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Canada

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Countries; North American
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                            Canada

   Flag of Canada Coat of arms of Canada
   Flag           Coat of arms
   Motto: A Mari Usque Ad Mare  (Latin)
   "From Sea to Sea"
   Anthem: O Canada
   Royal anthem: God Save the Queen
   Location of Canada
         Capital        Ottawa
                        45°24′N 75°40′W
       Largest city     Toronto
    Official languages  English, French
   Government           Parliamentary democracy
                        under federal constitutional monarchy
    - Monarch           Queen Elizabeth II
    - Governor General  Michaëlle Jean
    - Prime Minister    Stephen Harper
      Establishment
    - North America Act July 1, 1867
    - Statute of
      Westminster
                        December 11, 1931
    - Canada Act        April 17, 1982
                             Area
    - Total             9,984,670 km² ( 2nd)
                        3,854,085 sq mi
    - Water (%)         8.92 (891,163 km²)
                          Population
    - 2006 estimate     32,623,490 ( 36th)
    - 2001 census       30,007,094
    - Density           3.2/km² ( 219th)
                        8.3/sq mi
        GDP ( PPP)      2005 estimate
    - Total             $1.105 trillion ( 11th)
    - Per capita        $34,273 ( 7th)
       HDI  (2004)      0.950 (high) ( 6th)
         Currency       Canadian dollar ($) ( CAD)
        Time zone       ( UTC-3.5 to -8)
    - Summer ( DST)     ( UTC-2.5 to -7)
       Internet TLD     .ca
       Calling code     +1

   Canada ( pronounced /'kænədə/ in English and /kanadɑ/ in Canadian
   French) is the world's second-largest country by total area, occupying
   most of northern North America. Extending from the Atlantic Ocean to
   the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, Canada shares
   land borders with the United States to the south and to the northwest.

   Inhabited first by Aboriginal peoples, Canada was founded as a union of
   British and former French colonies. Canada gained independence from the
   United Kingdom in an incremental process that began in 1867 and ended
   in 1982.

   Canada is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary
   democracy. Comprising ten provinces and three territories, Canada is a
   bilingual and multicultural nation, with both English and French as
   official languages at the federal level. A technologically advanced and
   industrialized nation, Canada maintains a diversified economy heavily
   reliant on trade—particularly with the United States, with which Canada
   has had a long and complex relationship—and abundant natural resources.

Origin and history of the name

   The name Canada comes from a First Nations word, kanata, meaning
   "village" or "settlement". In 1535, inhabitants of the area near
   present-day Quebec City used the word to direct Jacques Cartier towards
   the village of Stadacona. Cartier used the word 'Canada' to refer to
   not only that village, but the entire area subject to Donnacona, Chief
   at Stadacona; by 1547, maps began referring to this and the surrounding
   area as Canada.

   The French colony of Canada, New France, was set up along the Saint
   Lawrence River and the northern shores of the Great Lakes. Later, it
   was split into two British colonies, called Upper Canada and Lower
   Canada until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841.
   Upon Confederation in 1867, the name Canada was officially adopted for
   the new dominion, which was referred to as the Dominion of Canada until
   the 1950s. As Canada increasingly acquired political authority and
   autonomy from Britain, the federal government increasingly simply used
   Canada on state documents and treaties. The Canada Act 1982 refers only
   to "Canada" and, as such, it is currently the only legal (and
   bilingual) name. This was reflected again in 1982 with the renaming of
   the national holiday from Dominion Day to Canada Day.

History

   Aboriginal tradition holds that the First Peoples inhabited parts of
   Canada for a very long time, and some archaeological studies support
   human presence in northern Yukon to 26,500 years ago, and in southern
   Ontario to 9,500 years ago. Europeans first arrived when the Vikings
   settled briefly at L'Anse aux Meadows circa AD 1000. The next Europeans
   to explore Canada's Atlantic coast included John Cabot in 1497 and
   Martin Frobisher in 1576, for England; and Jacques Cartier in 1534 and
   Samuel de Champlain in 1603, for France. The first permanent European
   settlements were established by the French at Port Royal in 1605 and
   Quebec City in 1608, and by the English in Newfoundland, around 1610.
   European explorers and trappers unwittingly brought diseases that
   spread rapidly through native trade routes and decimated the Aboriginal
   population.
   The Death of General Wolfe, painted by Benjamin West, depicts British
   General Wolfe's death after his victory at the Battle of the Plains of
   Abraham in 1759.
   Enlarge
   The Death of General Wolfe, painted by Benjamin West, depicts British
   General Wolfe's death after his victory at the Battle of the Plains of
   Abraham in 1759.
   Evolution of the borders and names of Canada's provinces and
   territories.
   Enlarge
   Evolution of the borders and names of Canada's provinces and
   territories.

