Canada
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
| Canada | |||
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| National information | |||
| National motto: | "A Mari Usque Ad Mare" (From sea to sea) |
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| National anthem: | O Canada | ||
| About the people | |||
| Official languages: | English and French | ||
| Population: (# of people) | |||
| - Total: | 32,207,113 (ranked 35) | ||
| - Density: | 0.3 per km² | ||
| Geography / Places | |||
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| Capital city: | Ottawa, Ontario | ||
| Largest city: | Toronto, Ontario | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total: | 9,984,670 (ranked 2) | ||
| - Water: | 860,679 km² (8.62%) | ||
| Politics / Government | |||
| Established: | Independence from the UK | ||
| Leaders: | Queen Elizabeth II Governor General Michaëlle Jean |
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| Economy / Money | |||
| Currency: (Name of money) |
Canadian dollar ($) | ||
| International information | |||
| Time zone: | -03.50 to UTC -08:00 |
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| Telephone dialing code: | 1 | ||
| Internet domain: | .ca | ||
Canada is a country in the northern part of North America, bordering the United States of America.
Contents |
[change] Geography
Canada is the second largest country in the world in land area after Russia and has the longest border with water (coastline) of any country in the world. It is next to the Pacific, Arctic, and Atlantic Oceans.
Around 33 million people live in Canada's ten provinces and three territories.
See: list of Canadian provinces and territories.
Canada covers 6 time zones. It extends from the west coast, across the prairies and central Canada, to the Atlantic provinces; in the north there are three territories, stretching between Alaska and Greenland. Four of the five Great Lakes (Superior, Huron, Erie, and Ontario) are shared between Canada and the United States (Lake Michigan is wholly within the USA), and they make up 16% of the Earth's fresh water. The world's longest city street (Yonge Street in Toronto) is in Canada. The St. Lawrence Seaway joins the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean, allowing ocean going vessels to travel as far inland as Thunder Bay in Ontario, Canada and Duluth, Minnesota, USA.
Canada shares land and sea borders with the USA (the lower 48 states and Alaska), Denmark (Greenland), and France (St. Pierre and Miquelon - a small group of islands off the southern coast off the Island of Newfoundland).
The geography of Canada is varied and has many extremes, from high alpine areas in the west, flat grasslands in the centre, and ancient shield rocks in the east. Canada contains some of the very last untouched boreal forest in the world. The Canadian or Laurentian Shield is a vast area of ancient pre-cambrian rocks lying in an arc around Hudson Bay, covering more than one third of Canada's land area. This is a unique land of lakes, bogs, swamps, trees, and rocks. The relief is generally quite low, but extreme. It is a terrain that is very dangerous and difficult to traverse cross country, progress being blocked by rivers, lakes, bogs, steep cliffs, and muskeg.
[change] Brief history
Native people lived in what is now Canada for thousands of years before the first Europeans arrived. They are known as the First Nations and the Inuit people. The Métis have part First Nations and part European backgrounds.
The Vikings were the first Europeans known to land in Canada, in what is now Newfoundland. They did not stay there long, however. In the early 16th century, Europeans started exploring Canada's eastern coast, beginning with John Cabot from England in 1497, and later Jacques Cartier in 1534 from France. Alexander Mackenzie later reached the Pacific coast over land, where captains James Cook and George Vancouver went by sea.
Parts of Canada were settled by France, and parts by England and Scotland. The French usually had permission from the native peoples to live in their country. In 1605, Port Royal was built in Acadia (today called Nova Scotia) by the French, led by Samuel de Champlain, and in 1608 he started settling Quebec. British took control of the French areas after a battle on the Plains of Abraham near Quebec City in 1759.
During the American Revolutionary War, the U.S. congress wanted to make Quebec part of the United States and sent a small army to take it from the British in 1775. But the people of Quebec did not support the revolution and the Americans retreated the next year. During the War of 1812, the United States tried to conquer Canada a few times but were defeated each time.
On July 1, 1867, Canada became an independent country. It included the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. Sir John A. MacDonald was the first prime minister. Manitoba, the Yukon, and the Northwest Territories became part of Canada in 1870. British Columbia joined in 1871, and Prince Edward Island in 1873.
There were two Red River Rebellions, in 1869-70 and 1885, both led by Louis Riel. He fought for more rights for the Métis people. A railroad across the country, finished in 1885, made it easier for Canadians to move to the west. Many Europeans came to the prairies, so that Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces in 1905.
