British Columbia i/ˌbrɪtɪʃ kəˈlʌmbiə/ (B.C. or BC) (French: la Colombie-Britannique, C.-B.) is the westernmost of Canada's provinces. Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858 and in 1871, it became the sixth province of Canada. Its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ("Splendour without Diminishment").