Geographically NDG is situated on a long plateau extending southwest from Mount Royal, cascading in wide terraces down from Cote St. Luc road (cote being the French word for ridge) towards the far steeper Saint-Jacques Escarpment. The land is divided, as is traditional in Quebec, in long narrow strips, an evolution of the seigneurial land division system of the province's colonial era. Thus, NDG has many avenues running north-south, but far fewer running east-west. As such, the community is characterized by several prominent boulevards where commercial activity is concentrated. This design element also traces its history back to the earliest urban design planning native to Canada.