labrador, though excluding the islands of [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]] southwest of Newfoundland) was transferred to the British, who administered the northern portion of it as the [[Province of Quebec (1763-1791)|Province of Quebec]] until splitting it in two in 1791, with Labrador located in [[Lower Canada]]. However, in 1809, the British Imperial government detached Labrador from Lower Canada for transfer to the separate, self-governing [[Newfoundland Colony]].

===20th century===
{{Further|Newfoundland National Convention|1948 Newfoundland referendums|Canadian Confederation#Joining Confederation|selfref=|label1=|label3=}}
[[Image:Innu making canoes near Sheshatshiu, ca. 1920.jpg|thumb|Innu<ref name="Impacts of Non-Indigenous Activities on the Innu">{{cite web |author1=Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Web Site |title=Impacts of Non-Indigenous Activities on the Innu |url=https://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/indigenous/innu-impacts.php#canoes |access-date=31 August 2024 |date=2008 |quote=To safeguard their rights, resources, and culture against outside threats, the Innu people of Labrador formed the Naskapi Montagnais Innu Association (NMIA) in 1976}}</ref> near [[Sheshatshiu]], [[Newfoundland and Labrador]], c.1920]]

As part of [[Newfoundland]] since 1809, Labrador was still being disputed by [[Quebec]] until the British [[Newfoundland and Labrador–Quebec border|Privy Council resolved their border in 1927]]. In 1949, [[Dominion of Newfoundland|Newfoundland]] [[1948 Newfoundland referendums|entered into confederation]], becoming part of Canada (see above articles for full information).

Labrador played strategic roles during both [[World War II]] and the [[Cold War]]. In October 1943, a German [[U-boat]] crew installed an automated weather station on the northern tip of Labrador near Cape Chidley, code-named [[Weather Station Kurt]]; the installation of the equipment was the only-known armed German military operation on the North American mainland during the war. The station broadcast weather observations to the German navy for only a few days, but was not discovered until 1977 when a historian, working with the [[Canadian Coast Guard]], identified its location and mounted an expedition to recover it. The station is now exhibited in the [[Canadian War Museum]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uboat.net/ops/weather_stations.htm |title=Weather station Kurt erected in Labrador in 1943 |access-date=2010-02-18 |archive-date=2022-05-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220522115617/https://uboat.net/ops/weather_stations.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Canadian government built a major air force base at [[Goose Bay (Newfoundland and Labrador)|Goose Bay]], at the head of [[Lake Melville]] during the Second World War, a site selected because of its topography, access to the sea, defensible location, and minimal fog. During the Second World War and the Cold War, the base was also home to American, British, and later German, Dutch, and Italian detachments. Today, Serco, the company contracted to operate [[CFB Goose Bay]] is one of the largest employers for the community of [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]].

Additionally, both the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]] and [[United States Air Force]] built and operated a number of radar stations along coastal Labrador as part of the [[Pinetree Line]], [[Mid-Canada Line]] and [[Distant Early Warning Line|DEW Line]] systems. Today, the remaining stations are automated as part of the [[North Warning System]]; however, the military settlements during the early part of the Cold War surrounding these stations have largely continued as local Innu and Inuit populations have clustered near their port and airfield facilities.

During the first half of the 20th century, some of the largest [[iron ore]] deposits in the world were discovered in the western part of Labrador and adjacent areas of Quebec. Deposits at [[Mont Wright (Quebec)|Mont Wright]], [[Schefferville, Quebec|Schefferville]], Labrador City, and Wabush drove industrial development and human settlement in the area during the second half of the 20th century.

The present community of [[Labrador West]] is entirely a result of the iron ore mining activities in the region. The Iron Ore Company of Canada operates the [[Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway]] to transport ore concentrate {{cvt|578|km}} south to the port of [[Sept-Îles, Quebec]], for shipment to steel mills in North America and elsewhere.

