Dildo is a

local service district Local service district may refer to these administrative units in Canada: * Local service district (New Brunswick) A local service district (LSD) was a provincial administrative unit for the provision of local services in the Canadian province o ...

and

designated place A designated place (DPL) is a type of community or settlement identified by Statistics Canada that does not meet the criteria used to define municipalities or population centres. DPLs are delineated every 5 years for the Canadian census as the s ...

in the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

on the island of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

. It is located on the southeastern Dildo Arm of Trinity Bay about west of St. John's.

South Dildo South Dildo is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Geography South Dildo is in Newfoundland within Subdivision Y of Division No. 1. Demographics As a designated place in th ...

is a community located to the south, and in

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

had 195 residents. It is known for its unusual name.

Name

The place name "Dildo" is attested in this area since at least 1711, though how this came to be is unknown. The origin of the word "

dildo A dildo is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for sexual penetration or other sexual activity during masturbation or with sex partners. Dildos are made from a number of materials. The shape and size are typically t ...

" itself is obscure. It was once used to reference a phallus-shaped pin stuck in the edging of a row boat to act as a pivot for the oar (also known as a "thole pin" or "dole pin").Dictionary of Newfoundland and Labrador It was used as early as the 16th century for a cylindrical object such as a ''dildo glass'' (

test tube A test tube, also known as a culture tube or sample tube, is a common piece of laboratory glassware consisting of a finger-like length of glass or clear plastic tubing, open at the top and closed at the bottom. Test tubes are usually placed in s ...

), for a

phallus A phallus (: phalli or phalluses) is a penis (especially when erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history, a figure with an erect penis is described as ''ithyphallic''. Any object that symbo ...

-shaped sex toy, as an insult for a "contemptuous or reviling" male, and as a refrain in ballads. The name, then written as "Dildoe", was first applied to

Dildo Island Dildo Island is a small, uninhabited island in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the largest of three islands located at the entrance to Dildo Tip in the bottom of Charlie Burgess, off the coast of the neighbouring town ...

, located offshore from the present-day community of Dildo. This use was recorded in 1711 and 1775, and the name was thereafter applied to the Dildo Arm of Trinity Bay and other local physical features. Social scientist William Baillie Hamilton notes that Captain

James Cook Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...

and his assistant Michael Lane, who mapped Newfoundland in the 1760s, often displayed a sense of humour in the place names they chose, and were not above selecting names that might "offend over-sensitive" readers. Regardless of the origin, the name has brought the town of Dildo a measure of notoriety. In the 20th century, there were several unsuccessful campaigns to change the name.

History

The Dildo area has a long history, going as far back as 2000 BC when

Maritime Archaic The Maritime Archaic is a North American cultural complex of the Late Archaic along the coast of Newfoundland, the Canadian Maritimes and northern New England. The Maritime Archaic began in approximately 7000 BC and lasted until approximately ...

aboriginal people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

resided at Anderson's Cove. By 700 AD, people of the

Dorset culture The Dorset was a Paleo-Eskimo culture, lasting from to between and , that followed the Pre-Dorset and preceded the Thule people (proto-Inuit) in the North American Arctic. The culture and people are named after Cape Dorset (now Kinngait) in ...

inhabited

. In 1613, Henry Crout, whilst sailing up Dildo Arm, came in contact with the

Beothuk The Beothuk ( or ; also spelled Beothuck) were a group of Indigenous peoples in Canada, Indigenous people of Canada who lived on the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland. The Beothuk culture formed around 1500 CE. This may have been ...

s, who were residing on Dildo Island at this time. He traded with them and left gifts. In 1711, during

Queen Anne's War Queen Anne's War (1702–1713) or the Third Indian War was one in a series of French and Indian Wars fought in North America involving the colonial empires of Great Britain, France, and Spain; it took place during the reign of Anne, Queen of Gr ...

, the inhabitants of Trinity Bay were ordered by Governor Crow to leave their homes during the winter, to defend themselves against the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, who burned their houses. Dildo Island was one of the places designated for this purpose. The town of Dildo was founded in the late 18th century and settled to exploit the abundance of marine resources such as

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

(mostly cod),

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...

s and

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

Geography

Dildo is in

within Subdivision E of Division No. 1.

Demographics

As a designated place in the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Dildo recorded a population of 803 living in 363 of its 440 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 943. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Arts and culture

Dildo Sign donated by Jimmel Kimmel in 2019

In August 2019, the American late-night talk show ''

Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', sometimes shortened to ''JKL'', is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, and broadcast on ABC. The nightly hour-long show tapes and is based out of the Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywo ...

'' focused on Dildo over a number of episodes. As part of the activity, host

Jimmy Kimmel James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967), known professionally as Jimmy Kimmel, is an American television host, comedian, writer, voice actor, and producer. He has been the host and executive producer of '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-n ...

was made honorary mayor of Dildo. The community is governed by a volunteer committee and does not have an elected mayor. In addition, Guillermo Rodriguez, who is known as Kimmel's

sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...

"security guard", was made an

honorary citizen Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honor usually is symbolic and does not confer an ...

of Dildo through the Newfoundland tradition of ' screeching in,' on the August 15, 2019, broadcast of the show.Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
Rodriguez visited the community for a week. Kimmel declared

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

as Dildo's sister city. As part of his gesture, he also gave the community a sign, in the style of the Hollywood sign, which sits on the hillside overlooking the community.

Government

Dildo is a local service district (LSD) that is governed by a committee responsible for the provision of certain services to the community. The chair of the LSD committee is Greg Pretty.

Gallery

File:Dildo, Newfoundland.jpg, Community of Dildo, Nfld. File:Boats in Dildo Harbour.jpg, Boats in Dildo harbour File:Seaside (27663398350).jpg, Boathouses and shanties File:Dildo Newfoundland GeorgeHouseHeritageBedAndBreakfast2016.jpg, George House B&B Inn File:Dildo harbour in late afternoon panorama 2016 DSC00598e.jpg, Dildo harbour File:Captain Dildo.jpg, Captain Dildo File:Dildo Sign 2019.jpg, Hollywood style sign File:Kimmel for Dildo Mayor.jpg, Kimmel for Mayor sign

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dildo, Newfoundland And Labrador Populated coastal places in Canada Designated places in Newfoundland and Labrador Local service districts in Newfoundland and Labrador Populated places established in the 1800s Fishing communities in Canada