THE great


SASKATCHEWAN


mile

Saskatchewan is a province in Western Canada. It is bordered to the west by Alberta  to the north by the Northwest Territories, to the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the United States Montana and North Dakota). Saskatchewan and neighbouring Alberta are the only landlocked provinces in Canada. In 2026, Saskatchewan’s population was estimated at 1,266,092. Nearly 10% of Saskatchewan’s total area of 651,900 square kilometres (251,700 sq mi) is fresh water, mostly rivers, reservoirs, and lakes.

Saskatchewanians live primarily in the southern prairie half of the province, while the northern half is mostly forested and sparsely populated. Roughly half live in Saskatchewan’s two largest cities; Regina (the province’s capital city) and Saskatoon (the province’s largest city). Other notable cities in Saskatchewan include Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Yorkton, Swift Current, North Battleford, Estevan, Weyburn, Melfort, and the border city of Lloydminster. English is the primary language of the province, with 82.4% of Saskatchewanians speaking English as their first language.  

Saskatchewan has been inhabited for thousands of years by Indigenous peoples. Europeans first explored any part of the province in 1690 and first settled in the area in 1774. It became a province on September 1, 1905, carved out from the vast  Norwest Territories,  which had until then included most of the Canadian Prairies. In the early 20th century, the province became known as a stronghold for Canadian social democracy, with the 1944 provincial election electing North America’s first socialist government  to office.

Saskatchewan’s economy is based on agriculture, mining, and energy. In 1992, the federal and provincial governments signed a historic land claim agreement with First Nations in Saskatchewan,  granting these nations compensation which they could use to buy land on the open market for the bands. Presently, Saskatchewan is governed by the Saskatchewan Party, led by Premier Scot Moe,  which has been in power since 2007.