Hype for the Future 87O: Counties of Ontario 🇨🇦

Introduction

Within the Province of Ontario, select census divisions associated with the Province also function as provincial counties, largely located in the portions of Southern Ontario not already included within single-tier or regional municipalities which also exist throughout the area. On the eastern edge of Ontario, three municipalities have united county status.

The Counties

Within Southern Ontario, the associated counties to the west of Toronto include the specific counties named Essex, Lambton, Elgin, Middlesex, Huron, Perth, Wellington, Bruce, Grey, Dufferin, and Simcoe. As would be guessed by the location in the Province of Ontario, each of the county names derives from names associated with the British Isles, whether based on recycled names from Great Britain, notable surnames, or possibly other etymologies.

East of Toronto, the county names are relatively similar and also largely named in a British format, namely Haliburton, Peterborough, Northumberland, Hastings, Renfrew, Lennox and Addington, and Lanark, plus Frontenac County of French etymology.

The United Counties

At the eastern edge of the Province of Ontario, three special cases of united counties also exist by association with the area. The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville are located directly downstream from Frontenac County, while the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry represent the portion of Ontario located furthest downstream along the Saint Lawrence River. Directly to the north, in the Hawkesbury area, are the United Counties of Prescott and Russell.

County Name Etymologies

With the notable exception of Frontenac County, all Ontarian county names are of British origin. However, the particular countries of origin may be varied based on the specific situation, as follows:

• Essex County: Essex, England
• Lambton County: Lambton surname from Durham, England
• Middlesex County: Middlesex, England (home to London)
• Elgin County: Elgin, Moray, Scotland
• Huron County: Lake Huron (of Indigenous descent, often referred to as “First Nations” by more northerly Canadian definitions)
• Perth County: Perth, Scotland
• Bruce County: Name is of Scottish origin
• Grey County: Name is (chiefly) of English origin
• Dufferin County: Name is of multiple British origins
• Simcoe County: Name is of English origin
• Haliburton County: Name is of Scottish origin
• Peterborough County: Peterborough, England
• Hastings County: Hastings, England
• Lennox and Addington County: English politicians
• Frontenac County: Former figure of New France
• Renfrew County: Renfrewshire, Scotland
• Lanark County: Lanarkshire, Scotland
• United Counties of Leeds and Grenville: Leeds, England, and Grenville is an English name
• United Counties of Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry: All names are Scottish
• United Counties of Prescott and Russell: Both are English names though the namesake Russell was Anglo-Irish

Hype for the Future 87L: The Province of Ontario Compared to Ohio

Preamble

Though the State of Ohio is located in the United States 🇺🇸 and the Province of Ontario is included within Canada 🇨🇦, both subnational divisions are of significant importance in either nation. Culturally, Ohio and Ontario in particular may effectively have the greatest similarities in any comparison of the United States and Canada, even though the State of Ohio also extends further south as part of the United States.

Culture

Both the Ohio Country and Upper Canada were largely determined by the British, though much of Upper Canada was concurrent with New France’s claim to the Ohio Country. The westward expansion associated with the United States of America and the westward migrations of the United Empire Loyalists over the Great Lakes and into Ontario alike represent cultural similarities often identified within the scope of the region.

British Settlement

Though the modern State of Ohio was not directly British, the settlers of British Colonial America were increasingly pushing westward, largely starting with the Scots-Irish on the frontier, followed shortly by additional groups in the process of westward migration. The Province of Ontario had seen more immigration directly from Great Britain and Ireland somewhat later along, while the State of Ohio would largely be identified by the German heritage dispersed throughout the State. Notwithstanding the cultural differences between the specific groups of Ohio and Ontario, however, each region contains clear and present similarities with one another, whether based on the Great Lakes cultural traits, the associated landscapes (especially south of the Georgian Bay), or even the contemporary cultural values associated with the region.

