Newfoundland is well known for the strong traditions and folklore of its English-speaking inhabitants. Until recently, however, few outside this province realized that there is also a small but vigorous Francophone population, situated mainly on the west coast of the island in and around the Port au Port Peninsula. The culture and folklore, and particularly their storytelling traditions, are the focus of the work by noted folklorist and memorial university professor Gerald Thomas. Thomas has conducted extensive and exhaustive research on the Port au Port Peninsula for more than twenty years, focusing on, though not limited to, the music and story telling in Franco Newfoundland communities, through the study of the repertoire, context and lives on three people: Mrs. Blanche Ozone, Mrs. Angela Kerfont, and Emile Benoit.

Gerald Thomas is a professor and former head of Memorial University’s Department of Folklore, as well as a professor in the department of French and Spanish. He is the founder and director of the Center d’Etudes Franco-Terreneuvienns, former co-director of the institute of Folklore Studies in Britain and Canada, and former editor of the journal Canadian Folklore Canadien. He lives in Torbay, Newfoundland.

Gerald Thomas' profile page