CANADA FACT FILE

Canada is a country in the northern part of North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering 9.98 million square kilometres, making it the world's second-largest country by total area. Canada's border with the United States is the world's longest binational land border. The majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its land territory being dominated by forest and tundra and the Rocky Mountains. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, many near the southern border. One third of the population lives in the three largest metropolitan areas: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other major urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg and Hamilton.

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Canada is a federal parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A multitude of languages are used by Canadians, with English and French (the official languages) being the mother tongues of approximately 60% and 20% of Canadians, respectively. There are also 11 indigenous language groups, composed of more than 65 distinct languages and dialects. Several indigenous languages have official status in the Northwest Territories. Inuktitut is the majority language in Nunavut, and it is one of three official languages in the territory.