During the 1960s, the [[Churchill River (Atlantic)|Churchill River]] (Labrador name: Grand River) was diverted at [[Churchill Falls]], resulting in the flooding of an enormous area – today named the Smallwood Reservoir after [[Joey Smallwood]], the first premier of Newfoundland. The flooding of the reservoir destroyed large areas of habitat for the threatened Woodland Caribou. A hydroelectric generating station was built in Labrador as well as a transmission line to the neighbouring province of Quebec.<ref name="nfld-studies">{{cite journal |last1=Churchill |first1=Jason L. |title=Pragmatic Federalism: The Politics Behind the 1969 Churchill Falls Contract. |journal=Newfoundland and Labrador Studies |date=1999 |volume=15 |issue=2 |access-date=17 July 2019 |url=https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/NFLDS/article/view/807/1161 |archive-date=17 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717140536/https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/NFLDS/article/view/807/1161 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Construction of a large [[hydroelectric dam]] project at [[Muskrat Falls]] began in 2012 by [[Nalcor Energy]] and the Province of Newfoundland.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2012/exec/1217n11.htm |publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador |date=December 17, 2012 |access-date=Nov 29, 2020 |title=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Announces Sanction of the Muskrat Falls Development |archive-date=November 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129131543/https://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2012/exec/1217n11.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/1-5b-maritime-link-approved-by-emera-inc-1.1219556 |title=$1.5B Maritime Link approved by Emera Inc. |access-date=Nov 29, 2020 |publisher=CBC News |date=Dec 18, 2012 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107014211/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/1-5b-maritime-link-approved-by-emera-inc-1.1219556 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/maritime-link-energy-project-approved-by-nova-scotia-s-uarb-1.2444774 |title=Maritime Link energy project approved by Nova Scotia's UARB |access-date=Nov 29, 2020 |publisher=CBC News |date=Nov 29, 2013 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107014209/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/maritime-link-energy-project-approved-by-nova-scotia-s-uarb-1.2444774 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2013/exec/1210n06.htm |title=Speaking notes delivered December 10 by the Honourable Kathy Dunderdale |publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador |date=December 17, 2012 |access-date=December 10, 2013 |archive-date=June 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150601224311/http://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2013/exec/1210n06.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Muskrat Falls Generating Project |url=https://muskratfalls.nalcorenergy.com/project-overview/muskrat-falls-hydroelectric-generation-facility/ |website=Nalcor Energy |access-date=2022-01-07 |archive-date=2022-01-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107014210/https://muskratfalls.nalcorenergy.com/project-overview/muskrat-falls-hydroelectric-generation-facility/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Muskrat Falls is 45&nbsp;km (30 miles) west of [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]] on the Grand River (Newfoundland name: Churchill River). A transmission line began construction in October 2014 and was completed in 2016 that delivers power down to the southern tip of Labrador and underwater across the Strait of Belle Isle to the Province of Newfoundland in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://muskratfalls.nalcorenergy.com/team-work-and-dedication-brings-the-link-to-completion/ |title=Teamwork and dedication brings the Link to completion &#124; Nalcor Energy – Lower Churchill Project |access-date=2018-01-12 |archive-date=2018-01-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112214856/http://muskratfalls.nalcorenergy.com/team-work-and-dedication-brings-the-link-to-completion/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Labrador Road-paved&unpaved.jpg|thumb|Route of the Trans-Labrador highway]]
From the 1970s to early 2000s, the [[Trans-Labrador Highway]] was built in stages to connect various inland communities with the North American highway network at [[Mont Wright (Quebec)|Mont Wright, Quebec]] (which in turn is connected by a highway running north from [[Baie-Comeau]], Quebec). A southern extension of this highway has opened in stages during the early 2000s and is resulting in significant changes to the coastal ferry system in the Strait of Belle Isle and southeastern Labrador. These "highways" are so called only because of their importance to the region; they would be better described as roads, and were not completely paved until July 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Atter |first=Heidi |date=July 6, 2022 |title=After more than 40 years and 1,100 km, the Trans-Labrador Highway is finished |work=[[CBC News]] |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/trans-labrador-highway-1.6511681 |access-date=July 13, 2022 |archive-date=July 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714003839/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/trans-labrador-highway-1.6511681 |url-status=live }}</ref>

