Analysis of 2006 Census data from major Canadian cities shows that Halifax is second only to Calgary in the proportion of residents who have moved there from other provinces.  I must admit I am surprised.

Halifax is a city of come-from-aways. It's widely known that Nova Scotia's capital lags behind larger Canadian cities in attracting immigrants from other countries. But few realize Halifax is near the top for drawing people from other provinces.

According to the latest census, 7.5 per cent of citizens of Halifax Regional Municipality moved here from other parts of Canada between 2001 and 2006.

It's second only to Calgary among major cities for drawing people from out-of-province.

At the same time, Halifax ranked low in the proportions of international immigrants and of residents who moved there from elsewhere in the same province.

The comments box for this story at the Halifax Daily News features a verbal brawl between those who think this proves Nova Scotia is a great place to live, those who insist it proves nothing, and those don’t believe the data.  Nova Scotians figure prominently on all sides.

h/t: e-mail from the See of Pisiquid, which is located not far from Halifax.

Previous related post: Atlantic Canada cities predominate in quality of life survey