Halifax City Map Poster

About Halifax

Halifax was ranked by MoneySense magazine as the fourth best place to live in Canada for 2012, placed first on a list of "large cities by quality of life" and placed second in a list of "large cities of the future", both conducted by fDi Magazine for North and South American cities. Halifax has been nicknamed the "City of Halifax" since 1749, originally adopted from the name Herring Harbour (itself deriving from an earlier English name, French: Hèringuerre). The official naming at that time recognised Sir William Halifax (1633–1715), who was later elevated to Lord Mayor Of London and received a baronetcy. It is locally believed that naming it after Halifax links with his family's history there; however this is not true as he never visited Nova Scotia himself.