   For much of the seventeenth century, the English and French colonies in
   North America were able to develop in relative isolation from each
   other. French colonists extensively settled the St. Lawrence River
   valley, while English colonists largely settled in the Thirteen
   Colonies to the south. However, as competition for territory, naval
   bases, furs and fish escalated, several wars broke out between the
   French, English and Native tribes. The French and Iroquois Wars erupted
   between the Iroquois Confederation and the Algonquin, with their French
   allies, over control of the fur trade. A series of four French and
   Indian Wars were fought between 1689 and 1763; these culminated with a
   complete British victory in the Seven Years' War. By the terms of
   Treaty of Paris in 1763, Britain gained control of all of France's
   North American territory east of the Mississippi River, except for the
   remote islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon.

   Following the war, the British found themselves in possession of a
   mostly French-speaking, Roman Catholic territory, whose inhabitants had
   recently taken up arms against Britain. To avert conflict, Britain
   passed the Quebec Act of 1774, re-establishing the French language,
   Catholic faith, and French civil law in Quebec. The act had unforseen
   consequences for Britain, however, as it angered many residents of the
   Thirteen Colonies, helping to fuel the American Revolution. Following
   the independence of the United States, approximately 50,000 United
   Empire Loyalists moved to Quebec, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and
   Newfoundland. As they were unwelcome in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick was
   carved out of that colony for them in 1784. To accommodate the
   English-speaking Loyalists in Quebec, the province was divided into
   francophone Lower Canada and anglophone Upper Canada under the
   Constitutional Act in 1791.

   Canada was a major front in the War of 1812 between the United States
   and British Empire and its successful defence had important long-term
   effects on Canada, including the building of a sense of unity and
   nationalism among British North Americans. Large-scale immigration to
   Canada began in 1815 from Britain and Ireland. A series of agreements
   led to long-term peace between Canada and the United States,
   interrupted only briefly by raids made by political insurgents such as
   the Hunters' Lodges and the Fenian Brotherhood.

   Following the failed Rebellions of 1837, which demanded responsible
   government, colonial officials studied the political situation and
   issued the Durham Report in 1839. One goal—which proved unacceptable
   for the alliance of anglophone and francophone reformers that had
   rebelled in 1837—was to assimilate the French Canadians into British
   culture. The Canadas were merged into a single, quasi-federal colony,
   the United Province of Canada, with the Act of Union (1840). The
   signing of the Oregon Treaty by Britain and the United States in 1846
   ended the Oregon boundary dispute, extending the border westward along
   the 49th parallel and ending joint occupation of the Oregon Country/
   Columbia District. This led to the creation of the Colony of Vancouver
   Island in 1849 and, with the outbreak of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush,
   the colony of British Columbia in 1858, but both were entirely separate
   from the United Province of Canada. By the late 1850s, leaders in
   Canada launched a series of western exploratory expeditions, with the
   intention of assuming control of Rupert's Land and the Arctic region.
   The Canadian population grew rapidly because of high birth rates; high
   European immigration was offset by emigration to the United States,
   especially by French Canadians moving to New England.
   Sir John A. Macdonald, first Prime Minister.
   Enlarge
   Sir John A. Macdonald, first Prime Minister.

