Festival du Bois is the largest and most attended Francophone

Francophone

The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....

 festival on the west coast of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, held in the Maillardville neighbourhood of Coquitlam, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

. Produced by Societe francophone de Maillardville, Festival du Bois is an annual event scheduled for the first full weekend in March which celebrates French Canadian

French Canadian

French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...

 history, art and culture.

The festival site in Mackin Park is dominated by the main stage tent where most of Canadian folk

Folk music

Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....

, Celtic

Celtic music

Celtic music is a term utilised by artists, record companies, music stores and music magazines to describe a broad grouping of musical genres that evolved out of the folk musical traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe...

 and world music

World music

World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...

 artists perform. There is also a children's stage, a workshop tent, art and history displays, tours of the Mackin House Museum, and traditional food including tourtière

Tourtière

A tourtière is a meat pie originating from Quebec, usually made with minced pork and/or veal, or beef. It is a traditional part of the Christmas and/or Christmas Eve réveillon and New Year's Eve meal in Quebec, but is also enjoyed and sold in grocery stores all year long...

, poutine

Poutine

Poutine is a Canadian dish of French fries and fresh cheese curds, covered with brown gravy or sauce. Sometimes additional ingredients are added.Poutine is a fast food dish that originated in Quebec and can now be found across Canada...

 and maple sugar pie

Sugar pie

Sugar pie is a typical dessert of the western European countries of France and Belgium, Quebec, and Midwestern United States states such as Indiana, where it is known as sugar cream pie .-Recipe:Sugar pie is a single-crust pie with a filling made from flour, butter, salt, vanilla, and...

. The "official Festival du Bois signature headgear" is a green tuque

Tuque

A – variously known as a knit hat or stocking cap among other names – is a knitted cap, originally of wool though now often of synthetic fibers, that is designed to provide warmth in winter...

embossed with a frog.

Over 17,000 people attended Festival du Bois in 2008, and was recognized as one of the "biggest festivals and cultural events in Vancouver" by Business in Vancouver magazine.