View source for Canada

{{Short description|Country in North America}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Pp-move}}
{{Bots|deny=Citation bot}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=July 2015}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Canada<!--Before you edit this article to change the name of the country to "Dominion of Canada", please read the Talk Page Archive.-->
| common_name = Canada<!--This is not redundant, used for metadata purposes-->
| image_flag             = Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg
| alt_flag               = A vertical triband design (red, white, red) with a red maple leaf in the centre.
| image_coat             = <!-- ©! - The Coat of Arms of Canada is copyrighted under Canadian law. Please do not add anything to this parameter, without a consensus on the Talk Page.-->
| symbol_type            = [[Coat of arms of Canada|Coat of arms]]
| alt_coat               = At the top there is a rendition of St. Edward's Crown, with the crest of a crowned gold lion standing on a twisted wreath of red and white silk and holding a maple leaf in its right paw underneath. The lion is standing on top of a helm, which is above the escutcheon, ribbon, motto, and compartment. There is a supporter on either side of the escutcheon and ribbon; an English lion on the left and a Scottish unicorn on the right.
| national_motto         = {{lang|la|[[A mari usque ad mare]]}} ([[Latin]])<br />"From Sea to Sea"
| national_anthem        = "[[O Canada]]"{{parabr}}{{center|[[File:"O Canada"-«Ô Canada», performed by the National Band of the Naval Reserve.oga]]}}
| royal_anthem           = "[[God Save the King]]"<ref>{{cite web |title=Royal Anthem |date=August 11, 2017 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/royal-symbols-titles/royal-anthem.html |publisher=Government of Canada |archive-date=December 6, 2020 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20201206190257/https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/royal-symbols-titles/royal-anthem.html |url-status=live}}</ref>
{{parabr}}{{center|[[File:Royal anthem Canada.ogg]]}}
| image_map              = CAN orthographic.svg
| map_width              = 220px
| alt_map                = A projection of North America with Canada highlighted in green
| capital                = [[Ottawa]]
| coordinates            = {{Coord|45|24|N|75|40|W|type:city(1,000,000)_region:CA-ON}}
| largest_city           = [[Toronto]]
| official_languages     = {{hlist|[[Canadian English|English]]|[[Canadian French|French]]}}
| demonym                = [[Canadians|Canadian]]
| government_type        = Federal [[Constitutional monarchy |parliamentary constitutional monarchy]]
| leader_title1          = [[Monarchy of Canada|Monarch]]
| leader_name1           = [[Charles III]]
| leader_title2          = {{nowrap|[[Governor General of Canada|Governor General]]}}
| leader_name2           = [[Mary Simon]]
| leader_title3          = [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]]
| leader_name3           = [[Mark Carney]]
| legislature            = [[Parliament of Canada|Parliament]]
| upper_house            = [[Senate of Canada|Senate]]
| lower_house            = [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]]
| sovereignty_type       = Independence
| sovereignty_note       = from the [[United Kingdom]]
| established_event1     = [[Canadian Confederation|Confederation]]
| established_date1      = July 1, 1867
| established_event2     = ''[[Statute of Westminster 1931|Statute of Westminster, 1931]]''
| established_date2      = December 11, 1931
| established_event3     = [[Patriation]]
| established_date3      = April 17, 1982
| area_km2               = {{formatnum:9984670}}
| area_label             = Total area
| area_rank              = 2nd
| area_sq_mi             = {{formatnum:3854085}}<!--Do not remove per [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers]]-->
| percent_water          = 11.76 (2015)<ref>{{cite web |title=Surface water and surface water change |url=https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=SURFACE_WATER# |access-date=October 11, 2020 |publisher=[[OECD]] |archive-date=December 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181209191004/https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=SURFACE_WATER |url-status=live}}</ref>
| area_label2            = Total land area
| area_data2             = {{convert|9093507|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}
| population_estimate    = {{IncreaseNeutral}} {{formatnum:41528680}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 20, 2025 |title=Population estimates, quarterly |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1710000901 |url-status=live |access-date=March 20, 2024 |publisher=Statistics Canada |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250320112058/https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1710000901 |archive-date=March 20, 2025}}</ref>
| population_estimate_year = 2025 Q1
| population_census      = {{IncreaseNeutral}} {{formatnum:36991981}}<ref>{{cite web |date=February 9, 2022 |title=Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUIDList=2021A000011124&GENDERList=1&STATISTICList=1&HEADERList=0&SearchText=Canada |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209165904/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUIDList=2021A000011124&GENDERList=1&STATISTICList=1&HEADERList=0&SearchText=Canada |archive-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref>
| population_census_year = [[2021 Canadian census|2021]]
| population_estimate_rank = 37th
| population_density_km2 = 4.2
| population_density_sq_mi = 10.9<!--Do not remove per [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers]]-->
| population_density_rank = 230th
| GDP_PPP                = {{increase}} {{nowrap|$2.730&nbsp;trillion}}<ref name="IMFWEO.CA">{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2025/april/weo-report?c=156,&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2023&ey=2030&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2025 Edition. (Canada) |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |website=www.imf.org |date=April 22, 2025 |access-date=May 26, 2025}}</ref>
| GDP_PPP_year           = 2025
| GDP_PPP_rank           = 16th
| GDP_PPP_per_capita     = {{increase}} $65,707<ref name="IMFWEO.CA" />
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 24th
| GDP_nominal            = {{decrease}} {{nowrap|$2.225{{nbsp}}trillion}}<ref name="IMFWEO.CA" />
| GDP_nominal_year       = 2025
| GDP_nominal_rank       = 9th
| GDP_nominal_per_capita = {{decrease}} $53,558<ref name="IMFWEO.CA" />
| GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 20th
| Gini                   = 29.2 <!--number only-->
| Gini_year              = 2024
| Gini_change            = decrease<!--increase/decrease/steady-->
| Gini_ref               = <ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/social-issues-migration-health/income-inequality/indicator/english_459aa7f1-en |title=Income inequality |publisher=OECD |doi=10.1787/459aa7f1-en|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
| HDI                    = 0.939 <!--number only-->
| HDI_year               = 2023<!-- Please use the year to which the data refers, not the publication year-->
| HDI_change             = increase<!--increase/decrease/steady -->
| HDI_ref                = <ref name="UNHDR">{{Cite web |date=May 6, 2025 |title=Human Development Report 2025 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250506051232/https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |archive-date=May 6, 2025 |access-date=May 6, 2025 |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]] |language=en}}</ref>
| HDI_rank               = 16th
| currency               = [[Canadian dollar]] ($)
| currency_code          = CAD
| utc_offset             = −3.5 to −8
| utc_offset_DST         = −2.5 to −7
| calling_code           = +1
| cctld                  = [[.ca]]
}}
<!---Overly detailed information such as listing examples, statistics or naming people should be reserved for the body of the article.--->

'''Canada'''<!--Before you edit this article to change the name of the country to "Dominion of Canada", please read the Talk Page Archive.-->{{efn|{{IPA|en|ˈkænədə|lang|En-ca-Canada.ogg}},<ref name="j933">{{cite web | title=How to Pronounce Canada | website=Britannica Dictionary | url=https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/eb/audio?file=ggcana03&format=mp3&word=Canada&pron=%CB%88k%C3%A6n%C9%99d%C9%99 | access-date=June 19, 2025}}</ref> {{IPA|fr|kanada|lang|Fr-Canada.ogg}}}} is a country in [[North America]]. Its [[Provinces and territories of Canada|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 [[List of countries and dependencies by area|second-largest country by total area]], with the [[List of countries by length of coastline|world's longest coastline]]. Its [[Canada–United States border|border with the United States]] is the longest international land border. The country is characterized by a wide range of both [[Temperature in Canada|meteorologic]] and [[Geography of Canada|geological]] regions. With [[Population of Canada|a population]] of over 41{{nbsp}}million, it has widely varying population densities, with the majority residing in [[List of the largest population centres in Canada|urban areas]] and large areas of the country being sparsely populated. Canada's capital is [[Ottawa]] and [[List of census metropolitan areas and agglomerations in Canada|its three largest metropolitan areas]] are [[Toronto]], [[Montreal]], and [[Vancouver]].

[[Indigenous peoples in Canada|Indigenous peoples]] have continuously inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years. Beginning in the 16th century, [[British colonization of the Americas|British]] and [[French colonization of the Americas|French]] expeditions explored and later settled along the Atlantic coast. As a consequence of [[Military history of Canada|various armed conflicts]], France [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|ceded nearly all]] of [[New France|its colonies in North America]] in 1763. In 1867, with the union of three [[British North America]]n colonies through [[Canadian Confederation|Confederation]], Canada was formed as a [[Federalism|federal]] [[dominion]] of four provinces. This began an [[Territorial evolution of Canada|accretion of provinces and territories]] resulting in the [[Numbered Treaties|displacement of Indigenous populations]], and a process of increasing autonomy from the United Kingdom. This increased sovereignty was highlighted by the ''[[Statute of Westminster 1931|Statute of Westminster, 1931]]'', and culminated in the ''[[Canada Act 1982]]'', which severed the vestiges of legal dependence on the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]].

Canada is a [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary democracy]] and a [[constitutional monarchy]] in the [[Westminster system|Westminster tradition]]. The country's [[head of government]] is the [[Prime Minister of Canada|prime minister]], who holds office by virtue of their ability to [[Confidence and supply|command the confidence]] of the elected [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]] and is appointed by the [[Governor General of Canada|governor general]], representing the [[Monarchy of Canada|monarch of Canada]], the ceremonial [[head of state]]. The country is a [[Commonwealth realm]] and is [[Official bilingualism in Canada|officially bilingual]] (English and French) in the federal jurisdiction. It is [[International rankings of Canada|very highly ranked in international measurements]] of government transparency, quality of life, economic competitiveness, innovation, education and human rights. It is one of the world's most [[Ethnic origins of people in Canada|ethnically diverse]] and [[Multiculturalism in Canada|multicultural]] nations, the product of [[Immigration to Canada|large-scale immigration]]. Canada's long and complex [[Canada–United States relations|relationship with the United States]] has had a significant impact on [[History of Canada|its history]], [[Economy of Canada|economy]], and [[Culture of Canada|culture]].

A [[developed country]], Canada has a [[List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita|high nominal per capita income globally]] and its advanced economy ranks among the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|largest in the world by nominal GDP]], relying chiefly upon [[Geography of Canada#Natural resources|its abundant natural resources]] and well-developed [[List of the largest trading partners of Canada|international trade networks]]. Recognized as a [[middle power]], Canada's support for [[multilateralism]] and [[Internationalism (politics)|internationalism]] has been closely related to [[Foreign relations of Canada|its foreign relations policies]] of [[Canadian peacekeeping|peacekeeping]] and [[Aid|aid for developing countries]]. Canada promotes [[Canadian values|its domestically shared values]] through participation in [[International organisation membership of Canada|multiple international organizations and forums]].

==Etymology==
<!--Linked-->

{{Main|Name of Canada}}<!--Please see the talk page before editing this to specify which languages produced the word Canada. There are differences of opinion, which may be best discussed at Name of Canada-->

While a variety of theories have been postulated for the etymological origins of ''Canada'', the name is now accepted as coming from the [[St. Lawrence Iroquoians|St. Lawrence Iroquoian]] word {{lang|lre|kanata}}, meaning "village" or "settlement".<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Olson |first1=James Stuart |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uyqepNdgUWkC&pg=PA109 |title=Historical Dictionary of European Imperialism |last2=Shadle |first2=Robert |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-313-26257-9 |page=109}}</ref> In 1535, Indigenous inhabitants of the present-day [[Quebec City]] region used the word to direct French explorer [[Jacques Cartier]] to the village of [[Stadacona]].<ref name="Rayburn2001">{{Cite book |last=Rayburn |first=Alan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aiUZMOypNB4C&pg=PA14 |title=Naming Canada: Stories about Canadian Place Names |publisher=[[University of Toronto Press]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-8020-8293-0 |pages=14–22}}</ref> Cartier later used the word ''Canada'' to refer not only to that particular village but to the entire area subject to [[Donnacona]] (the chief at Stadacona);<ref name="Rayburn2001" /> by 1545, European books and maps had begun referring to this small region along the [[Saint Lawrence River]] as ''Canada''.<ref name="Rayburn2001" />

From the 16th to the early 18th century, ''[[Canada (New France)|Canada]]'' referred to the part of [[New France]] that lay along the Saint Lawrence River.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Magocsi |first=Paul R. |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofca0000unse_q5r1 |title=Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-8020-2938-6 |page=1048 |url-access=registration}}</ref> Following the British [[conquest of New France]], this area was known as the British [[Province of Quebec (1763–1791)|Province of Quebec]] from 1763 to 1791.<ref name="f014">{{cite web | title=Province of Quebec 1763-91 | website=The Canadian Encyclopedia | date=May 14, 2020 | url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/province-of-quebec-1763-91 | access-date=October 1, 2024}}</ref> In 1791, the area became two British colonies called [[Upper Canada]] and [[Lower Canada]]. These two colonies were collectively referred to as [[the Canadas]] until their union as the [[Province of Canada]] in 1841.<ref>{{cite web |year=1841 |title=An Act to Re-write the Provinces of Upper and Lower Canada, and for the Government of Canada |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BCQtAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA20 |publisher=J.C. Fisher & W. Kimble |page=20}}</ref>

Upon [[Canadian Confederation|Confederation in 1867]], ''Canada'' was adopted as the legal name for the new country at the [[London Conference of 1866|London Conference]] and the word ''[[dominion]]'' was conferred as the country's title.<ref>{{Cite book |last=O'Toole |first=Roger |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OGHgLlxfh7wC&pg=PA137 |title=Holy Nations and Global Identities: Civil Religion, Nationalism, and Globalisation |publisher=Brill |year=2009 |isbn=978-90-04-17828-1 |editor-last=Hvithamar |editor-first=Annika |page=137 |chapter=Dominion of the Gods: Religious continuity and change in a Canadian context |editor-last2=Warburg |editor-first2=Margit |editor-last3=Jacobsen |editor-first3=Brian Arly}}</ref> By the 1950s, the term ''Dominion of Canada'' was no longer used by the United Kingdom, which considered Canada a "realm of the Commonwealth".<ref>{{multiref2
| {{Cite book |last=Morra |first=Irene |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b9OLDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT49 |title=The New Elizabethan Age: Culture, Society and National Identity after World War II |publisher=I.B.Tauris |year=2016 |isbn=978-0-85772-867-8 |page=49}}
| {{cite book | last=McIntyre | first=D. | title=British Decolonization, 1946–1997: When, Why and How did the British Empire Fall? | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing | series=British History in Perspective | year=1998 | isbn=978-1-349-26922-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5FKEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA108 | page=108}}
}}</ref>

The ''[[Canada Act 1982]]'', which brought the [[Constitution of Canada]] fully under Canadian control, referred only to ''Canada''. Later that year, the name of the national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to [[Canada Day]].<ref name="buckner">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KmXnLGX7FvEC&pg=PA37 |title=Canada and the British Empire |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-927164-1 |editor-last=Buckner |editor-first=Philip |pages=37–40, 56–59, 114, 124–125}}</ref>

==History==
{{Main|History of Canada}}
{{Further|Timeline of Canadian history|Historiography of Canada}}

===Indigenous peoples===
The [[Settlement of the Americas|first inhabitants of North America]] are generally hypothesized to have migrated from [[Siberia]] by way of the [[Beringia|Bering land bridge]] and arrived at least 14,000 years ago.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{Cite book |last=Dillehay |first=Thomas D. |title=The Settlement of the Americas: A New Prehistory |publisher=Basic Books |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7867-2543-4 |page=61}}
| {{Cite book |last1=Fagan |first1=Brian M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fMneCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA124 |title=World Prehistory: A Brief Introduction |last2=Durrani |first2=Nadia |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-317-34244-1 |page=124}}
}}</ref> The [[Paleo-Indian]] archeological sites at [[Old Crow Flats]] and [[Bluefish Caves]] are two of the oldest sites of human habitation in Canada.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rawat |first=Rajiv |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AwlYiuPAX-UC&pg=PT58 |title=Circumpolar Health Atlas |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4426-4456-4 |page=58}}</ref> The [[Technological and industrial history of Canada#The Stone Age: Fire (14,000 BC – AD 1600)|characteristics of Indigenous societies]] included permanent settlements, agriculture, complex societal hierarchies, and trading networks.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{Cite book |last=Hayes |first=Derek |title=Canada: An Illustrated History |publisher=Douglas & Mcintyre |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-55365-259-5 |pages=7, 13}}
| {{Cite book |last=Macklem |first=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=quM1xyFyfhQC&pg=PA170 |title=Indigenous Difference and the Constitution of Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-8020-4195-1 |page=170}}
}}</ref> Some of these cultures had collapsed by the time European explorers arrived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries and have only been discovered through archeological investigations.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sonneborn |first=Liz |title=Chronology of American Indian History |date=January 2007 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=978-0-8160-6770-1 |pages=2–12}}</ref> [[Indigenous peoples in Canada|Indigenous peoples in present-day Canada]] include the [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]], [[Inuit]], and [[Métis people in Canada|Métis]],<ref name="GraberKuprecht2012">{{Cite book |last1=Graber |first1=Christoph Beat |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5dv2d57n52MC&pg=PA366 |title=International Trade in Indigenous Cultural Heritage: Legal and Policy Issues |last2=Kuprecht |first2=Karolina |last3=Lai |first3=Jessica C. |author-link3=Jessica Lai |publisher=Edward Elgar Publishing |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-85793-831-2 |page=366}}</ref> the last being of [[mixed-blood|mixed descent]] who originated in the mid-17th century when First Nations people married European settlers and their offspring subsequently developed their own identity.<ref name="GraberKuprecht2012" />[[File:Indigenous population by census division.svg|upright=1.3|thumb|A map of Canada showing the percent of [[Population of Canada#Indigenous peoples|self-reported indigenous identity]] (First Nations, Inuit, Métis) by census division, according to the [[2021 Canadian census]]<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022 u867">{{cite web |title=Census Program Data Viewer dashboard |website=Statistics Canada |date=February 9, 2022 |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/dv-vd/cpdv-vdpr/index-eng.cfm |access-date=February 3, 2024|archive-date=January 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240125123112/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/dv-vd/cpdv-vdpr/index-eng.cfm |url-status=live}}</ref>]]

The [[Population history of indigenous peoples of the Americas|Indigenous population]] at the time of the first European settlements is estimated to have been between 200,000<ref name="dying">{{Cite book |last1=Wilson |first1=Donna M |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p_pMVs53mzQC&pg=PA25 |title=Dying and Death in Canada |last2=Northcott |first2=Herbert C |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-55111-873-4 |pages=25–27}}</ref> and two million,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Thornton |first=Russell |title=A population history of North America |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-521-49666-7 |editor-last=Haines |editor-first=Michael R |pages=13, 380 |chapter=Population history of Native North Americans |editor-last2=Steckel |editor-first2=Richard Hall}}</ref> with a figure of 500,000 accepted by Canada's [[Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=O'Donnell |first=C. Vivian |title=Indians in Contemporary Society |publisher=Government Printing Office |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-16-080388-8 |editor-last=Bailey |editor-first=Garrick Alan |series=Handbook of North American Indians |volume=2 |page=285 |chapter=Native Populations of Canada |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z1IwUbZqjTUC&pg=PA285}}</ref> As a consequence of European colonization, the Indigenous population declined by forty to eighty percent.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Marshall |first=Ingeborg |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ckOav3Szu7oC&pg=PA442 |title=A History and Ethnography of the Beothuk |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-7735-1774-5 |page=442}}</ref> The decline is attributed to several causes, including the [[Columbian exchange|transfer of European diseases]], to which they had no natural immunity,<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite journal | last1=Collen | first1=Evelyn Jane | last2=Johar | first2=Angad Singh | last3=Teixeira | first3=João C. | last4=Llamas | first4=Bastien | title=The immunogenetic impact of European colonization in the Americas | journal=Frontiers in Genetics | publisher=Frontiers Media SA | volume=13 | date=August 5, 2022 | issn=1664-8021 | doi=10.3389/fgene.2022.918227 | doi-access=free | pages=1–8| pmid=35991555 | pmc=9388791 }}
| {{Cite book |last=True Peters |first=Stephanie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v0zEiM_hijsC&pg=PA39 |title=Smallpox in the New World |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7614-1637-1 |page=39}}
}}</ref> conflicts over the fur trade, conflicts with the colonial authorities and settlers, and the loss of Indigenous lands to settlers and the subsequent collapse of several nations' self-sufficiency.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{Cite book |last1=Laidlaw |first1=Z. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ec-_BwAAQBAJ&pg=PT150 |title=Indigenous Communities and Settler Colonialism: Land Holding, Loss and Survival in an Interconnected World |last2=Lester |first2=Alan |publisher=Springer |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-137-45236-8 |page=150}}
| {{Cite book |last=Ray |first=Arthur J. |url=https://archive.org/details/ihavelivedheresi0000raya/page/244 |title=I Have Lived Here Since The World Began |publisher=Key Porter Books |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-55263-633-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/ihavelivedheresi0000raya/page/244 244]}}
}}</ref>

Although not without conflict, [[European Canadians]]' early interactions with First Nations and Inuit populations were relatively peaceful.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Preston |first=David L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L-9N6-6UCnoC&pg=PA43 |title=The Texture of Contact: European and Indian Settler Communities on the Frontiers of Iroquoia, 1667–1783 |publisher=[[University of Nebraska Press]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-8032-2549-7 |pages=43–44}}</ref> First Nations and Métis peoples played a critical part in the development of [[Former colonies and territories in Canada|European colonies in Canada]], particularly for their role in assisting European [[coureur des bois|coureurs des bois]] and [[voyageurs]] in their explorations of the continent during the [[North American fur trade]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=J.R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TcPckf7snr8C&pg=PT34 |title=Compact, Contract, Covenant: Aboriginal Treaty-Making in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4426-9227-5 |page=34}}</ref> These early European interactions with First Nations would change from [[Peace and Friendship Treaties|friendship and peace treaties]] to the [[Numbered Treaties|dispossession of Indigenous lands through treaties]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=Williams |first=L. |title=Indigenous Intergenerational Resilience: Confronting Cultural and Ecological Crisis |publisher=Taylor & Francis |series=Routledge Studies in Indigenous Peoples and Policy |year=2021 |isbn=978-1-000-47233-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HehEEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT51 |page=51}}
| {{cite book |last=Turner |first=N.J. |title=Plants, People, and Places: The Roles of Ethnobotany and Ethnoecology in Indigenous Peoples' Land Rights in Canada and Beyond |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |series=McGill-Queen's Indigenous and Northern Studies |year=2020 |isbn=978-0-2280-0317-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JVjZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA14 |page=14}}
}}</ref> From the late 18th century, European Canadians forced Indigenous peoples to assimilate into a western Canadian society.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Asch |first=Michael |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9Uae4mTTyYYC&pg=PA28 |title=Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in Canada: Essays on Law, Equity, and Respect for Difference |publisher=UBC Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-7748-0581-0 |page=28}}</ref> [[Settler colonialism in Canada|Settler colonialism]] reached a climax in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |author=Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada |title=Canada's Residential Schools: The History, Part 1, Origins to 1939: The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Volume I |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7gWQCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA3 |date=January 1, 2016 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |isbn=978-0-7735-9818-8 |pages=3–7}}
| {{cite book |last=Lux |first=M.K. |title=Separate Beds: A History of Indian Hospitals in Canada, 1920s-1980s |publisher=University of Toronto Press |series=G - Reference, Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-4426-1386-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o9gQDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA7 |page=7}}
| {{cite book |last1=Kirmayer |first1=Laurence J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AXYDxvx3zSAC&pg=PA9 |title=Healing Traditions: The Mental Health of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada |last2=Guthrie |first2=Gail Valaskakis |publisher=UBC Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-7748-5863-2 |page=9}}
}}</ref> A period of redress began with the formation of a [[Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada|reconciliation commission]] by the [[Government of Canada]] in 2008.<ref name="trc">{{cite web |year=2015 |title=Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action |url=http://www.trc.ca/websites/trcinstitution/File/2015/Findings/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150615202024/http://www.trc.ca/websites/trcinstitution/File/2015/Findings/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf |archive-date=June 15, 2015 |publisher=National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation |page=5}}</ref> This included acknowledgment of [[Canadian genocide of Indigenous peoples|cultural genocide]],<ref name="TRCSummary">{{cite web |title=Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future: Summary of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada |url=https://nctr.ca/assets/reports/Final%20Reports/Executive_Summary_English_Web.pdf |website=National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation |publisher=Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada |access-date=January 6, 2019 |date=May 31, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160706170855/http://www.trc.ca/websites/trcinstitution/File/2015/Findings/Exec_Summary_2015_05_31_web_o.pdf |archive-date=July 6, 2016}}</ref> [[Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement|settlement agreements]],<ref name="trc" /> and betterment of racial discrimination issues, such as addressing the plight of [[missing and murdered Indigenous women]].<ref name="Ministère de la Justice 2017">{{cite web |title=Principles respecting the Government of Canada's relationship with Indigenous peoples |website=Ministère de la Justice |date=July 14, 2017 |url=https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/principles-principes.html |archive-date=June 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610052703/https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/principles-principes.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

===European colonization===
[[File:Nouvelle-France map-en.svg|upright=1.3|thumb|Map of territorial claims in [[North America]] by 1750. Possessions of [[British America]] (pink), [[New France]] (blue), and [[New Spain]] (orange); California, Pacific Northwest, and Great Basin not indicated.<ref name="Chapman p.">{{cite AV media |last=Chapman |first=Frederick T. |title=European Claims in North America in 1750 |jstor=community.15128627 |url=https://jstor.org/stable/community.15128627 |access-date=July 23, 2023}}</ref>]]
It is believed that the first documented European to explore the east coast of Canada was [[Vikings|Norse]] explorer [[Leif Erikson]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite encyclopedia |last=Wallace |first=Birgitta |date=October 12, 2018 |title=Leif Eriksson |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/leif-ericsson |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=June 4, 2020 |archive-date=April 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413193628/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/leif-ericsson |url-status=live}}
| {{cite book |last1=Johansen |first1=Bruce E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sGKL6E9_J6IC&pg=PA727 |title=Encyclopedia of American Indian History |last2=Pritzker |first2=Barry M. |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-85109-818-7 |pages=727–728}}
}}</ref> In approximately 1000 AD, the Norse built a small short-lived encampment that was occupied sporadically for perhaps 20 years at [[L'Anse aux Meadows]] on the northern tip of [[Newfoundland]].<ref name="CordellLightfoot2008">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site |encyclopedia=Archaeology in America: An Encyclopedia |publisher=ABC-CLIO |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=arfWRW5OFVgC&pg=PA82 |year=2009 |pages=27, 82 |isbn=978-0-313-02189-3 |last2=Lightfoot |first2=Kent |last3=McManamon |first3=Francis |last4=Milner |first4=George |first1=Linda S. |last1=Cordell}}</ref> No further European exploration occurred until 1497, when seafarer [[John Cabot]] explored and claimed Canada's [[Atlantic Canada|Atlantic coast]] in the name of [[Henry VII of England]].<ref name="BlakeKeshen2017p19">{{Cite book |last1=Blake |first1=Raymond B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z4kwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA19 |title=Conflict and Compromise: Pre-Confederation Canada |last2=Keshen |first2=Jeffrey |last3=Knowles |first3=Norman J. |last4=Messamore |first4=Barbara J. |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-4426-3553-1 |page=19}}</ref> In 1534, French explorer Jacques Cartier explored the [[Gulf of Saint Lawrence]] where, on July 24, he planted a {{convert|10|m|ft|adj=on}} cross bearing the words, "long live the King of France", and took possession of the territory New France in the name of [[Francis I of France|King Francis I]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Cartier |first1=Jacques |url=https://archive.org/details/voyagesofjacques0000cart |title=The Voyages of Jacques Cartier |last2=Biggar |first2=Henry Percival |last3=Cook |first3=Ramsay |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-8020-6000-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/voyagesofjacques0000cart/page/n79 26] |url-access=registration}}</ref> The early 16th century saw European mariners with navigational techniques pioneered by the [[Basques|Basque]] and [[Portuguese discoveries|Portuguese]] establish seasonal whaling and fishing outposts along the Atlantic coast.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kerr |first=Donald Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=itsTLSnw8qgC&pg=PA47 |title=Historical Atlas of Canada: From the beginning to 1800 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-8020-2495-4 |page=47}}</ref> In general, early settlements during the [[Age of Discovery]] appear to have been [[Population of Canada#Ephemeral European settlements|short-lived]] due to a combination of the harsh climate, problems with navigating trade routes and competing outputs in Scandinavia.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=Baten |first=Jörg |title=A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present |date=2016 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-50718-0 |page=84}}
| {{cite book |last=Wynn |first=Graeme |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bxGFaFvo2oMC&pg=PA49 |title=Canada and Arctic North America: An Environmental History |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-85109-437-0 |page=49}}
}}</ref>