Communities

Both the State of Ohio and the Province of Ontario contain a number of major and minor communities of cultural significance, whether at the national level, regional level, or merely locally. For the Province of Ontario, such locations include Ottawa (the national capital), Toronto (the provincial capital and largest city), and Windsor, while for the State of Ohio, a similar pattern is identified with Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati. Though the State of Ohio also has a number of moderately-sized communities within the same general areas as Cleveland or Cincinnati, similar dynamics also occur in the general area of Toronto even if the nearby communities are more closely associated with Toronto.

Moderately-sized communities of significance in the Province of Ontario include the communities of Hamilton, Oshawa, and Kingston—all within the Greater Toronto Area—while the communities in the State of Ohio include Dayton, Springfield, Akron, and Canton under similar dynamics. Interestingly, while Toledo is relatively larger than many of the otherwise listed mid-sized cities in the State of Ohio, the city is actually on the relatively isolated side within Northwest Ohio. In comparison, Northern Ontario communities under similar dynamics, though usually with smaller populations, include the communities of Barrie, Sudbury, Timmons, Thunder Bay, Kenora, and Nipigon, just to name a few, while the Eastern Ontario community of Hawkesbury remains more closely associated with the City of Ottawa with greater bilingual status.

In Southern Ontario, names of communities that may appear relatively similar to Toledo or the smaller communities throughout the Northwest Ohio communities (Lima, Findlay, Sidney) or the Cities of Youngstown or Mansfield in Northeast Ohio may also include the communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Simcoe, Collingwood, Saint Catharines, Niagara Falls, Brantford, London, and Guelph.

Hype for the Future 75M: Antigonish, Nova Scotia

Overview

Located toward the eastern end of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada 🇨🇦, the community of Antigonish is most notable as home to St. Francis Xavier University as well as the oldest continuous Scottish Highland Games outside Scotland itself, thanks to the relatively large and developed Scots community from the Highland Clearances into the region.

Hype for the Future 74H: Major Communities in the United Kingdom

Introduction

While the United Kingdom is most notable with the dominance of England, the countries of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland can also claim cultural values independently of the dominant nation. Even though London is the capital of the entire United Kingdom, as well as of just England, the city does not provide much in terms of the cultural values of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, or even locations elsewhere within England, especially beyond Middlesex and East Anglia.

The Communities

Of the communities within the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom, the most important cities in terms of being locations of country governments are London, England; Edinburgh, Scotland; Cardiff, Wales; and Belfast, Northern Ireland. However, England also claims Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and a number of smaller communities of regional and cultural significance, while Scotland also claims Glasgow, Inverness, Elgin, Dundee, and Aberdeen quite similarly. While Wales is largely on the rural side, the major communities beyond Cardiff also include Newport in the Monmouthshire (Gwent) area as well as Swansea further west. Even more rural is the general area of Northern Ireland, though Londonderry also represents a cultural and central hub within the Six Counties in addition to Belfast in County Antrim and County Down.

The Crown Dependencies

The Isle of Man, Jersey, and Guernsey each contain zero (0) communities at nearly the same scale of urbanization as the communities on Great Britain and Northern Ireland. However, of the communities within the region, the capital cities are Douglas, Isle of Man; St. Helier, Jersey; and St. Peter Port, Guernsey.

British Overseas

Even smaller territories are identified within the British Overseas Territories, including the Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, and Montserrat—all within the general area of the Atlantic Ocean. While Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha are also located within the Atlantic, each of these territories is located in the South Atlantic, and the British also maintain Gibraltar in Europe; Akrotiri and Dhekelia on Cyprus; the British Indian Ocean Territory in the namesake Indian Ocean; the Falkland Islands of the Southern Ocean; and Pitcairn.

