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Order of Nova Scotia

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Order of Nova Scotia
Chancellor's Chain of the Order of Nova Scotia
Awarded by the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia
TypeOrder of merit (provincial)
Founded1 June 2001
StatusCurrently constituted
FounderMyra Freeman
ChancellorMichael Savage
GradesMember
Post-nominalsONS
Precedence
Next (higher)Order of New Brunswick
Next (lower)Order of Newfoundland and Labrador

Ribbon bar of the order

The Order of Nova Scotia[a] is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The order was implemented through the Order of Nova Scotia Act on June 1, 2001, with the first appointments beginning in 2002. The order is administered by the Governor-in-Council, and is intended to honour current or former Nova Scotia residents who have demonstrated a high level of individual excellence and achievement. The order is described as the highest honour amongst all those conferred by the Nova Scotia Crown.

History

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The Order of Nova Scotia was implemented through the Order of Nova Scotia Act, which was granted royal assent on June 1, 2001.[1][2] The province first put out a call for nominations on November 21, 2001, but only two nominations had been received by early January 2002. In spite of the initial lacklustre response, the province remained optimistic and expected to receive more nominations before the deadline of March 21, 2002.[3] A total of 13 appointments were made to the order in 2002, including the three surviving prior lieutenant governors: Abraham, Crouse, and Kinley.[4] Lieutenant governor Myra Freeman was also appointed to the order ex officio.[5] The first recipients were ultimately chosen from a pool of 200 nominations.[6]

Structure and appointment

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The Order of Nova Scotia is intended to honour any current or former long-term resident of Nova Scotia who has demonstrated a high level of individual excellence and achievement, having "distinguished themselves by an outstanding contribution to the cultural life or to the social or economic well-being of the Province". The order is thus described as the highest honour amongst all those conferred by the Nova Scotia Crown.[7] There are no limits on how many people can belong to the order, though inductions are limited to five per year; Canadian citizenship is a requirement, and those who are elected or appointed members of a governmental body are ineligible as long as they hold office.[8]

The process of finding qualified individuals begins with submissions from the public to the Order of Nova Scotia Advisory Council, which consists of a person who serves as the chair, appointed by the premier; the Chief Justice of the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal; the clerk of the executive council and an individual appointed by the clerk; the president of a university in the province; and one person appointed by each of the leaders of the political parties in the House of Assembly, all of whom must reside in Nova Scotia.[7] This committee then meets at least once annually to make its selected recommendations to the executive council and works with that body in narrowing down the potential appointees to a list that will be submitted to the lieutenant governor; posthumous nominations are accepted up to one year following the nominee's death.[7] The lieutenant governor, ex officio a member and the Chancellor of the Order of Nova Scotia, then makes all appointments into the fellowship's single grade of membership by an Order in Council that bears the viceroyal sign-manual and the great seal of the province; thereafter, the new members are entitled to use the post-nominal letters ONS.[7]

Insignia

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Insignia of the Order of Nova Scotia

Upon admission into the Order of Nova Scotia, the lieutenant governor presents the order's insignia to the recipient in a formal ceremony, in the name of the Crown.[8] The insignia, designed by Christopher Cairns, consists of a 61mm badge in the shape of a mayflower, the official provincial flower. The obverse of the badge is enamelled in white, and bears the escutcheon of the arms of Nova Scotia, all surmounted by a Royal Crown. The reverse of the badge features a three digit number. The 32mm ribbon is patterned with vertical stripes in red, blue, gold, and white; the badge is attached to the ribbon via a 21mm gold loop. Members of the order also receive a lapel pin featuring a miniature version of the insignia.[9]

List of recipients

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Main category: Members of the Order of Nova Scotia

This is a partial list of notable members of the Order of Nova Scotia:[5]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ French: Ordre de la Nouvelle-Écosse

References

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  1. ^ Order of Nova Scotia Act (2001).
  2. ^ The Gazette (2001).
  3. ^ Waterloo Region Record (January 2002).
  4. ^ Times-Transcript (2002).
  5. ^ a b Government of Nova Scotia: Order of Nova Scotia Award Recipients.
  6. ^ Waterloo Region Record (September 2002).
  7. ^ a b c d Order of Nova Scotia Act (2007).
  8. ^ a b Government of Nova Scotia: Order of Nova Scotia.
  9. ^ McCreery (2015).
  10. ^ a b National Post (2002).
  11. ^ CBC News (October 2008).
  12. ^ CBC News (April 2008).
  13. ^ The Chronicle Herald (2008).
  14. ^ Global News (2016).
  15. ^ Toronto Star (2018).
  16. ^ CBC News (2019).
  17. ^ CTV News (2020).
  18. ^ a b CTV News (2023).
  19. ^ Global News (2023).
  20. ^ CBC News (2024).

Sources

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  • Elizabeth II (5 June 2001). "Order of Nova Scotia Act" (PDF). Government of Nova Scotia. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2025. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
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