In 1583, Sir [[Humphrey Gilbert]], by the [[royal prerogative]] of Queen [[Elizabeth I]], founded [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St John's, Newfoundland]], as the first North American [[English overseas possessions|English seasonal camp]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rose |first=George A |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tDNe7GOOwfwC&pg=PA209 |title=Cod: The Ecological History of the North Atlantic Fisheries |date=October 1, 2007 |publisher=[[Breakwater Books]] |isbn=978-1-55081-225-1 |page=209}}</ref> In 1600, the French established their first seasonal trading post at [[Tadoussac]] along the Saint Lawrence.<ref name="CordellLightfoot2008" /> French explorer [[Samuel de Champlain]] arrived in 1603 and established the first permanent year-round European settlements at [[Port-Royal (Acadia)|Port Royal]] (in 1605) and Quebec City (in 1608).<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kelley |first1=Ninette |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3IHyRvsCiKMC&pg=PA27 |title=The Making of the Mosaic: A History of Canadian Immigration Policy |last2=Trebilcock |first2=Michael J. |date=September 30, 2010 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-0-8020-9536-7 |page=27}}</ref> Among the [[French colonization of the Americas|colonists]] of New France, ''[[French Canadians|Canadiens]]'' extensively settled the Saint Lawrence River valley and [[Acadians]] settled the present-day [[The Maritimes|Maritimes]], while fur traders and [[Catholic Church and the Age of Discovery|Catholic missionaries]] explored the [[Great Lakes]], [[Hudson Bay]], and the [[Mississippi watershed]] to [[Louisiana (New France)|Louisiana]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=LaMar |first=Howard Roberts |url=https://archive.org/details/readersencyclope00lama_0/page/355 |title=The Reader's Encyclopedia of the American West |publisher=[[University of Michigan Press]] |year=1977 |isbn=978-0-690-00008-5 |page=[https://archive.org/details/readersencyclope00lama_0/page/355 355] |author-link=Howard R. Lamar}}</ref> The [[Beaver Wars]] broke out in the mid-17th century over control of the North American fur trade.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Tucker |first1=Spencer C |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JsM4A0GSO34C&pg=PA394 |title=The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Wars, 1607–1890: A Political, Social, and Military History |last2=Arnold |first2=James |last3=Wiener |first3=Roberta |date=September 30, 2011 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-85109-697-8 |page=394}}</ref>

The English established additional settlements in [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] in 1610 along with settlements in the [[Thirteen Colonies]] to the south.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Buckner |first1=Phillip Alfred |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_5AHjGRigpYC&pg=PA55 |title=The Atlantic Region to Confederation: A History |last2=Reid |first2=John G. |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-8020-6977-1 |pages=55–56}}
| {{cite book |last=Hornsby |first=Stephen J |title=British Atlantic, American frontier: spaces of power in early modern British America |publisher=[[University Press of New England]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-58465-427-8 |pages=14, 18–19, 22–23}}
}}</ref> A series of [[French and Indian Wars|four wars]] erupted in colonial North America between 1689 and 1763; the later wars of the period constituted the North American theatre of the [[Seven Years' War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nolan |first=Cathal J |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Nn_61ts-hQwC&pg=PA160 |title=Wars of the age of Louis XIV, 1650–1715: an encyclopedia of global warfare and civilization |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-313-33046-9 |page=160}}</ref> Mainland [[Nova Scotia]] came under British rule with the 1713 [[Treaty of Utrecht]] and Canada and most of New France came under British rule in 1763 after the Seven Years' War.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Allaire |first=Gratien |date=May 2007 |title=From 'Nouvelle-France' to 'Francophonie canadienne': a historical survey |journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language |issue=185 |pages=25–52 |doi=10.1515/IJSL.2007.024 |issn=0165-2516}}</ref>

===British North America===
[[File:Benjamin West 005.jpg|thumb|alt=Painting of General Wolfe dying in front of the British flag while attended by officers and native allies|[[Benjamin West]]'s ''[[The Death of General Wolfe]]'' (1771) dramatizes [[James Wolfe]]'s death during the [[Battle of the Plains of Abraham]] at [[Quebec City]].<ref name="National Gallery of Canada n963">{{cite web |title=The Death of General Wolfe |website=National Gallery of Canada |url=https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artwork/the-death-of-general-wolfe-0 |access-date=July 23, 2023 |archive-date=July 26, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230726125332/https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artwork/the-death-of-general-wolfe-0 | url-status=live}}</ref>]]

The [[Royal Proclamation of 1763]] established First Nation treaty rights, created the [[Province of Quebec (1763–1791)|Province of Quebec]] out of New France, and annexed [[Cape Breton Island]] to Nova Scotia.<ref name="buckner" /> St John's Island (now [[Prince Edward Island]]) became a separate colony in 1769.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hicks |first=Bruce M |date=March 2010 |title=Use of Non-Traditional Evidence: A Case Study Using Heraldry to Examine Competing Theories for Canada's Confederation |journal=[[British Journal of Canadian Studies]] |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=87–117 |doi=10.3828/bjcs.2010.5}}</ref> To avert conflict in [[Quebec]], the British Parliament passed the [[Quebec Act]] 1774, expanding Quebec's territory to the Great Lakes and [[Ohio River|Ohio Valley]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hopkins |first=John Castell |url=https://archive.org/details/canadaencyclop05hopk |title=Canada: an Encyclopaedia of the Country: The Canadian Dominion Considered in Its Historic Relations, Its Natural Resources, its Material Progress and its National Development, by a Corps of Eminent Writers and Specialists |publisher=Linscott Publishing Company |year=1898 |page=[https://archive.org/details/canadaencyclop05hopk/page/125 125]}}</ref> More importantly, the Quebec Act afforded Quebec special autonomy and rights of self-administration at a time when the Thirteen Colonies were increasingly agitating against British rule.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nellis |first=Eric |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-b6YVX53fIsC&pg=PT331 |title=An Empire of Regions: A Brief History of Colonial British America |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-4426-0403-2 |page=331}}</ref> It re-established the French language, Catholic faith, and [[Law of France|French civil law]] there, staving off the growth of an independence movement in contrast to the Thirteen Colonies.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Stuart |first1=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fdx4AV1kgCsC&pg=PA101 |title=The Catholic Faith and the Social Construction of Religion: With Particular Attention to the Québec Experience |last2=Savage |first2=Allan M. |publisher=WestBow Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4497-2084-1 |pages=101–102}}</ref> The Proclamation and the Quebec Act in turn angered many residents of the Thirteen Colonies, further fuelling anti-British sentiment in the years prior to the [[American Revolution]].<ref name="buckner" />

After the successful American War of Independence, the [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|1783 Treaty of Paris]] recognized the independence of the newly formed [[United States]] and set the terms of peace, ceding [[British North America]]n territories south of the Great Lakes and east of the Mississippi River to the new country.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Leahy |first1=Todd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=999tRpj8VGQC&pg=PR49 |title=Native American Movements |last2=Wilson |first2=Raymond |date=September 30, 2009 |publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]] |isbn=978-0-8108-6892-2 |page=49}}</ref> The American war of independence also caused a large out-migration of [[Loyalists]], the settlers who had fought against American independence. Many moved to Canada, particularly Atlantic Canada, where their arrival changed the demographic distribution of the existing territories. [[New Brunswick]] was in turn split from Nova Scotia as part of a reorganization of Loyalist settlements in the Maritimes, which led to the incorporation of [[Saint John, New Brunswick]], as Canada's first city.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Newman |first=Peter C |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kBGzCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA117 |title=Hostages to Fortune: The United Empire Loyalists and the Making of Canada |date=2016 |publisher=Touchstone |isbn=978-1-4516-8615-9 |page=117 |author-link=Peter C. Newman}}</ref> To accommodate the influx of English-speaking Loyalists in Central Canada, the [[Constitutional Act 1791|Constitutional Act of 1791]] divided the province of Canada into French-speaking Lower Canada (later [[Quebec]]) and English-speaking Upper Canada (later [[Ontario#Canada West (1841–1867)|Ontario]]), granting each its own elected legislative assembly.<ref>{{Cite book |last=McNairn |first=Jeffrey L |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T_A3pZQrHzIC&pg=PA24 |title=The capacity to judge |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-8020-4360-3 |page=24}}</ref>
[[File:Laura Secord warns Fitzgibbons, 1813.jpg|thumb|alt=Painting of Laura Secord warning British commander James FitzGibbon of an impending American attack at Beaver Dams|[[War of 1812]] heroine [[Laura Secord]] warning British commander [[James FitzGibbon]] of an [[Battle of Beaver Dams|impending American attack at Beaver Dams]]<ref name="Collection Search 2023 k800">{{cite web |title=Meeting Between Laura Secord and Lieut. Fitzgibbon, June 1813 |website=Collection Search |date=July 13, 2023 |url=https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/home/record?app=fonandcol&IdNumber=2837234 |archive-date=October 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231009191745/https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/home/record?app=fonandcol&IdNumber=2837234 | url-status=live}}</ref>]]

The Canadas were the main front in the [[War of 1812]] between the United States and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]]. Peace came in 1815; no boundaries were changed.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Harrison |first1=Trevor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EVGDUAP3LjAC&pg=PA97 |title=Canadian Society in the Twenty-first Century: An Historical Sociological Approach |last2=Friesen |first2=John W. |publisher=Canadian Scholars' Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-55130-371-0 |pages=97–99}}</ref> Immigration resumed at a higher level, with over {{formatnum:960000}} arrivals from Britain between 1815 and 1850.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Harris |first=Richard Colebrook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tWkxht1Oa8EC&pg=PA21 |title=Historical Atlas of Canada: The land transformed, 1800–1891 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-8020-3447-2 |page=21 |display-authors=etal}}</ref> New arrivals included refugees escaping the [[Great Irish Famine]] as well as [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]]-speaking Scots displaced by the [[Highland Clearances]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Gallagher |first=John A. |year=1936 |title=The Irish Emigration of 1847 and Its Canadian Consequences |url=http://www.cchahistory.ca/journal/CCHA1935-36/Gallagher.html |url-status=live |pages=43–57 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140707141525/http://www.cchahistory.ca/journal/CCHA1935-36/Gallagher.html |archive-date=July 7, 2014 |journal=CCHA Report}}</ref> Infectious diseases killed between 25 and 33 percent of Europeans who immigrated to Canada before 1891.<ref name="dying" />

The desire for [[responsible government]] resulted in the abortive [[Rebellions of 1837]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Read |first=Colin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OWhXHCXuVvcC&pg=PR99 |title=Rebellion of 1837 in Upper Canada |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1985 |isbn=978-0-7735-8406-8 |page=99}}</ref> The [[Durham Report]] subsequently recommended responsible government and the assimilation of French Canadians into English culture.<ref name="buckner" /> The [[Act of Union 1840]] merged the Canadas into a united Province of Canada and responsible government was established for all provinces of British North America east of Lake Superior by 1855.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Romney |first=Paul |date=Spring 1989 |title=From Constitutionalism to Legalism: Trial by Jury, Responsible Government, and the Rule of Law in the Canadian Political Culture |journal=Law and History Review |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=121–174 |doi=10.2307/743779 |jstor=743779 }}</ref> 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 north|49th parallel]]. This paved the way for British colonies on [[Colony of Vancouver Island|Vancouver Island (1849)]] and in [[Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866)|British Columbia (1858)]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Evenden |first1=Leonard J |title=Geographical Snapshots of North America |last2=Turbeville |first2=Daniel E |publisher=Guilford Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-89862-030-6 |editor-last=Janelle |editor-first=Donald G |page=[https://archive.org/details/geographicalsnap0000unse/page/52 52] |chapter=The Pacific Coast Borderland and Frontier |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/geographicalsnap0000unse/page/52}}</ref> The Anglo-Russian [[Treaty of Saint Petersburg (1825)]] established the border along the Pacific coast, but, even after the US [[Alaska Purchase]] of 1867, disputes continued about the exact demarcation of the Alaska–Yukon and Alaska–British Columbia border.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Farr |first1=DML |last2=Block |first2=Niko |date=August 9, 2016 |title=The Alaska Boundary Dispute |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/alaska-boundary-dispute |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215092859/http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/alaska-boundary-dispute/ |archive-date=December 15, 2017 |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia}}</ref>

===Confederation and expansion===
[[File:Canada provinces evolution 2.gif|thumb|upright=1.3|alt=Refer to caption|Animated map showing [[Territorial evolution of Canada|the growth and change of Canada's provinces and territories]] since Confederation in 1867<ref name="Natural Resources Canada 2016 m242">{{cite web |title=Territorial Evolution |publisher=Natural Resources Canada |date=September 12, 2016 |url=https://atlas.gc.ca/ette/en/index.html |archive-date=September 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902165955/https://atlas.gc.ca/ette/en/index.html | url-status=live}}</ref>]]

Following three constitutional conferences, the ''[[Constitution Act, 1867|British North America Act, 1867]]'' officially proclaimed Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1867, initially with four provinces: [[Ontario]], Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Dijkink |first1=Gertjan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3RRJr-5q1H0C&pg=PA226 |title=The Territorial Factor: Political Geography in a Globalising World |last2=Knippenberg |first2=Hans |publisher=[[Amsterdam University Press]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-90-5629-188-4 |page=226}}
| {{cite book |last=Bothwell |first=Robert |title=History of Canada Since 1867 |publisher=[[Michigan State University Press]] |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-87013-399-2 |pages=31, 207–310}}
}}</ref> Canada assumed control of [[Rupert's Land]] and the [[North-Western Territory]] to form the [[Northwest Territories]], where the Métis' grievances ignited the [[Red River Rebellion]] and the creation of the province of [[Manitoba]] in July 1870.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bumsted |first=JM |title=The Red River Rebellion |publisher=Watson & Dwyer |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-920486-23-8}}</ref> British Columbia and Vancouver Island (which [[Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871)|had been united]] in 1866) joined the confederation in 1871 on the promise of a transcontinental railway extending to Victoria in the province within 10 years,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/railway-history |title=Railway History in Canada |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=March 15, 2021 |archive-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429164701/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/railway-history |url-status=live}}</ref> while Prince Edward Island joined in 1873.<ref name="canatlas">{{cite web |title=Building a nation |url=http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/atlas/themes.aspx?id=building&sub=building_basics_confederation&lang=En |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060303140806/http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/atlas/themes.aspx?id=building&sub=building_basics_confederation&lang=En |archive-date=March 3, 2006 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |website=Canadian Atlas |publisher=[[Canadian Geographic]]}}</ref> In 1898, during the [[Klondike Gold Rush]] in the Northwest Territories, Parliament created the Yukon Territory. [[Alberta]] and [[Saskatchewan]] became provinces in 1905.<ref name="canatlas" /> Between 1871 and 1896, almost one quarter of the Canadian population emigrated south to the US.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Denison |first=Merrill |title=The Barley and the Stream: The Molson Story |date=1955 |publisher=McClelland & Stewart Limited |page=8}}</ref>

To open [[Western Canada|the West]] and encourage European immigration, the Government of Canada sponsored the construction of three transcontinental railways (including the [[Canadian Pacific Railway]]), passed the ''[[Dominion Lands Act]]'' to regulate settlement and established the [[North-West Mounted Police]] to assert authority over the territory.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |year=2008 |title=Sir John A. Macdonald |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/sir-john-a-macdonald/023013-5000-e.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614221958/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/sir-john-a-macdonald/023013-5000-e.html |archive-date=June 14, 2011 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Library and Archives Canada}}
| {{cite web |last=Cook |first=Terry |year=2000 |title=The Canadian West: An Archival Odyssey through the Records of the Department of the Interior |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/publications/archivist-magazine/015002-2230-e.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614222015/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/publications/archivist-magazine/015002-2230-e.html |archive-date=June 14, 2011 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |website=The Archivist |publisher=Library and Archives Canada}}
}}</ref> This [[Post-Confederation Canada (1867–1914)#Expansion|period of westward expansion]] and [[National Policy|nation building]] resulted in the displacement of many [[Plains Indians|Indigenous peoples of the Canadian Prairies]] to "[[Indian reserve]]s",<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hele |first=Karl S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IhLaAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT248 |title=The Nature of Empires and the Empires of Nature: Indigenous Peoples and the Great Lakes Environment |publisher=Wilfrid Laurier University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-55458-422-2 |page=248}}</ref> clearing the way for ethnic European [[block settlement]]s.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gagnon |first=Erica |title=Settling the West: Immigration to the Prairies from 1867 to 1914 |url=https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/settling-the-west-immigration-to-the-prairies-from-1867-to-1914 |access-date=December 18, 2020 |publisher=Canadian Museum of Immigration |archive-date=November 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128194403/https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/settling-the-west-immigration-to-the-prairies-from-1867-to-1914 |url-status=live}}</ref> This caused the collapse of the [[History of bison conservation in Canada#Plains bison|Plains Bison in western Canada]] and the introduction of European [[Agriculture in Canada|cattle farms and wheat fields]] dominating the land.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Armitage |first1=Derek |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z68_-biGhU8C&pg=PA183 |title=Adaptive Capacity and Environmental Governance |last2=Plummer |first2=Ryan |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |year=2010 |isbn=978-3-642-12194-4 |pages=183–184}}</ref> The Indigenous peoples saw widespread famine and disease due to the loss of the bison and their traditional hunting lands.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Daschuk |first=James William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mxwwZmSSOssC&pg=PA99 |title=Clearing the Plains: Disease, Politics of Starvation, and the Loss of Aboriginal Life |publisher=University of Regina Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-88977-296-0 |pages=99–104}}</ref> The federal government did provide emergency relief, on condition of the Indigenous peoples moving to the reserves.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hall |first=David John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hLoeDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA258 |title=From Treaties to Reserves: The Federal Government and Native Peoples in Territorial Alberta, 1870–1905 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-7735-4595-3 |pages=258–259}}</ref> During this time, Canada introduced the ''[[Indian Act]]'' extending its control over the First Nations to education, government and legal rights.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Jackson |first1=Robert J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u6zNDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT186 |title=Canadian Government and Politics |last2=Jackson |first2=Doreen |last3=Koop |first3=Royce |publisher=Broadview Press |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-4604-0696-0 |edition=7th |page=186}}</ref>

===Early 20th century===
{{multiple image
| perrow            = 2
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| caption_align     = center
| align             = right
| image_style       = border:none;
| header            = 1918 [[Canada Savings Bond|Canadian War bond posters]] depicting three French women pulling a plow that had been constructed for horses
| image1            = Canada WWI l'Emprunt de la Victoire2.jpg
| image2            = Canada WWI Victory Bonds2.jpg
| caption1          = French version - roughly translates as "They serve France–Everyone can serve; Buy Victory Bonds".
| caption2          = English version -  "They serve France—How can I serve Canada? Buy Victory Bonds".
}}
Because Britain still maintained control of Canada's foreign affairs under the British North America Act, 1867, its declaration of war in 1914 automatically brought [[Military history of Canada during World War I|Canada into the First World War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tennyson |first=Brian Douglas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w2OeBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA4 |title=Canada's Great War, 1914–1918: How Canada Helped Save the British Empire and Became a North American Nation |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-8108-8860-9 |page=4}}</ref> Volunteers sent to the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] later became part of the [[Canadian Corps]], which played a substantial role in the [[Battle of Vimy Ridge]] and other major engagements of the war.<ref name="morton-milhist">{{Cite book |last=Morton |first=Desmond |title=A military history of Canada |publisher=[[McClelland & Stewart]] |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-7710-6514-9 |edition=4th |pages=130–158, 173, 203–233, 258}}</ref> The [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]] erupted when the [[Unionist Party (Canada)|Unionist]] Cabinet's proposal to augment the military's dwindling number of active members with [[conscription]] was met with vehement objections from French-speaking Quebecers.<ref name="McGonigal1962">{{Cite book |last=McGonigal |first=Richard Morton |title=The Conscription Crisis in Quebec – 1917: a Study in Canadian Dualism |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |year=1962 |chapter=Intro}}</ref> In 1919, Canada joined the [[League of Nations]] independently of Britain,<ref name="morton-milhist" /> and the ''[[Statute of Westminster, 1931]]'', affirmed Canada's independence.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Morton |first=Frederick Lee |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dj_4_H35nmYC&pg=PA63 |title=Law, Politics and the Judicial Process in Canada |publisher=University of Calgary Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-1-55238-046-8 |page=63}}</ref>

The [[Great Depression in Canada]] during the early 1930s saw an economic downturn, leading to hardship across the country.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bryce |first=Robert B. |url=https://archive.org/details/maturinginhardti0000bryc |title=Maturing in Hard Times: Canada's Department of Finance through the Great Depression |year=1986 |publisher=[[McGill–Queen's University Press|McGill-Queen's]] |isbn=978-0-7735-0555-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/maturinginhardti0000bryc/page/41 41] |url-access=registration}}</ref> In response to the downturn, the [[Co-operative Commonwealth Federation]] (CCF) in Saskatchewan introduced many elements of a [[welfare state]] (as pioneered by [[Tommy Douglas]]) in the 1940s and 1950s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mulvale |first=James P |date=July 11, 2008 |title=Basic Income and the Canadian Welfare State: Exploring the Realms of Possibility |journal=Basic Income Studies |volume=3 |issue=1 |doi=10.2202/1932-0183.1084}}</ref> On the advice of Prime Minister [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]], [[Declaration of war by Canada#Nazi Germany|war with Germany was declared]] effective September 10, 1939, by King [[George VI]], seven days after the United Kingdom. The delay underscored Canada's independence.<ref name="morton-milhist" />

The first Canadian Army units arrived in Britain in December 1939. In all, over a million Canadians served in the armed forces during the [[Second World War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Humphreys |first=Edward |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z-SsBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT151 |title=Great Canadian Battles: Heroism and Courage Through the Years |publisher=Arcturus Publishing |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-78404-098-7 |page=151}}</ref> Canadian troops played important roles in many key battles of the war, including the failed 1942 [[Dieppe Raid]], the [[Allied invasion of Italy]], the [[Normandy landings]], the [[Operation Overlord|Battle of Normandy]], and the [[Battle of the Scheldt]] in 1944.<ref name="morton-milhist" /> Canada provided asylum for the [[Dutch monarchy]] while that country was [[Reichskommissariat Niederlande|occupied]] and is credited by the Netherlands for major contributions to [[Liberation Day (Netherlands)|its liberation]] from [[Nazi Germany]].<ref name="netherlands">{{Cite book |last=Goddard |first=Lance |title=Canada and the Liberation of the Netherlands |publisher=[[Dundurn Press]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-55002-547-7 |pages=225–232}}</ref> Despite another [[Conscription Crisis of 1944|conscription crisis in Quebec in 1944]], Canada finished the war with a large army and strong economy.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bothwell |first=Robert |title=Alliance and illusion: Canada and the world, 1945–1984 |publisher=UBC Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7748-1368-6 |pages=11, 31}}</ref>

===Contemporary era===
The financial crisis of the Great Depression led the [[Dominion of Newfoundland]] to relinquish responsible government in 1934 and become a [[Crown colony]] ruled by a British governor.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Alfred Buckner |first=Phillip |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KmXnLGX7FvEC&pg=PA135 |title=Canada and the British Empire |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-927164-1 |pages=135–138}}</ref> After two [[1948 Newfoundland referendums|referendums]], Newfoundlanders voted to join Canada in 1949 as a province.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Boyer |first=J. Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CWGN-RZcqNoC&pg=PA119 |title=Direct Democracy in Canada: The History and Future of Referendums |publisher=Dundurn Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-4597-1884-5 |page=119}}</ref>

Canada's post-war economic growth, combined with the policies of successive Liberal governments, led to the emergence of a new [[Canadian identity]], marked by the adoption of the [[Flag of Canada|maple leaf flag]] in 1965,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mackey |first=Eva |title=The house of difference: cultural politics and national identity in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8020-8481-1 |page=57}}</ref> the implementation of [[official bilingualism]] (English and French) in 1969,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Landry |first1=Rodrigue |last2=Forgues |first2=Éric |date=May 2007 |title=Official language minorities in Canada: an introduction |journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language |issue=185 |pages=1–9 |doi=10.1515/IJSL.2007.022 }}</ref> and the institution of [[Multiculturalism#Canada|official multiculturalism]] in 1971.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Esses |first1=Victoria M |last2=Gardner |first2=RC |date=July 1996 |title=Multiculturalism in Canada: Context and current status |journal=[[Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science]] |volume=28 |issue=3 |pages=145–152 |doi=10.1037/h0084934}}</ref> [[Socially democratic]] programs were also instituted, such as [[Medicare (Canada)|Medicare]], the [[Canada Pension Plan]], and [[Student financial aid in Canada|Canada Student Loans]]; though, provincial governments, particularly Quebec and Alberta, opposed many of these as incursions into their jurisdictions.<ref>{{cite web |last=Sarrouh |first=Elissar |date=January 22, 2002 |title=Social Policies in Canada: A Model for Development |url=http://www.escwa.un.org/information/publications/edit/upload/sd-01-09.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100717075406/http://www.escwa.un.org/information/publications/edit/upload/sd-01-09.pdf |archive-date=July 17, 2010 |website=Social Policy Series, No. 1 |publisher=United Nations |pages=14–16, 22–37}}</ref>
[[File:Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (English).jpg|thumb|A copy of the ''[[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]]''<ref name="Ministère de la Justice 2021 d986">{{cite web |title=The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms |website=Ministère de la Justice |date=March 15, 2021 |url=https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/ |archive-date=September 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230922224653/https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/ | url-status=live}}</ref>|alt=refer to caption]]