Canadian soldiers fought in World War I, because they were still part of the British Empire. More Canadians died in this war than any other war. Canada became better known as a country after its success in capturing Vimy Ridge from the Germans in France in 1917. Women were given the right to vote by the end of the war, partly because of the help they gave making weapons while the men fought in Europe. Canadians also fought in World War II. Dieppe was a terrible raid in 1942, where most of the soldiers were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. Canadians were important in 1944 at Normandy, and they liberated (set free) the Netherlands.
In 1949, Newfoundland and Labrador became the 10th province of Canada. In 1956, Canadian Lester Pearson, who later became prime minister, helped end the Suez Crisis. As a result, he won the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1965, Pearson helped Canada get a new flag, the Maple Leaf. Before that, Canadians had used the Red Ensign. In 1982, Canada created a new constitution, including a new Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This took the place of the 1867 British North America Act, that Great Britain had helped create.
Many French Canadians today wish to form their own country, separate from the rest of Canada. The province of Quebec held a referendum (vote) in 1980, but only about 40% wanted to separate. Another referendum was held in 1995, with almost 50% voting in favor of leaving Canada.
Today, about 25% of Canadians speak French as their first language. Many people can speak both French and English. Although most French Canadians live in the province of Quebec, there are French-speaking communities and people all across Canada. For example, 40% of the people in the province of New Brunswick and 20% of those in Manitoba have a strong French background, as do people in Ontario, mainly along its border with Quebec.
In 1999, Nunavut was created as Canada's third territory, out of the eastern Northwest Territories, in an agreement with the Inuit people.
[change] Recent times
A large number of immigrants from almost every part of the world come to live in Canada. Canada has a greater mix of people with different backgrounds than almost anywhere on Earth, after Australia. One example is the Governor General of Canada, Michaëlle Jean, who came to Canada as a young child with her family from Haiti in 1968.
Ottawa is the capital of Canada. The current (elected) head of government, the prime minister, is Stephen Harper, who replaced Paul Martin Jr. in January of 2006. Each province and territory elects a premier to lead its government.
[change] Cities
Here are the biggest Canadian cities:
| City Name | Number of people in 2005 |
|---|---|
| Toronto, Ontario | 5,304,100 |
| Montreal, Quebec | 3,635,700 |
| Vancouver, British Columbia | 2,208,300 |
| Ottawa, Ontario | 1,148,800 |
| Calgary, Alberta | 1,060,300 |
| Edmonton, Alberta | 1,016,000 |
| Quebec City, Quebec | 717,600 |
| Hamilton, Ontario | 714,900 |
| Winnipeg, Manitoba | 706,900 |
| London, Ontario | 464,300 |
| Kitchener, Ontario | 458,600 |
| St. Catharines, Ontario | 396,900 |
| Halifax, Nova Scotia | 380,800 |
| Oshawa, Ontario | 340,300 |
| Victoria, British Columbia | 334,700 |
| Windsor, Ontario | 332,300 |
| Saskatoon, Saskatchewan | 235,800 |
| Regina, Saskatchewan | 199,000 |
| St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador | 182,500 |
| Sherbrooke, Quebec | 163,700 |
[change] Government
Canada has a government called a constitutional monarchy. It has a monarch (meaning a king or queen rules in the country) and an elected Parliament. The head of state of the United Kingdom is also the head of state in Canada. Currently, Queen Elizabeth II is the Canada's head of state. She appoints a Governor General to represent her in the country.
The Queen's powers are exercised by the Governor General except when the Queen is in Canada. The Governor General, like the sovereign or Queen, is not political and remains above politics. The role in Canada is, however, largely ceremonial.
The Parliament of Canada passes the laws of the country. The king or queen (or the governor general in their place) has the right to veto a law (meaning the law cannot go into effect) but this right has not been used for some time. The day-to-day operations of the government are run by the cabinet. The cabinet is usually formed from the largest party in Parliament.
There are four main parties in the Canadian Parliament: the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party, the New Democratic Party, and Bloc Québécois. In addition, there are several other smaller parties, but their canidates are not usually elected to Parliament (although they have won many local elections).
[change] Climate and its influence
Many people from other parts of the world think of Canada as a very cold and snowy place. While it is true that most of Canada's land is very far north (almost to the North Pole), most Canadians live in the southern parts, where the weather is much milder. About 75% of the people live within 100 miles (160 km) of the U.S. border, most of which is often covered with snow about 6 months of the year. In some cities the temperature can get very cold in the winter; however, most of Canada can get quite hot in the summer, often over 30 degrees Celsius. On the Pacific coast, there is a lot of rain but very little snow.
Canadians are known to play winter sports such as ice hockey and skiing and snowboarding, and also enjoy many summer sports and games.
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