Today, of the communities with identifiable capital cities, most notably in the Caribbean and North Atlantic, the communities do not actually contain sizable cities, with George Town in the Cayman Islands representing the most populated community in the British Overseas. The other capitals include, but are not limited to, Cockburn Town, Turks and Caicos; Road Town, British Virgin Islands; The Valley, Anguilla; Hamilton, Bermuda; and Plymouth, Montserrat, though the last capital city has recently recorded a population of zero (0) following the impacts of a volcanic eruption in the area.

Hype for the Future 72C: Notable Historic Sites for American Migrations

Introduction

The United States of America, particularly in the middle and late colonial eras and regarding the Mid-Atlantic colonies above all others, can be represented using the numerous cultural sites located throughout related regions historically associated with the British, including west of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada; and in the outskirts of Omagh, Northern Ireland.

Particular Sites of Interest

To best understand the interesting journeys of the Scots-Irish and related communities to the American colonies, the Frontier Culture Museum of Staunton, Virginia; and the Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh, Northern Ireland, can provide significant insights. Kings Landing, New Brunswick, located to the west of the Canadian provincial capital of Fredericton, also provides particular historical insights, specifically in the cases regarding the United Empire Loyalists and otherwise associated settlers from Great Britain, Ireland, and related regions.

Hype for the Future 60F: Capitals of the Caribbean

Overview

This post is dedicated to the capital cities and capital towns of the different islands located within the Caribbean, including, but not limited to, the Greater and Lesser Antilles chains. Also to be included are the islands of Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire, though not San Andrés nor surrounding outlying islands of Colombia significantly closer to the Nicaraguan coast than the Colombian.

Sovereign States

• Bahamas 🇧🇸: Nassau
• Cuba 🇨🇺: Havana
• Jamaica 🇯🇲: Kingston
• Haiti 🇭🇹: Port-au-Prince
• Dominican Republic 🇩🇴: Santo Domingo
• Antigua and Barbuda 🇦🇬: Saint John’s
• Saint Kitts and Nevis 🇰🇳: Basseterre
• Dominica 🇩🇲: Roseau
• Saint Lucia 🇱🇨: Castries
• Barbados 🇧🇧: Bridgetown
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 🇻🇨: Kingstown
• Grenada 🇬🇩: Saint George’s
• Trinidad and Tobago 🇹🇹: Port of Spain

British

• Cayman Islands 🇰🇾: George Town
• Turks and Caicos Islands 🇹🇨: Cockburn Town
• British Virgin Islands 🇻🇬: Road Town
• Anguilla 🇦🇮: The Valley
• Montserrat 🇲🇸: Plymouth

French

• Saint-Martin: Marigot
• Saint-Barthélemy 🇧🇱: Gustavia
• Guadeloupe 🇬🇵: Basse-Terre
• Martinique 🇲🇶: Fort-de-France

Dutch

• Aruba 🇦🇼: Oranjestad
• Curaçao 🇨🇼: Willemstad
• Bonaire 🇧🇶: Kralendijk
• Sint Eustatius: Oranjestad
• Saba: The Bottom
• Sint Maarten 🇸🇽: Philipsburg

American (claimed by the United States)

• United States Virgin Islands 🇻🇮: Charlotte Amalie
• Puerto Rico 🇵🇷: San Juan

Hype for the Future 50X: From Wales to America…

Introduction

Numerous Welsh settlers, including Welsh Quakers in particular, have been significant in the colonial history of Pennsylvania, and especially within the inner Philadelphia area, for the religious tolerance associated with the Mid-Atlantic as well as economic similarities. While Welsh settlers were also occasionally associated with Maryland and even New Jersey, the Welsh influence in Pennsylvania is quite widespread within just the minimal area of Philadelphia and the surrounding area, including Bala Cynwyd, Bryn Mawr, Upper and Lower Merion (from Merioneth), and numerous other places.