A study on a [[Newfoundland-Labrador fixed link|fixed link]] to Newfoundland, in 2004, recommended that a tunnel under the [[Strait of Belle Isle]], being a single railway that would carry cars, buses and trucks, was technologically the best option for such a link.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/fixed-link-feasible-williams-says-1.531244 |title=Fixed link feasible, Williams says |publisher=CBC News |date=February 28, 2005 |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107011629/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/fixed-link-feasible-williams-says-1.531244 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/newfoundland-labrador-link-pegged-at-15-billion/article1126158/ |title=Newfoundland-Labrador link pegged at $1.5-billion |date=January 20, 2004 |publisher=The Globe and Mail |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107012001/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/newfoundland-labrador-link-pegged-at-15-billion/article1126158/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="dream">{{cite web |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/newfoundlands-tunnel-dream/article1030084/ |title=Newfoundland's tunnel dream |first=Kevin |last=Cox |date=February 12, 2001 |publisher=The Globe and Mail |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107012003/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/newfoundlands-tunnel-dream/article1030084/ |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the study also concluded that a fixed link was not economically viable.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2005/exec/0228n03.htm |title=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador releases Fixed Link Pre-Feasibility Report |publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador |date=February 28, 2005 |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=October 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013024903/https://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2005/exec/0228n03.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Conceivably, if built with federal aid, the 1949 terms of union would be amended to remove ferry service from [[Nova Scotia]] to [[Channel – Port aux Basques|Port aux Basques]] across the [[Cabot Strait]].

Although a [[Trans-Labrador Highway|highway link]] has, as of December 2009,<ref>{{cite web |title=Tenders Called for More Paving on Phase I of Trans Labrador Highway |url=http://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2011/tw/0223n02.htm |publisher=Transportation and Works |access-date=26 April 2011 |archive-date=22 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622083548/http://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2011/tw/0223n02.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> been completed across Labrador, this route is somewhat longer than a proposed [[Quebec Route 138|Quebec North Shore highway]] that presently does not exist. Part of the "highway", [[Quebec Route 389|Route 389]], starting approximately {{convert|212|km|mi}} from Baie-Comeau to {{convert|482|km|mi}}, is of an inferior alignment, and from there to {{convert|570|km|mi}}, the provincial border, is an accident-prone section notorious for its poor surface and sharp curves. Quebec in April 2009 announced major upgrades to Route 389 to be carried out.

Route 389 and the Trans-Labrador Highway were added to Canada's [[National Highway System (Canada)|National Highway System]] in September 2005.

[[Labrador (electoral district)|Labrador]] constitutes a federal electoral district electing one member to the [[House of Commons of Canada]]. Due to its size, distinct nature, and large Aboriginal population, Labrador has one seat despite having the smallest population of any electoral district in Canada.<ref>[https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/peter-penashue-quits-over-campaign-donations-1.1335297 "Peter Penashue quits over campaign donations"] . [[CBC News]], March 14, 2013.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/liberals-win-crucial-byelection-1.540341 |title=Liberals win crucial byelection |publisher=[[CBC News]] |date=24 May 2005 |access-date=1 November 2015 |archive-date=1 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701093635/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/liberals-win-crucial-byelection-1.540341 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Innnu leader">{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/innu-leader-delivers-conservatives-from-n-l-shutout-1.976524 |title=Innu leader delivers Conservatives from N.L. shutout |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date=2011-05-02 |access-date=2018-05-25 |archive-date=2021-12-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211211210713/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/innu-leader-delivers-conservatives-from-n-l-shutout-1.976524 |url-status=live }}</ref> Formerly, Labrador was part of a riding that included part of the Island of Newfoundland.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://vocm.com/news/former-senator-and-mp-bill-rompkey-passes-away-at-80/ |title=Former Senator And MP, Bill Rompkey Passes Away At 80 |access-date=2017-03-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170327083517/http://vocm.com/news/former-senator-and-mp-bill-rompkey-passes-away-at-80/ |archive-date=2017-03-27 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Labrador is divided into four provincial electoral districts in the [[Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Yvonne Jones re-elected in Labrador |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/yvonne-jones-re-elected-in-labrador-1.983786 |access-date=2 May 2018 |newspaper=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date=11 October 2011 |archive-date=1 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180701012647/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/yvonne-jones-re-elected-in-labrador-1.983786 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Boundary dispute==
{{Further|Newfoundland and Labrador–Quebec border}}
[[File:Old_Harry_oil_field_location_map-fr.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[Old Harry oil field]], on the boundary between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador]]
In 1809, Labrador was transferred from Lower Canada to the Newfoundland Colony, but the inland boundary of Labrador had never been precisely stated.<ref name="marianopolis">{{cite web |year=2007 |url=http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/NFLDHistory/Quebec-NewfoundlandLabradorBoundaryIssue.htm |title=Labrador-Canada boundary |publisher=marianopolis |access-date=2008-03-20 |quote=Labrador Act, 1809. – An imperial act (49 Geo. III, cap. 27), 1809, provided for the re-annexation to Newfoundland of 'such parts of the coast of Labrador from the River St John to Hudson's Streights, and the said Island of Anticosti, and all other smaller islands so annexed to the Government of Newfoundland by the said Proclamation of the seventh day of October one thousand seven hundred and sixty-three (except the said Islands of Madelaine) shall be separated from the said Government of Lower Canada, and be again re-annexed to the Government of Newfoundland.' |archive-date=2014-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318022522/http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.Belanger/nfldhistory/Quebec-NewfoundlandLabradorBoundaryIssue.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Newfoundland argued it extended to the height of land, while Canada, stressing the historical use of the term "Coasts of Labrador", argued the boundary was {{convert|1|smi|km}} inland from the high-tide mark. As Canada and Newfoundland were separate [[Dominion]]s, but both within the [[British Empire]], the matter was referred to the [[Judicial Committee of the Privy Council]]<ref name=NYT>{{cite web |title=Oh, (No) Canada! |url=http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/oh-no-canada/ |work=Opinionator: Borderlines |publisher=The New York Times |access-date=July 15, 2012 |author=Frank Jacobs |date=July 10, 2012 |archive-date=July 27, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120727020303/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/oh-no-canada/ |url-status=live }}</ref> (in London). Their decision set the Labrador boundary mostly along the coastal watershed, with part being defined by the [[52nd parallel north]]. One of Newfoundland's conditions for joining Confederation in 1949 was that this boundary be entrenched in the Canadian constitution.<ref name=NYT/> While this border has not been formally accepted by the Quebec government, the Henri Dorion Commission ({{Lang|fr|Commission d'étude sur l'intégrité du territoire du Québec|i=unset}}) concluded in the early 1970s that Quebec no longer has a legal claim to Labrador.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Rapids/3330/constitution/hden.htm |title=Henri Dorion debunks the Ten Great Myths about the Labrador boundary |work=Quebec National Assembly, First Session, 34th Legislature |date=October 17, 1991 |access-date=May 18, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026232154/http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Rapids/3330/constitution/hden.htm |archive-date=October 26, 2009}}</ref>

