Oka, Quebec

Oka
Oka's church
Oka's church
Location within Deux-Montagnes RCM
Location within Deux-Montagnes RCM
Oka is located in Central Quebec
Oka
Oka
Location in central Quebec
Coordinates: 45°28′N 74°05′W / 45.47°N 74.08°W / 45.47; -74.08[1]
Country Canada
Province Quebec
RegionLaurentides
RCMDeux-Montagnes
Settled1721
ConstitutedSeptember 8, 1999
Government
 • MayorPascal Quevillon
 • Federal ridingMirabel
 • Prov. ridingMirabel
Area
 • Total85.90 km2 (33.17 sq mi)
 • Land56.99 km2 (22.00 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[3]
 • Total3,968
 • Density69.6/km2 (180/sq mi)
 • Pop 2016-2021
Increase 3.8%
 • Dwellings
1,683
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)
Area code(s)450 and 579
Highways R-344
Websitewww.municipalite.oka.qc.ca Edit this at Wikidata

Oka is a small village on the northern bank of the Ottawa River (Rivière des Outaouais in French), northwest of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Located in the Laurentians valley on Lake of Two Mountains, where the Ottawa has its confluence with the St. Lawrence River, the town is connected via Quebec Route 344. It is located 50 km (30 miles) west of Montreal.

The area was first established in 1721 by Roman Catholic Sulpician Fathers as a mission to serve the needs of Mohawk, Algonquin and Nipissing converts as well as of French settlers. In 1730, the mission site was moved about 1.5 km west along the shore to Pointe d'Oka (Oka's Point) close to where the first stone church was built in 1733,[4] and around which church evolved the village that eventually became known as Oka. The Mohawks had been assigned to a west-side village that eventually became known as Kanesatake whereas the Algonquins and Nipissings had been assigned to an adjacent east-side village. Kanesatake's status is as interim land base within the meaning of the Constitution Act, 1867, and not as indian reserve within the meaning of the Indian Act.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference toponymie was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Ministère des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire - Répertoire des municipalités: Oka Archived December 12, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b "Oka census profile". 2021 Census data. Statistics Canada. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  4. ^ Thompson, John (January 1991). A Brief History of the Land Dispute at Kanesake [Oka] from Contact to 1961 (PDF). Library Indian and Northern Affairs. Note on p. 11: "That year they built a stone church on the point".