Welsh Elsewhere

Additional Welsh settlers were associated with the Merrick family of New England and just a few other New England families connected to Wales, as well as a similarly smaller number of families bound for the Southern Colonies. However, British colonial migration has not been the only source of Welsh immigration to the United States. In more recent generations, the Welsh cultural heritage has become more integrated with Cornish and Devonian English traditions, and the entire region had become a society in decline, thus resulting in a significant amount of emigration with an end result of additional settlers and settlement in the United States, often again east of the Mississippi River in places including Illinois and Pennsylvania.

Hype for the Future 50P: Scottish and Irish Differences

Though Scotland and Ireland are often confused with one another, especially historically, for strong Celtic connections, the separation of Scotland and Ireland had seemed to become less pronounced when Scottish settlers had become colonizers to Ulster en masse. Beyond Scottish settlers to Ulster, however, notable differences between Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 and Ireland 🇮🇪 are largely determined by the differences between Great Britain and Ireland in general. Even though Northern Ireland remains with the United Kingdom following the partition of 1922, much of the independent Republic of Ireland has since developed a clearly distinct identity, even relative to the Gaelic heritage associated with Scotland for which the island shares a maritime border.

Hype for the Future 50L: The Government of Northern Ireland

The Partition of Ireland had been established circa 1921 and effective 1922, in which six (6) of the traditional counties—Armagh, Antrim, Down, Tyrone, Londonderry, and Fermanagh—have remained with the United Kingdom though the remainder of the island had effectively returned to pre-1820 sovereign status, has created a tremendous impact and ripple effect within the situation in Northern Ireland in particular. While most of Ireland is associated with Dublin, Northern Ireland is associated with Belfast and maintains a distinct identity previously identified along with Donegal, Cavan, and Monaghan as the Province of Ulster.

As of 1973, the constituent country of Northern Ireland is no longer a country of counties but rather of district areas. In 2015, the district areas had been redistributed again, thus the modern political map of Northern Ireland.

Hype for the Future 50K: Ulster and Northern Ireland Compared

Technically, Ulster could include nine associated Irish counties, though only six of the counties are in Northern Ireland. Donegal is perhaps the most important distinction between Ulster and Northern Ireland, as County Donegal is located at not just the northernmost part of the Republic of Ireland, but also at the northernmost point of the entire island of Ireland.

While most of the Ulster Scots were, in fact, settling Northern Ireland, counties associated with the Republic of Ireland 🇮🇪 nearby were also represented, including the aforementioned Donegal. However, a disproportionate amount of the Scots-Irish to British Colonial America were associated with Counties Armagh and Antrim.

Traditionally, Ulster was the name of one of the four traditional Provinces of Ireland, being the second-largest by area after Munster and the second-largest by population after Leinster. The other traditional Province of Ireland was the Province of Connacht (formerly Connaught), located on the western side of the island. Munster was located in the southwest, and Leinster served much of the east and southeast of the island.

Today, the constituent country of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom contains the Counties Armagh, Antrim, Down, Londonderry (Derry), Tyrone, and Fermanagh, while the counties in the Republic of Ireland that have also traditionally been identified as Ulster are the Counties Donegal, Cavan, and Monaghan.

Hype for the Future 50J: Additional British Overseas Insights

novaTopFlex has just finished identifying attractions in the British Overseas Territories. Unlike the hustle and bustle of a city like London, not a single territory in the British Overseas can claim such a fast pace of life. The significantly more modest pace of life in an area such as the Cayman Islands or the Turks and Caicos Islands is often further mitigated by the waterfront, of which the Overseas Territories provide plenty of shore as many are insular. Gibraltar, of course, is the exception rather than the rule, since the territory is firmly located within the Iberian Peninsula at the closest point to Africa, which is actually fairly close to Spanish Ceuta.

Hype for the Future 50G: Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

Saint Helena 🇸🇭 is the chief island of the three associated island territories of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge of the South Atlantic Ocean, significantly south of the African mainland and removed from the South American mainland as well. The British territory is located in an extremely isolated area, even more isolated than the location of Bermuda (which is actually significantly closer to North Carolina and the United States overall than to the British Isles), also located within the Mid-Atlantic region proper. Even the islands of Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha themselves are significantly further apart than the relative locations of the Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Anguilla, and Montserrat are to one another.