   Following the Great Coalition, the Charlottetown Conference, the Quebec
   Conference of 1864, and the London Conference of 1866, the three
   colonies—Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—undertook the process
   of Confederation. The British North America Act created "one dominion
   under the name of Canada", with four provinces: Ontario, Quebec, Nova
   Scotia, and New Brunswick. After Canada assumed control of Rupert's
   Land and the North-Western Territory, which together formed the
   Northwest Territories in 1870, inattention to the Métis led to the Red
   River Rebellion and ultimately to the creation of the province of
   Manitoba and its entry into Confederation in July 1870. British
   Columbia and Vancouver Island (which had united in 1866) and the colony
   of Prince Edward Island joined the Confederation in 1871 and 1873,
   respectively. To connect the union and assert authority over the
   western provinces, Canada constructed three trans-continental railways,
   most notably the Canadian Pacific Railway, encouraged immigrants to
   develop the prairies with the Dominion Lands Act, and established the
   North West Mounted Police. As settlers went to the prairies on the
   railway and the population grew, regions of the Northwest Territories
   were given provincial status forming Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905.
   Canadian soldiers advance behind a tank at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in
   1917.
   Enlarge
   Canadian soldiers advance behind a tank at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in
   1917.

   Canada automatically entered the First World War in 1914 with Britain's
   declaration of war, and sent formed divisions, composed almost entirely
   of volunteers, to the Western Front to fight as a national contingent.
   Casualties were so high that Prime Minister Robert Borden was forced to
   bring in conscription in 1917; this move was extremely unpopular in
   Quebec, resulting in his Conservative party losing support in that
   province. Although the Liberals were deeply divided over conscription,
   they became the dominant political party.

   In 1919, Canada joined the League of Nations in its own right, and in
   1931 the Statute of Westminster confirmed that no act of the British
   Parliament would extend to Canada without its consent. At the same
   time, the worldwide Great Depression of 1929 affected Canadians of
   every class; the rise of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF)
   in Alberta and Saskatchewan presaged a welfare state as pioneered by
   Tommy Douglas in the 1940s and 1950s. After supporting appeasement of
   Germany in the late 1930s, Liberal Prime Minister William Lyon
   Mackenzie King secured Parliament’s approval for entry into the Second
   World War in September 1939, after Germany invaded Poland. The first
   Canadian Army units arrived in Britain in December 1939. The economy
   boomed during the war mainly due to the amount of military materiel
   being produced for Canada, Britain, China and the Soviet Union. Canada
   finished the war with one of the largest militaries in the world. In
   1949, the formerly independent Dominion of Newfoundland joined the
   Confederation as Canada's 10th province.

   By Canada's centennial in 1967, heavy post-war immigration from various
   war-ravaged European countries had changed the country's demographics.
   In addition, throughout the Vietnam War, thousands of American draft
   dodgers fled to and settled in various parts of Canada. Increased
   immigration, combined with the baby boom, an economic strength
   parallelling that of the 1960s United States, and reaction to the Quiet
   Revolution in Quebec, initiated a new type of Canadian nationalism.

   At a meeting of First Ministers in November 1981, the federal and
   provincial governments agreed to the patriation of the constitution,
   with procedures for amending it. Despite the fact that the Quebec
   government did not agree to the changes, on 17 April 1982, Canada, by
   Proclamation of Queen Elizabeth II, patriated its Constitution from
   Britain, thereby making Canada wholly sovereign, though the two
   countries continue to share the same monarch.

   After Quebec underwent profound social and economic changes during the
   Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, some Québécois began pressing for
   greater provincial autonomy, or partial or complete independence from
   Canada. Alienation between English-speaking Canadians and the Québécois
   over the language, cultural and social divide had been exacerbated by
   many events, including the Conscription Crisis of 1944. While a
   referendum on sovereignty-association in 1980 was rejected by a solid
   majority of the population, a second referendum in 1995 was rejected by
   a margin of just 50.6% to 49.4%. In 1997, the Canadian Supreme Court
   ruled unilateral secession by a province to be unconstitutional;
   Quebec's sovereignty movement has continued nonetheless.

   Economic integration with the United States has increased significantly
   since World War II. The Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement of
   1987 was a defining moment in integrating the two countries. In recent
   decades, Canadians have worried about their cultural autonomy as
   American television shows, movies and corporations became omnipresent.
   However, Canadians take special pride in their system of universal
   health care and their commitment to multiculturalism.

Government

   Parliament Hill, Ottawa.
   Enlarge
   Parliament Hill, Ottawa.

