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Off the coast of the Canadian Province of Newfoundland on the far eastern part of the country lies St Pierre and Miquelon, an island duo that technically belongs to France and sits 12 miles off the coast of Canada. The islands are technically the final remaining French possession of their colonial “New France” territory in North America.
For other maps on islands, see posts on the Toronto Islands, Diego Garcia, Taiwan’s Kinmen & Lienchiang Counties, and the Manitou Islands in Lake Michigan!
See the interactive Google Map at the bottom of the post!
Three key facts about this map
Citizens of St Pierre and Miquelon are French
The population of the islands are French as the island is part of what the French government calls “overseas collectivities”, or rather semi-autonomous self-governing territories. St Pierre and Miquelon elect 1 seat to each the lower house and upper house of the French Parliament. Similarly, citizens are also European Union members, use the euro as its currency, and elect members to the European Parliament (via Frances’ singular EU district).
The French spoken on St Pierre and Miquelon is not Canadian French
Despite how close the islands are to Canada, citizens are more culturally connected to Metropolitan France – this includes their language. The dialect of French spoken on St Pierre and Miquelon is similar to mainland France instead of the distinct Canadian dialect of French.
There is an ongoing maritime boundary case between France and Canada because of the islands
The issue of borders for each country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) were brought to the UN for arbitration in 1992, where both France and Canada claimed that they were entitled to larger portions of waters around St Pierre and Miquelon (important for fishing and oil exploration rights). The UN awarded a “keyhole-like area” to France, which was 18% of their original claim. Despite being settled in court, there are ongoing disputes surrounding boundaries that have spilled into the 2010s.
Additional links and sources
- Blog surrounding the France-Canada EEZ dispute (link, published in 2001)
- Article about the ongoing maritime boundary dispute (link, published in 2014)
Have you heard of the French islands of St Pierre and Miquelon before?
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