Hype for the Future 50F: The Virgin Islands of the United States

The United States Virgin Islands 🇻🇮, formerly Danish, apparently violate international law by driving on the left side of the road, in spite of being claimed by the right-driving United States. International legal conventions often expect all sovereign states to have the same driving direction throughout their respective territories, yet numerous additional examples may also be identified, such as Canada remaining a Commonwealth realm yet being a right-driving sovereign state. The Commonwealth realms are, however, quite different, and are typically regarded as sovereign entities, so Canada is not necessarily entitled to be left-driving according to international law even in spite of the British Head of State serving Canada (Australia and New Zealand, however, each drive on the left as with the British).

Prior to being claimed by the United States, much of the southern Virgin Islands had been claimed by Denmark 🇩🇰, and Danish place names remain intact, particularly on the largest (and southernmost) of the major islands, Saint Croix. Following the American acquisition of the Danish Virgin Islands (at the time known as the Danish West Indies), the Virgin Islands of the United States would claim more territory by area than the British Virgin Islands, and the American side now contains a significantly larger population than the British side as well.

Hype for the Future 50E: More on the British Virgin Islands

The Virgin Islands as a whole are named as such as a direct result of the 1492 expedition by Christopher Columbus resulting in the comparison to a notable virgin across the entire island chain. Today, the United States claims around fifty of the islands while the British claim around sixty. The Virgin Islands of the United States 🇻🇮 are centered around the particular islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, and Saint Croix, while the Virgin Islands 🇻🇬 are centered around the particular islands of Tortola, Virgin Gorda, and Jost Van Dyke. The territorial capital associated with the United States is Charlotte Amalie, located on Saint Thomas, while the territorial capital associated with the British is a place known as Road Town, located on the island of Tortola.

Hype for the Future 50D: Anguilla

Anguilla 🇦🇮 is a British Overseas Territory at effectively the northern end of the Leeward Islands and the Lesser Antilles. The island territory is located to the north of the island of St. Martin, which is split between the French territory of Saint-Martin in the north and the Dutch territory of Sint Maarten 🇸🇽 in the south. Dutch Sint Eustatius is also located fairly nearby, though closer to Saint Kitts and Nevis and using Oranjestad as the capital town.

While Anguilla contains fourteen (14) regional districts, The Valley is the capital district of the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla. Blowing Point is home to the ferry service to the French side of the island of Saint Martin immediately to the south.

Hype for the Future 50B: Turks and Caicos Islands

The Turks and Caicos Islands 🇹🇨 refer to an overseas territory of the British located at the southeastern end of the Lucayan, or Bahamian, archipelago. The largest of the communities associated with the Turks and Caicos Islands is the island region of Providenciales in the west, though the capital, Cockburn Town, is located on the eastern side of the area on the Island of Grand Turk. While the Cayman Islands are located south of Cuba and west of Jamaica, the Turks and Caicos Islands are located southeast of the Bahamas, northeast of Cuba, and northwest of Haiti and the Dominican Republic on Hispaniola.

Hype for the Future 50A: Grand Cayman

Introduction

The Cayman Islands 🇰🇾 are one of the British Overseas Territories and the particular territory with the largest count by population. George Town is the particular town that serves as the capital of the Cayman Islands and is located on the western end of the Island of Grand Cayman.

