Portal:Canada

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

Shortcut

P:CA

Thursday, August 8, 2024

Showcase

Content

Contributing

Introduction

Flag and Arms of Canada

Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's second-largest country by total area, with the world's longest coastline. Its border with the United States is the world's longest international land border. The country is characterized by a wide range of both meteorologic and geological regions. It is a sparsely inhabited country of just over 41 million people, the vast majority residing south of the 55th parallel in urban areas. Canada's capital is Ottawa and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.

Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy in the Westminster tradition. The country's head of government is the prime minister, who holds office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the elected House of Commons and is appointed by the governor general, representing the monarch of Canada, the ceremonial head of state. The country is a Commonwealth realm and is officially bilingual (English and French) in the federal jurisdiction. It is very highly ranked in international measurements of government transparency, quality of life, economic competitiveness, innovation, education and gender equality. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration. Canada's long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its history, economy, and culture.

A developed country, Canada has a high nominal per capita income globally and its advanced economy ranks among the largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade networks. Recognized as a middle power, Canada's strong support for multilateralism and internationalism has been closely related to its foreign relations policies of peacekeeping and aid for developing countries. Canada is part of multiple international organizations and forums. (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Featured article - show another

National flag of Canada

Canadians (French: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being Canadian. (Full article...)

More featured Canadian content

See also: historic events and sites

Featured biography - show another

Wilfrid Eggleston OBE (25 March 1901 – 13 June 1986) was an Anglo-Canadian journalist, author and civil servant. Born in Lincoln to middle-class English parents, he relocated to Netherfield, Nottinghamshire where his father was convinced to move the family to a ranch in Orion, Alberta. Suffering from boredom in his teenage years, Eggleston advanced his basic English education through a fast-track course at Regina College, which qualified his entrance to Queen's University in 1926. Graduating in 1928, he found journalistic work at the Lethbridge Herald before occupying his role as Ottawa correspondent for the Toronto Star by the following year, becoming parliamentary correspondent before his resignation in 1936. (Full article...)

More featured Canadian biographies

See also: historically significant biographies

Selected panorama - show another

Panoramic view of Calgary

Credit: Calgarypano

More Canadian panoramas

National symbol - show another

Regional tartans of Canada are represented by all Canada's provinces and territories having a regional tartan, as do many other regional divisions in Canada. Tartans were first brought to Canada by Scottish settlers; the first province to adopt one officially was Nova Scotia in 1956 (when registered at the Court of the Lord Lyon; adopted by law in 1963), and the most recent province was Ontario, in 2000. Except for the tartan of Quebec, all of the provincial and territorial tartans are officially recognized and registered in the books of the Court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms of Scotland. (Full article...)

More symbols of Canada

Selected vital article - show another

The monarchy of Canada is Canada's form of government embodied by the Canadian sovereign and head of state. It is one of the key components of Canadian sovereignty and sits at the core of Canada's constitutional federal structure and Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. The monarchy is the foundation of the executive (King-in-Council), legislative (King-in-Parliament), and judicial (King-on-the-Bench) branches of both federal and provincial jurisdictions. The current monarch is King Charles III, who has reigned since 8 September 2022. (Full article...)

More Canadian vital articles

Selected picture - show another

A Canada Goose flying at Burnaby Lake Regional Park (Piper Spit), Burnaby, British Columbia.
Credit: Image by Alan D. Wilson, modified by Diliff (cropped and noise reduction applied).

More information

Featured Canadian picture

More Canadian pictures

Current events

July 31, 2024 –: One person is killed and at least 40 others are injured when a tent collapses in a windstorm at a Buddhist retreat in Busby, Alberta, Canada. (CBC News)
July 28, 2024 – 2024 Summer Olympics: Canada at the 2024 Summer Olympics; Eleanor Harvey wins a bronze medal in fencing at the 2024 Olympics, making it the first medal Canada has ever won in fencing. (TSN)
July 27, 2024 – 2024 Summer Olympics, Canada Soccer drone spying scandal: In response to the spying incident involving the Canada women's national soccer team coaching staff using drones to spy on the New Zealand team, FIFA deducts six points from Canada in the Paris Olympics women's football tournament and bans three coaches for one year, including head coach Bev Priestman. (Al Jazeera)
July 25, 2024 –: The Canada Revenue Agency announces it will revoke the charity status of the Jewish National Fund, stating that the use of its donations to fund the IDF's military infrastructure violates Canadian tax laws. (National Post)
July 24, 2024 – 2024 Canadian wildfires: Two wildfires burning in Jasper National Park reach the Jasper townsite in Alberta, causing several structure fires, with over 25,000 residents evacuating their homes since Monday. (Edmonton Journal)

Past Canadian events

Did you know - show another

... that journalist Maurice Smith helped establish a national curling championship for high school students in Canada?
... that while seeking funding for The Clarion, Carrie Best was told by a donor: "You are just a small voice crying in the wilderness – but keep on crying"?
... that according to Modern Times, a San Francisco–based bookstore collective, if there was only one book that you read in 1975 it had to be Canadian author and activist Helen Potrebenko's Taxi!?
... that the now-destroyed statue of Alexander Wood was the first LGBT monument in Canada?
... that Chuck Eisenmann went from professionally pitching in baseball to owning and training the dogs that starred on the Canadian television series The Littlest Hobo?
... that Inuvialuk actress Marika Sila views her acting career as a platform for outreach and education on the culture and rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada?
... that journalist W. A. Hewitt refereed the first game played in the history of ice hockey at the Olympic Games?

More Did you know facts

Featured list - show another

The Parliament of Canada is the legislative body of the government of Canada. The Parliament is composed of the House of Commons (lower house), the Senate (upper house), and the sovereign, represented by the governor general. Most major legislation originates from the House, as it is the only body that is directly elected. A new parliament begins after an election of the House of Commons and can sit for up to five years. The number of seats in parliament has varied as new provinces joined the country and as population distribution between the provinces changed; there are currently 338 House MPs and 105 Senators (when there are no vacancies). (Full article...)