   Canada is a constitutional monarchy with Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada
   as head of state, and a parliamentary democracy with a federal system
   of parliamentary government and strong democratic traditions.

   Canada's constitution governs the legal framework of the country and
   consists of written text and unwritten traditions and conventions. The
   Constitution includes the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,
   which guarantees basic rights and freedoms for Canadians that,
   generally, cannot be overridden by legislation of any level of
   government in Canada. It contains, however, a " notwithstanding
   clause", which allows the federal parliament and the provincial
   legislatures the power to override some other sections of the Charter
   temporarily, for a period of five years.

   The position of Prime Minister, Canada's head of government, belongs to
   the leader of the political party that can obtain the confidence of a
   majority in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister and their Cabinet
   are formally appointed by the Governor General (who is the Monarch's
   representative in Canada). However, the Prime Minister chooses the
   Cabinet, and by convention, the Governor General respects the Prime
   Minister's choices. The Cabinet is traditionally drawn from members of
   the Prime Minister's party in both legislative houses, and mostly from
   the House of Commons. Executive power is exercised by the Prime
   Minister and Cabinet, all of whom are sworn into the Queen's Privy
   Council for Canada, and become Ministers of the Crown. The Prime
   Minister exercises vast political power, especially in the appointment
   of other officials within the government and civil service. Michaëlle
   Jean has served as Governor General since September 25, 2005, and
   Stephen Harper, leader of the Conservative Party, has served as Prime
   Minister since February 6, 2006.

   The federal parliament is made up of the Queen and two houses: an
   elected House of Commons and an appointed Senate. Each member in the
   House of Commons is elected by simple plurality in a "riding" or
   electoral district; general elections are called by the Governor
   General when the Prime Minister so advises. While there is no minimum
   term for a Parliament, a new election must be called within five years
   of the last general election. Members of the Senate, whose seats are
   apportioned on a regional basis, are chosen by the Prime Minister and
   formally appointed by the Governor General, and serve until age 75.

   Canada's four major political parties are the Conservative Party of
   Canada, Liberal Party of Canada, New Democratic Party (NDP), and the
   Bloc Québécois. The current government is formed by the Conservative
   Party of Canada. While the Green Party of Canada and other smaller
   parties do not have current representation in Parliament, the list of
   historical parties with elected representation is substantial.

Law

   The Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa, west of Parliament Hill.
   Enlarge
   The Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa, west of Parliament Hill.

   Canada's judiciary plays an important role in interpreting laws and has
   the power to strike down laws that violate the Constitution. The
   Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court and final arbiter and is
   led by the Right Honourable Madam Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin,
   P.C. Its nine members are appointed by the Governor General on the
   advice of the Prime Minister. All judges at the superior and appellate
   levels are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the prime
   minister and minister of justice, after consultation with
   non-governmental legal bodies. The federal cabinet appoints justices to
   superior courts at the provincial and territorial levels. Judicial
   posts at the lower provincial and territorial levels are filled by
   their respective governments (see Court system of Canada for more
   detail).

   Common law prevails everywhere except in Quebec, where civil law
   predominates. Criminal law is solely a federal responsibility and is
   uniform throughout Canada. Law enforcement, including criminal courts,
   is a provincial responsibility, but in rural areas of most provinces
   policing is contracted to the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police
   (RCMP).

Foreign relations and military

   The Peacekeeping Monument in Ottawa.
   Enlarge
   The Peacekeeping Monument in Ottawa.

   Canada has a close relationship with the United States, sharing the
   world's longest undefended border, co-operating on some military
   campaigns and exercises, and being each other's largest trading
   partners. Canada also shares history and long relationships with the
   United Kingdom and France, the two former imperial powers most
   influential in its founding. These relations extend to other
   former-members of the British and French empires, through Canada's
   membership in the Commonwealth of Nations and La Francophonie.

   Canada joined the Organization of American States (OAS) in 1990 and
   hosted the OAS General Assembly in Windsor in June 2000, and the third
   Summit of the Americas in Quebec City in April 2001. Canada seeks to
   expand its ties to Pacific Rim economies through membership in the
   Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC).

