How to Memorize the Canadian Territories and Provinces

Last Updated: December 22, 2022

Studying for a test about Canadian territories and provinces? (Geography) There are ten Provinces and three territories. Provinces have more autonomy than territories. This article will help you remember their names and locations.

Sample Mnemonics

Canadian Provinces and Territories Cheat Sheet

Method 1

Method 1 of 1:

Memorizing the Canadian Territories and Provinces

1
Familiarize yourself with the Canadian Provinces and Territories. You can do this with most variations of a Canadian map. Make sure you can spell their names correctly.^{[1]
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2
Memorize the 'bottom row' of provinces. Their names are British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Newfoundland. You may find the acronym BASMOQN ('bas-mok-win') useful. Try creating a mnemonic such as 'Bill and Sally Made One Quart of Nothing', 'Bart A. Simpson Marred Our Quiet Night', or 'Buy Albert's Scary Men on Quilts Now.' Be as creative as you can!^{[2]
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3
Memorize the 'top three' territories. They are Yukon Territory, Northwest Territory, and Nunavut. The acronyms are YNN ("yin"), "Why an N?" (sounds like "Y-N-N"), and You're Not Naked.^{[3]
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4
Memorize the last three provinces in the south eastern corner. They are Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Just visualize them as a triangle; Prince Edward Island on top, Nova Scotia in the right corner and New Brunswick in the left corner. Some acronyms are PEI-NB-NS ("pay-noo-bens") and Please Excuse It, Nobody Brought NeverSoft. (PEI,NBNS).^{[4]
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Reinforce your knowledge. Use online resources to test and reinforce your knowledge such as the geography quizzes at http://www.lizardpoint.com/

Community Q&A

Question

How do I memorize the spelling?

Community Answer

Write the names of each territory and province as many times as you can. This will help to cement the spelling of each one in your brain.
Question

Is there a trick to memorizing the spelling of Saskatchewan?

Community Answer

You can remember "sassy cat chewed an" which will help you remember SAS (sassy) KAT (cat) CHEW (chewed) AN (an).
Question

Is there a trick to remember all the provinces and their capitals in the south eastern corner?

Community Answer

Use the mnemonic device to help you: Prince Edward lived in an Island and married Charlotte from the town. He bought a New Broomstick from Frederic (cost a ton!). His sister Halley faxed him congrats from Nova of Scotland. (PEI, Charlottetown; New Brunswick Fredericton; Nova Scotia, Halifax).

Warnings

Make sure you also know how to spell the territories and provinces, as some teachers may dislike misspellings.

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Don't cheat or procrastinate. You will be better off if you prepare gradually over a length of time.

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