In 2001, Parti Québécois cabinet ministers [[Jacques Brassard]] and [[Joseph Facal]] erroneously reasserted that Quebec has never recognized the 1927 border:
{{blockquote|text=
{{Lang|fr|Les ministres rappellent qu'aucun gouvernement québécois n'a reconnu formellement le tracé de la frontière entre le Québec et Terre-Neuve dans la péninsule du Labrador selon l'avis rendu par le comité judiciaire du Conseil privé de Londres en 1927. Pour le Québec, cette frontière n'a donc jamais été définitivement arrêtée.}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.saic.gouv.qc.ca/centre_de_presse/communiques/2001/saic_com20011031.htm |title=Le ministre des Ressources naturelles du Québec et le ministre délégué aux Affaires intergouvernementales canadiennes expriment la position du Québec relativement à la modification de la désignation constitutionnelle de Terre-Neuve |last1=Brassard |first1=Jacques |last2=Facal |first2=Joseph |date=October 31, 2001 |work=saic.gouv.qc.ca |publisher=Gouvernement du Québec |language=fr |type=Communiqué |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050428091824/http://www.saic.gouv.qc.ca/centre_de_presse/communiques/2001/saic_com20011031.htm |archive-date=April 28, 2005 |url-status=dead |access-date=May 18, 2011 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref>

[The ministers reiterate that no Quebec government has ever formally recognised the drawing of the border between Quebec and Newfoundland in the Labrador peninsula according to the opinion rendered by the London Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1927. For Quebec, this border has thus never been definitively defined.]
}}