Hype for the Future 50/284: British Possessions in the Greater Antilles

Within specifically the Greater Antilles, the Cayman Islands 🇰🇾 and the Turks and Caicos Islands 🇹🇨 are British Overseas Territories and possessions at a fair proximity to Cuba, albeit on opposite sides of the major island nation. The Cayman Islands represent the largest British Overseas Territory by population and are located to the south of Cuba and to the west of Jamaica. The Turks and Caicos Islands, however, are located just to the southeast of the Bahamas for which they share a maritime border. The capital towns for either territory are located on the relatively more significant islands, with George Town on the western end of Grand Cayman, the largest of the Cayman Islands. Cockburn Town, associated with Grand Turk Island, is the capital town of the Turks and Caicos Islands and is located relatively east within the territory.

Hype for the Future 48D: Flags for the Emoji System

As many as nine separate emoji flags are disconnected from national identity, though the crossed flags 🎌 are firmly Japanese. The additional flags are the white flag 🏳️, the black flag 🏴, the pirate 🏴‍☠️, the checkered flag 🏁, the red flag 🚩, the rainbow flag 🏳️‍🌈, the transgender flag 🏳️‍⚧️, and the Flag of the United Nations 🇺🇳.

The Union Jack of Great Britain is represented in very many flags around the world—even the Hawaiian flag, which represents a territory that has never been under imperialist British rule. The following emojis contain the Union Jack:

🇬🇧🇦🇮🇦🇺🇻🇬🇰🇾🇮🇴🇨🇰🇫🇰🇫🇯🇲🇸🇳🇿🇳🇺🇵🇳🇸🇭🇹🇨🇹🇻

The French variant is also represented on the upper-left corner of the flags of a few French Overseas Territories in addition to France:

🇫🇷🇹🇫🇼🇫

Hype for the Future 47F: Welsh Features

Welsh names are often associated with the Celtic roots of Wales, with pronunciations largely attached to the Welsh orthographic system, which often results in names apparently lacking vowels or having a lack of vowels, as in Bryn Mawr, Gwynedd, Bala Cynwyd, Merion (from Merioneth), Carmarthen, Caernarfon, Gwent (formerly known by the English name of Monmouth), and Glamorgan. While Cardiff is the English 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 spelling of the capital city of Wales, the Welsh 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 spelling is “Caerdydd.”

Hype for the Future 47D: Common English Names

Common English names, including toponyms, surnames, and county names, among other types of place names, include Norfolk, Suffolk, Middlesex, Exeter, Devon, Cornwall, Truro, Plymouth, Cambridge, Chester, Lancaster, Northumberland, Bicester, Chichester, Lancaster, Doncaster, Cirencester, Blackburn, Ribchester, Manchester, Boston, London, Reading, Oxford, Birmingham, Bideford (known as Biddeford in Maine), Portsmouth, Exmouth, and Newcastle.

Hype for the Future 47C: Head of State in the Commonwealth of Nations

Even though the Commonwealth of Nations is comprised of around 56 independent member states, only 15 of the sovereign states have the Head of the Commonwealth as the Head of State. The nations in question are known as Commonwealth realms and include Antigua and Barbuda 🇦🇬, Australia 🇦🇺, the Bahamas 🇧🇸, Belize 🇧🇿, Canada 🇨🇦, Grenada 🇬🇩, Jamaica 🇯🇲, New Zealand 🇳🇿, Papua New Guinea 🇵🇬, Saint Kitts and Nevis 🇰🇳, Saint Lucia 🇱🇨, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 🇻🇨, the Solomon Islands 🇸🇧, Tuvalu 🇹🇻, and, of course, the United Kingdom 🇬🇧.

Even within the sovereignty of the United Kingdom, fourteen overseas territories continue to be claimed, including Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Anguilla 🇦🇮, Bermuda 🇧🇲, the British Antarctic Territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory 🇮🇴, the British Virgin Islands 🇻🇬, the Cayman Islands 🇰🇾, the Falkland Islands 🇫🇰, Gibraltar 🇬🇮, Montserrat 🇲🇸, the Pitcairn Islands 🇵🇳, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands 🇬🇸, the Turks and Caicos Islands 🇹🇨, and the combined overseas territory of Saint Helena 🇸🇭, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha.