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Amqui, Quebec (Canada)

Bas-Saint-Laurent

image by Ivan Sache, 27 March 2017

The Municipality
The Flag

See also:

The Municipality

The municipality of Amqui (6,322 inhabitants in 2011; 12,081 ha) is located in the Gaspé peninsula, 70 km south of Matane.

Amqui was named for the Mi'kmaq word "amqui" / "humqui" / "ankwi" / "unkoui", "a place of fun". This etymology is disputed but the other proposed meanings are not convincing, either. Amqui originated in the village municipality of Saint-Benoît-Joseph-Labre, established in 1907 in the mission of the same name, which had been founded in 1881 and canonically recognized as a parish in 1889. The parish was name for a French mystic saint, who lived from 1748 to 1783, travelling all over Europe as a beggar, and was canonized in 1881 by Pope Leo XIII, the year of erection of the parish. The municipality was renamed as Amqui in 1948 - the name of the local post office since 1879 - and granted the status of town in 1961. Amqui incorporated in 1991 the parish municipality of Saint-Benoît-Joseph-Labre, which had been established in 1890.
http://www.ville.amqui.qc.ca/ - Municipal website
Ivan Sache, 27 March 2017

The flag

The flag of Amqui is white with the municipal logo.

Photo
http://www.lavantposte.ca/actualites/2016/1/19/train-ocean-150--le-maire-ruest-est-somme-de-cesser-toute-demarc.html

The logo of Amqui was adopted in March 2008. Red and blue are bright, contrasting colours. Red is a symbol of warmth, welcome, celebration, joy... More specifically, red evokes here the roofed bridges, the autumn landscapes, a place and a resting time. Blue represents sky during fine weather. Blue is a symbol of peace, calm, freshness, purity, pride, justice. More specifically here, blue highlights the omnipresence of water, either geographically or historically, and reflects our environmental concern.
The bridge connecting two banks expresses solidarity between the citizens and communities of the region. The roofed bridge reflects the concern of Amqui for its heritage and history. The road represented at the entrance of the bridge highlights an idiosyncrasy of the town, located at a crossing and meeting of ways of communication, rivers, trails, and citizens.
The name "Amqui", of native origin, is integrated into the logo; the shape of the letters recalls the rounded mountains, fields
and valley. The blue stripes represent the hydrographic network, a significant feature of the local environment, especially Matapédia River.
http://www.ville.amqui.qc.ca/information/signature-municipale.html - Municipal website

The emblematic Beauséjour bridge, originally erected in 1932 in Saint-Odile-sur-Rimouski on brook Brûlé, was closed to traffic in 1979 and moved to the neighbouring field in 1990 for the sake of security. Preserved from demolition, the bridge was restored in 2003 and transferred in 2005 in the municipal park of Amqui.
http://www.pontscouverts.com/Pontscouverts1/Beausejour.html

The roofed bridge of Anse-Saint-Jean was built in 1931 over the Matapédia River. Restored in the 1970, the bridge was listed for demolition in October 1990; following local protest, the bridge was maintained and restored in 1993.
http://www.pontscouverts.com/Pontscouverts1/Anse-St-Jean.html

Ivan Sache, 27 March 2017

I have a photo, taken in the Fall of 1998, of a white flag with the full arms centered and the name of the city in black letters underneath. The flag belongs to James Croft.

Luc Baronian, 6 May 2005