==Self-government==
A Royal Commission in 2002 determined that there is some public pressure from Labradorians to break from Newfoundland and become a separate province or territory.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.exec.gov.nl.ca/royalcomm/finalreport/default.html |date=2002 |title=Final Report of the Royal Commission on Renewing and Strengthening Our Place in Canada |access-date=May 17, 2021 |publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador |archive-date=December 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217171940/https://www.exec.gov.nl.ca/royalcomm/finalreport/default.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Indigenous self-government===
After decades of negotiation with the provincial and federal governments, the [[Nunatsiavut]] region of northern and northeastern Labrador was created in 2005 as an autonomous region with its own elected [[Nunatsiavut Assembly|Assembly]] and executive drawn from members of the region's Assembly. Some of the [[Innu]] nation would have the entirety of Labrador become a homeland for them, much as [[Nunavut]] and Nunatsiavut is for the [[Inuit]], as a good portion of [[Nitassinan]] falls within Labrador's borders; a 1999 resolution of the [[Assembly of First Nations]] claimed Labrador as a homeland for the Innu and demanded recognition in any further constitutional negotiations regarding the region.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://64.26.129.156/article.asp?id=960 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810210100/http://64.26.129.156/article.asp?id=960 |archive-date=August 10, 2011 |title=Resolution No. 11 – Innu Traditional Territory |work=Assembly of First Nations Resolutions 1999 |date=July 20–23, 1999 |publisher=Assembly of First Nations |access-date=May 18, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Labrador's Innu became status Indians under the ''[[Indian Act]]'' in 2002. [[Natuashish]] became a [[Indian reserve|federal Indian reserve]] in 2003.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mushuau Innu First Nation Band Order SOR/2002-415 |url=https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2002-415/FullText.html |publisher=[[Department of Justice (Canada)|Justice Canada]] |date=21 November 2002 |access-date=7 January 2022 |archive-date=13 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220413033812/https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2002-415/FullText.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100018920/1100100018921 |title=Archived - Reserve Creation at Natuashish |publisher=Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |date=Nov 2007 |archive-date=October 14, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014042425/https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100018920/1100100018921 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Sheshatshiu]] became a [[Indian reserve|federal reserve]] in 2006.<ref name="Reserve Creation at Sheshatshiu"/>

The Labrador Inuit Association had filed a [[Indigenous land claims in Canada|land claim]] for portions of Labradorian land in 1977.<ref name="landclaim">{{Cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/labrador-s-inuit-cheer-land-agreement-1.556062 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070120102816/https://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/01/22/labrador-land050122.html |archive-date=January 20, 2007 |title=Labrador's Inuit cheer land agreement |publisher=[[CBC News]] |date=January 23, 2005 |url-status=live |access-date=April 22, 2010}}</ref> In 1988, the Labrador Inuit Association, the government of the province of Newfoundland, and the [[government of Canada]] began negotiations based on the land claim.<ref name="negotiation">{{cite web |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/nunatsiavut.html |title=Nunatsiavut: Our beautiful land |publisher=[[CBC News Online]] |date=July 2, 2004 |access-date=April 22, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130811172337/https://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/nunatsiavut.html |archive-date=August 11, 2013}}</ref> An agreement-in-principle was achieved in 2001, and on May 26, 2004, the agreement was ratified by over 75% of eligible voters subject to the land claim.<ref name="negotiation" /> On January 22, 2005, the Inuit of [[Nunatsiavut]] signed the Labrador Inuit Lands Claims Agreement<ref name="LILCA"/> with the federal and provincial governments covering {{cvt|72520|km2|sigfig=4}} of land,<ref name="landclaim" /> including the entire northern salient of Labrador north of [[Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador|Nain]] as well as a portion of the Atlantic coast south of there. The agreement also includes {{cvt|44030|km2|sigfig=4}} of sea rights.<ref name="landclaim" /> Although the Inuit will not own the whole area, they were granted special rights related to traditional land use, and they will own {{cvt|15800|km2|sigfig=4}} designated Labrador Inuit Lands.<ref name="landclaim" /> The agreement also establishes the [[Torngat Mountains National Park]] in the northern area of the land claim. The agreement was ratified by the Labrador Inuit, the [[General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador]], and the [[Parliament of Canada]], where it received [[Royal assent|Royal Assent]] on June 23, 2005, whereafter elections would be held for the Nunatsiavut Assembly and self-government would begin.<ref name="assent"/>