Finally, another series of constitutional conferences resulted in the ''Canada Act 1982'', the [[patriation]] of Canada's constitution from the United Kingdom, concurrent with the creation of the ''[[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]]''.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 5, 2014 |title=Proclamation of the Constitution Act, 1982 |url=http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/politics-government/proclamation-constitution-act-1982/Pages/proclamation-constitution-act-1982.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211083245/http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/politics-government/proclamation-constitution-act-1982/Pages/proclamation-constitution-act-1982.aspx |archive-date=February 11, 2017 |publisher=Government of Canada}}</ref> Canada had established complete sovereignty as an independent country under [[Monarchy of Canada|its own monarchy]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |last=Trepanier |first=Peter |year=2004 |title=Some Visual Aspects of the Monarchical Tradition |url=http://www.revparl.ca/27/2/27n2_04e_trepanier.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304002130/http://www.revparl.ca/27/2/27n2_04e_trepanier.pdf |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=February 10, 2017 |website=[[Canadian Parliamentary Review]]}}
| {{cite book |title=Canadian Politics |publisher=[[Broadview Press]] |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-55111-595-5 |editor-last=Bickerton |editor-first=James |edition=4th |pages=250–254, 344–347 |editor-last2=Gagnon |editor-first2=Alain}}</ref> In 1999, [[Nunavut]] became Canada's third territory after a series of negotiations with the federal government.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Légaré |first=André |year=2008 |title=Canada's Experiment with Aboriginal Self-Determination in Nunavut: From Vision to Illusion |journal=International Journal on Minority and Group Rights |volume=15 |issue=2–3 |pages=335–367 |doi=10.1163/157181108X332659 |jstor=24674996}}
}}</ref>

At the same time, Quebec underwent profound social and economic changes through the [[Quiet Revolution]] of the 1960s, giving birth to a secular [[Quebec nationalism|nationalist]] movement.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Roberts |first1=Lance W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3VcVpWNSPfkC&pg=PA415 |title=Recent Social Trends in Canada, 1960–2000 |last2=Clifton |first2=Rodney A. |last3=Ferguson |first3=Barry |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7735-7314-7 |page=415}}</ref> The radical [[Front de libération du Québec]] (FLQ) ignited the [[October Crisis]] with a series of bombings and kidnappings in 1970,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Munroe |first=HD |year=2009 |title=The October Crisis Revisited: Counterterrorism as Strategic Choice, Political Result, and Organizational Practice |journal=Terrorism and Political Violence |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=288–305 |doi=10.1080/09546550902765623 }}</ref> and the [[Quebec sovereignty movement|{{Not a typo|sovereigntist}}]] [[Parti Québécois]] was elected in 1976, organizing an [[1980 Quebec referendum|unsuccessful referendum]] on sovereignty-association in 1980. Attempts to accommodate Quebec nationalism constitutionally through the [[Meech Lake Accord]] failed in 1990.<ref name="sorens">{{Cite journal |last=Sorens |first=J |date=December 2004 |title=Globalization, secessionism, and autonomy |journal=Electoral Studies |volume=23 |issue=4 |pages=727–752 |doi=10.1016/j.electstud.2003.10.003}}</ref> This led to the formation of the [[Bloc Québécois]] in Quebec and the invigoration of the [[Reform Party of Canada]] in the West.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite news |last=Leblanc |first=Daniel |date=August 13, 2010 |title=A brief history of the Bloc Québécois |work=The Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/a-brief-history-of-the-bloc-qubcois/article1672831/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100901151147/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/a-brief-history-of-the-bloc-qubcois/article1672831/ |archive-date=September 1, 2010}}
| {{cite book |last1=Betz |first1=Hans-Georg |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H9cGkDJgW7wC&pg=PA173 |title=The New Politics of the Right: Neo-Populist Parties and Movements in Established Democracies |last2=Immerfall |first2=Stefan |publisher=[[St. Martin's Press]] |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-312-21134-9 |page=173}}
}}</ref> A [[1995 Quebec referendum|second referendum]] followed in 1995, in which sovereignty was rejected by a slimmer margin of 50.6 to 49.4 percent.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schmid |first=Carol L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JIuO9HmX_8QC&pg=PA112 |title=The Politics of Language: Conflict, Identity, and Cultural Pluralism in Comparative Perspective: Conflict, Identity, and Cultural Pluralism in Comparative Perspective |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-19-803150-5 |page=112}}</ref> In 1997, the [[Supreme Court of Canada|Supreme Court]] ruled [[Reference Re Secession of Quebec|unilateral secession]] by a province would be unconstitutional, and the [[Clarity Act]] was passed by Parliament, outlining the terms of a negotiated departure from Confederation.<ref name="sorens" />

In addition to the issues of Quebec sovereignty, a number of crises shook Canadian society in the late 1980s and early 1990s. These included the explosion of [[Air India Flight 182]] in 1985, the largest mass murder in Canadian history;<ref>{{cite web |title=Commission of Inquiry into the Investigation of the Bombing of Air India Flight 182 |url=http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/termsofreference/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622063429/http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/termsofreference/ |archive-date=June 22, 2008 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Government of Canada}}</ref> the [[École Polytechnique massacre]] in 1989, a [[School shooting|university shooting]] targeting female students;<ref>{{cite web |last=Sourour |first=Teresa K |year=1991 |title=Report of Coroner's Investigation |url=http://www.diarmani.com/Montreal_Coroners_Report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228182645/http://www.diarmani.com/Montreal_Coroners_Report.pdf |archive-date=December 28, 2016 |access-date=March 8, 2017}}</ref> and the [[Oka Crisis]] of 1990,<ref>{{Cite news |year=2000 |title=The Oka Crisis |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |url=http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/civil_unrest/topics/99/ |access-date=May 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110804233458/http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/civil_unrest/topics/99/ |archive-date=August 4, 2011}}</ref> the first of a number of violent confrontations between provincial governments and Indigenous groups.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roach |first=Kent |url=https://archive.org/details/september11conse00roac/page/15 |title=September 11: consequences for Canada |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-7735-2584-9 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/september11conse00roac/page/15 15, 59–61, 194]}}</ref> Canada joined the [[Gulf War]] in 1990 and was active in [[List of Canadian peacekeeping missions|several peacekeeping missions]] in the 1990s, including operations in the [[Balkans]] during and after the [[Yugoslav Wars]],<ref name="Defence 2016 d710">{{cite web |last=Defence |first=National |title=Canadian Armed Forces operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina |website=Canada.ca |date=July 25, 2016 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/operations/military-operations/recently-completed/canadian-armed-forces-operations-bosnia-herzegovina.html |access-date=March 23, 2024 |archive-date=March 23, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240323054357/https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/operations/military-operations/recently-completed/canadian-armed-forces-operations-bosnia-herzegovina.html |url-status=live}}</ref> and in [[Somalia]], resulting in an incident that has been described as "[[Somalia affair|the darkest era in the history of the Canadian military]]".<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadian-peacekeepers-in-somalia |title=Canadian Peacekeepers in Somalia |date=August 2, 2019 |last=Foot |first=Richard |website=thecanadianencyclopedia.ca |publisher=Historica Canada |access-date=February 26, 2024 |archive-date=March 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312044307/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadian-peacekeepers-in-somalia |url-status=live}}
| {{cite book |last=Cohen |first=S.A. |title=Israel's Armed Forces in Comparative Perspective |publisher=Taylor & Francis |series=BESA studies in international security |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-135-16956-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0yiMAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA160 |access-date=February 27, 2024 |page=160 |archive-date=March 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240304062940/https://books.google.com/books?id=0yiMAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA160 | url-status=live}}
}}</ref> Canada sent [[Canada in the War in Afghanistan|troops to Afghanistan in 2001]], resulting in the largest amount of [[Canadian Forces casualties in Afghanistan|Canadian deaths]] for any single military mission since the [[Canada in the Korean War|Korean War]] in the early 1950s.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |title=Canada and the War in Afghanistan |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=September 11, 2001 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/international-campaign-against-terrorism-in-afghanistan |access-date=March 25, 2024 |quote=In total, 165 Canadians died during the war in Afghanistan (158 soldiers, 7 civilians). More than 2,000 members of the CAF were wounded or injured during the war.|archive-date=January 29, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240129023800/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/international-campaign-against-terrorism-in-afghanistan |url-status=live}}
| {{cite web |last=Defence |first=National |title=Canada in Afghanistan (2001-2014) |website=Canada.ca |date=August 30, 2016 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/militaryhistory/wars-operations/afghanistan.html |access-date=March 25, 2024|archive-date=March 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240325072429/https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/militaryhistory/wars-operations/afghanistan.html |url-status=live}}
}}</ref>

In 2011, Canadian forces participated in the [[NATO]]-led intervention into the [[First Libyan Civil War|Libyan Civil War]]<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hehir |first1=Aidan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2TchAQAAQBAJ&pg=PT88 |title=Libya, the Responsibility to Protect and the Future of Humanitarian Intervention |last2=Murray |first2=Robert |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-137-27396-3 |page=88}}</ref> and also became involved in battling the [[Islamic State]] insurgency in Iraq in the mid-2010s.<ref>{{cite web |last=Juneau |first=Thomas |year=2015 |title=Canada's Policy to Confront the Islamic State |url=http://www.cgai.ca/canadas_policy_to_confront_the_islamic_state |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151211070017/http://www.cgai.ca/canadas_policy_to_confront_the_islamic_state |archive-date=December 11, 2015 |access-date=December 10, 2015 |publisher=[[Canadian Global Affairs Institute]]}}</ref> The [[COVID-19 pandemic in Canada]] began on January 27, 2020, causing widespread social and economic disruption.<ref>{{cite web |title=Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html |publisher=Government of Canada |year=2021 |archive-date=June 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613213135/https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2021, an announcement of the discovery of [[Canadian Indian residential school gravesites|possible gravesites of over 200 Indigenous children]] found near a former [[Canadian Indian residential school system|Canadian Indian residential school]], which aimed to assimilate Indigenous children for most of the 20th century, refocused media and public attention on the [[Canadian genocide of Indigenous peoples|cultural genocide carried out against Canada's Indigenous peoples]].<ref name="w624">{{cite web | last=Cooper | first=Anderson | title=Canada's unmarked graves: How residential schools carried out "cultural genocide" against indigenous children | website=CBS News | date=February 12, 2023 | url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/canada-residential-schools-unmarked-graves-indigenous-children-60-minutes-2023-02-12/ | access-date=March 17, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wyton |first=Moira |date=June 16, 2023 |title=Residential school denialists tried to dig up suspected unmarked graves in Kamloops, B.C., report finds |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/denialists-tried-to-access-unmarked-gravesite-tkemlups-report-1.6879980 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250314073301/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/denialists-tried-to-access-unmarked-gravesite-tkemlups-report-1.6879980 |archive-date=March 14, 2025 |access-date=March 22, 2025 |work=CBC News}}</ref> A [[2025 United States trade war with Canada and Mexico|trade war involving the United States]] began on February 1, 2025, when U.S. president [[Donald Trump]] signed [[Second Trump tariffs|orders imposing tariffs]] on goods entering the United States.<ref name="y519">{{cite web | last=Grantham-Philips | first=Wyatte | title=Trump has imposed sweeping tariffs. Here's a timeline of how we got here | website=CBC | date=March 12, 2025 | url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trump-trade-tariffs-timeline-1.7481280 | access-date=March 13, 2025}}</ref>

==Geography==
{{Main|Geography of Canada}}
{{Further|Environment of Canada}}

[[File:Canada topo.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.3|A topographic map of Canada, in polar projection (for 90° W), showing elevations shaded from green to brown (higher)|alt=refer to caption]]
By total area (including its waters), Canada is the [[List of countries and dependencies by area|second-largest country]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Brescia |first1=Michael M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q2qzBUEWxpoC&pg=PA38 |title=North America: An Introduction |last2=Super |first2=John C. |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-8020-9675-3 |page=38}}</ref> By land area alone, Canada [[List of countries and dependencies by area|ranks fourth]], due to having the world's largest area of [[List of lakes of Canada|fresh water lakes]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Battram |first=Robert A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pBc9349sw4QC&pg=PA1 |title=Canada in Crisis: An Agenda for Survival of the Nation |publisher=[[Trafford Publishing]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-4269-3393-6 |page=1}}</ref> Stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the east, along the Arctic Ocean to the north, and to the Pacific Ocean in the west, the country encompasses {{convert|9984670|km2}} of territory.<ref name="McColl2005">{{Cite book |last=McColl |first=R. W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DJgnebGbAB8C&pg=PA135 |title=Encyclopedia of World Geography |date=September 2005 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=978-0-8160-5786-3 |page=135}}</ref> Canada also has vast maritime terrain, with the world's longest coastline of {{convert|243042|km|mi}}.<ref name="International Boundary Commission" /> In addition to sharing [[Canada–United States border|the world's largest land border with the United States]]—spanning {{convert|8,891|km|mi|0}}{{efn|name="canadausa"|{{cvt|6,416|km}} via the [[contiguous 48 states]] and {{cvt|2,475|km}} via [[Alaska]]<ref name="International Boundary Commission">{{cite web |title=Boundary Facts |publisher=International Boundary Commission |url=https://www.internationalboundarycommission.org/en/the-boundary-and-you/interesting-facts.php |access-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520142611/https://www.internationalboundarycommission.org/en/the-boundary-and-you/interesting-facts.php |url-status=live}}</ref>}}—Canada shares a land border with [[Greenland]] (and hence the Kingdom of Denmark) to the northeast, on [[Hans Island]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chase |first1=Steven |title=Canada and Denmark reach settlement over disputed Arctic island, sources say |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-canada-and-denmark-reach-settlement-over-disputed-arctic-island/ |website=The Globe and Mail |date=June 10, 2022 |archive-date=June 12, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220612214859/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-canada-and-denmark-reach-settlement-over-disputed-arctic-island/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and a [[maritime boundary]] with [[France]]'s [[overseas collectivity]] of [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]] to the southeast.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gallay |first=Alan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=22rbCQAAQBAJ&pg=PT429 |title=Colonial Wars of North America, 1512–1763: An Encyclopedia |date=2015 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-317-48718-0 |page=429}}</ref> Canada is also home to the world's northernmost settlement, [[CFS Alert|Canadian Forces Station Alert]], on the northern tip of [[Ellesmere Island]]—latitude 82.5°N—which lies {{convert|817|km|mi}} from the North Pole.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Canadian Geographic |publisher=[[Royal Canadian Geographical Society]] |year=2008 |page=20}}</ref> In latitude, Canada's most northerly point of land is [[Cape Columbia]] in Nunavut at 83°6′41″N, with its southern extreme at [[Middle Island (Lake Erie)|Middle Island]] in Lake Erie at 41°40′53″N. In longitude, Canada's land extends from [[Cape Spear]], Newfoundland, at 52°37'W, to [[Mount Saint Elias|Mount St. Elias]], Yukon Territory, at 141°W.<ref name="p496">{{cite web | title=Where is Canada in the World? | website=World Population by Country 2024 (Live) | url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/canada/location | access-date=October 26, 2024}}</ref>

Canada can be divided into seven physiographic regions: the [[Canadian Shield]], the [[interior plains]], the [[Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Lowlands]], the [[Appalachian Mountains|Appalachian region]], the [[Pacific Cordillera (Canada)|Western Cordillera]], [[Hudson Bay Lowlands]], and the [[Arctic Archipelago]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://atlas.gc.ca/phys/en/index.html |work=The Atlas of Canada |title=Physiographic Regions of Canada |publisher=Natural Resources Canada |date=September 12, 2016 |archive-date=June 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210621185011/https://atlas.gc.ca/phys/en/index.html |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Taiga|Boreal forests]] prevail throughout the country, ice is prominent in [[Northern Canada|northern Arctic regions]] and through the [[Rocky Mountains]], and the relatively flat [[Canadian Prairies]] in the southwest facilitate productive agriculture.<ref name="McColl2005" /> The Great Lakes feed the [[St. Lawrence River]] (in the southeast) where the lowlands host much of Canada's economic output.<ref name="McColl2005" /> Canada has over 2,000,000 lakes—563 of which are larger than {{convert|100|km2|sqmi|0}}—containing much of the world's [[fresh water]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Bailey |first1=William G |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oxNMhw-rRrQC&pg=PA244 |title=The surface climates of Canada |last2=Oke |first2=TR |last3=Rouse |first3=Wayne R |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-7735-1672-4 |page=124}}
| {{cite web |date=December 5, 2012 |title=Physical Components of Watersheds |url=http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/environment/hydrology/watershed1/1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121205125542/http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/environment/hydrology/watershed1/1 |archive-date=December 5, 2012 |website=The Atlas of Canada}}
}}</ref> There are also fresh-water glaciers in the [[Canadian Rockies]], the [[Coast Mountains]], and the [[Arctic Cordillera]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sandford |first=Robert William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UANY2ftt4pEC&pg=PR11 |title=Cold Matters: The State and Fate of Canada's Fresh Water |publisher=Biogeoscience Institute at the University of Calgary |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-927330-20-3 |page=11}}</ref> [[Geology of Canada|Canada is geologically active]], having [[List of earthquakes in Canada|many earthquakes]] and [[Volcanism of Canada|potentially active volcanoes]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Etkin |first1=David |title=An Assessment of Natural Hazards and Disasters in Canada |last2=Haque |first2=CE |last3=Brooks |first3=Gregory R |date=April 30, 2003 |publisher=[[Springer Publishing|Springer]] |isbn=978-1-4020-1179-5 |pages=569, 582, 583}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{main|Temperature in Canada|Climate change in Canada}}
[[File:Canada Köppen.svg|upright=1.3|thumb|Köppen climate classification types of Canada]]
Average winter and summer high [[Temperature in Canada|temperatures across Canada]] vary from region to region. Winters can be harsh in many parts of the country, particularly in the interior and Prairie provinces, which experience a [[continental climate]], where daily average temperatures are near {{Convert|-15|C|F|lk=on}}, but can drop below {{convert|-40|°C|°F|abbr=on}} with severe [[wind chill]]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Statistics, Regina SK |url=http://www.theweathernetwork.com/statistics/C02072/CASK0261?CASK0261 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105062344/http://www.theweathernetwork.com/statistics/C02072/CASK0261?CASK0261 |archive-date=January 5, 2009 |access-date=January 18, 2010 |publisher=[[The Weather Network]]}}</ref> In non-coastal regions, snow can cover the ground for almost six months of the year, while in parts of the north snow can persist year-round. Coastal British Columbia has a temperate climate, with a mild and rainy winter. On the east and west coasts, average high temperatures are generally in the low 20s °C (70s °F), while between the coasts, the average summer high temperature ranges from {{convert|25|to|30|C|F}}, with temperatures in some interior locations occasionally exceeding {{convert|40|°C|°F|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |date=September 25, 2013 |title=Regina International Airport |url=http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1981_2010_e.html?stnID=3002&lang=e&StationName=Regina&SearchType=Contains&stnNameSubmit=go&dCode=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518084648/http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1981_2010_e.html?stnID=3002&lang=e&StationName=Regina&SearchType=Contains&stnNameSubmit=go&dCode=1 |archive-date=May 18, 2015 |website=Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010 |publisher=[[Environment Canada]]}}</ref>

Much of [[Northern Canada]] is covered by ice and [[permafrost]]. The future of the permafrost is uncertain because the Arctic has been warming at three times the global average as a result of [[climate change in Canada]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bush |first1=E. |last2=Lemmen |first2=D.S. |year=2019 |title=Canada's Changing Climate Report |url=https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/energy/Climate-change/pdf/CCCR_FULLREPORT-EN-FINAL.pdf |publisher=Government of Canada |page=84 |archive-date=April 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190422235552/https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/energy/Climate-change/pdf/CCCR_FULLREPORT-EN-FINAL.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> Canada's annual average temperature over land has risen by {{convert|1.7|C-change}}, with changes ranging from {{convert|1.1|to|2.3|C-change}} in various regions, since 1948.<ref name="McColl2005" /> The rate of warming has been higher across the North and in the Prairies.<ref name="ClimateReport">{{cite web |first1=X. |last1=Zhang |first2=G. |last2=Flato |last3=Kirchmeier-Young |first3=M. |first4=L. |last4=Vincent |first5=H. |last5=Wan |first6=X. |last6=Wang |first7=R. |last7=Rong |first8=J. |last8=Fyfe |first9=G. |last9=Li|first0=V. |last0=KharinV. |year=2019 |title=Changes in Temperature and Precipitation Across Canada; Chapter 4 |url=https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/energy/Climate-change/pdf/CCCR-Chapter4-TemperatureAndPrecipitationAcrossCanada.pdf |website=Canada's Changing Climate Report |publisher=Government of Canada |pages=112–193 |editor-last=Bush |editor-first=E. |editor-last2=Lemmen |editor-first2=D.S. |archive-date=December 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218102442/https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/energy/Climate-change/pdf/CCCR-Chapter4-TemperatureAndPrecipitationAcrossCanada.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> In the southern regions of Canada, [[Air pollution in Canada|air pollution from both Canada]] and the United States—caused by metal smelting, burning coal to power utilities, and vehicle emissions—has resulted in [[acid rain]], which has severely impacted waterways, forest growth, and agricultural productivity.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Boyd |first=David R |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SeYgVGE9j3EC&pg=PA67 |title=Unnatural Law: Rethinking Canadian Environmental Law and Policy |publisher=UBC Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7748-4063-7 |pages=67–69}}</ref> Canada is one of the largest [[List of countries by greenhouse gas emissions|greenhouse gas emitters globally]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions|url=https://www.climatewatchdata.org/ghg-emissions |publisher=Climate Watch |access-date=March 29, 2022 |archive-date=March 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321170958/https://www.climatewatchdata.org/ghg-emissions |url-status=live}}</ref> with emissions increased by 16.5 percent between 1990 and 2022.<ref name="j018">{{cite web |last=Canada |first=Climate Change |title=Greenhouse gas emissions |website=Canada.ca |date=January 9, 2007 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/greenhouse-gas-emissions.html |access-date=May 18, 2024|archive-date=April 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411165603/https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/greenhouse-gas-emissions.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Biodiversity===
{{main|Wildlife of Canada}}
[[File:Terrestrial ecozones and ecoprovinces of Canada, 2017.gif|thumb|upright=1.3| [[Ecozones of Canada|Terrestrial ecozones and ecoprovinces of Canada]]. Ecozones are identified with a unique colour. Ecoprovinces are subdivisions of ecozones and are identified with a unique numeric code.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2018 u350">{{cite web |title=Terrestrial ecozones and ecoprovinces of Canada |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=January 12, 2018 |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/subjects/standard/environment/elc/2017-map |archive-date=September 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902211146/https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/subjects/standard/environment/elc/2017-map | url-status=live}}</ref>|alt=Map showing Canada divided into different ecozones]]

Canada is divided into [[Ecozones of Canada|15 terrestrial and five marine ecozones]].<ref>{{cite web |date=January 10, 2018 |title=Introduction to the Ecological Land Classification (ELC) 2017 |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/subjects/standard/environment/elc/2017-1 |publisher=Statistics Canada |archive-date=November 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201116145635/https://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/subjects/standard/environment/elc/2017-1 |url-status=live}}</ref> These ecozones encompass over 80,000 classified species of [[Wildlife of Canada|Canadian wildlife]], with an equal number yet to be formally recognized or discovered.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wildlife-species.canada.ca/species-risk-registry/virtual_sara/files/reports/Wild%20Species%202015.pdf |title=Wild Species 2015: The General Status of Species in Canada |work=National General Status Working Group: 1 |publisher=Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council |year=2016 |quote=The new estimate indicates that there are about 80,000 known species in Canada, excluding viruses and bacteria |page=2 |archive-date=January 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127203149/https://wildlife-species.canada.ca/species-risk-registry/virtual_sara/files/reports/Wild%20Species%202015.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> Although Canada has a low percentage of [[Megadiverse countries|endemic species compared to other countries]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cbd.int/countries/profile/?country=ca |title=Canada: Main Details |publisher=Convention on Biological Diversity |access-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810215710/https://www.cbd.int/countries/profile/?country=ca |url-status=live}}</ref> due to human activities, [[Wildlife of Canada#Invasive species|invasive species]], and [[Environmental issues in Canada|environmental issues in the country]], there are currently more than [[List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Canada)|800 species at risk of being lost]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/cosewic-annual-reports/2019-2020.html |publisher=Species at Risk Public Registry |title=COSEWIC Annual Report |year=2019 |archive-date=March 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305111710/https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/cosewic-annual-reports/2019-2020.html |url-status=live}}</ref> About 65 percent of Canada's resident species are considered "Secure".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=17F0CBCE-1#s1i |title=Wild Species 2000: The General Status of Species in Canada |year=2001 |publisher=Conservation Council |archive-date=October 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016214436/https://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=17F0CBCE-1#s1i |url-status=live}}</ref> Over half of Canada's landscape is intact and relatively free of human development.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://naturecanada.ca/news/archived/state-of-canadas-biodiversity-highlighted-in-new-government-report/ |title=State of Canada's Biodiversity Highlighted in New Government Report |date=October 22, 2010 |archive-date=January 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122031530/https://naturecanada.ca/news/archived/state-of-canadas-biodiversity-highlighted-in-new-government-report/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[boreal forest of Canada]] is considered to be the largest [[Intact forest landscape|intact forest]] on Earth, with approximately {{Convert|3000000|km2}} undisturbed by roads, cities or industry.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Peter H. |last1=Raven |first2=Linda R. |last2=Berg |first3=David M. |last3=Hassenzahl |title=Environment |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QVpO2R51JBIC&pg=RA1-PA361 |year=2012 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-470-94570-4 |pages=1–3}}</ref> Since the end of the last [[glacial period]], Canada has consisted of [[Forests of Canada#Regions|eight distinct forest regions]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |title=National Atlas of Canada |publisher=[[Natural Resources Canada]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7705-1198-2 |page=1}}
| {{cite book |last1=Luckert |first1=Martin K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Gm-rBnGghcC&pg=PA1 |title=Policies for Sustainably Managing Canada's Forests: Tenure, Stumpage Fees, and Forest Practices |last2=Haley |first2=David |last3=Hoberg |first3=George |publisher=UBC Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7748-2069-1 |page=1}}
}}</ref>

Approximately 12.1 percent of the nation's landmass and freshwater are [[National Wildlife Area|conservation areas]], including 11.4 percent designated as [[Protected areas of Canada|protected areas]].<ref name="conserved" /> Approximately 13.8 percent of its territorial waters are conserved, including 8.9 percent designated as protected areas.<ref name="conserved">{{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/conserved-areas.html |title=Canada's conserved areas |publisher=Environment and Climate Canada |year=2020 |archive-date=April 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220402184441/https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/conserved-areas.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Canada's first [[National Parks of Canada|National Park]], [[Banff National Park]] established in 1885 spans {{convert|6,641|km2}}.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |url=http://www.pc.gc.ca/docs/v-g/pm-mp/guidem-mguide/sec15/gm-mg15_e.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615122147/http://www.pc.gc.ca/docs/v-g/pm-mp/guidem-mguide/sec15/gm-mg15_e.pdf |archive-date=June 15, 2006 |title=The Mountain Guide – Banff National Park |publisher=Parks Canada |year=2006}}
| {{cite book |first=Martin F. |last=Price |title=Mountain Area Research and Management: Integrated Approaches |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hNIZihxXTwsC&pg=PA217 |year=2013 |publisher=Earthscan |isbn=978-1-84977-201-3 |pages=217–218}}
}}</ref> Canada's oldest provincial park, [[Algonquin Provincial Park]], established in 1893, covers an area of {{convert|7653.45|km2}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ontario.ca/page/algonquin-provincial-park-management-plan |title=Algonquin Provincial Park Management Plan |year=1998 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Ontario |archive-date=February 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209143502/https://www.ontario.ca/page/algonquin-provincial-park-management-plan |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area]] is the world's largest freshwater protected area, spanning roughly {{convert|10000|km2}}.<ref>
{{cite web |url=https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/oceans/publications/mpaspotlight-pleinsfeuxzpm/index-eng.html |title=Spotlight on Marine Protected Areas in Canada |publisher=Fisheries and Oceans Canada |date=December 13, 2017 |archive-date=April 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413193502/https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/oceans/publications/mpaspotlight-pleinsfeuxzpm/index-eng.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Canada's largest national wildlife region is the [[Scott Islands Marine National Wildlife Area]] which spans {{convert|11570.65|km2}}.<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite web |title=Scott Islands Marine National Widllife Area |url=https://www.protectedplanet.net/555695926 |access-date=September 25, 2020 |website=Protected Planet}}
| {{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/national-wildlife-areas/locations/scott-islands-marine/regulatory-strategy.html |title=Proposed Scott Islands Marine National Wildlife Area: regulatory strategy |publisher=Environment and Climate Change Canada |date=February 7, 2013 |archive-date=January 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123182613/https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/national-wildlife-areas/locations/scott-islands-marine/regulatory-strategy.html |url-status=live}}
}}</ref>

