Geographical Names Board of Canada
The Geographical Names Board of Canada (GNBC) is Canada’s national coordinating body responsible for standards and policies on place names. The GNBC comprises federal, provincial and territorial departments and agencies, each with specific authority and responsibility for their respective jurisdictions. Working together as a multi-jurisdictional national body, GNBC members coordinate efforts to ensure that geographical names are consistently managed.
Board membership
The GNBC is comprised of members from each province and territory and various federal departments concerned with mapping, Indigenous lands, undersea features, national parks, archives, defence, translation, and statistics. The Chairperson and Indigenous Advisors are appointed by the Minister of Natural Resources.
| GNBC Chairperson | ||
| Connie Wyatt Anderson Chairperson |
c/o: GNBC Secretariat 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Appointed Advisors | ||
| Rob Houle Indigenous Advisor |
c/o: GNBC Secretariat 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Naikak Hakongak Indigenous Advisor |
c/o: GNBC Secretariat 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Catherine C. Cole Indigenous Advisor |
c/o: GNBC Secretariat 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Provincial/Territorial Members | ||
| Alberta | ||
| Matthew Wangler Executive Director |
Alberta Geographical Names Program Historic Resources Management Branch Arts, Culture and Status of Women 8820-112th Street Edmonton AB T6G 2P8 |
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| British Columbia | ||
| Trent Thomas Provincial Toponymist |
BC Geographical Names Office Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport PO Box 9818 Stn Prov Govt Victoria BC V8W 9W3 E-mail: geographical.names@gov.bc.ca |
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| Manitoba | ||
| Robert Belton Provincial Toponymist/Heritage Resource Planner |
Manitoba Geographical Names Program Integrated Management and Planning Lands and Planning Branch Manitoba Natural Resources and Northern Development Box 25, 14 Fultz Boulevard Winnipeg MB R3Y 0L6 E-mail: Robert.Belton@gov.mb.ca |
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| New Brunswick | ||
| Anne Hamilton Acting Director |
Archaeology and Heritage Branch
Tourism, Heritage and Culture P. O. Box 6000 Fredericton NB E3B 5H1 E-mail: anne.hamilton@gnb.ca |
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| Newfoundland and Labrador | ||
| Todd Strickland Director, GIS and Mapping |
Geographical Names Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture 192 Wheelers Road P.O. Box 2006 Corner Brook NL A2H 6J8 |
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| Northwest Territories | ||
| Glen MacKay Territorial Archaeologist |
Geographic Names Program Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre NWT Cultural Places Program Education, Culture and Employment Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9 |
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| Nova Scotia | ||
| Colin W. MacDonald Director, Geographic Information Services |
GeoNOVA Geographic Information Services Information, Communications & Technology Services Branch Department of Internal Services 160 Willow Street Amherst NS B4H 3W5 |
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| Nunavut | ||
| Caroline Whittle Director of Heritage |
Department of Culture and Heritage P.O. Box 1000, Stn. 800 Iqaluit NU X0A 0H0 |
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| Ontario | ||
| W.Bruce Clark Surveyor General |
Mapping and Information Resources Branch Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry 300 Water Street, 2nd Floor, North Peterborough ON K9J 3C7 E-mail: geographicnames@ontario.ca |
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| Prince Edward Island | ||
| Ryan Pineau Provincial Tax Commissioner |
Taxation and Property Records Division Department of Finance 95 Rochford Street P.O. Box 2000 Charlottetown PE C1A 7N8 Email: rppineau@gov.pe.ca |
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| Quebec | ||
| Dominique Malack Présidente |
Commission de toponymie du Québec 750 boulevard Charest Est Québec QC G1K 9M1 E-mail: topo@toponymie.gouv.qc.ca |
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| Saskatchewan | ||
| Bruce Dawson Manager |
Saskatchewan Geographic Names Program Historic Programs and Policy Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport 3211 Albert Street Regina SK S4S 5W6 |
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| Yukon | ||
| Brian Groves Senior Manager, Heritage |
Heritage Resources Unit Cultural Services Branch Department of Tourism and Culture P.O. Box 2703 (L-1) Whitehorse YT Y1A 2C6 |
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| Federal Members | ||
| Indigenous Services Canada | ||
| Ronald Heale | Registrar – Indian Land Registry System Lands and Environmental Management Branch Indigenous Services Canada 10 Wellington St. Gatineau QC K1A 0H4 |
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| Canada Post Corporation | ||
| Daniel Beaulne General Manager |
Address Management Canada Post Corporation 2701 Riverside Drive Ottawa ON K1A 0B1 |
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| Fisheries and Oceans Canada | ||
| Manon Larocque Director General |
Canadian Hydrographic Service Fisheries and Oceans Canada 200 Kent Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E6 |