In the late 1970s, the Labrador Metis Association was created by the inhabitants of Labrador's southern coast to gain recognition as a distinct ethnocultural group,<ref name="unveiling_nunatukavut" /> as at the time despite a pre-existing treaty protected under the constitution, the "Inuit-Metis" were considered to be merely the descendants of Inuit who had joined Western society.<ref name=InuitStudies /> Little was known about the history of the "Inuit-Metis" of the time. In 2006, the Labrador Metis Association initiated a project with [[Memorial University of Newfoundland]] to better understand their past through the Community-University Research Association (CURA).<ref name="unveiling_nunatukavut"/> Following research by CURA, the "Labrador Metis" were understood to be a continuation of the Inuit of southern Labrador.<ref name=InuitStudies>{{cite journal |last=Stopp |first=Marianne |date=2002 |title=Reconsidering Inuit presence in southern Labrador |journal=Études/Inuit/Studies |volume=26 |issue=2 |pages=71–106 |doi=10.7202/007646ar |s2cid=128735957 |doi-access=}}</ref> In 2010, the Labrador Metis Association changed its name to reflect their newly discovered heritage, and became the [[NunatuKavut Community Council]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/labrador-s-m%C3%A9tis-nation-adopts-new-name-1.927252 |title=Labrador's Métis Nation adopts new name |date=Apr 13, 2010 |publisher=CBC News |access-date=Oct 27, 2020 |archive-date=June 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210616091555/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/labrador-s-m%C3%A9tis-nation-adopts-new-name-1.927252 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Southern Inuit of [[NunatuKavut]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thetelegram.com/News/Local/2012-09-17/article-3076486/NunatuKavut-says-it%26rsquo%3Bs-not-backing-away-from-the-Lower-Churchill-development/1 |title=NunatuKavut says it's not backing away from the Lower Churchill development |first=Ashley |last=Fitzpatrick |date=September 17, 2012 |newspaper=[[The Telegram]] |access-date=28 March 2020 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006013322/http://www.thetelegram.com/News/Local/2012-09-17/article-3076486/NunatuKavut-says-it%26rsquo%3Bs-not-backing-away-from-the-Lower-Churchill-development/1 |archive-date=2012-10-06}}</ref> who are also seeking self-government, have their land claim before the Government of Canada. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador refuses to recognise or negotiate with the Inuit of NunatuKavut until their claim has been accepted by the Government of Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.gov.nl.ca/iias/wp-content/uploads/aboriginal_consultation.pdf |title=Government of Newfoundland Consultation Policy |access-date=2019-04-06 |archive-date=2018-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116222409/https://www.gov.nl.ca/iias/wp-content/uploads/aboriginal_consultation.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Demographics==
[[File:Battle Harbour, NL.JPG|thumb|[[Battle Harbour]], traditional [[Newfoundland outport|outport]] fishing community]]
The Labrador region, with its 26,655 population,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Division No. 10, Census division (CDR) [Census division], Newfoundland and Labrador |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |access-date=2022-07-14 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |archive-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209134619/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Division No. 11, Census division (CDR) [Census division], Newfoundland and Labrador |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |access-date=2022-07-14 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |archive-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209134619/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |url-status=live }}</ref> is lower than any of the [[Northern Canada]] territories, [[Yukon]], [[Northwest Territories]] and [[Nunavut]]. [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland Island]] contains the majority of the population of the province of [[Newfoundland and Labrador]].

===Communities===
The municipalities of Labrador are mainly under 1,000 in population.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Population of largest communities in Labrador
!Town
!2021<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stats.gov.nl.ca/Statistics/Topics/census2021/PDF/CSS_Community_2021.pdf |title=2021 Census Population by 2021 Census Consolidated Subdivision (CCS) by Community Newfoundland and Labrador |access-date=2023-04-28 |archive-date=2023-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230609170846/https://stats.gov.nl.ca/Statistics/Topics/Census2021/PDF/CSS_Community_2021.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]]
|8,040
|-
|[[Labrador City]]
|7,412
|-
|[[Wabush]]
|1,964
|-
|[[Sheshatshiu]]
|1,410
|-
|[[Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador|Nain]]
|1,204
|-
|[[Natuashish]]
|856
|-
|[[Churchill Falls, Newfoundland and Labrador|Churchill Falls]]
|732
|-
|[[L'Anse-au-Loup]]
|692
|-
|[[Hopedale, Newfoundland and Labrador|Agvituk]]
|596
|-
|[[North West River]]
|560
|-
|[[Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador|Cartwright]]
|439
|-
|[[Port Hope Simpson]]
|403
|-
|[[Forteau]]
|377
|-
|[[Makkovik]]
|365
|-
|[[Rigolet]]
|327
|-
|[[Mary's Harbour]]
|312
|-
|[[Charlottetown, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador|Charlottetown]]
|292
|-
|[[L'Anse au Clair]]
|219
|-
|[[Postville, Newfoundland and Labrador|Postville]]
|188
|-
|[[St. Lewis, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. Lewis]]
|181
|-
|[[Red Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador|Red Bay]]
|142
|-
|[[West St. Modeste]]
|102
|-
|[[Black Tickle]]
|87
|-
|[[Pinware]]
|64
|-
|[[Lodge Bay]]
|61
|-
|[[Capstan Island]]
|55
|-
|[[Mud Lake, Newfoundland and Labrador|Mud Lake]]
|54
|-
|[[Pinsent's Arm]]
|43
|-
|[[Norman's Bay]]
|15
|-
|[[Paradise River, Newfoundland and Labrador|Paradise River]]
|5
|}