==Government and politics==
{{Main|Government of Canada|Politics of Canada}}

[[File:Parliament Hill from a Hot Air Balloon, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Y2K (7173715788).jpg|thumb|Aerial view of [[Canadian Parliament Buildings]] and their surroundings]]
Canada is described as a "[[Democracy Index|full democracy]]",<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021 |title=2021 Democracy Index |url=https://pages.eiu.com/rs/753-RIQ-438/images/eiu-democracy-index-2021.pdf?mkt_tok=NzUzLVJJUS00MzgAAAGI0GGHOJ2F2YyVeWTMPBvGitE1QlEWRD5yPY_rnJ7yECNSo-bJC-UDL28b-Jbo7b3rOFkdk4UXgoR60SFZUwf1xCQFR_IZjXHkR6eeaGzObViC1Q |website=Economist Intelligence Unit |archive-date=December 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221220221533/https://pages.eiu.com/rs/753-RIQ-438/images/eiu-democracy-index-2021.pdf?mkt_tok=NzUzLVJJUS00MzgAAAGI0GGHOJ2F2YyVeWTMPBvGitE1QlEWRD5yPY_rnJ7yECNSo-bJC-UDL28b-Jbo7b3rOFkdk4UXgoR60SFZUwf1xCQFR_IZjXHkR6eeaGzObViC1Q |url-status=live}}</ref> with a tradition of [[liberalism]],<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Westhues |first1=Anne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=chTaAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 |title=Canadian Social Policy: Issues and Perspectives |last2=Wharf |first2=Brian |publisher=Wilfrid Laurier University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-55458-409-3 |pages=10–11}}</ref> and an [[Egalitarianism|egalitarian]],<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bickerton |first1=James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1jd6oqRHxLYC&pg=PA56 |title=Canadian Politics |last2=Gagnon |first2=Alain |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4426-0121-5 |page=56}}</ref> [[Political moderate|moderate]] political ideology.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Johnson |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I_HzDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA13 |title=Thinking Government: Public Administration and Politics in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-4426-3521-0 |edition=4th |pages=13–23}}</ref> An emphasis on [[social justice]] has been a distinguishing element of Canada's political culture.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=McQuaig |first=L. |title=Holding the Bully's Coat: Canada and the U.S. Empire |publisher=Doubleday Canada |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-385-67297-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9g4Xd12rIGYC&pg=PT14 |page=14}}
| {{cite book |last=Fierlbeck |first=Katherine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0bZBHlF4V8EC&pg=PA87 |title=Political Thought in Canada: An Intellectual History |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-55111-711-9 |page=87}}
}}</ref> [[Peace, order, and good government]], alongside an [[Implied Bill of Rights]], are founding principles of [[Canadian federalism]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Dixon |first1=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=npzDCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA48 |title=Social Welfare in Developed Market Countries |last2=P. Scheurell |first2=Robert |date=March 17, 2016 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-36677-5 |page=48}}
| {{cite book |last=Boughey |first=Janina |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dgK-DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 |title=Human Rights and Judicial Review in Australia and Canada: The Newest Despotism? |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5099-0788-5 |page=105}}
| {{cite web | last=McLachlin | first=Beverly |authorlink=Beverley McLachlin| title=Human Rights Protection in Canada | publisher= " Osgoode Hall Review of Law and Policy | date=June 30, 2014 | url=https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=ohrlp |quote=Canada's experience with human rights. Canada's experience can be divided into three phases: 1) Judicially implied rights; 2) Legislatively protected rights; and 3) Constitutionally protected human rights. Before human rights legislation and the Charter, courts in Canada relied on the theory of an "implied bill of rights" to protect traditional civil liberties such as freedom of speech and association. The theoretical foundation for these rights was the importance of free political speech and discussion in a democracy. }}
}}</ref>

At the federal level, Canada has been dominated by two relatively [[Centrism|centrist]] parties practising "brokerage politics":{{efn| name=politics|"Brokerage politics: A Canadian term for successful [[Big tent|big tent parties]] that embody a [[Pluralism (political philosophy)|pluralistic]] catch-all approach to appeal to the median Canadian voter ... adopting [[Centrism|centrist policies]] and [[Electoral alliance|electoral coalitions]] to satisfy the short-term preferences of a majority of electors who are not located on the ideological fringe."<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Marland |first1=Alex |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GSeSaYPa2A4C&pg=PA257 |title=Political Marketing in Canada |last2=Giasson |first2=Thierry |last3=Lees-Marshment |first3=Jennifer |publisher=UBC Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7748-2231-2 |page=257}}
|{{Cite book |last1=Courtney |first1=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5KomEXgxvMcC&pg=PA195 |title=The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Politics |last2=Smith |first2=David |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-19-533535-4 |page=195}}
}}</ref> "The traditional ''brokerage'' model of Canadian politics leaves little room for ideology."<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite journal |first=Christopher |last=Cochrane |year=2010 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/40983510 |title=Left/Right Ideology and Canadian Politics |journal=Canadian Journal of Political Science / Revue Canadienne de Science Politique |volume=43 |issue=3 |pages=583–605 |doi=10.1017/S0008423910000624 |jstor=40983510 |url-access=subscription }}
|{{cite book |first=Stephen |last=Brooks |title=Canadian Democracy: An Introduction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DeQnPIXV5CEC |year=2004 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-541806-4 |page=265 |quote=Two historically dominant political parties have avoided ideological appeals in favour of a flexible centrist style of politics that is often labelled brokerage politics}}
|{{cite book |first=Miriam |last=Smith |title=Group Politics and Social Movements in Canada: Second Edition |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iG4rAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA17 |year=2014 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-1-4426-0695-1 |page=17 |quote=Canada's party system has long been described as a "brokerage system" in which the leading parties (Liberal and Conservative) follow strategies that appeal across major [[Cleavage (politics)|social cleavages]] in an effort to defuse potential tensions.}}
|{{cite book |first=David |last=Johnson |title=Thinking Government: Public Administration and Politics in Canada|edition= 4th |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I_HzDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA13 |year=2016 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-1-4426-3521-0 |pages=13–23 |quote=...most Canadian governments, especially in the federal sphere, have taken a moderate, centrist approach to decision making, seeking to balance growth, stability, and governmental efficiency and economy...}}}}</ref>
}} the [[Centre-left politics|centre-left]] leaning [[Liberal Party of Canada]]<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Bittner |first1=Amanda |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TdFTCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA300 |title=Parties, Elections, and the Future of Canadian Politics |last2=Koop |first2=Royce |date=March 1, 2013 |publisher=UBC Press |isbn=978-0-7748-2411-8 |page=300}}
| {{cite web |last=Johnston |first=Richard |title=The baffling history of Canada's party system |website=Policy Options |date=April 13, 2021 |url=https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/october-2017/the-baffling-history-of-canadas-party-system/ |archive-date=December 9, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221209225002/https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/october-2017/the-baffling-history-of-canadas-party-system/ |url-status=live}}
}}</ref> and the [[centre-right]] leaning [[Conservative Party of Canada]] (or [[Conservative Party of Canada#Predecessors|its predecessors]]).<ref name="Gill 2021 p. 485">{{cite journal |last=Gill |first=Jessica K. |title=Unpacking the Role of Neoliberalism on the Politics of Poverty Reduction Policies in Ontario, Canada: A Descriptive Case Study and Critical Analysis |journal=Social Sciences |publisher=MDPI AG |volume=10 |issue=12 |date=December 20, 2021|doi=10.3390/socsci10120485 |page=485 | doi-access=free}}</ref> The historically predominant Liberals position themselves at the centre of the political scale.<ref name="Gill 2021 p. 485" /> Five parties had representatives elected to Parliament in the [[2025 Canadian federal election|2025 election]]—the Liberals, who formed a minority government; the Conservatives, who became the [[Official Opposition (Canada)|Official Opposition]]; the [[Bloc Québécois]]; the [[New Democratic Party]] (occupying the [[Left-wing politics|left]]<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Evans |first1=Geoffrey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bZhcx6hLOMMC&pg=PA166 |title=Political Choice Matters: Explaining the Strength of Class and Religious Cleavages in Cross-National Perspective |last2=de Graaf |first2=Nan Dirk |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-19-966399-6 |pages=166–167}}
| {{cite book |last=Johnston |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aZAwDwAAQBAJ |title=The Canadian Party System: An Analytic History |publisher=UBC Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-7748-3610-4}}
}}</ref>); and the [[Green Party of Canada|Green Party]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Election 2015 roundup |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/results-2015/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151022233012/http://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/results-2015/ |archive-date=October 22, 2015 |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation}}</ref> [[Far-right]] and [[far-left]] politics have never been a prominent force in Canadian society.<ref>{{multiref2
|{{Cite journal |last1=Ambrose |first1=Emma |last2=Mudde |first2=Cas |year=2015 |title=Canadian Multiculturalism and the Absence of the Far Right |journal=Nationalism and Ethnic Politics |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=213–236 |doi=10.1080/13537113.2015.1032033}} 
|{{Cite news |last=Taub |first=Amanda |date=June 27, 2017 |title=Canada's Secret to Resisting the West's Populist Wave |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/27/world/canada/canadas-secret-to-resisting-the-wests-populist-wave.html |url-status=live |access-date=September 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627090321/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/27/world/canada/canadas-secret-to-resisting-the-wests-populist-wave.html |archive-date=June 27, 2017}} 
|{{cite web |last=Geddes |first=John |title=What's actually standing in the way of right-wing populism in Canada? |website=Macleans.ca |date=February 8, 2022 |url=https://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/whats-actually-standing-in-the-way-of-right-wing-populism-in-canada/ |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031024415/https://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/whats-actually-standing-in-the-way-of-right-wing-populism-in-canada/ |url-status=live}} 
|{{cite journal | last=Blake | first=Raymond B. | title=Locating the Right in Canadian Political History | journal=American Review of Canadian Studies | publisher=Informa UK Limited | volume=54 | issue=1 | date=January 2, 2024 | issn=0272-2011 | doi=10.1080/02722011.2024.2326264 | pages=1–8|quote=Social conservatives and the extreme right have had limited success designing the direction and policies of Canada’s right-wing political parties.}}}}</ref>

Canada has a [[parliamentary system]] within the context of a [[constitutional monarchy]]—the [[monarchy of Canada]] being the foundation of the executive, [[legislative]], and [[judicial]] branches.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Dowding |first1=Keith |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AClHBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT395 |title=The Selection of Ministers around the World |last2=Dumont |first2=Patrick |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-317-63444-7 |page=395}}
| {{cite web |date=March 29, 1867 |title=Constitution Act, 1867: Preamble |url=http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/ca_1867.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100203024121/http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/ca_1867.html |archive-date=February 3, 2010 |publisher=[[Queen's Printer]]}}
| {{cite news |last=Smith |first=David E |date=June 10, 2010 |title=The Crown and the Constitution: Sustaining Democracy? |page=6 |work=The Crown in Canada: Present Realities and Future Options |publisher=[[Queen's University at Kingston|Queen's University]] |url=http://www.queensu.ca/iigr/conf/ConferenceOnTheCrown/CrownConferencePapers/The_Crown_and_the_Constitutio1.pdf |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5qXvz463C?url=http://www.queensu.ca/iigr/conf/ConferenceOnTheCrown/CrownConferencePapers/The_Crown_and_the_Constitutio1.pdf |archive-date=June 17, 2010}}
| {{cite book |last=MacLeod |first=Kevin S |url=http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/DAMAssetPub/DAM-CRN-jblDmt-dmdJbl/STAGING/texte-text/crnMpls_1336157759317_eng.pdf?WT.contentAuthority=4.4.4 |title=A Crown of Maples |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-662-46012-1 |edition=2nd |page=16 |author-link=Kevin S. MacLeod |access-date=March 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105160848/http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/DAMAssetPub/DAM-CRN-jblDmt-dmdJbl/STAGING/texte-text/crnMpls_1336157759317_eng.pdf?WT.contentAuthority=4.4.4 |archive-date=January 5, 2016}}
}}</ref> The [[reign]]ing monarch is also monarch of [[Commonwealth realm|14 other sovereign Commonwealth countries]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Johnson |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z2WHDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT196 |title=Battle Royal: Monarchists vs. Republicans and the Crown of Canada |date=2018 |publisher=Dundurn Press |isbn=978-1-4597-4015-0 |page=196}}</ref> and [[Monarchy in the Canadian provinces|Canada's 10 provinces]]. The monarch appoints a representative, the [[Governor General of Canada|governor general]], on the [[Advice (constitutional law)|advice]] of the [[Prime Minister of Canada|prime minister]], to carry out most of their ceremonial royal duties.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |title=The Governor General of Canada: Roles and Responsibilities |url=http://gg.ca/document.aspx?id=3 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Queen's Printer |archive-date=September 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915122338/http://gg.ca/document.aspx?id=3 |url-status=live}}
| {{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ATi5R5XNb2MC&pg=PA54 |title=Commonwealth public administration reform 2004 |publisher=Commonwealth Secretariat |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-11-703249-1 |pages=54–55}}
}}</ref>

{{multiple image
| align             = right
| total_width       = 270
| image1            = King Charles III (July 2023).jpg
| caption1          = [[Charles III]], [[Monarchy of Canada|King of Canada]]
| alt1              = King Charles III
| image2            = Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada.jpg
| caption2          = [[Mary Simon]], [[Governor General of Canada]]
| alt2              = Governor General Mary Simon
| image3            =Mark Carney portrait February 2020.jpg
| caption3          = [[Mark Carney]], [[Prime Minister of Canada]]
| alt3              = Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
}}

The monarchy is the source of [[Canadian sovereignty|sovereignty]] and authority in Canada.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=MacLeod |first=Kevin S |url=http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/DAMAssetPub/DAM-CRN-jblDmt-dmdJbl/STAGING/texte-text/crnMpls_1336157759317_eng.pdf?WT.contentAuthority=4.4.4 |title=A Crown of Maples |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-662-46012-1 |edition=2nd |page=16 |author-link=Kevin S. MacLeod |access-date=March 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105160848/http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/DAMAssetPub/DAM-CRN-jblDmt-dmdJbl/STAGING/texte-text/crnMpls_1336157759317_eng.pdf?WT.contentAuthority=4.4.4 |archive-date=January 5, 2016}}
| {{cite book |last=Forsey |first=Eugene |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/sites/lop/aboutparliament/forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf |title=How Canadians Govern Themselves |publisher=Queen's Printer |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-662-39689-5 |edition=6th |pages=1, 16, 26 |author-link=Eugene Forsey |access-date=May 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229155255/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/AboutParliament/Forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf |archive-date=December 29, 2009}}
| {{cite web |last1=Marleau |first1=Robert |last2=Montpetit |first2=Camille |title=House of Commons Procedure and Practice: Parliamentary Institutions |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Lang=E&Print=2&Sec=Ch01&Seq=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828112251/http://www.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Lang=E&Print=2&Sec=Ch01&Seq=5 |archive-date=August 28, 2011 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Queen's Printer}}
}}</ref> However, while the governor general or monarch may exercise their power without ministerial [[Advice (constitutional law)|advice]] in rare [[Constitutional crisis|crisis situations]],<ref name="Forseyp1">{{Cite book |last=Forsey |first=Eugene |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/sites/lop/aboutparliament/forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf |title=How Canadians Govern Themselves |publisher=Queen's Printer |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-662-39689-5 |edition=6th |pages=1, 16, 26 |author-link=Eugene Forsey |access-date=May 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229155255/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/AboutParliament/Forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf |archive-date=December 29, 2009}}</ref> the use of the executive powers (or [[royal prerogative]]) is otherwise directed by the [[Cabinet of Canada|Cabinet]], a committee of [[Minister of the Crown|ministers of the Crown]] responsible to the elected [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]] and chosen and headed by the prime minister,<ref>{{cite web |last=Edwards |first=Peter |date=November 4, 2015 |title='A cabinet that looks like Canada:' Justin Trudeau pledges government built on trust |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/11/04/new-government-to-be-sworn-in-today.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128075156/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/11/04/new-government-to-be-sworn-in-today.html |archive-date=January 28, 2017 |website=Toronto Star}}</ref> the [[head of government]]. To ensure the stability of government, the governor general will usually appoint as prime minister the person who is the current leader of the political party that can obtain the confidence of a [[Majority rule|majority]] of members in the House.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Johnson |first=David |url=https://archive.org/details/thinkinggovernme02ndjohn/page/134 |title=Thinking government: public sector management in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-55111-779-9 |edition=2nd |pages=[https://archive.org/details/thinkinggovernme02ndjohn/page/134 134–135, 149]}}</ref> The [[Office of the Prime Minister (Canada)|Prime Minister's Office]] (PMO) is one of the most powerful institutions in government, initiating most legislation for parliamentary approval and selecting for appointment by the Crown the governor general, [[Lieutenant Governor (Canada)|lieutenant governors]], senators, federal court judges, and heads of [[Crown corporations of Canada|Crown corporations]] and government agencies.<ref name="Forseyp1" /> The leader of the party with the second-most seats usually becomes the [[Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada)|leader of the Official Opposition]] and is part of an adversarial parliamentary system intended to keep the government in check.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Opposition in a Parliamentary System |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/researchpublications/bp47-e.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125122354/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/content/lop/researchpublications/bp47-e.htm |archive-date=November 25, 2010 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Library of Parliament}}</ref>

[[File:West Block Temp House of Commons, 2022.jpg|thumb|The [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]] in its temporary location, the [[West Block]]<ref name="Services Canada 2023 u321">{{cite web |publisher=Public Services and Procurement Canada |title=Restoring and modernizing the West Block |date=August 15, 2023 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/public-services-procurement/services/infrastructure-buildings/parliamentary-precinct/projects-in-parliamentary-precinct/west-block-project.html |archive-date=October 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231022035846/https://www.canada.ca/en/public-services-procurement/services/infrastructure-buildings/parliamentary-precinct/projects-in-parliamentary-precinct/west-block-project.html | url-status=live}}</ref>|alt=The House of Commons chamber]]
The [[Parliament of Canada]] passes all federal statute laws. It comprises the monarch, the House of Commons, and the [[Senate of Canada|Senate]]. While Canada inherited the British concept of [[parliamentary supremacy]], this was later, with the enactment of the Constitution Act, 1982, all but completely superseded by the American notion of [[Supremacy Clause|the supremacy of the law]].<ref>
{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sovereignty |last=McWhinney |first=Edward Watson |title=Sovereignty |date=October 8, 2019 |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |archive-date=May 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529215957/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sovereignty |url-status=live}}</ref>

Each of the 343 [[Member of Parliament (Canada)|members of Parliament]] in the House of Commons is elected by simple plurality in an [[Electoral district (Canada)|electoral district]] or riding. The ''[[Constitution Act, 1982]]'', requires that no more than five years pass between elections, although the ''[[Canada Elections Act]]'' limits this to four years with a "fixed" election date in October; [[Elections in Canada|general elections]] still must be called by the governor general and can be triggered by either the advice of the prime minister or a lost [[confidence vote]] in the House.<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite web |title=About Elections and Ridings |url=http://www.lop.parl.gc.ca/parlinfo/Compilations/ElectionsAndRidings.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161224103929/http://www.lop.parl.gc.ca/parlinfo/Compilations/ElectionsAndRidings.aspx |archive-date=December 24, 2016 |access-date=September 3, 2016 |publisher=Library of Parliament}}
| {{cite web |last1=O'Neal |first1=Brian |last2=Bédard |first2=Michel |last3=Spano |first3=Sebastian |date=April 11, 2011 |title=Government and Canada's 41st Parliament: Questions and Answers |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/2011-37-e.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522071714/http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/2011-37-e.htm |archive-date=May 22, 2011 |publisher=[[Library of Parliament]]}}}}</ref> The 105 members of the Senate, whose seats are apportioned on a regional basis, serve until age 75.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Griffiths |first1=Ann L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GytLtJacxY8C&pg=PA116 |title=Handbook of Federal Countries |last2=Nerenberg |first2=Karl |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-7735-7047-4 |page=116}}</ref>

[[Canadian federalism]] divides government responsibilities between the federal government and the 10 provinces. [[Legislative assemblies of Canadian provinces and territories|Provincial legislatures]] are [[unicameral]] and operate in parliamentary fashion similar to the House of Commons.<ref name="Montpetit">{{cite web |last1=Marleau |first1=Robert |last2=Montpetit |first2=Camille |title=House of Commons Procedure and Practice: Parliamentary Institutions |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Lang=E&Print=2&Sec=Ch01&Seq=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828112251/http://www.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Lang=E&Print=2&Sec=Ch01&Seq=5 |archive-date=August 28, 2011 |access-date=May 23, 2011 |publisher=Queen's Printer}}</ref> Canada's three territories also have legislatures, but these are not sovereign, have fewer constitutional responsibilities than the provinces,<ref>{{cite web |year=2010 |title=Difference between Canadian Provinces and Territories |url=http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=provterr&doc=difference-eng.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151201135354/http://pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=provterr&doc=difference-eng.htm |archive-date=December 1, 2015 |access-date=November 23, 2015 |publisher=Intergovernmental Affairs Canada}}</ref> and differ structurally from their provincial counterparts.<ref>{{cite web |year=2008 |title=Differences from Provincial Governments |url=http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/visitors/what-consensus/differences-provincial-governments |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203044824/http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/visitors/what-consensus/differences-provincial-governments |archive-date=February 3, 2014 |access-date=January 30, 2014 |publisher=Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories}}</ref>

===Law===
{{Main|Law of Canada}}

The [[Constitution of Canada]] is the supreme law of the country and consists of written text and unwritten conventions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dodek |first=Adam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=86s7CwAAQBAJ&pg=PT13 |title=The Canadian Constitution |publisher=Dundurn – University of Ottawa Faculty of Law |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-4597-3505-7 |page=13}}</ref> The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' (known as the [[British North America Acts|British North America Act, 1867]] prior to 1982), affirmed governance based on parliamentary precedent and divided powers between the federal and provincial governments.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Olive |first=Andrea |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bvw_CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA41 |title=The Canadian Environment in Political Context |date=2015 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-1-4426-0871-9 |pages=41–42}}</ref> The ''Statute of Westminster, 1931'', granted full autonomy, and the ''Constitution Act, 1982'', ended all legislative ties to Britain, as well as adding a constitutional amending formula and the ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms''.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bhagwan |first1=Vishnoo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YatgyeA5R4sC&pg=PA550 |title=World Constitutions |last2=Vidya |first2=Bhushan |publisher=Sterling Publishers |year=2004 |isbn=978-81-207-1937-8 |pages=549–550}}</ref> The ''Charter'' guarantees basic [[Human rights in Canada|rights and freedoms]] that usually cannot be overridden by any government; a [[Section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms|notwithstanding clause]] allows Parliament and the provincial legislatures to override certain sections of the ''Charter'' for a period of five years.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bakan |first1=Joel |title=Canadian Constitutional Law |last2=Elliot |first2=Robin M |publisher=Emond Montgomery Publications |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-55239-085-6 |pages=3–8, 683–687, 699}}</ref>
[[File:Supreme court of Canada in summer.jpg|thumb|alt=Supreme Court of Canada building|The [[Supreme Court of Canada]] in Ottawa, west of Parliament Hill]]

[[Court system of Canada|Canada's judiciary]] interprets laws and has the power to strike down acts of Parliament that violate the constitution. The [[Supreme Court of Canada]] is the highest court, final arbiter, and has been led since 2017 by [[Richard Wagner (judge)|Richard Wagner]], the [[Chief Justice of Canada]].<ref>{{cite web |date=December 18, 2017 |title=Current and Former Chief Justices |url=http://www.scc-csc.ca/judges-juges/cfcju-jucp-eng.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20180116062534/http://www.scc-csc.ca/judges-juges/cfcju-jucp-eng.aspx |archive-date=January 16, 2018 |publisher=Supreme Court of Canada}}</ref> The governor general appoints the court's nine members on the advice of the prime minister and [[Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada|minister of justice]].<ref name="UCP-2018">{{cite book |title=Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada, 4th Edition |publisher=University of Calgary Press |edition=4 |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-55238-990-4 |jstor=j.ctv56fggn |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv56fggn |pages=117–172 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv56fggn}}</ref> The federal Cabinet also appoints justices to superior courts in the provincial and territorial jurisdictions.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Yates |first1=Richard |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontola00yate/page/93 |title=Introduction to Law in Canada |last2=Bain |first2=Penny |last3=Yates |first3=Ruth |publisher=Prentice Hall Allyn and Bacon Canada |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-13-792862-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontola00yate/page/93 93]}}</ref>

[[Law of Canada#Common law|Common law]] prevails everywhere except [[Quebec law|Quebec, where civil law]] predominates.<ref>{{cite book |first=Julian |last=Hermida |title=Criminal Law in Canada |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MT9sDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT10 |date=May 9, 2018 |publisher=Kluwer Law International B.V. |isbn=978-90-411-9627-9 |pages=10–}}</ref> [[Criminal law of Canada|Criminal law]] is solely a federal responsibility and is uniform throughout Canada.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sworden |first=Philip James |title=An introduction to Canadian law |publisher=Emond Montgomery Publications |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-55239-145-7 |pages=22, 150}}</ref> Law enforcement, including criminal courts, is officially a provincial responsibility, conducted by provincial and municipal police forces.<ref>{{cite web |year=2009 |title=Who we are |url=https://www.opp.ca/index.php?id=123 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826073944/http://www.opp.ca/index.php?id=123 |archive-date=August 26, 2016 |access-date=October 24, 2012 |publisher=Ontario Provincial Police}}</ref> In most rural and some urban areas, policing responsibilities are contracted to the federal [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]].<ref name="Sullivan-2005">{{cite book |last=Sullivan |first=L.E. |title=Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement |publisher=SAGE Publications |issue=v. 3 |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7619-2649-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L145DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA995 |page=995}}</ref>