   Over the past sixty years, Canada has been an advocate for
   multilateralism, making efforts to resolve global issues in
   collaboration with other nations. This was clearly demonstrated during
   the Suez Crisis of 1956 when Lester B. Pearson eased tensions by
   proposing peacekeeping efforts and the inception of the United Nations
   Peacekeeping Force. In that spirit, Canada developed and has tried to
   maintain a leading role in UN peacekeeping efforts; Canada has served
   in 50 peacekeeping missions, including every UN peacekeeping effort
   until 1989. Canada's UN peacekeeping contributions have diminished over
   the first years of the 21st century. Although Canadian foreign policy
   is often similar to that of the United States, Canada has always
   maintained an independent foreign policy in such areas as maintaining
   full diplomatic and trade relations with Cuba.
   Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.
   Enlarge
   Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.

   A founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO),
   Canada currently employs about 64,000 regular and 26,000 reserve
   military personnel. The unified Canadian Forces (CF) comprise the army,
   navy, and air force. Major CF equipment deployed includes 1,400
   armoured fighting vehicles, 34 combat vessels, and 861 aircraft.

   In addition to major participation in the Second Boer War, the First
   World War, the Second World War, and the Korean War, Canada has
   maintained forces in international missions under the United Nations
   and NATO since 1950, including peacekeeping missions, various missions
   in the former Yugoslavia, and support to coalition forces in the First
   Gulf War. Since 2001, Canada has had troops deployed in Afghanistan as
   part of the U.S. stabilization force and the UN-authorized,
   NATO-commanded International Security Assistance Force. Canada's
   Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) has participated in three
   major relief efforts in the past two years; the two-hundred member team
   has been deployed in relief operations after Hurricane Katrina in
   September 2005, after the Kashmir earthquake in October 2005 and after
   the December 2004 tsunami in South Asia.

Administrative divisions

   A geopolitical map of Canada, exhibiting its ten provinces and three
   territories.
   Enlarge
   A geopolitical map of Canada, exhibiting its ten provinces and three
   territories.

   Canada is composed of ten provinces and three territories. The
   provinces are Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick,
   Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island,
   Quebec, and Saskatchewan. The three territories are the Northwest
   Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon Territory. The provinces have a large
   degree of autonomy from the federal government, the territories
   somewhat less. Each has its own provincial or territorial symbols.

   The provinces are responsible for most of Canada's social programs
   (such as health care, education, and welfare) and together collect more
   revenue than the federal government, an almost unique structure among
   federations in the world. Using its spending powers, the federal
   government can initiate national policies in provincial areas, such as
   the Canada Health Act; the provinces can opt out of these, but rarely
   do so in practice. Equalization payments are made by the federal
   government to ensure that reasonably uniform standards of services and
   taxation are kept between the richer and poorer provinces.

   All provinces have unicameral, elected legislatures headed by a Premier
   selected in the same way as the Prime Minister of Canada. Each province
   also has a Lieutenant-Governor representing the Queen, analogous to the
   Governor General of Canada, appointed on the recommendation of the
   Prime Minister of Canada, though with increasing levels of consultation
   with provincial governments in recent years.

Geography and climate

   A satellite composite image of Canada. Boreal forests prevail
   throughout the country, ice is prominent in the Arctic and through the
   Coast Mountains and Saint Elias Mountains, and the relatively flat
   Prairies facilitate agriculture. The Great Lakes feed the St. Lawrence
   River (in the southeast) where lowlands host much of Canada's
   population.
   Enlarge
   A satellite composite image of Canada. Boreal forests prevail
   throughout the country, ice is prominent in the Arctic and through the
   Coast Mountains and Saint Elias Mountains, and the relatively flat
   Prairies facilitate agriculture. The Great Lakes feed the St. Lawrence
   River (in the southeast) where lowlands host much of Canada's
   population.

   Canada occupies most of the northern portion of North America. It
   shares land borders with the contiguous United States to the south and
   with the US state of Alaska to the northwest, stretching from the
   Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west; to the
   north lies the Arctic Ocean. Since 1925, Canada has claimed the portion
   of the Arctic between 60°W and 141°W longitude; this claim is not
   universally recognized. The northernmost settlement in Canada (and in
   the world) is Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Alert on the northern tip
   of Ellesmere Island—latitude 82.5°N—just 817 kilometres (450 nautical
   miles) from the North Pole. Canada is the world's second-largest
   country in total area, after Russia.

