Namao () is a
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
in
central Alberta
Central Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta.
Central Alberta is the most densely populated rural area in the province. Agriculture and energy are important to the area's economy.
Geography
Central Alberta is bordered ...
, Canada within
Sturgeon County
Sturgeon County is a municipal district the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. It is north of Edmonton and west of the North Saskatchewan River. Sturgeon County is located in Division No. 11 and was named for the Sturgeon River ...
. It is located at the intersection of
Highway 37 and
Highway 28, approximately north of
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...
's city limits. It was the namesake of
RCAF
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
Station Namao, now
CFB Edmonton
CFB Edmonton (also called 3rd Canadian Division Support Base Edmonton) is a Canadian Forces base located in Sturgeon County adjacent to the City of Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. It is also known as Edmonton Garrison or "Steele Barracks".
His ...
, which is directly south of the hamlet.
History
On August 22, 1891, the Edmonton Bulletin reported that, "The Sturgeon river settlers had been requesting a post office since May 3, 1884. They had wanted to call it Wilson Valley at first, then Sturgeon and finally Naoma (Namao)." It opened on April 12, 1892.
According to Wilfred McLean, Dan
cKinley, who took up one of the first Sturgeon homesteads in the early 1880sinsisted on the name; "
ehad associated with the Indians for quite a few years and knew quite a few
Cree
The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations.
In Canada, over 350,000 people are Cree o ...
words.", The name is derived from the Cree word (), meaning "
sturgeon
Sturgeon is the common name for the 27 species of fish belonging to the family Acipenseridae. The earliest sturgeon fossils date to the Late Cretaceous, and are descended from other, earlier acipenseriform fish, which date back to the Early ...
".
On May 19, 1892, Postmaster J. Johnstone wrote that Nemao' is the correct spelling of the name of the post office in the Sturgeon river settlement."
Demographics
The population of Namao according to the
2010 municipal census conducted by Sturgeon County is 10.
[
]
Climate
See also
*List of communities in Alberta
The province of Alberta, Canada, is divided into ten types of local governments – urban municipalities (including cities, towns, villages and summer villages), specialized municipalities, rural municipalities (including municipal districts ...
*List of hamlets in Alberta
Hamlets in the province of Alberta, Canada, are unincorporated communities administered by, and within the boundaries of, specialized municipalities or rural municipalities ( municipal districts, improvement districts and special areas). The ...
References
Hamlets in Alberta
Sturgeon County
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