Quote:
Originally Posted by jeremy_haak
Northern Quebec is likely a bit of a mix; I'm inclined to say Montreal overall, but Rouyn-Noranda is also a very important point for servicing Northern Quebec.
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Although not as big as the link to Montreal, there is an interesting relationship between the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region and the Gatineau (and to some degree Ottawa) region.
One reason for this is that historically, the Oblate priests based in Ottawa played a big role in the Catholic church and its institutions in NE Ontario and NW Quebec. For example, university-bound kids from the Collège classique de Rouyn were mostly funnelled into the University of Ottawa.
These links seem to have persisted until this day, and seem to have many ramifications in other areas. Many retail chains have operations in Gatineau, Maniwaki and the Abitibi. Several private radio and TV stations in the Outaouais and Abitibi are owned by the same company. The educational institutions that have sprouted up in Gatineau and (francophone) Ottawa since the days of the U of O's dominance have huge contingents of students from Abitibi-Témiscamingue.
There is even a name for the transplants: Abitaouais. You sometimes see and hear ads from business people who try and capitalize on this by saying they're an "Abitaouais".