Falher

Falher (; , ) is a town in the Peace Country area of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the Municipal District of Smoky River No. 130, along Highway 49. Falher is one of the earliest agricultural communities in the Peace River Country, and still acts as the commercial centre of the surrounding Smoky River Region, with which it shares much of its history. Falher is notable for its sizable francophone population, having the highest percentage of French speakers of any municipality in Western Canada, with 52% able to speak the language as of 2021.

== Etymology == The name of the colony and first mission of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Falher was chosen on June 1, 1912 by the first party of settlers, accompanied by Fathers Constant Falher and Jean-Baptiste Henri Giroux. During a gathering for prayer, Giroux suggested the name “Saint-Constant de Falher,” which was met with protests by Fr. Falher. The group settled on the name by combining Giroux’s first name and Fr. Falher’s family name. The surname is ultimately derived from Breton falc’her (cognate with French faucher) meaning “scytheman.” When the mission was officially elevated to a parish by Bishop Émile Grouard on June 14, 1917, he chose to erect it under the patronage of Saint Anne as there was already a mission named Saint-Jean-Baptiste in present-day Fort McMurray, built a year prior to that in Falher.