Chelsois or Chelski: Chelsea, Que., accepting suggestions to name its residents

The town hall in Chelsea, Que. (Peter Szperling/CTV News Ottawa)

The municipality of Chelsea, Que., is looking for a distinctive name to identify its residents, with suggestions already proposing Chelsois or Chelski.

The town north of Ottawa-Gatineau has launched public consultations to “find a name for Chelsea residents” as part of its 150th anniversary.

“Since its first municipal Council in 1875, Chelsea has evolved and enriched itself with a vibrant history and a diverse population,” the town said in a statement.

“However, there is still no official name for residents. This strong identity project aims to find a distinctive name to embody local identity and pride for future generations.”

The public is invited to submit a name suggestion that is “well pronounced in both official languages” and “is gender-inclusive or gender-neutral,” according to the municipality.

Residents can submit suggestions until May 28.

Here is a look at some of the suggestions:

• Chelsois and Chelsoise
• Chelseacois and Chelseacoise
• Chelski
• Chelseaite
• Chelois, Cheloise, Chelseas

Submissions will need to be approved by Quebec’s body responsible for managing place names in Quebec before it can be approved by the municipal council.

The municipality is nearly evenly split between speakers of both official languages, with about 47.8 per cent of residents using English as their first language, according to the 2021 census.

Ottawa residents are known as Ottawans.

Chelsea is located approximately 15 kilometres north of Ottawa.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s William Eltherington