This past week saw the release of the book, Histoires d’immigrations au Québec, a compilation of stories about the major waves of immigration that transformed the fabric of Quebec, from the middle of the 19th century to today.
Written in French under the direction of Guy Berthiaume, Claude Corbo, and Sophie Montreuil, the book focuses on 14 cultural communities that have built Quebec and Montreal: Scottish, Irish, Italian, Jewish (Yiddish and Sephardic) Polish, Greek, Portuguese, Haitian, Latin-American, Southeast Asian, Lebanese, African (Sub-Saharan and Maghreb).
This 276-page book is based on a lecture series presented at the Grande bibliothèque in Montreal in 2012. The lectures were presented in French and are available to watch online on the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Quéebec website.
At first glance, it may appear that two cultural groups, French and English, are missing from the book. It is likely the organizers of the lecture series considered both of these groups the European founders of Quebec.
Each story includes an historical account of the neighbourhood where each cultural community tended to live and a first-hand account from a member of the community, including former Quebec premier Pierre Marc Johnson and artists Kim Thúy, Bernard Adamus et Lynda Thalie.
Guy Berthiaume is the librarian and archivist of Canada and, until earlier this year, he was the head of the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec. Claude Corbo was a professor and recteur at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Sophie Montreuil is the director of research and publications at the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec.
The book is available from the publisher, Presses de l’Université du Québec.
Thanks to John D. Reid of Canada’s Anglo-Celtic Connections blog for the tip.
