Canada
Canada is a country in the northern part of North America. It is the second-largest country in the world; only Russia is bigger. Canada's southern and northwestern edges touch the United States of America.
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| National motto: A Mari Usque Ad Mare (From sea to sea) | |||||
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| Official languages | English and French | ||||
| Capital | Ottawa, Ontario | ||||
| Largest City | Toronto, Ontario | ||||
| Queen | Elizabeth II | ||||
| Governor-General | Adrienne Clarkson | ||||
| Prime Minister | Paul Martin, Jr | ||||
| Area - Total - % water | Ranked 2nd 9,984,670 km² 8.62% | ||||
| Population
- Total (2003) - Density | Ranked 35th
32,207,113 3/km² | ||||
| Independence -BNA Act -St. of Westminster -Canada Act | From the UK: July 1, 1867 December 11, 1931 April 17, 1982 | ||||
| GDP (PPP)
- Total (2002) - GDP/head | Ranked 12th
923 billions $ 29,400 $ | ||||
| Currency | Canadian dollar ($) | ||||
| Time zone | UTC -3.5 to -8 | ||||
| National anthem | O Canada | ||||
| Internet TLD | .CA | ||||
| Calling Code | 1 | ||||
Thirty-five million people live in the ten Canadian provinces and three territories. Click here for a list of Canadian provinces and territories.
The Aboriginals are the first peoples in Canada. They are the First Nations and the Inuit (Eskimo). The MÃÂÃÂÃÂétis are half-First Nations and half-European. In the past, Canada was owned by France and later England; for that reason, the government of Canada uses two languages: French and English. One out of every four Canadians speaks French. Most of the Canadians who speak French live in the province of Quebec, although forty percent of the population of the province of New Brunswick is also francophone.
Also, many immigrants from different countries choose to come to Canada, such as its unelected Governor General now, Adrienne Clarkson (born to Hakka Chinese parents).
Its Prime Minister now is Paul Martin Jr, whose office is in the city of Ottawa.
Here are some of the biggest cities in Canada:
- Toronto, in Ontario;
- Montreal, in Quebec;
- Vancouver, in British Columbia;
- Calgary, in Alberta;
- Ottawa, in Ontario;
- Edmonton, in Alberta.
Many people think that all of Canada is very cold and snowy. It is true that a lot of Canada's land is very far north. But most of the people of Canada live in the south where it is less cold. These cities of the souther may not even snow for most months of the year. In most of Canada's important cities, even where it is cold in the winter, it can get quite hot in the summer. In some parts of Canada, like Vancouver, it almost never snows. However, many Canadians do like winter sports like hockey and skiing.