[[Canadian Aboriginal law]] provides certain [[Aboriginal land title in Canada|constitutionally recognized rights to land]] and traditional practices for Indigenous groups in Canada.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reynolds |first=Jim |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dKpaDwAAQBAJ |title=Aboriginal Peoples and the Law: A Critical Introduction |publisher=UBC Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-7748-8023-7}}</ref> Various treaties and case laws were established to mediate relations between Europeans and many Indigenous peoples.<ref name="FN">{{Cite report |url=http://publications.gc.ca/collections/Collection-R/LoPBdP/PRB-e/PRB0604-e.pdf |title=Aboriginal roundtable on Kelowna Accord: Aboriginal policy negotiations 2004–2006 |last=Patterson |first=Lisa Lynne |publisher=Parliamentary Information and Research Service, Library of Parliament |page=3 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141126203243/http://publications.gc.ca/collections/Collection-R/LoPBdP/PRB-e/PRB0604-e.pdf |series=1 |year=2004 |url-status=live |archive-date=November 26, 2014}}</ref> The role of Aboriginal law and the rights they support were reaffirmed by [[section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982]].<ref name="FN" /> These rights may include provision of services, such as healthcare through the [[Indian Health Transfer Policy]], and exemption from taxation.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Madison |first=Gary Brent |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3AgrpoLkscMC&pg=PA128 |title=Is There a Canadian Philosophy?: Reflections on the Canadian Identity |publisher=[[University of Ottawa Press]] |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-7766-0514-2 |page=128}}</ref>

===Provinces and territories===
{{Main|Provinces and territories of Canada}}
{{See also|Canadian federalism}}

[[File:Political map of Canada.svg|upright=1.3|thumb|alt=Labelled map of Canada detailing its provinces and territories|Political map of Canada showing its [[Provinces and territories of Canada|10 provinces and 3 territories]]<ref name="Anon. y967">{{cite web |title=Canada Political Divisions |url=https://ftp.maps.canada.ca/pub/nrcan_rncan/Geographical-maps_Carte-geographique/SmallScaleReferenceMaps/english_canada/colour/Canada.pdf |publisher=Natural Resources Canada |access-date=October 16, 2023 |archive-date=April 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230415114431/https://ftp.maps.canada.ca/pub/nrcan_rncan/Geographical-maps_Carte-geographique/SmallScaleReferenceMaps/english_canada/colour/Canada.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>|link=Provinces and territories of Canada]]

Canada is a federation composed of 10 [[federated states]], called provinces, and three [[federal territories]]. These may be grouped into [[List of regions of Canada|four main regions]]: [[Western Canada]], [[Central Canada]], [[Atlantic Canada]], and [[Northern Canada]] (''[[Eastern Canada]]'' refers to Central Canada and Atlantic Canada together).<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hamel |first1=Pierre |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rB-NBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA81 |title=Suburban Governance: A Global View |last2=Keil |first2=Roger |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-4426-6357-2 |page=81}}</ref> Provinces and territories have responsibility for social programs such as [[Healthcare in Canada|healthcare]], [[Education in Canada|education]], and [[Social programs in Canada|social programs]],<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Doern |first1=G. Bruce |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FBXaFRZtKJsC&pg=RA1-PA1976 |title=Canadian Public Budgeting in the Age of Crises: Shifting Budgetary Domains and Temporal Budgeting |last2=Maslove |first2=Allan M. |last3=Prince |first3=Michael J. |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-7735-8853-0 |page=1}}</ref> as well as administration of justice (but not criminal law). Although the provinces collect more revenue than the federal government, [[equalization payments]] are made by the federal government to ensure reasonably uniform standards of services and taxation are kept between the richer and poorer provinces.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Clemens |first1=Jason |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yc6RakXxLy0C&pg=PA8 |title=Beyond Equalization: Examining Fiscal Transfers in a Broader Context |last2=Veldhuis |first2=Niels |publisher=[[Fraser Institute]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-88975-215-3 |page=8}}</ref>

The major difference between a Canadian province and a territory is that provinces receive their sovereignty from the Crown<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jackson |first=Michael D. |title=The Canadian Monarchy in Saskatchewan |publisher=Queen's Printer for Saskatchewan |year=1990 |page=14 |edition=2nd}}</ref> and power and authority from the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', whereas territorial governments have powers delegated to them by the [[Parliament of Canada]]<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Oliver |first1=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ulsvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA498 |title=The Oxford Handbook of the Canadian Constitution |last2=Macklem |first2=Patrick |last3=Des Rosiers |first3=Nathalie |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-19-066482-4 |pages=498–499}}</ref> and the commissioners represent the [[King-in-Council|King in his federal Council]],<ref>{{citation |url=https://www.commissioner.gov.nt.ca/en/role-commissioner |author=Commissioner of the Northwest Territories |title=Role of the Commissioner |publisher=Government of Northwest Territories |access-date=March 8, 2023 |archive-date=March 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230308194120/https://www.commissioner.gov.nt.ca/en/role-commissioner |url-status=live}}</ref> rather than the monarch directly. The powers flowing from the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', are divided between the federal government and the provincial governments to exercise exclusively<ref>{{Cite book |last=Meligrana |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uL9hLqPSdi0C&pg=PA75 |title=Redrawing Local Government Boundaries: An International Study of Politics, Procedures, and Decisions |publisher=UBC Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-7748-0934-4 |page=75}}</ref> and any changes to that arrangement require a [[Amendments to the Constitution of Canada|constitutional amendment]], while changes to the roles and powers of the territories may be performed unilaterally by the Parliament of Canada.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nicholson |first=Norman L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ek7cloNk3E8C&pg=PA174 |title=The boundaries of the Canadian Confederation |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-7705-1742-7 |pages=174–175}}</ref>

===Foreign relations===
{{Main|Foreign relations of Canada}}
[[File:Canadian embassies map.png|right|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Diplomatic missions of Canada]]<ref name="GAC 2014 c263">{{cite web |title=Diplomatic Missions and Consular Posts Accredited to Canada |website=GAC |date=June 10, 2014 |url=https://www.international.gc.ca/protocol-protocole/missions.aspx?lang=eng |accessdate=February 26, 2024|archive-date=February 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226073816/https://www.international.gc.ca/protocol-protocole/missions.aspx?lang=eng |url-status=live}}</ref>
{{resizediv|95%|{{legend|#2f3699|Countries that host a Canadian Embassy or High Commission}}
{{legend|#709ad1|Interests section and other representations}}
{{legend|#b4b4b4|Countries that do not host Canadian diplomatic missions}}
{{legend|#22b14c|Canada}}}}]]
Canada is recognized as a [[middle power]] for its role in global affairs with a tendency to pursue [[Multilateralism|multilateral]] and [[Internationalism (politics)|international]] solutions.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=Chapnick |first=Adam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S2DPElbLK5sC&pg=PA2 |title=The Middle Power Project: Canada and the Founding of the United Nations |publisher=UBC Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7748-4049-1 |pages=2–5}}
| {{cite book |last1=Gabryś |first1=M. |last2=Soroka |first2=T. |title=Canada as a selective power: Canada's Role and International Position after 1989 |publisher=Neriton, Wydawnictwo |series=Societas |year=2017 |isbn=978-83-7638-792-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FTpyEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA39 |page=39}}
| {{cite book |last1=Sens |first1=Allen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LLc8BAAAQBAJ&pg=PA6 |title=Global Politics |last2=Stoett |first2=Peter |publisher=Nelson Education |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-17-648249-7 |edition=5th |page=6}}
| {{cite book | last=McKercher | first=B.J.C. | title=Routledge Handbook of Diplomacy and Statecraft | publisher=Taylor & Francis | series=Routledge handbooks | year=2012 | isbn=978-1-136-66437-3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dGypAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 | access-date=June 17, 2024 | page=131}}
}}</ref> Canada is known for its commitment to international peace and security, as well as being a mediator in conflicts,<ref name="o407">{{cite book |last1=Courtney |first1=J. |last2=Courtney |first2=J.C. |last3=Smith |first3=D. |title=The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Politics |publisher=OUP USA |series=Oxford Handbooks in Politics & International Relations |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-19-533535-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5KomEXgxvMcC&pg=PA363 |page=363}}</ref> and for providing [[Aid|aid to developing countries]].<ref>
{{multiref2
|{{cite web |title=Development Co-operation Profiles – Canada |website=OECD iLibrary |url=https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/aa7e3298-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/aa7e3298-en |access-date=May 28, 2024|archive-date=May 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240528044344/https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/aa7e3298-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/aa7e3298-en |url-status=live}}
|{{cite journal | last=Webster | first=Craig | title=Canada's Human Rights Policy and ITS Impact on Foreign Assistance Allocation | journal=Peace Research | publisher=Canadian Mennonite University | volume=32 | issue=4 | year=2000 | issn=0008-4697 | jstor=23608002 | pages=85–97 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/23608002 | access-date=October 29, 2024}}}}</ref>

[[Canada–United States relations|Canada and the United States]] have a long and complex relationship;<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite encyclopedia |title=Canada and the United States |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=June 11, 2020 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canada-and-the-united-states |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029025447/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canada-and-the-united-states | url-status=live}}
| {{cite book |last1=Nord |first1=D.C. |last2=Weller |first2=G.R. |title=Canada and the United States: An Introduction to a Complex Relationship |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GO7PGwAACAAJ |page=14}}
}}</ref> historically close allies, they co-operate regularly on military campaigns and humanitarian efforts.<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite book |last1=Carment |first1=D. |last2=Sands |first2=C. |title=Canada–US Relations: Sovereignty or Shared Institutions? |publisher=Springer International Publishing |series=Canada and International Affairs |year=2019 |isbn=978-3-030-05036-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TT6EDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA3 |pages=3–10}}
| {{cite journal |last=Haglung |first=David G |date=Autumn 2003 |title=North American Cooperation in an Era of Homeland Security |journal=[[Orbis (journal)|Orbis]] |volume=47 |issue=4 |pages=675–691 |doi=10.1016/S0030-4387(03)00072-3}}
}}</ref> Canada also maintains historic and traditional [[Canada–United Kingdom relations|ties to the United Kingdom]] and [[Canada–France relations|to France]],<ref name="Morrison 2008 p. 177">{{cite journal |last=Morrison |first=Katherine L. |title=The Only Canadians: Canada's French and the British Connection |journal=International Journal of Canadian Studies |publisher=Consortium Erudit |issue=37 |year=2008 |doi=10.7202/040800ar |page=177 |language=fr |doi-access=free}}</ref> along with both countries' former colonies through its membership in the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] and the {{Lang|fr|[[Organisation internationale de la Francophonie]]}}.<ref>{{Cite book |last=James |first=Patrick |title=Handbook of Canadian Foreign Policy |publisher=Lexington Books |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7391-1493-3 |editor-last=Michaud |editor-first=Nelson |pages=213–214, 349–362 |editor-last2=O'Reilly |editor-first2=Marc J}}</ref> Canada is noted for having a positive [[Canada–Netherlands relations|relationship with the Netherlands]], owing, in part, to its contribution to the [[Liberation of the Netherlands|Dutch liberation during the Second World War]].<ref name="netherlands" /> [[List of diplomatic missions of Canada|Canada has diplomatic and consular offices]] in over 270 locations in approximately 180 foreign countries.<ref name="GAC 2014 c263" />

Canada promotes [[Canadian values |its domestically shared values]] through participating in  [[International organisation membership of Canada|multiple international organizations]].<ref>{{multiref2| {{cite book | last=James | first=Patrick | title=Religion, Identity, and Global Governance | publisher=University of Toronto Press | date=January 1, 2011 | isbn=978-1-4426-4066-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DW0-afj9KNkC&dq=Canada+promotes+its+domestically+shared+values+through+its+its+foreign+relations&pg=PA284 | page=284}}|{{cite web | title=How Should Canada Promote Democracy and Good Governance Internationally? | website=Canadian Global Affairs Institute | date=August 1, 2018 | url=https://www.cgai.ca/how_should_canada_promote_democracy_and_good_governance_internationally | access-date=March 18, 2025}}}}</ref> [[Canada and the United Nations|Canada was a founding member of the United Nations]] (UN) in 1945 and formed the [[North American Aerospace Defense Command]] together with the United States in 1958.<ref name="Wilson 2012 p. 10">{{cite book |last=Wilson |first=G.A.A. |title=NORAD and the Soviet Nuclear Threat: Canada's Secret Electronic Air War |publisher=Dundurn Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4597-0412-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S-nvkPFdUREC&pg=PT10 |page=10}}</ref> The country has membership in the [[World Trade Organization]], the [[Five Eyes]], the [[G7]] and the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] (OECD).<ref name="Chapnick2011a">{{Cite book |last=Chapnick |first=Adam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S2DPElbLK5sC&pg=PA2 |title=The Middle Power Project: Canada and the Founding of the United Nations |publisher=UBC Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7748-4049-1 |pages=2–5}}</ref> The country was a founding member the [[Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation]] forum (APEC) in 1989 and joined the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS) in 1990.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=McKenna |first=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IoputVv15MEC&pg=PA91 |title=Canada Looks South: In Search of an Americas Policy |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4426-1108-5 |page=91}}
| {{cite book |title=Canada Intelligence, Security Activities and Operations Handbook Volume 1 Intelligence Service Organizations, Regulations, Activities |year=2015 |publisher=International Business Publications |isbn=978-0-7397-1615-1 |page=27}}
}}</ref> Canada ratified the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]] (UDHR) in 1948, and seven principal UN human rights conventions and covenants since then.<ref name="Heritage 2017 a990">{{cite web |last=Heritage |first=Canadian |title=Human rights treaties |website=Canada.ca |date=October 23, 2017 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/canada-united-nations-system/treaties.html |access-date=March 15, 2024|archive-date=March 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240315141714/https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/canada-united-nations-system/treaties.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Military and peacekeeping===
{{Main|Canadian Armed Forces|Canadian peacekeeping}}
{{further|Military history of Canada}}
[[File:CAFDay-27 (cropped).jpg|thumb|alt=A fighter jet taking off from a runway|A Canadian [[McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet]] in "special markings" used by the 2014 [[CF-18 Demonstration Team]]<ref name="Skies Mag 2014 p953">{{cite web |title=RCAF 2014 Demo Jet revealed |website=Skies Mag |date=March 27, 2014 |url=https://skiesmag.com/press-releases/rcaf2014demojetrevealed/ |archive-date=October 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231010180249/https://skiesmag.com/press-releases/rcaf2014demojetrevealed/ | url-status=live}}</ref>]]
Alongside many [[List of Canadian military operations#Domestic|domestic obligations]], more than 3,000 [[Canadian Armed Forces]] (CAF) personnel are [[List of Canadian military operations#Foreign|deployed in multiple foreign military operations]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/operations/military-operations/current-operations/list.html |title=Current operations list |year=2024 |publisher=National Defence|archive-date=November 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102133817/https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/operations/military-operations/current-operations/list.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The Canadian unified forces comprise the [[Royal Canadian Navy]], [[Canadian Army]], and [[Royal Canadian Air Force]]. The nation employs a professional, volunteer force of approximately 68,000 active personnel and 27,000 reserve personnel—increasing to 71,500 and 30,000 respectively under "Strong, Secure, Engaged"<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/policies-standards/canada-defence-policy.html |title=Strong, Secure, Engaged: Canada's Defence Policy |publisher=National Defence |date=September 22, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924030653/https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/policies-standards/canada-defence-policy.html |url-status=live}}</ref>—with a sub-component of approximately 5,000 [[Canadian Rangers]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/reports-publications/transition-materials/defence-101/2020/03/defence-101/caf-101.html |title=Canadian Armed Forces 101 |date=March 11, 2021 |publisher=National Defence |archive-date=October 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221030051937/https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/reports-publications/transition-materials/defence-101/2020/03/defence-101/caf-101.html |url-status=live}}</ref>{{efn| name=Force| "The [[Royal Canadian Navy]] is composed of approximately 8,400 full-time sailors and 5,100 part-time sailors. The Army is composed of approximately 22,800 full-time soldiers, 18,700 reservists, and 5,000 [[Canadian Rangers]]. The Royal Canadian Air Force is composed of approximately 13,000 Regular Force personnel and 2,400 Air Reserve personnel."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/about/canadian-armed-forces.page |title=About the Canadian Armed Forces |date=March 11, 2021 |publisher=National Defence |archive-date=March 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150317004607/http://forces.gc.ca/en/about/canadian-armed-forces.page |url-status=dead}}</ref>}} In 2022, Canada's military expenditure totalled approximately $26.9&nbsp;billion, or around 1.2&nbsp;percent of the country's [[gross domestic product]] (GDP){{snd}}placing it 14th for [[List of countries by military expenditures|military expenditure by country]].<ref name="SIPRI-2022">{{cite web |date=April 2023 |title=Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2022 |url=https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2023-04/2304_fs_milex_2022.pdf |access-date=April 29, 2023 |publisher=[[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]]|archive-date=April 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230423231601/https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2023-04/2304_fs_milex_2022.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Canadian peacekeeping|Canada's role in developing ''peacekeeping'' and its participation in major peacekeeping initiatives]] during the 20th century has played a major role in its positive global image.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Sorenson |first1=David S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2OZ6NRiL5MkC&pg=PA158 |title=The Politics of Peacekeeping in the Post-cold War Era |last2=Wood |first2=Pia Christina |publisher=Psychology Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7146-8488-8 |page=158}}
| {{cite book |last1=Sobel |first1=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RsY3pK_993EC&pg=PA21 |title=International Public Opinion and the Bosnia Crisis |last2=Shiraev |first2=Eric |last3=Shapiro |first3=Robert |publisher=Lexington Books |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7391-0480-4 |page=21}}
}}</ref> Peacekeeping is deeply embedded in Canadian culture and a distinguishing feature that Canadians feel sets their foreign policy apart from the United States.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=Gutiérrez-Haces |first=Maria Teresa |title=Identity and Otherness in Canadian Foreign Policy |series=Collection internationale d'Études canadiennes &#124; International Canadian Studies Series |date=November 6, 2018 |pages=231–250 |publisher=University of Ottawa Press |isbn=978-0-7766-2722-9 |url=https://books.openedition.org/uop/1488?lang=en |access-date=March 4, 2024 |archive-date=March 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240304065237/https://books.openedition.org/uop/1488?lang=en | url-status=live}}
| {{cite journal |last=Carroll |first=Michael K |title=Peacekeeping: Canada's past, but not its present and future? |journal=International Journal |publisher=[Sage Publications, Ltd., Canadian International Council] |volume=71 |issue=1 |year=2016 |jstor=44631172 |pages=167–176 |doi=10.1177/0020702015619857 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/44631172 |access-date=February 28, 2024 |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228173148/https://www.jstor.org/stable/44631172 | url-status=live}}
| {{cite web |title=Canada's Current Role in World |url=https://www.environicsinstitute.org/docs/default-source/project-documents/canada-s-world-survey/canada%27s-current-role-in-world.pdf?sfvrsn=d5590018_4 |publisher=Environics Institute for Survey Research |access-date=March 4, 2024 |archive-date=March 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240304065232/https://www.environicsinstitute.org/docs/default-source/project-documents/canada-s-world-survey/canada%27s-current-role-in-world.pdf?sfvrsn=d5590018_4 |url-status=live}}
}}</ref> Canada has long been reluctant to participate in military operations that are not sanctioned by the United Nations,<ref name="Massie 2019 pp. 575–594"/> such as the [[Canada and the Vietnam War|Vietnam War]] or the [[Canada and the Iraq War|2003 invasion of Iraq]].<ref name="Massie 2019 pp. 575–594">{{cite journal |last=Massie |first=Justin |title=Why Canada Goes to War: Explaining Combat Participation in US-led Coalitions |journal=Canadian Journal of Political Science |publisher=Cambridge University Press (CUP) |volume=52 |issue=3 |date=April 30, 2019 |doi=10.1017/s0008423919000040 |pages=575–594}}</ref> Since the 21st century, Canadian direct participation in UN peacekeeping efforts has greatly declined.<ref name="JohnsonJoshee2007">{{cite book |first1=Lauri |last1=Johnson |first2=Reva |last2=Joshee |title=Multicultural education policies in Canada and the United States |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I8jr_pE3YPwC&pg=PA23 |year=2007 |publisher=UBC Press |isbn=978-0-7748-1325-9 |page=23}}</ref> The large decrease was a result of Canada directing its participation to UN-sanctioned military [[Canada in NATO|operations through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization]], rather than directly through the UN.<ref name="McQuaig2010bt">{{cite book |first=Linda |last=McQuaig |title=Holding the Bully's Coat: Canada and the U.S. Empire |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9g4Xd12rIGYC&pg=PT50 |year=2010 |publisher=Random House Digital |isbn=978-0-385-67297-9 |page=50}}</ref> The change to participation via NATO has resulted in a shift towards more militarized and deadly missions rather than traditional peacekeeping duties.<ref name="James Michaud OReilly 2006 p. 177">{{cite book |last1=James |first1=P. |last2=Michaud |first2=N. |last3=O'Reilly |first3=M. |title=Handbook of Canadian Foreign Policy |publisher=Lexington Books |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7391-5580-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QTk2AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA177 |page=177}}</ref>

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Canada}}

[[File:Toronto_from_above_at_night.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Financial District, Toronto|Toronto financial district]] is the second-largest financial centre in North America, the seventh-largest globally in employment and the heart of Canada's finance industry.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sassen |first=Saskia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wBlcDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT210 |title=Cities in a World Economy |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-5063-6260-1 |edition=5th |page=210}}</ref>]]

Canada has a [[Developed country|highly developed]] [[Mixed-market|mixed-market economy]],<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Hall |first1=Peter A. |last2=Soskice |first2=David |date=2001 |title=Varieties of Capitalism: The Institutional Foundations of Comparative Advantage |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EU02HzYJeFsC&q=canada+a+market+economy |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |page=570 |isbn=9780191647703}}
| {{cite encyclopedia |title=Capitalism in Canada |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/capitalism-in-canada#:~:text=Canada%20has%20a%20%E2%80%9Cmixed%E2%80%9D%20economy |first=Peter |last=Diekmeyer |encyclopedia=[[The Canadian Encyclopedia]] |date=June 11, 2020 |archive-date=October 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016165252/https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/capitalism-in-canada#:~:text=Canada%20has%20a%20%E2%80%9Cmixed%E2%80%9D%20economy |url-status=live}}
}}</ref> with the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|ninth-largest nominal GDP]] {{As of|2023|lc=y}}, at approximately {{US$|2.221&nbsp;trillion|link=yes}}.<ref>{{cite web |date=April 2, 2019 |title=World Economic Outlook Database |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2022/April/weo-report?c=156,&s=NGDP_RPCH,NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPRPPPPC,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2015&ey=2026&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |archive-date=September 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922140957/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2022/April/weo-report?c=156,&s=NGDP_RPCH,NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPRPPPPC,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2015&ey=2026&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |url-status=live}}</ref> It is one of the world's largest [[trading nation]]s, with a highly [[globalized]] economy.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://unctad.org/topic/trade-analysis/chart-10-may-2021 |title=Evolution of the world's 25 top trading nations – Share of global exports of goods (%), 1978–2020 |publisher=[[United Nations Conference on Trade and Development]] |archive-date=July 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220715130020/https://unctad.org/topic/trade-analysis/chart-10-may-2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2021, Canadian trade in goods and services reached $2.016&nbsp;trillion.<ref name="econ">{{cite journal |year=2021 |title=U.S.-Canada Trade Facts |url=https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/americas/canada |url-status=live |journal=Canada's State of Trade |edition=20 |publisher=Global Affairs Canada |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417130737/https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/americas/canada |archive-date=April 17, 2022}} [https://www.international.gc.ca/gac-amc/assets/pdfs/publications/State-of-Trade-2019_eng.pdf PDF version]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191003053553/https://www.international.gc.ca/gac-amc/assets/pdfs/publications/State-of-Trade-2019_eng.pdf|date=October 3, 2019}}.</ref> Canada's exports totalled over $637&nbsp;billion, while its imported goods were worth over $631&nbsp;billion, of which approximately $391&nbsp;billion originated from the United States.<ref name="econ" /> In 2018, Canada had a [[trade deficit]] in goods of $22&nbsp;billion and a trade deficit in services of $25&nbsp;billion.<ref name="econ" /> The [[Toronto Stock Exchange]] is the ninth-largest stock exchange in the world by [[market capitalization]], listing over 1,500 companies with a combined market capitalization of over {{US$|2&nbsp;trillion}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Monthly Reports |url=https://www.world-exchanges.org/our-work/statistics |publisher=World Federation of Exchanges |archive-date=February 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218202537/https://www.world-exchanges.org/our-work/statistics |url-status=live}}{{as of|2018|November|lc=y}}</ref>

The [[Bank of Canada]] is the [[central bank]] of the country.<ref name="Watts-1993">{{cite book |last=Watts |first=George S. |title=Bank of Canada/La Banque du Canada: Origines et premieres annees/Origins and Early History |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-88629-182-2 |jstor=j.ctt9qf36m |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9qf36m}}</ref> The [[Minister of Finance (Canada)|minister of finance]] and [[Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry|minister of innovation, science, and industry]] use data from [[Statistics Canada]] to enable financial planning and develop economic policy.<ref>{{cite web |year=2014 |title=About |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/about-apercu/mandate-mandat-eng.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150115144515/http://statcan.gc.ca/about-apercu/mandate-mandat-eng.htm |archive-date=January 15, 2015 |access-date=March 8, 2017 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> Canada has a strong [[cooperative banking]] sector, with the world's highest per-capita membership in [[credit union]]s.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kobrak |first1=Christopher |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yw9aDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA220 |title=From Wall Street to Bay Street: The Origins and Evolution of American and Canadian Finance |last2=Martin |first2=Joe |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-4426-1625-7 |page=220}}</ref> It ranks low in the [[Corruption Perceptions Index]] (14th in 2023)<ref name="cpi">{{cite web |title=Corruption Perceptions Index (latest) |date=January 31, 2023 |url=https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi |publisher=[[Transparency International]] |archive-date=July 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724013412/http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2012/results/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and "is widely regarded as among the least corrupt countries of the world".<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Rotberg |first1=Robert I. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ujOoDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT12 |title=Canada's Corruption at Home and Abroad |last2=Carment |first2=David |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-351-57924-7 |page=12}}</ref> It ranks high in the [[Global Competitiveness Report]] (19th in 2024).<ref name="x737">{{cite web | title=World Competitiveness Center | website=IMD business school for management and leadership courses | date=June 10, 2024 | url=https://www.imd.org/centers/wcc/world-competitiveness-center/rankings/world-competitiveness-ranking/rankings/wcr-rankings/#_tab_Rank | access-date=November 15, 2024}}</ref> Canada's economy ranks above most [[Western nations]] on [[the Heritage Foundation]]'s [[Index of Economic Freedom]]<ref>{{cite web |year=2020 |title=Index of Economic Freedom |url=https://www.heritage.org/index/country/canada |access-date=May 8, 2021 |publisher=[[The Heritage Foundation]] |archive-date=April 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420111447/https://www.heritage.org/index/country/canada |url-status=unfit}}</ref> and experiences a relatively low level of [[Economic inequality|income disparity]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.credit-suisse.com/corporate/en/research/research-institute/global-wealth-report.html |publisher=[[Credit Suisse]] |title=Global Wealth Report |date=October 2018 |first1=Anthony |last1=Shorrocks |first2=Jim |last2=Davies |first3=Rodrigo |last3=Lluberas |archive-date=July 18, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170718173830/https://www.credit-suisse.com/corporate/en/research/research-institute/global-wealth-report.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The country's average household [[disposable income]] per capita is "well above" the OECD average.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/countries/canada/#:~:text=In%20Canada%2C%20the%20average%20household%20net%20adjusted%20disposable%20income%20per,average%20of%20USD%2030%20490. |title=Canada |work=OECD Better Life Index |date=2021 |archive-date=March 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305123737/https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/countries/canada/#:~:text=In%20Canada%2C%20the%20average%20household%20net%20adjusted%20disposable%20income%20per,average%20of%20USD%2030%20490. |url-status=live}}</ref> Canada ranks among the lowest of the most developed countries for [[Affordable housing in Canada|housing affordability]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm |title=Prices - Housing prices |publisher=OECD |access-date=August 14, 2022 |archive-date=August 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220811142758/https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[foreign direct investment]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite journal |url=https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/sppp/article/view/72311/55149 |title=View of 2020 Tax Competitiveness Report: Canada's Investment Challenge |year=2021 |doi=10.11575/sppp.v14i1.72311 |last1=Mintz |first1=Jack |last2=Bazel |first2=Philip |journal=The School of Public Policy Publications |volume=14 |issue=1}}
| {{cite web |title='Worst in the world': Here are all the rankings in which Canada is now last |website=National Post |date=August 11, 2022 |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/worst-in-the-world-here-are-all-the-rankings-in-which-canada-is-now-last |archive-date=November 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231130234013/https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/worst-in-the-world-here-are-all-the-rankings-in-which-canada-is-now-last |url-status=live}}
}}</ref>