   The population density of 3.5 people per square kilometre (9.1/ mi²) is
   among the lowest in the world. The most densely populated part of the
   country is the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor along the Great Lakes and
   Saint Lawrence River in the southeast. To the north of this region is
   the broad Canadian Shield, an area of rock scoured clean by the last
   ice age, thinly soiled, rich in minerals, and dotted with lakes and
   rivers—Canada by far has more lakes than any other country in the world
   and has a large amount of the world's freshwater.
   The Horseshoe Falls in Ontario is the largest component of Niagara
   Falls, one of the world's greatest waterfalls, a major source of
   hydroelectric power, and a tourist destination.
   Enlarge
   The Horseshoe Falls in Ontario is the largest component of Niagara
   Falls, one of the world's greatest waterfalls, a major source of
   hydroelectric power, and a tourist destination.

   In eastern Canada, the Saint Lawrence River widens into the Gulf of
   Saint Lawrence, the world's largest estuary; the island of Newfoundland
   lies at its mouth. South of the Gulf, the Canadian Maritimes protrude
   eastward from the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec. New Brunswick and Nova
   Scotia are divided by the Bay of Fundy, which experiences the world's
   largest tidal variations. Ontario and Hudson Bay dominate central
   Canada. West of Ontario, the broad, flat Canadian Prairies spread
   toward the Rocky Mountains, which separate them from British Columbia.

   Northern Canadian vegetation tapers from coniferous forests to tundra
   and finally to Arctic barrens in the far north. The northern Canadian
   mainland is ringed with a vast archipelago containing some of the
   world's largest islands.

   Average winter and summer high temperatures across Canada vary
   depending on the location. Winters can be harsh in many regions of the
   country, particularly in the Prairie provinces, where daily average
   temperatures are near −15° C (5° F), but can drop below -40°C (-40°F)
   with severe wind chills. Coastal British Columbia is an exception and
   enjoys a temperate climate with a mild and rainy winter.

   On the east and west coast average high temperatures are generally in
   the low 20°C (68 to 74°F), while between the coasts the average summer
   high temperature range between 25°C to 30°C (78 to 86°F) with
   occasional extreme heat in some interior locations exceeding 40°C
   (104°F). For a more complete description of climate across Canada see
   Environment Canada's Website.

Economy

   Canada is one of the world's wealthiest nations with a high per capita
   income, a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
   Development (OECD) and Group of Eight (G8). Canada is a free market
   economy with slightly more government intervention than the United
   States, but much less than most European nations. Canada has
   traditionally had a lower per capita gross domestic product (GDP) than
   its southern neighbour (whereas wealth has been more equally divided),
   but higher than the large western European economies. For the past
   decade, after a period of turbulence, the Canadian economy has been
   growing rapidly with low unemployment and large government surpluses on
   the federal level. Today Canada closely resembles the U.S. in its
   market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and high living
   standards. While as of October 2006, Canada's national unemployment
   rate of 6.3% is among its lowest in 30 years, provincial unemployment
   rates vary from a low of 3.6% in Alberta to a high of 14.6% in
   Newfoundland and Labrador.

   In the past century, the impressive growth of the manufacturing,
   mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely
   rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. As with other
   first world nations, the Canadian economy is dominated by the service
   industry, which employs about three quarters of Canadians. However,
   Canada is unusual among developed countries in the importance of the
   primary sector, with the logging and oil industries being two of
   Canada's most important.

   Canada is one of the few developed nations that is a net exporter of
   energy. Canada has vast deposits of natural gas on the east coast and
   large oil and gas resources centred in Alberta, and also present in
   neighbouring British Columbia and Saskatchewan. The vast Athabasca Tar
   Sands give Canada the world's second largest reserves of oil behind
   Saudi Arabia. In Quebec, British Columbia, Newfoundland & Labrador,
   Ontario and Manitoba, hydroelectric power is a cheap and relatively
   environmentally friendly source of abundant energy.

