Labrador Peninsula

The Labrador Peninsula is a vast geographical region in eastern Canada, forming one of the largest peninsulas in North America. Bounded by Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, and the Strait of Belle Isle along with the Gulf of St Lawrence to the southeast, it occupies a strategic and ecologically significant position in the northern part of the continent. The peninsula encompasses the region of Labrador, part of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as the regions of Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Côte-Nord and Nord-du-Québec in the province of Quebec. As a predominantly rugged and sparsely populated landmass, it is characterised by a mixture of coastal landscapes, high plateaus and river basins influenced heavily by glaciation.

Physical Geography

The Labrador Peninsula is almost entirely surrounded by maritime waters, with the exception of its south-western section where it merges into the continental mainland. Its north-western area forms the Ungava Peninsula, a smaller projection encircled by Hudson Bay, the Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay. The northernmost point of this section, Cape Wolstenholme, is also the northernmost point of both the Labrador Peninsula and the province of Quebec.
The interior of the peninsula is dominated by a plateau landscape carved by deep river valleys. Several mountain ranges run through the region, the most significant being the Torngat Mountains in the far north. This range contains Mount Caubvick, the highest peak on the peninsula and the highest point of mainland Canada east of Alberta. The Torngat Mountains are also notable for hosting Torngat Mountains National Park, situated in Newfoundland and Labrador, while across the provincial boundary lies Kuururjuaq National Park in Quebec.

Hydrology

The Labrador Peninsula lies largely on the Canadian Shield, a geological formation renowned for its ancient rock, shallow soils and extensive glacial history. As a result, the area contains a remarkable density of lakes, with Quebec alone hosting more than half a million. Hydroelectric development during the twentieth century led to the creation of some of the region’s largest artificial lakes, including the Smallwood Reservoir, the largest overall body of water on the peninsula. The largest natural lake is Lake Mistassini, an important freshwater feature of central Quebec.
Other significant reservoirs include:

• Manicouagan Reservoir, often recognised for its distinctive circular form.
• Caniapiscau Reservoir, created as part of major hydroelectric schemes in northern Quebec.
• La Grande-2 and La Grande-3 Reservoirs, developed as components of the James Bay Project.

The peninsula also contains numerous major rivers. The longest, the La Grande River, flows westward for approximately half the width of the peninsula. Other major drainage systems include the Eastmain River, the Rupert River and the Churchill River, all of which play essential roles in regional hydroelectric production and ecological processes.

Indigenous Peoples and Early History

Prior to European arrival, the Labrador Peninsula was home to several Indigenous groups whose cultural traditions remain deeply connected to the land. In the south-eastern regions, the Innu referred to their territory as Nitassinan, meaning “our land”. To the west and north lived the East Cree of Eeyou Istchee, and further north the Naskapi, who called their territory Staschinuw, also meaning “our land”. The coastal and northernmost zones were inhabited by Inuit communities belonging to Nunavik, Nunatsiavut and NunatuKavut, each with strong traditions of hunting, fishing and seasonal migration.
In Norse sagas, the area came to be known as Markland, and its inhabitants were referred to as Skræling, a term used by Greenlandic Norse explorers for Indigenous peoples encountered in North America. These early contacts form a rare documented instance of pre-modern transatlantic interaction.

European Exploration and Naming

The widely accepted origin of the name “Labrador” is linked to the Portuguese explorer João Fernandes Lavrador. In 1499 he received a royal patent from King Manuel I of Portugal authorising exploration of the North Atlantic in accordance with the Treaty of Tordesillas. Together with Pero de Barcelos, Lavrador sighted the coasts of south-western Greenland and parts of north-eastern North America around 1498. His reports circulated in Europe, contributing to early cartographic knowledge of the region.
Lavrador’s title, derived from the Portuguese term lavrador meaning “landholder” or “farmer”, became attached to the territories he encountered. Although he initially named Greenland Terra do Lavrador, the designation gradually extended across adjacent Atlantic lands and eventually settled specifically on what is now known as the Labrador Peninsula. In Spanish and Galician, labrador translates to “agricultural worker”, but in the context of exploration it reflected his status as a landowner-explorer.

Significance

The Labrador Peninsula holds considerable geographic, ecological and cultural significance for Canada. Its extensive hydrographic network underpins major hydroelectric developments, particularly in Quebec, while its vast natural landscapes provide habitats for caribou, polar bears and numerous migratory bird species. The region’s Indigenous communities maintain longstanding relationships with the land, shaping cultural identities and contributing to ongoing land claims and governance structures.