Since the early 20th century, the growth of [[Manufacturing in Canada|Canada's manufacturing]], mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy to an urbanized, industrial one.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Harris |first1=R. Cole |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pD7vTXLqkugC&pg=PA2 |title=Historical Atlas of Canada: Addressing the Twentieth Century, 1891–1961 |last2=Matthews |first2=Geoffrey J. |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-8020-3448-9 |page=2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320150918/https://books.google.com/books?id=pD7vTXLqkugC&pg=PA2 |archive-date=March 20, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Canadian economy is dominated by the [[Tertiary sector of the economy|service industry]], which employs about three-quarters of the country's workforce.<ref>{{cite web |date=January 8, 2009 |title=Employment by Industry |url=http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/econ40-eng.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524063742/http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/econ40-eng.htm |archive-date=May 24, 2011 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> Canada has an unusually important [[Primary sector of the economy|primary sector]], of which the [[Forestry in Canada|forestry]] and [[Petroleum industry in Canada|petroleum industries]] are the most prominent components.<ref name="SueyoshiGoto2018">{{Cite book |last1=Sueyoshi |first1=Toshiyuki |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s0RKDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA496 |title=Environmental Assessment on Energy and Sustainability by Data Envelopment Analysis |last2=Goto |first2=Mika |publisher=Wiley |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-118-97933-4 |page=496}}</ref> Many towns in northern Canada, where agriculture is difficult, are sustained by nearby mines or sources of timber.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Vodden |first1=K |last2=Cunsolo |first2=A. |year=2021 |url=https://natural-resources.canada.ca/sites/nrcan/files/pdf/National_Issues_Report_Final_EN.pdf |title=Rural and Remote Communities; Chapter 3 |work=Canada in a Changing Climate: National Issues Report |editor1-first=F.J. |editor1-last=Warren |editor2-first=N. |editor2-last=Lulham |publisher=Government of Canada|archive-date=December 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209174936/https://natural-resources.canada.ca/sites/nrcan/files/pdf/National_Issues_Report_Final_EN.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> 
[[File:FTAs with Canada.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|{{Legend|#000|Canada}}{{Legend|#393|[[Free trade agreements of Canada|Countries and territories with free-trade agreements]]<ref name="GAC 2020" />}}]]
Canada's economic integration with the United States has increased significantly since the [[Second World War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Mosler |first1=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l00i5PKYDwcC&pg=PA38 |title=The American Challenge: The World Resists US Liberalism |last2=Catley |first2=Bob |publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing]] |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-4094-9852-0 |page=38}}</ref> The [[Canada&nbsp;– United States Free Trade Agreement]] (FTA) of 1988 eliminated tariffs between the two countries, while the [[North American Free Trade Agreement]] (NAFTA) expanded the free-trade zone to include [[Mexico]] in 1994 (later replaced by the [[United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement|Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement]]).<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2wd30pXJxpYC&pg=PA569 |title=The Oxford Companion to Politics of the World |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-19-511739-4 |editor-last=Krieger |editor-first=Joel |edition=2nd |page=569}}</ref> As of 2023, [[Free trade agreements of Canada|Canada is a signatory to 15 free trade agreements]] with 51 different countries.<ref name="GAC 2020">{{cite web |title=Expand globally with Canada's free trade agreements |publisher=Trade Commissioner |date=December 3, 2020 |url=https://www.tradecommissioner.gc.ca/fta-ale-canada.aspx?lang=eng |archive-date=March 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306015044/https://www.tradecommissioner.gc.ca/fta-ale-canada.aspx?lang=eng |url-status=live}}</ref>

Canada is one of the few developed nations that are net exporters of energy.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Charles E |title=World Energy Resources |publisher=Springer |year=2002 |isbn=978-3-540-42634-9 |pages=323, 378–389}}</ref> [[Offshore drilling in Atlantic Canada|Atlantic Canada possess vast offshore deposits of natural gas]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2017/market-snapshot-25-years-atlantic-canada-offshore-oil-natural-gas-production.html |title=CER – Market Snapshot: 25 Years of Atlantic Canada Offshore Oil & Natural Gas Production |publisher=Canada Energy Regulator |date=January 29, 2021 |archive-date=November 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128010325/https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2017/market-snapshot-25-years-atlantic-canada-offshore-oil-natural-gas-production.html |url-status=live}}</ref> and Alberta hosts the fourth-largest oil reserves in the world.<ref name="Monga 2022">{{cite web |last=Monga |first=Vipal |title=One of the World's Dirtiest Oil Patches Is Pumping More Than Ever |website=Wall Street Journal |date=January 13, 2022 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-sands-canada-dirty-carbon-environment-11642085980 |archive-date=June 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601095803/https://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-sands-canada-dirty-carbon-environment-11642085980 |url-status=live}}</ref> The vast [[Athabasca oil sands]] and other oil reserves give Canada 13&nbsp;percent of global oil reserves, constituting the world's [[List of countries by proven oil reserves|third- or fourth-largest]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lopez-Vallejo |first=Marcela |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fgDtCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA82 |title=Reconfiguring Global Climate Governance in North America: A Transregional Approach |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-317-07042-9 |page=82}}</ref> Canada is additionally one of the world's [[Agriculture in Canada|largest suppliers of agricultural products]]; the Canadian Prairies region is one of the most important global producers of wheat, [[canola]], and other grains.<ref>{{cite web |year=2017 |title=Trade Ranking Report: Agriculture |url=https://www.fcc-fac.ca/fcc/knowledge/ag-economist/trade-ranking-report-agriculture-e.pdf |publisher=FCC |archive-date=October 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191003070556/https://www.fcc-fac.ca/fcc/knowledge/ag-economist/trade-ranking-report-agriculture-e.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> [[List of exports of Canada|Canada's main exports]] are zinc, uranium, gold, nickel, [[Platinum group|platinoids]], aluminum, steel, iron ore, coking coal, lead, copper, [[molybdenum]], cobalt, and cadmium.<ref>{{multiref2
|{{cite web |title=Canada (CAN) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners |publisher=The Observatory of Economic Complexity |url=https://oec.world/en/profile/country/can |access-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220112011418/https://oec.world/en/profile/country/can |url-status=live}}
| {{cite web |title=The Atlas of Economic Complexity by @HarvardGrwthLab |website=The Atlas of Economic Complexity |url=https://atlas.cid.harvard.edu/countries/39 |access-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520150209/https://atlas.cid.harvard.edu/countries/39 |url-status=live}}
}}</ref> Canada has a sizeable manufacturing sector centred in southern Ontario and Quebec, with automobiles and [[aeronautics]] representing particularly important industries.<ref>{{cite web |date=January 22, 2015 |title=Mapping Canada's Top Manufacturing Industries |url=https://www.ibisworld.com/media/2015/01/22/mapping-canadas-top-manufacturing-industries/ |website=Industry Insider}}</ref> The [[Fishing industry in Canada|country's fishing industry]] is also a key contributor to the economy.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2021 n754">{{cite web |title=Canada's oceans and the economic contribution of marine sectors |website=Statistics Canada |date=July 19, 2021 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/16-002-x/2021001/article/00001-eng.htm |access-date=September 15, 2023}}</ref>

===Science and technology===
{{Main|Science and technology in Canada}}

In 2020, Canada spent approximately $41.9&nbsp;billion on domestic [[research and development]], with supplementary estimates for 2022 at $43.2&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/230127/dq230127b-eng.htm |title=Gross domestic expenditures on research and development, 2020 (final), 2021 (preliminary) and 2022 (intentions) |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=January 27, 2023}}</ref> {{As of|2023}}, the country has produced 15 [[List of Nobel laureates by country|Nobel laureates]] in [[Nobel Prize in Physics|physics]], [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry|chemistry]], and [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine|medicine]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Canadian Nobel Prize in Science Laureates |url=http://www.science.ca/scientists/nobellaureates.php |access-date=December 19, 2020 |publisher=Science.ca}}</ref> The country [[List of countries by number of scientific and technical journal articles|ranks seventh]] in the worldwide share of articles published in [[scientific journals]], according to the [[Nature Index]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=2022 tables: Countries/territories {{!}} 2022 tables {{!}} Countries/territories |work= Nature Index|url=https://www.nature.com/nature-index/annual-tables/2022/country/all/all |access-date=June 10, 2023}}</ref> and is home to the headquarters of a number of global technology firms.<ref>{{cite web |title=Top Technology Companies in Canada |website=World Top 25,000 Companies by market cap as on Dec 2022 |date=January 1, 2020 |url=https://www.value.today/top-companies/top-technology-companies-canada}}</ref> Canada [[List of countries by number of Internet users|has one of the highest levels of Internet access in the world]], with over 33&nbsp;million users, equivalent to around 94 percent of its total population.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/210531/dq210531d-eng.htm |title=Access to the Internet in Canada, 2020 |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=May 31, 2021}}</ref>

[[File:STS-116 - P5 Truss hand-off to ISS (NASA S116-E-05765).jpg|thumb|right|The Canadian-built [[Space Shuttle]] robotic arm (left), referred to as [[Canadarm]], transferred the [[Integrated Truss Structure|P5 truss segment]] over to the Canadian-built [[space station]] robotic arm, referred to as [[Canadarm2]].<ref name="Canadian Space Agency 2002 a865">{{cite web |title=Canadarm, Canadarm2, and Canadarm3 – A comparative table |website=Canadian Space Agency |date=December 31, 2002 |url=https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/iss/canadarm2/canadarm-canadarm2-canadarm3-comparative-table.asp |access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref>]]

[[List of Canadian inventions, innovations, and discoveries|Canada's achievements in science and technology]] include the creation of the modern [[alkaline battery]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Lew Urry |url=http://www.science.ca/scientists/scientistprofile.php?pID=277 |website=Science.ca}}</ref> the [[Insulin#Discovery|discovery of insulin]],<ref>{{cite book |title=Proteins, Enzymes, Genes: The Interplay of Chemistry and Biology |last=Fruton |first=Joseph |publisher=Yale University Press |pages=95–96 |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-300-15359-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X6skaZlZNdsC&pg=PA95}}</ref> the development of the [[polio vaccine]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Leone N. Farrell |url=http://www.science.ca/scientists/scientistprofile.php?pID=438 |website=Science.ca}}</ref> and discoveries about the interior structure of the [[atomic nucleus]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Leon Katz |url=http://www.science.ca/scientists/scientistprofile.php?pID=404 |website=Science.ca}}</ref> Other major Canadian scientific contributions include the [[artificial cardiac pacemaker]], mapping the [[visual cortex]],<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite news |last=Strauss |first=Evelyn |year=2005 |title=2005 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award |publisher=[[Lasker Award|Lasker Foundation]] |url=http://www.laskerfoundation.org/awards/2005_b_description.htm |url-status=live |access-date=November 23, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100716192333/http://www.laskerfoundation.org/awards/2005_b_description.htm |archive-date=July 16, 2010}}
| {{cite web |year=2015 |title=Top ten Canadian scientific achievements |url=http://www.science.ca/askascientist/topachievements.php |website=GCS Research Society}}
}}</ref> the development of the [[electron microscope]],<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |title=James Hillier |url=http://web.mit.edu/Invent/iow/hillier.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130808192011/http://web.mit.edu/Invent/iow/hillier.html |archive-date=August 8, 2013 |access-date=November 20, 2008 |website=Inventor of the Week |publisher=[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]}}
| {{cite news |last=Pearce |first=Jeremy |date=January 22, 2007 |title=James Hillier, 91, Dies; Co-Developed Electron Microscope |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/22/science/22hillier.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325113042/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/22/science/22hillier.html |archive-date=March 25, 2014}}
}}</ref> [[plate tectonics]], [[deep learning]], [[multi-touch]] technology, and the identification of the first [[black hole]], [[Cygnus X-1]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bolton |first=C. T. |year=1972 |title=Identification of Cygnus X-1 with HDE 226868 |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |volume=235 |issue=2 |pages=271–273 |doi=10.1038/235271b0 |bibcode=1972Natur.235..271B }}</ref> Canada has a long history of discovery in genetics, which include [[stem cell]]s, [[site-directed mutagenesis]], [[T-cell receptor]], and the identification of the genes that cause [[Fanconi anemia]], [[cystic fibrosis]], and [[early-onset Alzheimer's disease]], among numerous other diseases.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Strathdee |first1=C.A. |first2=H. |last2=Gavish |first3=W. |last3=Shannon |last4=Buchwald, M. |year=1992 |title=Cloning of cDNAs for Fanconi's anemia by functional complementation |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |volume=356 |issue=6372 |pages=763–767 |bibcode=1992Natur.356..763S |doi=10.1038/356763a0 |pmid=1574115}}</ref>

The [[Canadian Space Agency]] runs an active space program focused on deep-space, planetary, and aviation research, along with rockets and satellites.<ref>{{cite web |year=2016 |title=Canadian Space Milestones |url=http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/about/milestones.asp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091008060654/http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/about/milestones.asp |archive-date=October 8, 2009 |publisher=Canadian Space Agency}}</ref> Canada launched its first satellite, [[Alouette 1]], in 1962.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Angelo |first=Joseph A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VUWno1sOwnUC&pg=PA22 |title=Encyclopedia of Space and Astronomy |publisher=Infobase Publishing |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4381-1018-9 |page=22}}</ref> It contributes to the [[International Space Station]] and is known for its robotic tools, such as multiple [[Canadarm]]s.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bidaud |first1=Philippe |title=Field Robotics: Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Climbing and Walking Robots and the Support Technologies for Mobile Machines |last2=Dupuis |first2=Erick |publisher=[[World Scientific]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-981-4374-27-9 |pages=35–37 |chapter=An overview of Canadian space robotics activities |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TSlqDQAAQBAJ&pg=RA1-PA35}}</ref> Canada has initiated many long-term projects, including the [[Radarsat|Radarsat satellite series]] and the [[Black Brant (rocket)|Black Brant rocket series]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Godefroy |first=Andrew B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JVLJDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA41 |title=The Canadian Space Program: From Black Brant to the International Space Station |publisher=Springer |year=2017 |isbn=978-3-319-40105-8 |page=41}}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{Main|Demographics of Canada|List of cities in Canada}}

[[File:Population density statistics canada.gif|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Population of Canada|Canada population]] density map (2014)<br>'''Top left:''' The [[Quebec City–Windsor Corridor]] is the most densely inhabited and heavily industrialized region.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2015 l621">{{cite web |title=Section 4: Maps |website=Statistics Canada |date=February 11, 2015 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/91-214-x/2015000/section04-eng.htm |access-date=July 23, 2023}}</ref>]]

The [[2021 Canadian census]] enumerated a [[Population of Canada by year|total population]] of 36,991,981, an increase of around 5.2 percent over the 2016 figure.<ref name="2021cen">{{cite web |last=Zimonjic |first=Peter |date=February 9, 2022 |title=Despite pandemic, Canada's population grows at fastest rate in G7: census |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/census-2021-release-population-cities-1.6344179 |work=CBC News}}</ref> It is estimated that Canada's population surpassed 40,000,000 in 2023.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2023 e538">{{cite web |title=Canada's population reaches 40{{nbsp}}million | website=Statistics Canada | date=June 16, 2023 | url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/subjects-start/population_and_demography/40-million |access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref> The main drivers of population growth are [[Immigration to Canada|immigration]] and, to a lesser extent, natural growth.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Edmonston |first1=Barry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VVYOgvFPvBEC&pg=PA181 |title=The Changing Canadian Population |last2=Fong |first2=Eric |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7735-3793-4 |page=181}}</ref> Canada has one of the highest per-capita immigration rates in the world,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zimmerman |first=Karla |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kv4nlSWLT8UC&pg=PA51 |title=Canada |publisher=[[Lonely Planet]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-74104-571-0 |edition=10th |page=51}}</ref> driven mainly by [[Economic impact of immigration to Canada|economic policy]] and [[Immigration categories (Canada)|family reunification]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Hollifield |first1=James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ys9jBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |title=Controlling Immigration: A Global Perspective |last2=Martin |first2=Philip |last3=Orrenius |first3=Pia |publisher=[[Stanford University Press]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-8047-8627-0 |edition=3rd |page=11}}
| {{cite book |last1=Beaujot |first1=Roderic P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CofPBh5BRhwC&pg=PA178 |title=The Changing Face of Canada: Essential Readings in Population |last2=Kerr |first2=Donald W. |publisher=Canadian Scholars' Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-55130-322-2 |page=178}}
}}</ref> A record 405,000 immigrants were admitted in 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sangani |first1=Priyanka |date=February 15, 2022 |title=Canada to take in 1.3{{nbsp}}million immigrants in 2022–24 |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/canada-to-take-in-1-3-million-immigrants-in-2022-24/articleshow/89593324.cms?from=mdr |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215120744/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/canada-to-take-in-1-3-million-immigrants-in-2022-24/articleshow/89593324.cms?from=mdr |archive-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> Canada leads the world in [[Third country resettlement|refugee resettlement]]; it resettled more than 47,600 in 2022.<ref name="g225">{{cite web | last=Kim | first=Soo-Jung | title=UNHCR calls for concerted action as forced displacement hits new record in 2022 | website=UNHCR Canada | date=June 14, 2023 | url=https://www.unhcr.ca/news/unhcr-calls-for-concerted-action-as-forced-displacement-hits-new-record-in-2022/#:~:text=OTTAWA%2C%2014%20June%202023%20%E2%80%93%20Canada,UNHCR%2C%20the%20UN%20Refugee%20Agency. | access-date=July 4, 2024}}</ref> New immigrants settle mostly in [[List of the largest population centres in Canada|major urban areas]], such as Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Grubel |first=Herbert G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=48LOyfxYihoC&pg=PA5 |title=The Effects of Mass Immigration on Canadian Living Standards and Society |publisher=Fraser Institute |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-88975-246-7 |page=5}}</ref>

Canada's population density, at {{convert|4.2|PD/km2}}, is among the lowest in the world,<ref name="2021cen" /> with approximately 95&nbsp;percent of the population residing south of the [[55th parallel north|55th parallel]] north.<ref name="OECD2014">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_mjWAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA142 |title=OECD Environmental Performance Reviews OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: Canada 2004 |publisher=OECD |year=2014 |isbn=978-92-64-10778-6 |pages=142–}}</ref> About 80 percent of the population lives within {{convert|150|km|mi}} of the border with the contiguous United States.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Custred |first=Glynn |url=https://archive.org/details/immigrationpolic0000unse/page/96 |title=Immigration policy and the terrorist threat in Canada and the United States |publisher=Fraser Institute |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-88975-235-1 |editor-last=Moens |editor-first=Alexander |page=[https://archive.org/details/immigrationpolic0000unse/page/96 96] |chapter=Security Threats on America's Borders |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HmiqBgnkAXYC&pg=PA96}}</ref> Canada is highly urbanized, with over 80 percent of the population living in urban centres.<ref name="World Bank Open Data s787">{{cite web |title=World Bank Open Data |website=World Bank Open Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=CA&name_desc=true |language=la |access-date=August 15, 2023}}</ref> The majority of Canadians (over 70&nbsp;percent ) live below the [[49th parallel north|49th parallel]], with 50&nbsp;percent of Canadians living south of 45°42′ (45.7 degrees) north.<ref name="a715">{{cite web | last=Jacobs | first=Frank | title=Most Canadians live south of Seattle and other mental map surprises | website=Big Think | date=January 4, 2024 | url=https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/canadians-south-seattle-mental-map-surprise/ | access-date=October 19, 2024}}</ref> The most densely populated part of the country is the [[Quebec City–Windsor Corridor]] in Southern Quebec and Southern Ontario along the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River.<ref name="McMurryShepherd2004">{{Cite book |last1=McMurry |first1=Peter H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1giH-mvhhw8C&pg=PA391 |title=Particulate Matter Science for Policy Makers: A NARSTO Assessment |last2=Shepherd |first2=Marjorie F. |last3=Vickery |first3=James S. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-521-84287-7 |page=391}}</ref>

The majority of Canadians (81.1&nbsp;percent) live in family households, 12.1&nbsp;percent report living alone, and 6.8&nbsp;percent live with other relatives or unrelated persons.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=February 9, 2022 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population – Canada [Country] |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E}}</ref> Fifty-one&nbsp;percent of households are couples with or without children, 8.7&nbsp;percent are single-parent households, 2.9&nbsp;percent are multigenerational households, and 29.3&nbsp;percent are single-person households.<ref name=":0" />
{{Largest metropolitan areas of Canada}}

===Ethnicity===
{{main| Ethnic origins of people in Canada}}

Respondents in the [[2021 Canadian census]] self-reported over 450 "[[Ethnic origins of people in Canada|ethnic or cultural origins]]".<ref name="2021newsrelease">{{Cite web |date=October 26, 2022 |title=The Canadian census: A rich portrait of the country's religious and ethnocultural diversity |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026b-eng.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231227102217/https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026b-eng.htm |archive-date=December 27, 2023 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> The major [[Panethnicity|panethnic]] groups chosen were: [[Ethnic groups in Europe|European]] ({{Percentage | 19062115 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[North America]]n ({{Percentage | 8329945 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[Ethnic groups in Asia|Asian]] ({{Percentage | 7013835 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|North American Indigenous]] ({{Percentage | 2204475 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[List of ethnic groups of Africa|African]] ({{Percentage | 1394170 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[Latin America|Latin, Central and South American]] ({{Percentage | 900495 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[Caribbean people|Caribbean]] ({{Percentage | 774515 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), [[Oceanian people|Oceanian]] ({{Percentage | 105010 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}), and other ({{Percentage | 2163380 | 36328475 | 1 | % = &nbsp;percent}}).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Ethnic or cultural origin by gender and age: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810035601 |access-date=December 20, 2024 |website=www150.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref> Over 60 percent of Canadians reported a single origin, and 36 percent reported having multiple ethnic origins, thus the overall total is greater than 100&nbsp;percent.<ref name="2021newsrelease" />
[[File:Canadian ethnocultural diversity.png|thumb|upright=1.3|The top 168 [[Ethnic origins of people in Canada|ethnic or cultural origins self-reported by Canadians]] in the 2021 census<ref name="Statistics Canada u055">{{cite web |title=''Canadian'' tops the more than 450 ethnic or cultural origins reported by the population of Canada |website=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/g-b001-eng.htm |access-date=July 8, 2023}}</ref>]]
The country's ten largest self-reported ethnic or cultural origins in 2021 were [[Canadian ethnicity|Canadian]]{{efn| name=Canadian|1=All citizens of Canada are classified as "Canadians" as defined by [[Canadian nationality law|Canada's nationality laws]]. "Canadian" as an ethnic group has since 1996 been added to census questionnaires for possible ancestral origin or descent. "Canadian" was included as an example on the English questionnaire and "Canadien" as an example on the French questionnaire.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Patrick |last1=Simon |first2=Victor |last2=Piché |title=Accounting for Ethnic and Racial Diversity: The Challenge of Enumeration |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6t7p-xxFhnwC&pg=PT48 |year=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-98108-4 |pages=48–49}}</ref> "The majority of respondents to this selection are from the eastern part of the country that was first settled. Respondents generally are visibly European (Anglophones and Francophones) and no longer self-identify with their ethnic ancestral origins. This response is attributed to a multitude or generational distance from ancestral lineage."<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Bezanson |first1=Kate |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oWO_DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA455 |title=Rethinking Society in the 21st Century |last2=Webber |first2=Michelle |publisher=Canadian Scholars' Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-55130-936-1 |edition=4th |pages=455–456}}
| {{cite book |last1=Edmonston |first1=Barry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VVYOgvFPvBEC&pg=PA294 |title=The Changing Canadian Population |last2=Fong |first2=Eric |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7735-3793-4 |pages=294–296}}
}}</ref>}} (accounting for 15.6&nbsp;percent of the population), followed by [[English Canadians|English]] (14.7&nbsp;percent), [[Irish Canadians|Irish]] (12.1&nbsp;percent), [[Scottish Canadians|Scottish]] (12.1&nbsp;percent), [[French Canadians|French]] (11.0&nbsp;percent), [[German Canadians|German]] (8.1&nbsp;percent), [[Chinese Canadians|Chinese]] (4.7&nbsp;percent), [[Italian Canadians|Italian]] (4.3&nbsp;percent), [[Indian Canadians|Indian]] (3.7&nbsp;percent), and [[Ukrainian Canadians|Ukrainian]] (3.5&nbsp;percent).<ref name="ethnicpopulationordered2021">{{Cite web |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population Profile table Canada [Country] Total – Ethnic or cultural origin for the population in private households – 25% sample data |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?LANG=E&GENDERlist=1,2,3&STATISTIClist=1,4&DGUIDlist=2021A000011124&HEADERlist=31&SearchText=Canada}}</ref>

Of the 36.3{{nbsp}}million people enumerated in 2021, approximately 24.5{{nbsp}}million reported being "[[White people|White]]", representing 67.4&nbsp;percent of the population.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022a">{{cite web |title=Visible minority and population group by generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810032401}}</ref> The Indigenous population representing 5&nbsp;percent or 1.8{{nbsp}}million people, grew by 9.4&nbsp;percent compared to the non-Indigenous population, which grew by 5.3&nbsp;percent from 2016 to 2021.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022a" /> One out of every four Canadians or 26.5&nbsp;percent of the population belonged to a non-White and non-Indigenous [[visible minority]],<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Visible Minority |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=October 27, 2022 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/minorite-visible#:~:text=In%20the%202021%20census%2C%20around,as%20defined%20by%20Canadian%20law.}}</ref>{{efn|Indigenous peoples are not considered a visible minority in Statistics Canada calculations. Visible minorities are defined by Statistics Canada as "persons, other than aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour".<ref>{{cite web |date=July 25, 2008 |title=Classification of visible minority |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/concepts/definitions/minority01-minorite01a-eng.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714060402/https://www.statcan.gc.ca/concepts/definitions/minority01-minorite01a-eng.htm |archive-date=July 14, 2011 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref>}} the largest of which in 2021 were [[South Asian Canadians|South Asian]] (2.6{{nbsp}}million people; 7.1&nbsp;percent), Chinese (1.7{{nbsp}}million; 4.7&nbsp;percent), [[Black Canadians|Black]] (1.5{{nbsp}}million; 4.3&nbsp;percent), [[Filipino Canadians|Filipinos]] (960,000  2.6&nbsp;percent), [[Arab Canadians|Arabs]] (690,000; 1.9&nbsp;percent), Latin Americans (580,000; 1.6&nbsp;percent), [[Southeast Asian Canadians|Southeast Asians]] (390,000; 1.1&nbsp;percent), [[West Asian Canadians|West Asians]] (360,000; 1.0&nbsp;percent), [[Korean Canadians|Koreans]] (220,000; 0.6&nbsp;percent) and [[Japanese Canadians|Japanese]] (99,000; 0.3&nbsp;percent).<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022">{{cite web |title=The Daily — The Canadian census: A rich portrait of the country's religious and ethnocultural diversity |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026b-eng.htm}}</ref>