   Canada is one of the world's most important suppliers of agricultural
   products, with the Canadian Prairies one of the most important
   suppliers of wheat and other grains. Canada is the world's largest
   producer of zinc and uranium and a world leader in many other natural
   resources such as gold, nickel, aluminium, and lead; many, if not most,
   towns in the northern part of the country, where agriculture is
   difficult, exist because of a nearby mine or source of timber. Canada
   also has a sizeable manufacturing sector, centred in southern Ontario
   and Quebec, with the automobile industry especially important.

   Canada is highly dependent on international trade, especially trade
   with the United States. The 1989 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA)
   and 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (which included
   Mexico) touched off a dramatic increase in trade and economic
   integration with the U.S. Since 2001, Canada has successfully avoided
   economic recession and has maintained the best overall economic
   performance in the G8. Since the mid 1990s, Canada's federal government
   has posted annual budgetary surpluses and has steadily paid down the
   national debt.

Demographics

   The 2001 national census recorded 30,007,094 people; the population is
   currently estimated by Statistics Canada to be 32.623 million people.
   Population growth is largely accomplished through immigration and, to a
   lesser extent, natural growth. About three-quarters of Canada's
   population live within 160 kilometres (100  mi) of the U.S. border. A
   similar proportion live in urban areas concentrated in the Quebec
   City-Windsor Corridor (notably the Golden Horseshoe, Montreal, and
   Ottawa metropolitan areas), the BC Lower Mainland (Vancouver and
   environs), and the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor in Alberta.
   Toronto, Ontario is one of the world's most multicultural cities.
   Enlarge
   Toronto, Ontario is one of the world's most multicultural cities.

   Canada is an ethnically diverse nation. According to the 2001 census,
   it has 34 ethnic groups with at least one hundred thousand members
   each. The largest ethnic group is "Canadian" (39.4%), followed by
   English (20.2%), French (15.8%), Scottish (14.0%), Irish (12.9%),
   German (9.3%), Italian (4.3%), Chinese (3.7%), Ukrainian (3.6%) and
   First Nations (3.4%). Canada's aboriginal population is growing almost
   twice as fast as the rest of the Canadian population. In 2001, 13.4% of
   the population belonged to visible minorities. In comparison with most
   developed countries, Canada maintains a relatively high immigration
   rate. Immigrants are particularly attracted to the major urban areas of
   Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.

   Canadians adhere to a wide variety of religions, as people in Canada
   have the freedom of religion as one of their rights. According to 2001
   census, 77.1% of Canadians identified as being Christians; of this,
   Catholics make up the largest group (43.6% of Canadians). The largest
   Protestant denomination is the United Church of Canada; about 16.5% of
   Canadians declared no religious affiliation, and the remaining 6.3%
   were affiliated with religions other than Christianity, of which the
   largest is Islam.

   In Canada, the provinces and territories are responsible for education;
   thus Canada has no national department of education. Each of the
   thirteen education systems are similar while reflecting their own
   regional history, culture and geography. The mandatory school age
   varies across Canada but generally ranges between the ages of 5-7 to
   16-18, contributing to an adult literacy rate that is 99%.
   Postsecondary education is the responsibility of the provincial and
   territorial governments that provide most of their funding; the federal
   government provides additional funding through research grants. In
   2002, 43% of Canadians aged between 25 and 64 had post-secondary
   education; for those aged 25 to 34 the postsecondary attainment reaches
   51%.

Language

   The population of Montreal is predominantly francophone, with a
   significant anglophone community.
   Enlarge
   The population of Montreal is predominantly francophone, with a
   significant anglophone community.

   Canada's two official languages, English and French, are the mother
   tongues of 59.7% and 23.2% of the population, respectively. On July 7,
   1969, under the Official Languages Act, French was made commensurate to
   English throughout the federal government. This started a process that
   led to Canada redefining itself as an officially " bilingual" nation.

   English and French have equal status in federal courts, Parliament, and
   in all federal institutions. The public has the right, where there is
   sufficient demand, to receive federal government services in either
   English or French. While multiculturalism is official policy, to become
   a citizen one must be able to speak either English or French, and 98.5%
   of Canadians speak at least one (English only: 67.5%, French only:
   13.3%, both: 17.7%).