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| Library and Archives Canada | ||
Martha Sellens |
Government Record Branch |
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| Elections Canada | ||
| Kristina Kwiatkowski Director, Geography and Address Management |
Electoral Data Services and Development Elections Canada 30 Victoria Street Gatineau QC K1A 0M6 |
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| Department of National Defence | ||
| LCol Eric Godin | GEOINT Partnerships, Directorate General of Intelligence Policy and Partnerships Canadian Armed Forces Department of National Defence |
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| Natural Resources Canada - Strategic Policy and Innovation Sector | ||
| Frank Des Rosiers Assistant Deputy Minister |
Strategic Policy and Innovation Natural Resources Canada 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1E 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Natural Resources Canada - Geological Survey of Canada | ||
| Annie Laviolette Manager, Open Geosciences |
Geological Survey of Canada Natural Resources Canada 601 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E8 |
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| Natural Resources Canada - Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation | ||
| Éric Loubier Director General |
Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation Natural Resources Canada 580 Booth Street Ottawa ON K1A 0E4 E-mail: geonames-toponymes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca |
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| Parks Canada | ||
| Dominique Foisy-Geoffroy Director |
History and Commemoration Branch Indigenous Affairs and Cultural Heritage Directorate Parks Canada 30 Victoria Street Gatineau QC J8X 0B3 |
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| Statistics Canada | ||
| Peter Murphy Chief |
Geography Division Statistics Canada Jean Talon Building 150 Tunney’s Pasture Driveway Ottawa ON K1A 0T6 |
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| Translation Bureau | ||
| Johanne Rabeau Deputy Director |
Translation Bureau Public Services and Procurement Canada 70, rue Crémazie Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0S5 |
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Priorities of the GNBC
The work of the GNBC is guided by a five year Strategic Plan. There are four overarching strategic priorities for the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan:
- Review Role, Mandate and Governance
- Enhance Internal Communication and Collaboration
- Improve Database Content and Management
- Enhance External Profile and Collaboration
Strategic Priorities are implemented though several Working Groups comprised of GNBC members.
A Brief History of the GNBC
The need for a Canadian names authority was recognized in the late 1800s, when resource mapping beyond the frontiers of settlement and extensive immigration made it an urgent matter to manage the country's geographical names - to standardize their spelling and their application to particular features. The Geographic Board of Canada was established in 1897, and became the Geographical Names Board of Canada (GNBC) in 2000.
Soon after 1897 the provinces and territories were invited to provide advice on the use, spelling and application of names, although until 1961 decisions were ultimately made in Ottawa. At that time, the responsibility for naming was transferred to the provinces. Since 1979, the authority for naming in Indian reserves, national parks, and military reserves has been jointly held by the appropriate federal department and the province concerned. In 1984, Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories assumed responsibility for the names in their own jurisdictions.
Among today's roles of the GNBC as a national coordinating body are the development of standard policies for the treatment of names and terminology, the promotion of the use of official names, and the encouragement of the development of international standards in cooperation with the United Nations and other national authorities responsible for naming policies and practices.
The Geographical Names Board of Canada celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2022! Learn more!
GNBC Secretariat
The GNBC's Secretariat is provided by Natural Resources Canada. In collaboration with the representatives of the various federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions, it handles all routine toponymic matters relating to Canada, on behalf of the GNBC.
The Secretariat also coordinates the information to be included in the national geographical names database and has an important role in encouraging the official use of names and the development of standard policies. It provides a focus for contact with other national names authorities and promotes international cooperation with the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names and other organizations concerned with the global standardization of names.
Contact the GNBC Secretariat at Natural Resources Canada:
Geographical Names Board of Canada Secretariat
Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation
Natural Resources Canada
580 Booth Street, 5th Floor
Ottawa ON K1A 0E4
E-mail: nrcan.geonames-toponymes.rncan@canada.ca
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