British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada’s provinces. It is bounded to the
north by Yukon and the Northwest Territories, to the east by the province of
Alberta, boundary formed by the 120th meridian and
the crest of the Rocky Mountains, to the south by the U.S. states of Montana,
Idaho, and Washington, and to the west by the Pacific Ocean and the
U.S. state
of Alaska.
British Columbia is home to First Nations groups that have a deep history with a significant number of indigenous languages. There are more than 200 First Nations in BC. These lands were added to the British Empire during the 19th century. They entered in 1871 as part of the Dominion of Canada.
The capital is Victoria and the largest city is Vancouver, the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada, including its suburbs. Fort Victoria, established in 1843, was one of the first British settlements in the area, which gave rise to the city of Victoria, capital of the Colony of Vancouver Island.
British Columbia contains seven of Canada's national parks and National Park Reserves: Glacier National Park, Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, Kootenay National Park, Mount Revelstoke National Park, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve and Yoho National Park. The province also contains a large number of provincial parks, run by BC Parks.