Between 2011 and 2016, the visible minority population rose by 18.4&nbsp;percent.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 8, 2017 |title=Census Profile, 2016 Census |url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=01&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=canada&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&TABID=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015095154/http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=01&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=Canada&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&TABID=1 |archive-date=October 15, 2017 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> In 1961, about 300,000 people, less than two percent of Canada's population, were members of visible minority groups.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pendakur |first=Krishna |title=Visible Minorities and Aboriginal Peoples in Vancouver's Labour Market |url=http://www.rhdcc-hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/labour/equality/racism/racism_free_init/pendakur.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516021011/http://www.rhdcc-hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/labour/equality/racism/racism_free_init/pendakur.shtml |archive-date=May 16, 2011 |access-date=June 30, 2014 |publisher=Simon Fraser University}}</ref> The 2021 census indicated that 8.3{{Nbsp}}million people, or almost one-quarter (23.0&nbsp;percent) of the population, reported themselves as being or having been a [[Permanent residency in Canada|landed immigrant or permanent resident]] in Canada—above the [[1921 Canadian census|1921 census]] previous record of 22.3&nbsp;percent.<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022b">{{cite web |title=The Daily — Immigrants make up the largest share of the population in over 150 years and continue to shape who we are as Canadians |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026a-eng.htm}}</ref> In 2021, India, China, and the Philippines were the top three countries of origin for immigrants moving to Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/annual-report-parliament-immigration-2021.html#annex2 |title=2021 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration |date=March 15, 2022 |publisher=[[Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada]]}}</ref>

===Languages===
{{Main|Languages of Canada}}
[[File:English-French bilingualism rate in Canada.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Percentage of the population who could conduct a conversation in English and French in 2021<ref name="f185">{{cite web | title=The English-French bilingualism rate is highest in Quebec, followed by New Brunswick and Yukon | website=Statistics Canada | date=August 17, 2022 | url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220817/mc-a002-eng.htm | access-date=February 14, 2025}}</ref>]]
A multitude of languages are used by Canadians, with [[Canadian English|English]] and [[Canadian French|French]] (the [[official language]]s) being the [[First language|mother tongues]] of approximately 54&nbsp;percent and 19&nbsp;percent of Canadians, respectively.<ref name=":0" /> [[Official bilingualism in Canada|Canada's official bilingualism policies]] give citizens the right to receive federal government services in either English or French with official-[[Minority language|language minorities]] guaranteed their own schools in all provinces and territories.<ref>{{cite web |date=June 16, 2009 |title=Official Languages and You |url=http://www.ocol-clo.gc.ca/html/faq1_e.php |publisher=[[Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages]] |access-date=September 10, 2011 |archive-date=October 27, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027121057/http://www.ocol-clo.gc.ca/html/faq1_e.php |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Quebec's 1974 ''[[Official Language Act (Quebec)|Official Language Act]]'' established French as the only official language of the province.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bourhis |first1=Richard Y |last2=Montaruli |first2=Elisa |last3=Amiot |first3=Catherine E |date=May 2007 |title=Language planning and French-English bilingual communication: Montreal field studies from 1977 to 1997 |journal=[[International Journal of the Sociology of Language]] |issue=185 |pages=187–224 |doi=10.1515/IJSL.2007.031}}</ref> Although more than 82 percent of French-speaking Canadians live in Quebec, there are substantial [[Francophone]] populations in [[Demographics of New Brunswick|New Brunswick]], [[Franco-Albertans|Alberta]], and [[Franco-Manitoban|Manitoba]], with [[Franco-Ontarian|Ontario]] having the largest French-speaking population outside Quebec.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Webber |first=Jeremy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f357BwAAQBAJ&pg=PA214 |title=The Constitution of Canada: A Contextual Analysis |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-78225-631-1 |page=214}}</ref> New Brunswick, the only officially bilingual province, has an [[Acadian French]] minority constituting 33 percent of the population.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Auer |first=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2_aPmMkzK_AC&pg=PA387 |title=Language and Space: An International Handbook of Linguistic Variation. Theories and methods |publisher=[[Walter de Gruyter]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-3-11-018002-2 |page=387}}</ref> There are also clusters of Acadians in southwestern Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton Island, and in central and western Prince Edward Island.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hayday |first=Matthew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3D6LPBGT59kC&pg=PA49 |title=Bilingual Today, United Tomorrow: Official Languages in Education and Canadian Federalism |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7735-2960-1 |page=49}}</ref>

Other provinces have no official languages as such, but French is used as a language of instruction, in courts, and for other government services, in addition to English. Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec allow for both English and French to be spoken in the provincial legislatures and laws are enacted in both languages. In Ontario, French has some legal status, but is not fully co-official.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Heller |first=Monica |title=Crosswords: Language, Education and Ethnicity in French Ontario |publisher=[[Mouton de Gruyter]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-3-11-017687-2 |pages=72, 74}}</ref> There are 11 [[Languages of Canada|Indigenous language groups]], composed of more than 65 distinct languages and dialects.<ref>{{cite web |title=Aboriginal languages |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-589-x/4067801-eng.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429005405/https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-589-x/4067801-eng.htm |archive-date=April 29, 2011 |access-date=October 5, 2009 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> Several Indigenous languages have official status in the Northwest Territories.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Fettes |first1=Mark |title=Aboriginal education: fulfilling the promise |last2=Norton |first2=Ruth |publisher=UBC Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7748-0783-8 |editor-last=Castellano |editor-first=Marlene Brant |page=39 |chapter=Voices of Winter: Aboriginal Languages and Public Policy in Canada |editor-last2=Davis |editor-first2=Lynne |editor-last3=Lahache |editor-first3=Louise}}</ref> [[Inuktitut]] is the majority language in Nunavut and is one of three official languages in the territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Russell |first=Peter H |title=Unfinished constitutional business?: rethinking indigenous self-determination |publisher=[[Aboriginal Studies Press]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-85575-466-2 |editor-last=Hocking |editor-first=Barbara |page=180 |chapter=Indigenous Self-Determination: Is Canada as Good as it Gets? |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mxreMX_cf4EC&pg=PA180}}</ref>

As of the 2021 census, just over 7.8&nbsp;million Canadians listed a non-official language as their [[first language]]. Some of the most common non-official first languages include [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]] (679,255 first-language speakers), [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]] (666,585), [[Cantonese]] (553,380), Spanish (538,870), [[Arabic]] (508,410), [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] (461,150), Italian (319,505), German (272,865), and [[Tamil language|Tamil]] (237,890).<ref name=":0" /> The country is also home to many [[sign language]]s, some of which are Indigenous.<ref>{{cite web |year=2015 |title=Sign languages |url=http://cad.ca/issues-positions/language/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730163508/http://cad.ca/issues-positions/language/ |archive-date=July 30, 2017 |publisher=Canadian Association of the Deaf – Association des Sourds du Canada}}</ref> [[American Sign Language]] (ASL) is used across the country due to the prevalence of ASL in primary and secondary schools.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Jepsen |first1=Julie Bakken |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ZqnCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA702 |title=Sign Languages of the World: A Comparative Handbook |last2=De Clerck |first2=Goedele |last3=Lutalo-Kiingi |first3=Sam |publisher=De Gruyter |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-61451-817-4 |page=702}}</ref> [[Quebec Sign Language]] (LSQ) is used primarily in Quebec.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bailey |first1=Carole Sue |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_D_ZRFm_4EsC&pg=PR11 |title=The Canadian Dictionary of ASL Canadian Cultural Society of the Dead |last2=Dolby |first2=Kathy |last3=Campbell |first3=Hilda Marian |publisher=University of Alberta |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-88864-300-1 |page=11}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{Main|Religion in Canada}}
[[File:Freedom of Religion (38007857792).jpg|thumb|[[Freedom of religion in Canada|Freedom of religion]] sculpture by Marlene Hilton Moore at the McMurtry Gardens of Justice in [[Toronto]]<ref name="McMurtry Gardens of Justice">{{cite web |title=Freedom of Religion - by Marlene Hilton Moore |website=McMurtry Gardens of Justice |url=https://mcmurtrygardensofjustice.com/content/freedom-religion-marlene-hilton-moore |access-date=June 12, 2023}}</ref>]]
Canada is religiously diverse, encompassing a wide range of beliefs and customs.<ref name="Cornelissen 2021" /> The [[Constitution of Canada]] refers to God; however, Canada has no official church and the government is officially committed to [[religious pluralism]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Moon |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ah66SQsk4hAC&pg=PA1 |title=Law and Religious Pluralism in Canada |publisher=UBC Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7748-1497-3 |pages=1–4}}</ref> [[Freedom of religion in Canada]] is a constitutionally protected right.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Scott |first=Jamie S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GbZJ2ZszYw8C&pg=PA345 |title=The Religions of Canadians |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4426-0516-9 |page=345}}</ref>

Rates of religious adherence have steadily decreased since the 1970s.<ref name="Cornelissen 2021">{{cite web |last=Cornelissen |first=Louis |title=Religiosity in Canada and its evolution from 1985 to 2019 |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 28, 2021 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-006-x/2021001/article/00010-eng.htm}}</ref> With Christianity in decline after having once been central and integral to Canadian culture and daily life,<ref name="Roberts2005w">{{cite book |first=Lance W. |last=Roberts |title=Recent Social Trends in Canada, 1960–2000 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qnPOqwsR5UsC&pg=PA359 |year=2005 |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press |isbn=978-0-7735-2955-7 |page=359}}</ref> Canada has become a [[Postchristianity|post-Christian]], [[secular]] state.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |first1=Paul |last1=Bramadat |first2=David |last2=Seljak |title=Religion and Ethnicity in Canada |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VymssyK1Hs0C&pg=PA3 |year=2009 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-1-4426-1018-7 |page=3}}
| {{cite book |first=Kurt |last=Bowen |title=Christians in a Secular World: The Canadian Experience |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=__38sGZLrvYC&pg=PA174 |year=2004 |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press |isbn=978-0-7735-7194-5 |page=174}}
| {{cite book |first1=Derek |last1=Gregory |first2=Ron |last2=Johnston |first3=Geraldine |last3=Pratt |first4=Michael |last4=Watts |first5=Sarah |last5=Whatmore |title=The Dictionary of Human Geography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5liCbG4J9LYC&pg=PT672 |year=2009 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-4443-1056-6 |page=672}}
}}</ref> Although the majority of Canadians consider [[Importance of religion by country|religion to be unimportant]] in their daily lives,<ref name="Punnett2015">{{cite book |first=Betty Jane |last=Punnett |title=International Perspectives on Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tG2mBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA116 |year=2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-46745-8 |page=116}}</ref> they still believe in God.<ref name="Haskell2009">{{cite book |first=David M. |last=Haskell (Wilfrid Laurier University) |title=Through a Lens Darkly: How the News Media Perceive and Portray Evangelicals |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TzJMfNOR5O0C&pg=PA50 |year=2009 |publisher=Clements Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-894667-92-0 |page=50}}</ref> The practice of religion is generally considered a private matter.<ref name="BoyleSheen2013">{{cite book |first1=Kevin |last1=Boyle |first2=Juliet |last2=Sheen |title=Freedom of Religion and Belief: A World Report |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JxgFWwK8dXwC&pg=PT219 |year=2013 |publisher=University of Essex – Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-72229-7 |page=219}}</ref>

According to the 2021 census, [[Christianity in Canada|Christianity]] is the largest religion in Canada, with [[Roman Catholic]]s representing 29.9&nbsp;percent of the population having the most adherents. [[Christians]] overall representing 53.3&nbsp;percent of the population,{{efn| name=religion|[[Roman Catholicism in Canada|Catholic Church]] (29.9%), [[United Church of Canada|United Church]] (3.3%), [[Anglican Church of Canada|Anglican Church]] (3.1%), [[Eastern Orthodoxy]] (1.7%), [[Baptists in Canada|Baptistism]] (1.2%), [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostalism and other Charismatic]] (1.1%) [[Anabaptism|Anabaptist]] (0.4%), [[Jehovah's Witnesses|Jehovah's Witness]] (0.4%), [[Latter Day Saint movement|Latter Day Saints]] (0.2%), [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] (0.9%), [[Methodism|Methodist]] and [[Wesleyan Church|Wesleyan]] (Holiness) (0.3%), [[Presbyterianism|Presbyterian]] (0.8%), and [[Reformed Episcopal Church|Reformed]] (0.2%).<ref name="religion2021">{{Cite web |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Religion by visible minority and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810034201 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> 7.6{{nbsp}}percent simply identified as "Christians".<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia 2022 z483">{{cite web |title=Christianity |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=October 27, 2022 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/christianity |access-date=August 31, 2023}}</ref>}} are followed by people reporting [[Irreligion in Canada|irreligion or having no religion]] at 34.6&nbsp;percent.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/130508/dq130508b-eng.htm?HPA |title=Religions in Canada—Census 2011 |date=May 8, 2013 |publisher=Statistics Canada}}</ref> Other faiths include [[Islam in Canada|Islam]] (4.9&nbsp;percent), [[Hinduism in Canada|Hinduism]] (2.3&nbsp;percent), [[Sikhism in Canada|Sikhism]] (2.1&nbsp;percent), [[Buddhism in Canada|Buddhism]] (1.0&nbsp;percent), [[Judaism in Canada|Judaism]] (0.9&nbsp;percent), and [[Mythologies of the indigenous peoples of the Americas|Indigenous spirituality]] (0.2&nbsp;percent).<ref>{{Cite web |publisher=Statistics Canada |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Religion by visible minority and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810034201}}</ref> Canada has the [[Sikhism by country|second-largest national Sikh population]], behind [[Sikhism in India|India]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/AnnualStatutes/2019_5/FullText.html |title=Sikh Heritage Month Act |website=laws.justice.gc.ca |date=January 14, 2020}}</ref>

==Health==
{{Main|Healthcare in Canada}}

Healthcare in Canada is delivered through the provincial and territorial systems of [[publicly funded health care]], informally called [[Medicare (Canada)|Medicare]].<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Aase |first1=Karina |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jvs1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA128 |title=Researching Quality in Care Transitions: International Perspectives |last2=Waring |first2=Justin |last3=Schibevaag |first3=Lene |publisher=Springer |year=2017 |isbn=978-3-319-62346-7 |pages=128–129}}
| {{cite news |date=December 1, 2006 |title=Public vs. private health care |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news2/background/healthcare/public_vs_private.html |work=CBC News}}
}}</ref> It is guided by the provisions of the ''[[Canada Health Act]]'' of 1984<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bégin |first=Monique |title=Medicare: Canada's Right to Health |publisher=Optimum Pub. International |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-88890-219-1 |chapter=Intro}}</ref> and is [[Universal health care|universal]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Leatt |first1=Peggy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2_y6J647QFoC&pg=PA81 |title=Government Relations in the Health Care Industry |last2=Mapa |first2=Joseph |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-56720-513-8 |page=81}}</ref> Universal access to publicly funded health services "is often considered by Canadians as a fundamental value that ensures national healthcare insurance for everyone wherever they live in the country".<ref>{{Cite report |title=The Health of Canadians – The Federal Role |publisher=Parliament of Canada |access-date=January 5, 2017 |section-url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/content/sen/committee/372/soci/rep/repoct02vol6part7-e.htm |section=17.2 Universality |archive-date=January 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117231017/http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/SEN/Committee/372/soci/rep/repoct02vol6part7-e.htm}}</ref> Around 30&nbsp;percent of Canadians' healthcare is paid for through the private sector.<ref name="Kroll2012">{{Cite book |last=Kroll |first=David J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=STnr1N89LIUC&pg=PA126 |title=Capitalism Revisited: How to Apply Capitalism in Your Life |publisher=Dorrance Publishing |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4349-1768-3 |page=126}}</ref> This mostly pays for services not covered or partially covered by Medicare, such as [[prescription drug]]s, [[dentistry]] and [[optometry]].<ref name="Kroll2012" /> Approximately 65 to 75&nbsp;percent of Canadians have some form of supplementary health insurance; many receive it through their employers or access secondary social service programs.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chen |first=Tsai-Jyh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1bBhDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA93 |title=An International Comparison of Financial Consumer Protection |publisher=Springer |year=2018 |isbn=978-981-10-8441-6 |page=93}}</ref>

[[File:OECD health expenditure per capita by country.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[List of countries by total health expenditure per capita|Health expenditure and financing by country]]. Total health expenditure per capita in US dollars (PPP).|alt=graph of expenditures as described in the caption]]

In common with many other developed countries, Canada is experiencing an increase in healthcare expenditures due to a [[Demographic transition|demographic shift]] toward an older population, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. In 2021, the average age in Canada was 41.9 years.<ref name=":0" /> Life expectancy is 81.1 years.<ref>{{cite web |last=Weiss |first=Thomas G. |author-link=Thomas G. Weiss |year=2017 |title=Canadian Male and Female Life Expectancy Rates by Province and Territory |url=https://www.disabled-world.com/calculators-charts/ca-lifespan.php |website=Disabled World}}</ref> A 2016 report by the [[Chief Public Health Officer of Canada|chief public health officer]] found that 88&nbsp;percent of Canadians, one of the highest proportions of the population among G7 countries, indicated that they "had good or very good health".<ref>{{cite web |year=2016 |title=Health Status of Canadians – How healthy are we? – Perceived health |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/corporate/publications/chief-public-health-officer-reports-state-public-health-canada/2016-health-status-canadians/page-7-how-healthy-are-we-perceived-health.html |website=Report of the Chief Public Health Officer |publisher=Public Health Agency of Canada}}</ref> Eighty&nbsp;percent of Canadian adults self-report having at least one major risk factor for chronic disease: smoking, physical inactivity, unhealthy eating or excessive alcohol use.<ref name="GregoryStephens2019">{{Cite book |last1=Gregory |first1=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uEeCDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT75 |title=Fundamentals: Perspectives on the Art and Science of Canadian Nursing |last2=Stephens |first2=Tracey |last3=Raymond-Seniuk |first3=Christy |last4=Patrick |first4=Linda |publisher=Wolters Kluwer Health |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-4963-9850-5 |page=75}}</ref> Canada has one of the highest rates of adult obesity among [[OECD]] countries, contributing to approximately 2.7&nbsp;million cases of [[diabetes]].<ref name="GregoryStephens2019" /> Four chronic diseases—[[cancer]] (leading cause of death), [[cardiovascular diseases]], [[respiratory diseases]], and diabetes—account for 65&nbsp;percent of deaths in Canada.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |year=2017 |title=How Healthy are Canadians? |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/healthy-living/how-healthy-canadians.html#s1 |publisher=Public Health Agency of Canada}}
| {{cite web |year=2019 |title=Health at a Glance 2019 |url=http://www.oecd.org/health/health-systems/Health-at-a-Glance-2019-Chartset.pdf |publisher=OECD}}
}}</ref> There are approximately 8{{nbsp}}million people aged 15 and older with one or more [[Disability in Canada|disabilities in Canada]].<ref name="k471">{{cite web | title=The Daily — Canadian Survey on Disability, 2017 to 2022 | website=Statistics Canada | date=December 1, 2023 | url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231201/dq231201b-eng.htm | access-date=January 5, 2025}}</ref>

In 2024, the [[Canadian Institute for Health Information]] estimated that healthcare spending reached $372{{nbsp}}billion, or 12.4 percent of Canada's GDP for that year.<ref>{{cite web |year=2022 |title=National Health Expenditure Trends |url=https://www.cihi.ca/en/national-health-expenditure-trends |access-date=August 23, 2022 |publisher=Canadian Institute for Health Information}}</ref> In 2022, Canada's per-capita spending on health expenditures ranked 12th among [[List of countries by total health expenditure per capita|health-care systems in the OECD]].<ref name="theOECD h799">{{cite web |title=Health resources - Health spending |website=theOECD |url=https://data.oecd.org/healthres/health-spending.htm |access-date=August 31, 2023}}{{doi|10.1787/8643de7e-en}}</ref> Canada has performed close to, or above the average on the majority of OECD health indicators since the early 2000s, ranking above the average on OECD indicators for wait-times and access to care, with average scores for quality of care and use of resources.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |year=2017 |title=Health at a Glance 2017 |url=https://www.oecd.org/canada/Health-at-a-Glance-2017-Key-Findings-CANADA.pdf |publisher=OECD}}
| {{cite web |year=2017 |title=Health at a Glance: OECD Indicators by country |url=http://www.oecd.org/health/health-systems/health-at-a-glance-19991312.htm |publisher=OECD}}
}}</ref> The [[Commonwealth Fund|Commonwealth Fund']]s 2021 report comparing the healthcare systems of the 11 most [[developed countries]] ranked Canada second-to-last.<ref name="commonwealthfund">{{Cite journal |url=https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/fund-reports/2021/aug/mirror-mirror-2021-reflecting-poorly |title=Mirror, Mirror 2021: Reflecting Poorly |date=August 4, 2021 |website=commonwealthfund.org |doi=10.26099/01dv-h208 |last1=Schneider |first1=Eric C. |last2=Shah |first2=Arnav |last3=Doty |first3=Michelle M. |first4=Roosa |last4=Tikkanen |last5=Fields |first5=Katharine |last6=Williams |first6=Reginald D. II}}</ref> Identified weaknesses were comparatively higher infant mortality rate, the prevalence of chronic conditions, long wait times, poor availability of after-hours care, and a lack of prescription drugs and dental coverage.<ref name="commonwealthfund" /> An increasing problem in Canada's health system is a lack of healthcare professionals,<ref name="Duong Vogel 2023 pp. E309–E310">{{cite journal |last1=Duong |first1=Diana |last2=Vogel |first2=Lauren |title=Overworked health workers are 'past the point of exhaustion' |journal=Canadian Medical Association Journal |volume=195 |issue=8 |date=February 26, 2023 |pmc=9970629 |doi=10.1503/cmaj.1096042 |pages=E309–E310 |pmid=36849179}}</ref> and hospital capacity.<ref name="Thiessen Partner Organization Ma 2023 j399">{{cite web |title=Taking the pulse: A snapshot of Canadian health care, 2023 |website=[[Canadian Institute for Health Information]] |date=August 2, 2023 |url=https://www.cihi.ca/en/book/export/html/10799 |access-date=February 15, 2024}}</ref>

==Education==
{{Main|Education in Canada|Higher education in Canada}}

[[File:Educationincanada-eng.png|thumb|upright=1.3| Canada by province and territory, showing the percentage of the population aged 25 to 64 who had a bachelor's degree or higher, and the percentage point change from 2016 to 2021<ref name="Statistics Canada 2022 i032">{{cite web |title=British Columbia and Ontario saw the largest percentage point increases in degree holders from 2016 to 2021 |website=Statistics Canada |date=November 30, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221130/mc-a002-eng.htm |access-date=March 8, 2024}}</ref>]]
Education in Canada is for the most part [[State school|provided publicly]], funded and overseen by [[Government of Canada|federal]], [[Provinces and territories of Canada|provincial]], and [[local government]]s.<ref>{{cite web |last=Scholey |first=Lucy |date=April 21, 2015 |title=2015 federal budget 'disappointing' for post-secondary students: CFS |url=http://metronews.ca/news/canada/1347155/2015-federal-budget-disappointing-for-post-secondary-students-cfs/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150603103455/http://metronews.ca/news/canada/1347155/2015-federal-budget-disappointing-for-post-secondary-students-cfs/ |archive-date=June 3, 2015}}</ref> Education is within provincial jurisdiction and a province's curriculum is overseen by its government.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |title=Canada 1956 the Official Handbook of Present Conditions and Recent Progress |publisher=Canada Year Book Section Information Services Division Dominion Bureau of Statistics |year=1959}}
| {{cite book |last1=Montesinos |first1=Vicente |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rqzwBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA305 |title=Innovations in Governmental Accounting |last2=Manuel Vela |first2=José |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-4757-5504-6 |page=305}}
}}</ref> Education in Canada is generally divided into [[primary education]], followed by [[Secondary education|secondary]] and [[Tertiary education|post-secondary education]]. Education in both English and French is available in most places across Canada.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Epstein |first=Irving |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FI3zJQzOdcIC&pg=PA73 |title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Children's Issues Worldwide |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-313-33617-1 |page=73}}</ref> Canada has a large number of universities, almost all of which are publicly funded.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Shanahan |first1=Theresa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VpcHDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA59 |title=The Handbook of Canadian Higher Education |last2=Nilson |first2=Michelle |last3=Broshko |first3=Li Jeen |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-55339-506-5 |page=59}}</ref> Established in 1663, {{Lang|fr|[[Université Laval]]|italic=no}} is the oldest post-secondary institution in Canada.<ref name="BlakeKeshen2017p249">{{Cite book |last1=Blake |first1=Raymond B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PqEvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA249 |title=Conflict and Compromise: Pre-Confederation Canada |last2=Keshen |first2=Jeffrey A. |last3=Knowles |first3=Norman J. |last4=Messamore |first4=Barbara J. |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-4426-3555-5 |page=249}}</ref> The nation's three top ranking universities are the [[University of Toronto]], [[McGill University|McGill]], and the [[University of British Columbia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/world-university-rankings?countries=ca |title=QS World University Rankings |publisher=QS Quacquarelli Symonds Limited |access-date=May 4, 2024}}</ref> The largest university is the [[University of Toronto]], which has over 85,000 students.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Richards |first=Larry Wayne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZTKODwAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |title=University of Toronto: An Architectural Tour (The Campus Guide) |publisher=Princeton Architectural Press |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-61689-824-3 |edition=2nd |page=11}}</ref>