===Composition===
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Demographic Factors (2021 Census)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/rt-td/index-eng.cfm#tab5 |publisher=Statistics Canada |title=2014 Census release topics |access-date=2014-09-06 |archive-date=2015-02-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223113145/http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/rt-td/index-eng.cfm#tab5 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
!Factor
!Labrador
[[Division No. 10, Newfoundland and Labrador|Census Division 10]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Division No. 10, Census division (CDR) [Census division], Newfoundland and Labrador |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |access-date=2022-07-14 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |archive-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209134619/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |url-status=live }}</ref>
(excludes Nunatsiavut-Nain)
!Labrador
[[Division No. 11, Newfoundland and Labrador|Census Division 11]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Division No. 11, Census division (CDR) [Census division], Newfoundland and Labrador |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |access-date=2022-07-14 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |archive-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209134619/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |url-status=live }}</ref>
(Nunatsiavut-Nain)
!Canada<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Canada [Country] |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |access-date=2022-07-14 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |archive-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209134619/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|Population
|24,332
|2,323
|36,991,981
|-
|Male/Female split
|50.7%/49.3%
|50.0%/50.0%
|49.3/50.7%
|-
|Median age (years)
|39.2
|32.8
|41.6
|-
|Median household income (2020)
|$115,000
|$77,500
|$84,000
|-
|Employment insurance benefits (2020)
|3.4%
|6.8%
|1.4%
|}

According to the 2011 Census, Labrador was 55.1% White, 18.5% Inuit, 15.6% Metis, and 8.6% First Nations (Innu).{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Canada}}
{{cmn|colwidth=25em|
* [[Akami−Uapishkᵘ−KakKasuak−Mealy Mountains National Park Reserve]]
* [[Barren Bay]]
* [[Black Bear Bay]]
* [[Caplin Bay]]
* [[Churchill River (Atlantic)]]
* [[Central Mineral Belt, Labrador]]
* [[Hinchinbrook Bay]]
* [[Labradorite]]
* [[Landsat Island]]
* [[Newfoundland–Labrador fixed link]]
* [[Voisey's Bay Mine]]
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{citation |first=Albert Peter |last=Low |title=Report on explorations in the Labrador peninsula along the East Main, Koksoak, Hamilton, Manicuagan and portions of other rivers in 1892–93–94–95 |work=Geological Survey of Canada |location=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer |year=1896 |url=https://archive.org/details/reportonexplorat00geoluoft |access-date=2010-09-13}}
* ''The Lure of the Labrador Wild'', by [[Dillon Wallace]] (1905)
* ''Along the Labrador Coast'', by Charles W. Townsend, M.D. (1907)
* ''Birds of Labrador'', by Charles W. Townsend, M.D. (1907)
* ''A Labrador Spring'', by Charles W. Townsend, M.D. (1910)
* ''Captain Cartwright and His Labrador Journal'', by Charles W. Townsend, M.D. (1911)
* ''In Audubon's Labrador'', by Charles W. Townsend, M.D. (1918)
* ''Labrador,'' by Robert Stewart (1977)
* ''Labrador by Choice'', by Benjamin W. Powell Sr. C.M. (1979)
* ''The Story of Labrador'', by B. Rompkey (2005)
* Buckle, Francis. ''The Anglican Church in Labrador''. (Labrador City: Archdeaconry of Labrador, 1998.)

==External links==
{{Wiktionary}}
* [[Project Gutenberg]] e-text of Dillon Wallace's ''[http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/gutbook/lookup?num=4019 The Lure of the Labrador Wild]''
* [http://tlhwy.com/ Trans-Labrador Highway website] – detailed information about travelling in Labrador.

{{Sister bar|auto=y}}
{{Northern Canada}}
{{Subdivisions of Newfoundland and Labrador}}
{{Portuguese overseas empire}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Labrador| ]]
[[Category:Internal territorial disputes of Canada]]