Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America and is 110 kilometres from the U.S. border. It is also the place of the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers. The city is named after the nearby Lake Winnipeg; the name comes from the Western Cree words for muddy water. The region was a trading centre for aboriginal peoples long before the arrival of Europeans.