   French is mostly spoken in Quebec, but there are substantial
   francophone populations elsewhere, mainly in the northern parts of New
   Brunswick, eastern, northern and southwestern Ontario, and southern
   Manitoba. Of those who speak French as a first language, 85% live in
   Quebec. Ontario has the largest French population outside Quebec.
   French is the official language of Quebec; New Brunswick is the only
   officially bilingual province in the country. No provinces other than
   Quebec and New Brunswick have constitutionally official language(s) as
   such, but French is used as a language of instruction, in courts, and
   other government services in all of the majority English or Inuktitut
   speaking provinces and territories. In Ontario, French has some legal
   status but is not fully co-official. Several aboriginal languages have
   official status in Northwest Territories. Inuktitut is the majority
   language in Nunavut, and one of three official languages in the
   territory.

   Non-official languages are important in Canada, with 5,202,245 people
   listing one as a first language. Some significant non-official first
   languages include Chinese (853,745 first-language speakers), Italian
   (469,485), German (438,080), and Punjabi (271,220).

Culture

   The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, seen here at Expo 67, are the
   federal and national police force of Canada and an international icon.
   Enlarge
   The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, seen here at Expo 67, are the
   federal and national police force of Canada and an international icon.

   Canadian culture has historically been heavily influenced by English,
   French, Irish, Scottish and Aboriginal cultures and traditions, and
   over time has been greatly influenced by American culture because of
   its proximity and the interchange of human capital between the two
   countries. Many forms of American media and entertainment are popular,
   if not dominant in Canada; conversely, many Canadian cultural products
   and entertainers are successful in the US and worldwide. Many cultural
   products are now marketed toward a unified "North American" market, or
   a global market generally.

   The creation and preservation of distinctly Canadian culture has been
   partly influenced by federal government programs, laws and institutions
   such as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the National Film
   Board of Canada (NFB), and the Canadian Radio-television and
   Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
   A Kwakwaka'wakw totem pole and traditional "big house" in Victoria, BC.
   Enlarge
   A Kwakwaka'wakw totem pole and traditional "big house" in Victoria, BC.

   As Canada is a geographically vast and ethnically diverse country,
   there are cultural variations and distinctions from province to
   province and region to region. Canadian culture has also been greatly
   influenced by more recent immigration of people from all over the
   world. Many Canadians value multiculturalism, indeed some see Canadian
   culture as being inherently multicultural. Multicultural heritage is
   enshrined in Section 27 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

   National symbols are influenced by natural, historical, and First
   Nations sources. Particularly, the use of the maple leaf, as a Canadian
   symbol, dates back to the early 18th century and is depicted on its
   current and previous flags, the penny, and on the coat of arms. Other
   prominent symbols include the beaver, Canada goose, common loon, the
   Crown, and the RCMP.

   Canada's official national sports are ice hockey (winter) and lacrosse
   (summer). Hockey is a national pastime, and is by far the most popular
   spectator sport in the country. It is also the most popular sport
   Canadians play, with 1.65 million active participants in 2004. Canada's
   six largest metropolitan areas - Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa,
   Calgary, and Edmonton - have franchises in the National Hockey League
   (NHL), and there are more Canadian players in the league than from all
   other countries combined. After hockey, other popular spectator sports
   include Canadian football and curling. The Canadian Football League
   (CFL) is the nation's second most popular professional sports league,
   and plays a large role in Canada's national identity. Golf, baseball,
   skiing, soccer, volleyball, and basketball are also widely played at
   youth and amateur levels, but professional leagues and franchises are
   not as widespread. Canada will host the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, and
   the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia.

International rankings

   Organization Survey Ranking
   A.T. Kearney/ Foreign Policy Magazine Globalization Index 2005 14 out
   of 111
   IMD International World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 5 out of 60
   The Economist The World in 2005 - Worldwide quality-of-life index, 2005
   14 out of 111
   Yale University/ Columbia University Environmental Sustainability
   Index, 2005 (pdf) 6 out of 146
   Reporters Without Borders World-wide Press Freedom Index 2005 21 out of
   167
   Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index 2005 14 out of
   159
   Heritage Foundation/The Wall Street Journal Index of Economic Freedom,
   2006 12 out of 157

   Canada was ranked number one country by the United Nations' Human
   Development Index 10 times out of 16 between 1980 and 2004.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada"
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   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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