Better Know a Province: British Columbia

Considering a move to the Canadian province of British Columbia? Already live there? Here are some things you might not know about Canada's Western-most region.

The sixth province in Canada, BC shares borders with the US states of Idaho, Oregon and Washington and was named by Queen Victoria herself.

British Columbia contains the largest network of provincial parks and also boasts 141 ecological reserves, 35 marine parks, seven heritage sites, six national historic sites, three national parks and three national park reserves -- meaning outdoor activities are very popular among locals.

Due to the wide swaths of protected land, a majority of the province is wild or semi-wild and is home to species that are rare in other parts of North America. For example, the spirit bear can only be found in British Columbia.

While the Northern interior area has a subarctic climate punctuated by extremely cold winters, the capital city of Vancouver has the mildest winter climate of most Canadian cities, with temperatures above freezing in January. For obvious reasons, half of the province's population lives in this Metro Vancouver area.

Statistics

• Capital - Victoria
• Largest city - Vancouver
• Official languages - English
• Demonym - British Columbian
• Time zone - Pacific (most of province) and Mountain: UTC-8 and UTC-7 (far eastern part of province)

Symbols of British Columbia

• Motto - Splendor sine occasu (Splendour without diminishment)
• Tree - western redcedar
• Flower - pacific dogwood
• Gemstone - jade
• Mammal - spirit bear (AKA the kermode bear)
• Fish - pacific salmon
• Bird - steller's jay