According to a 2022 report by the OECD, Canada is one of the most educated countries in the world;<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |title=The Daily — Canada leads the G7 for the most educated workforce, thanks to immigrants, young adults and a strong college sector, but is experiencing significant losses in apprenticeship certificate holders in key trades |website=Statistics Canada |date=November 30, 2022 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221130/dq221130a-eng.htm |access-date=March 8, 2024}}
| {{cite web |title=Key facts about Canada's competitiveness for foreign direct investment |website=GAC |date=January 17, 2022 |url=https://www.international.gc.ca/trade-commerce/economist-economiste/analysis-analyse/key_facts-2022-01-faits_saillants.aspx?lang=eng |access-date=March 9, 2024}} [https://www.oecd.org/education/education-at-a-glance/  Raw data OECD]}}</ref> the country ranks first worldwide in the percentage of adults having tertiary education, with over 56 percent of Canadian adults having attained at least an undergraduate college or university degree.<ref name="Education c106">{{cite web |last=Education |first=Level Of |title=Canada |website=Education GPS |url=https://gpseducation.oecd.org/CountryProfile?primaryCountry=CAN&treshold=10&topic=EO |access-date=March 8, 2024}}</ref> Canada spends an average of 5.3&nbsp;percent of its GDP on education.<ref name="TheGlobalEconomy.com 1971 w626">{{cite web |title=Canada Education spending, percent of GDP |website=TheGlobalEconomy.com |date=December 31, 1971 |url=https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/Canada/Education_spending/#:~:text=Public%20spending%20on%20education%2C%20percent%20of%20GDP&text=For%20that%20indicator%2C%20we%20provide,from%202022%20is%204.14%20percent. |access-date=March 9, 2024}}</ref> The country invests heavily in tertiary education (more than {{US$|20,000}} per student).<ref>{{cite web |year=2011 |title=Financial and human resources invested in Education |url=http://www.oecd.org/education/skills-beyond-school/48630868.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140308202848/http://www.oecd.org/education/skills-beyond-school/48630868.pdf |archive-date=March 8, 2014 |access-date=July 4, 2014 |publisher=OECD}}</ref> {{As of|2022}}, 89 percent of adults aged 25 to 64 have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, compared to an OECD average of 75 percent.<ref name="OECD 2023 t514">{{cite web |title=Education at a Glance |website=OECD |date=September 12, 2023 |url=https://www.oecd.org/education/education-at-a-glance/ |access-date=March 8, 2024}}</ref>

The [[Compulsory education|mandatory education]] age ranges between 5–7 to 16–18 years,<ref>{{cite web |title=Overview of Education in Canada |url=http://www.educationau-incanada.ca/index.aspx?action=educationsystem-systemeeducation&lang=eng |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100214200211/http://www.educationau-incanada.ca/index.aspx?action=educationsystem-systemeeducation&lang=eng |archive-date=February 14, 2010 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |publisher=Council of Ministers of Education, Canada}}</ref> contributing to an adult literacy rate of 99 percent.<ref name="cia">{{cite web |date=May 16, 2006 |title=Canada |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/canada/ |website=[[The World Factbook]] |publisher=CIA}}</ref> Just over 60,000 children are [[Homeschooling in Canada|homeschooled in the country]] as of 2016. Canada is a well-performing OECD country in reading literacy, mathematics, and science, with the average student scoring 523.7, compared with the OECD average of 493 in 2015.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |year=2015 |title=PISA – Results in Focus |url=https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisa-2015-results-in-focus.pdf |publisher=OECD |page=5}}
| {{cite web |title=Canada – Student performance (PISA 2015) |url=http://gpseducation.oecd.org/CountryProfile?plotter=h5&primaryCountry=CAN&treshold=10&topic=PI |access-date=December 18, 2020 |publisher=OECD}}
}}</ref>

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Canada}}
{{Further|Canadian values|Canadian identity}}
[[File:WLM-CA-2018-Toronto-Union Station-9296.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[Monument to Multiculturalism]]'' by Francesco Pirelli, in Toronto<ref name="Kuitenbrouwer 2010 g035">{{cite web |last=Kuitenbrouwer |first=Peter |title=Where is the Monument to Multiculturalism? |website=National Post |date=August 19, 2010 |url=https://nationalpost.com/posted-toronto/where-is-the-monument-to-multiculturalism |access-date=January 11, 2024}}</ref>]]
Historically, Canada has been influenced by [[Culture of the United Kingdom|British]], [[French culture|French]], and Indigenous cultures and traditions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Magocsi |first=Paul R |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GkAuYRVjlE8C&pg=PA3 |title=Aboriginal Peoples of Canada: a short introduction |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8020-3630-8 |pages=3–6}}</ref> During the 20th century, Canadians with African, Caribbean, and Asian nationalities have added to the [[Canadian identity]] and its culture.<ref name="t408">{{cite journal | last=Wayland | first=Sarah V. | title=Immigration, Multiculturalism and National Identity in Canada | journal=International Journal on Minority and Group Rights | publisher=Brill | volume=5 | issue=1 | year=1997 | issn=1385-4879 | jstor=24674516 | pages=33–58 | doi=10.1163/15718119720907408 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/24674516 | url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Canada's culture draws influences from its broad range of constituent nationalities, and policies that promote a [[just society]] are constitutionally protected.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last=LaSelva |first=Samuel Victor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rcqMl9MK_x0C&pg=PA86 |title=The Moral Foundations of Canadian Federalism: Paradoxes, Achievements, and Tragedies of Nationhood |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-7735-1422-5 |page=86}}
| {{cite book |last=Dyck |first=Rand |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BUOoN8e5Ps0C&pg=PA88 |title=Canadian Politics |publisher=[[Cengage Learning]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-17-650343-7 |page=88}}
| {{cite book |last=Newman |first=Stephen L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ELWjuzADl7UC&pg=PA203 |title=Constitutional Politics in Canada and the United States |date=2012 |publisher=[[SUNY Press]] |isbn=978-0-7914-8584-2 |page=203}}
}}</ref> Since the 1960s, Canada has emphasized [[Human rights in Canada|human rights]] and inclusiveness for all its people.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite journal |last=Conway |first=Shannon |title=From Britishness to Multiculturalism: Official Canadian Identity in the 1960s |journal=Études canadiennes / Canadian Studies |issue=84 |date=June 2018 |doi=10.4000/eccs.1118 |pages=9–30 |doi-access=free}}
| {{cite book |first=Linda |last=McQuaig |date=June 4, 2010 |title=Holding the Bully's Coat: Canada and the U.S. Empire |publisher=Doubleday Canada |page=14 |isbn=978-0-385-67297-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9g4Xd12rIGYC&pg=PT14}}
| {{cite book |last1=Guo |first1=Shibao |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HW8iCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA317 |title=Revisiting Multiculturalism in Canada: Theories, Policies and Debates |last2=Wong |first2=Lloyd |publisher=University of Calgary |year=2015 |isbn=978-94-6300-208-0 |page=317}}
}}</ref> [[Multiculturalism in Canada|The official state policy of multiculturalism]] is often cited as one of Canada's significant accomplishments<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sikka |first=Sonia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e4NLBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA237 |title=Multiculturalism and Religious Identity: Canada and India |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-7735-9220-9 |page=237}}</ref> and a key distinguishing element of Canadian identity.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Johnson |first1=Azeezat |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ib2rDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT148 |title=The Fire Now: Anti-Racist Scholarship in Times of Explicit Racial Violence |last2=Joseph-Salisbury |first2=Remi |last3=Kamunge |first3=Beth |date=2018 |publisher=Zed Books |isbn=978-1-78699-382-3 |page=148}}
| {{cite book |last=Caplow |first=Theodore |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JRunB0w4G-EC&pg=PA146 |title=Leviathan Transformed: Seven National States in the New Century |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7735-2304-3 |page=146}}
}}</ref> In Quebec, cultural identity is strong and there is a [[Culture of Quebec|French Canadian culture]] that is distinct from English Canadian culture.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Franklin |first1=Daniel P |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NtvKidOH9pgC&pg=PA61 |title=Political Culture and Constitutionalism: A Comparative Approach |last2=Baun |first2=Michael J |publisher=Sharpe |year=1995 |isbn=978-1-56324-416-2 |page=61}}</ref> As a whole, Canada is in theory a [[cultural mosaic]] of regional ethnic subcultures.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |last=Meister |first=Daniel R. |title=Racial Mosaic, The |website=McGill-Queen's University Press |url=https://www.mqup.ca/racial-mosaic--the-products-9780228008712.php |page=234}}
| {{cite journal |last1=Garcea |first1=Joseph |last2=Kirova |first2=Anna |last3=Wong |first3=Lloyd |date=January 2009 |title=Multiculturalism Discourses in Canada |journal=Canadian Ethnic Studies |volume=40 |issue=1 |pages=1–10 |doi=10.1353/ces.0.0069}}
| {{cite web |title=Cultural Diversity in Canada: The Social Construction of Racial Difference |website=Ministère de la Justice |date=February 24, 2003 |url=https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/jsp-sjp/rp02_8-dr02_8/p2.html |access-date=December 17, 2023}}
}}</ref>

Canada's approach to governance emphasizing multiculturalism, which is based on selective [[Economic migrant|immigration]], [[social integration]], and [[Dissent|suppression]] of far-right politics, has wide public support.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ambrosea |first1=Emma |last2=Muddea |first2=Cas |year=2015 |title=Canadian Multiculturalism and the Absence of the Far Right – Nationalism and Ethnic Politics |journal=Nationalism and Ethnic Politics |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=213–236 |doi=10.1080/13537113.2015.1032033}}</ref> Government policies such as publicly funded health care, [[Income taxes in Canada|higher taxation]] to redistribute wealth, the [[Capital punishment in Canada|outlawing of capital punishment]], strong efforts to [[Poverty in Canada|eliminate poverty]], [[Gun politics in Canada|strict gun control]], a [[social liberal]] attitude toward [[Feminism in Canada|women's rights]] (like [[Abortion in Canada|pregnancy termination]]) and [[LGBT rights in Canada|LGBT rights]], and legalized [[Euthanasia in Canada|euthanasia]] and [[Cannabis in Canada|cannabis use]] are indicators of Canada's political and cultural values.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |last1=Hollifield |first1=James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oec_BAAAQBAJ&pg=PA103 |title=Controlling Immigration: A Global Perspective |last2=Martin |first2=Philip L. |last3=Orrenius |first3=Pia |publisher=Stanford University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-8047-8735-2 |edition=3rd |page=103}}
| {{cite book |last1=Bricker |first1=Darrell |title=What Canadians Think About Almost Everything |last2=Wright |first2=John |publisher=Doubleday Canada |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-385-65985-7 |pages=8–28}}
| {{cite web |date=October 2016 |title=Exploring Canadian values |url=http://www.nanosresearch.com/sites/default/files/POLNAT-S15-T705.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170405113447/http://nanosresearch.com/sites/default/files/POLNAT-S15-T705.pdf |archive-date=April 5, 2017 |access-date=February 1, 2017 |publisher=Nanos Research}}
}}</ref> Canadians also identify with the country's foreign aid policies, peacekeeping roles, the [[National Parks of Canada|national park system]], and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite web |year=2011 |title=A literature review of Public Opinion Research on Canadian attitudes towards multiculturalism and immigration, 2006–2009 |url=http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/research/por-multi-imm/sec02-1.asp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222133226/http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/research/por-multi-imm/sec02-1.asp |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |access-date=December 18, 2015 |publisher=Government of Canada}}
| {{cite web |year=2010 |title=Focus Canada (Final Report) |url=http://www.queensu.ca/cora/_files/fc2010report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204231952/http://www.queensu.ca/cora/_files/fc2010report.pdf |archive-date=February 4, 2016 |access-date=December 12, 2015 |publisher=Queen's University |page=4 (PDF page 8) |department=The Environics Institute}}
}}</ref>

===Symbols===
{{main|National symbols of Canada|Canadian royal symbols}}
[[File:Beaver sculpture, Centre Block.jpg|upright=0.9|thumb|alt=''The mother beaver'' sculpture outside the House of Commons|''The mother beaver'' on the Canadian parliament's [[Peace Tower]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Monaghan |first=David |year=2013 |title=The mother beaver |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/about/house/collections/collection_profiles/CP_mother_beaver-e.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222075619/http://www.parl.gc.ca/about/house/collections/collection_profiles/CP_mother_beaver-e.htm |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |access-date=December 12, 2015 |publisher=The House of Commons Heritage}}</ref> The five flowers on the shield each represent an ethnicity—[[Tudor rose]]: [[English people|English]]; [[Fleur de lis]]: [[French people|French]]; [[thistle]]: [[Scottish people|Scottish]]; [[shamrock]]: [[Irish people|Irish]]; and [[leek]]: [[Welsh people|Welsh]].]]

Themes of nature, pioneers, trappers, and traders played an important part in the early development of Canadian symbolism.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.canadiana.org/citm/themes/pioneers/pioneers7_e.html |website=Canada in the Making |title=Pioneers and Immigrants |publisher=The History Channel |date=August 25, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080303110425/http://www.canadiana.org/citm/themes/pioneers/pioneers7_e.html |archive-date=2008-03-03}}</ref> Modern symbols emphasize the country's geography, cold climate, lifestyles, and the Canadianization of traditional European and Indigenous symbols.<ref>{{cite book |last=Cormier |first=Jeffrey |year=2004 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/303410887 |title=The Canadianization Movement: Emergence, Survival, and Success |doi=10.3138/9781442680616 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=9781442680616}}</ref> The use of the [[maple leaf]] as a Canadian symbol dates to the early 18th century. The maple leaf is depicted on Canada's [[Flag of Canada|current]] and [[Canadian Red Ensign|previous flags]] and on the [[Arms of Canada]].<ref name="symbol1" /> Canada's official tartan, known as the "[[Regional tartans of Canada|maple leaf tartan]]", reflects the colours of the maple leaf through the seasons—green in the [[Spring (season)|spring]], gold in the early [[autumn]], red at the first [[frost]], and brown after falling.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/951077--maple-lead-tartan-becomes-official-symbol |work=[[Toronto Star]] |title=Maple Leaf Tartan becomes official symbol |date=March 9, 2011}}</ref> The Arms of Canada are closely modelled after [[Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom|those of the United Kingdom]], with French and distinctive Canadian elements replacing or added to those derived from the British version.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gough |first=Barry M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z4xK6CasigkC&pg=PA71 |title=Historical Dictionary of Canada |date=2010 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7504-3 |page=71}}</ref>

Other prominent symbols include the national motto, "{{lang|la|[[A mari usque ad mare]]|italics=on}}" ("From Sea to Sea"),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nischik |first=Reingard M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VYgTaGwa4nsC&pg=PA113 |title=History of Literature in Canada: English-Canadian and French-Canadian |publisher=Camden House |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-57113-359-5 |pages=113–114}}</ref> the sports of [[ice hockey]] and [[lacrosse]], the [[beaver]], [[Canada goose]], [[common loon]], [[Canadian horse]], the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Rockies,<ref name="symbol1">{{Cite book |url=http://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.693005/publication.html |title=Symbols of Canada |publisher=Canadian Government Publishing |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-660-18615-3}}</ref> and, more recently, the [[totem pole]] and [[Inuksuk]].<ref name="Nels">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R0hwCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT92 |title=Sociology in Action |publisher=Nelson Education-McGraw-Hill Education |isbn=978-0-17-672841-0 |edition=2nd Canadian |page=92}}</ref> [[Canadian beer]], [[maple syrup]], [[tuque]]s, [[canoes]], [[nanaimo bar]]s, [[butter tart]]s, and [[poutine]] are defined as uniquely Canadian.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hutchins |first1=Donna |title=The Maple Leaf Forever: A Celebration of Canadian Symbols |last2=Hutchins |first2=Nigel |publisher=The Boston Mills Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-55046-474-0 |page=iix}}</ref> Canadian coins feature many of these symbols: the loon on the [[Loonie|$1 coin]], the Arms of Canada on the [[50-cent piece (Canadian coin)|50¢ piece]], and the beaver on the [[Nickel (Canadian coin)|nickel]].<ref name="Berman2008">{{Cite book |last=Berman |first=Allen G |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LRFWcmAr68YC&pg=PA137 |title=Warman's Coins And Paper Money: Identification and Price Guide |publisher=Krause Publications |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4402-1915-3 |page=137}}</ref> An image of the monarch appears on [[Canadian dollar|$20 bank notes]] and the obverse of coins.<ref name="Berman2008" />

===Literature===
{{main|Canadian literature}}

Canadian literature is often divided into French- and English-language literatures, which are rooted in the literary traditions of France and Britain, respectively.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Keith |first=W. J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rGawhTGpGK0C&pg=PA19 |title=Canadian Literature in English |publisher=[[The Porcupine's Quill]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-88984-283-0 |page=19}}</ref> The earliest Canadian narratives were of travel and exploration.<ref>{{cite book |editor=R.G. Moyles |date=September 28, 1994 |title=Improved by Cultivation: English-Canadian Prose to 1914 |publisher=Broadview Press |page=15 |isbn=978-1-55111-049-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wvJgb1-zQJkC&pg=PA15}}</ref> This progressed into three major themes of historical Canadian literature: nature, frontier life, and Canada's position within the world, all of which tie into the [[garrison mentality]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=New |first=William H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mkh2vJ_9GpEC&pg=PA259 |title=Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8020-0761-2 |pages=259–261}}</ref> In recent decades, Canada's literature has been strongly influenced by immigrants from around the world.<ref>{{cite book |date=December 28, 2021 |title=Crabtracks: Progress and Process in Teaching the New Literatures in English. Essays in Honour of Dieter Riemenschneider |publisher=BRILL |pages=388–391 |isbn=978-90-04-48650-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WSNXEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA388}}</ref> By the 1990s, Canadian literature was viewed as some of the world's best.<ref name="Dominic2010">{{Cite book |last=Dominic |first=K. V. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=spW-K5UiJVkC&pg=PT9 |title=Studies in Contemporary Canadian Literature |publisher=Pinnacle Technology |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-61820-640-4 |pages=8–9}}</ref>

Numerous [[List of Canadian writers|Canadian authors]] have accumulated international literary awards,<ref>{{Cite book |last=New |first=William H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mkh2vJ_9GpEC&pg=PA55 |title=Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-8020-0761-2 |page=55}}</ref> including novelist, poet, and literary critic [[Margaret Atwood]], who received two [[Booker Prize]]s;<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nischik |first=Reingard M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s_xIap0GDbwC&pg=PA46 |title=Margaret Atwood: Works and Impact |publisher=Camden House |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-57113-139-3 |page=46}}</ref> [[Alice Munro]], who received a [[Nobel Prize in Literature]];<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hJI_vgWiJiMC&pg=PA1459 |title=Broadview Anthology of British Literature |publisher=Broadview Press |year=2006 |edition=Concise |volume=B |page=1459 |id=GGKEY:1TFFGS4YFLT}}</ref> and Booker Prize recipient [[Michael Ondaatje]], who wrote the novel ''[[The English Patient]]'', which was adapted as a [[The English Patient (film)|film of the same name]] that won the [[Academy Award for Best Picture]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Giddings |first1=Robert |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9ZGUDrLW2yYC&pg=PA197 |title=From Page To Screen: Adaptations of the Classic Novel |last2=Sheen |first2=Erica |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-7190-5231-6 |page=197}}</ref> [[L. M. Montgomery]] produced a series of children's novels beginning in 1908 with ''[[Anne of Green Gables]]''.<ref>{{cite book |first1=L. M. |last1=Montgomery |first2=August |last2=Nemo |year=2021 |title=Essential Novelists – L. M. Montgomery: Anne of Green Gables |publisher=Tacet Books |isbn=978-3-9855100-5-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ttUpEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT2}}</ref>

===Media===
{{main|Media of Canada}}
[[File:CBC Radio Canada Chevrolet Express 02.jpg|thumb|A [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] (CBC) satellite truck, used for live television broadcasts]]
Canada's media is [[Press Freedom Index|highly autonomous]], [[Censorship by country|uncensored]], [[Multicultural media in Canada|diverse]], and very regionalized.<ref>
{{cite report |last=Fry |first=H |year=2017 |url=https://www.ourcommons.ca/Content/Committee/421/CHPC/Reports/RP9045583/chpcrp06/chpcrp06-e.pdf |title=Disruption: Change and churning in Canada's media landscape |publisher=Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage |access-date=February 21, 2022}}

{{cite web |title=Freedom of expression and media freedom |website=GAC |date=February 17, 2020 |url=https://www.international.gc.ca/world-monde/issues_development-enjeux_developpement/human_rights-droits_homme/freedom_expression_media-liberte_expression_medias.aspx?lang=eng}}</ref> The ''[[Broadcasting Act (1991)|Broadcasting Act]]'' declares "the system should serve to safeguard, enrich, and strengthen the cultural, political, social, and economic fabric of Canada".<ref>{{cite book |first=Sara |last=Bannerman |date=May 20, 2020 |title=Canadian Communication Policy and Law |publisher=Canadian Scholars |page=199 |isbn=978-1-77338-172-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gs0DEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA199}}</ref> Canada has a well-developed media sector, but its cultural output—particularly in [[Cinema of Canada|English films]], [[Television in Canada|television shows]], and [[List of Canadian magazines|magazines]]—is often overshadowed by imports from the United States.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vipond |first=Mary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-0eDs29g49YC&pg=PA57 |title=The Mass Media in Canada |publisher=James Lorimer Company |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-55277-658-2 |edition=4th |page=57}}</ref> As a result, the preservation of a distinctly Canadian culture is supported 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).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Edwardson |first=Ryan |url=https://archive.org/details/canadiancontentc0000edwa |title=Canadian Content: Culture and the Quest for Nationhood |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-8020-9519-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/canadiancontentc0000edwa/page/59 59] |url-access=registration}}</ref>

[[Mass media in Canada|Canadian mass media]], both [[Newspapers of Canada|print]] and [[Canadian online media|digital]], and in both official languages, is largely dominated by a "[[Media ownership in Canada|handful of corporations]]".<ref name="TarasBakardjievaPannekoek20072">{{cite book |editor-first1=David |editor-last1=Taras |editor-first2=Maria |editor-last2=Bakardjieva |editor-first3=Frits |editor-last3=Pannekoek |date=2007 |title=How Canadians Communicate II: Media, Globalization, and Identity |publisher=University of Calgary Press |page=87 |isbn=978-1-55238-224-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X2YNNHZlt5cC&pg=PA87}}</ref> The largest of these corporations is the country's national [[public broadcaster]], the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which also plays a significant role in producing domestic cultural content, operating [[CBC Radio|its own radio]] and [[CBC Television|TV]] networks in both English and French.<ref name="TarasBakardjievaPannekoek2007">{{cite book |editor-first1=David |editor-last1=Taras |editor-first2=Maria |editor-last2=Bakardjieva |editor-first3=Frits |editor-last3=Pannekoek |date=2007 |title=How Canadians Communicate II: Media, Globalization, and Identity |publisher=University of Calgary Press |page=86 |isbn=978-1-55238-224-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X2YNNHZlt5cC&pg=PA86}}</ref> In addition to the CBC, some provincial governments offer their own public educational TV broadcast services as well, such as [[TVOntario]] and [[Télé-Québec]].<ref>{{cite book |first1=Steven |last1=Globerman |publisher=Institute for Research on Public Policy |title=Cultural Regulation in Canada |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jlBGJyEdDy4C&pg=PR18 |year=1983 |isbn=978-0-920380-81-9 |page=18}}</ref>

Non-news media content in Canada, including film and television, is influenced both by local creators as well as by imports from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and France.<ref>{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Steven |date=2011 |title=About Canada: Media |publisher=Fernwood |page=111 |isbn=978-1-55266-447-6}}</ref> In an effort to reduce the amount of foreign-made media, government interventions in television broadcasting can include both regulation of content and public financing.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Bart |last1=Beaty |first2=Rebecca |last2=Sullivan |date=2006 |title=Canadian Television Today |publisher=University of Calgary Press |page=37 |isbn=978-1-55238-222-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XGMT39azEAYC&pg=PA33}}</ref> [[Taxation in Canada|Canadian tax laws]] limit foreign competition in magazine advertising.<ref>{{cite book |first=Jacqueline |last=Krikorian |date=2012 |title=International Trade Law and Domestic Policy: Canada, the United States, and the WTO |publisher=UBC Press |page=188 |isbn=978-0-7748-2306-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7q9i7ln160QC&pg=PA188}}</ref>

===Visual arts===
{{main|Canadian art}}
[[File:The Jack Pine, by Tom Thomson.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|alt=Oil on canvas painting of a tree dominating its rocky landscape during a sunset|''[[The Jack Pine]]'' by [[Tom Thomson]]. Oil on canvas, 1916, in the collection of the [[National Gallery of Canada]].<ref name="Art Canada Institute - Institut de l'art canadien h165">{{cite web |title=Tom Thomson, The Jack Pine, 1916–17 |website=Art Canada Institute - Institut de l'art canadien |url=https://www.aci-iac.ca/art-books/tom-thomson/key-works/the-jack-pine/ |access-date=October 16, 2023}}</ref>]]

Art in Canada is marked by thousands of years of habitation by Indigenous peoples,<ref>{{cite book |first=Carol A. |last=Mullen |date=2020 |title=Canadian Indigenous Literature and Art: Decolonizing Education, Culture, and Society |publisher=Brill Sense |chapter=Introduction |isbn=978-90-04-41426-6}}</ref> and, in later times, artists have combined British, French, Indigenous, and American artistic traditions, at times embracing European styles while working to promote nationalism.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cook |first=Ramsay |title=Landscape Painting and National Sentiment in Canada |journal=Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques |volume=1 |issue=2 |year=1974 |jstor=41298655 |pages=263–283}}</ref> The nature of Canadian art reflects these diverse origins, as artists have taken their traditions and adapted these influences to reflect the reality of their lives in Canada.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Mark J. |last1=Kasoff |first2=Patrick |last2=James |year=2013 |title=Canadian Studies in the New Millennium |edition=2 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |pages=198–204 |isbn=978-1-4426-6538-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gYqBAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT198}}</ref>

Modern painting in Canada has been greatly influenced by several major movements that have emerged over the years. One of the most prominent movements is the [[Group of Seven (artists)|Group of Seven]], which was founded in 1920, aimed to capture the wilderness in their artwork.<ref>{{Cite book |last=McKay |first=Marylin J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BZWhNZwppdIC&pg=PA229 |title=Picturing the Land: Narrating Territories in Canadian Landscape Art, 1500–1950 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7735-3817-7 |page=229}}</ref>  Associated with the group was  [[Emily Carr]], known for her landscapes and portrayals of the [[Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Newlands |first=Anne |title=Emily Carr |publisher=Firefly Books |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-55209-046-6 |pages=8–9}}</ref> The mid-20th century saw the rise of [[abstract art]] in Canada, with artists like [[Jean-Paul Riopelle]] and [[Paul-Émile Borduas]].<ref name="y340">{{cite web | title=Painting: Modern Movements | website=The Canadian Encyclopedia | date=June 6, 1944 | url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/painting-modern-movements | access-date=November 5, 2024}}</ref> The 1960s and 1970s saw the emergence of [[conceptual art]], with artists such as [[Michael Snow]] and [[Ian Carr-Harris]].<ref name="m694">{{cite web | title=Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada c. 1965 to 1980 – Art Museum at the University of Toronto | website=Art Museum at the University of Toronto | date=April 26, 2017 | url=https://artmuseum.utoronto.ca/exhibition/traffic-conceptual-art-canada-c-1965-1980/ | access-date=November 6, 2024}}</ref> This era also saw the emergence of Indigenous artists like [[Norval Morrisseau]], who combined traditional Indigenous techniques with modern art styles.<ref name="z744">{{cite web | title=Norval (called Copper Thunderbird) Morrisseau | website=National Gallery of Canada | url=https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artist/norval-called-copper-thunderbird-morrisseau | access-date=November 5, 2024}}</ref> In more recent years, [[contemporary art]] has seen a revival of [[figurative art]], with artists such as [[Kent Monkman]] and [[Shuvinai Ashoona]].<ref name="j056">{{cite book | last1=Hill | first1=G.A. | last2=Hopkins | first2=C. | last3=Lalonde | first3=C. | author4=National Gallery of Canada | title=Sakahàn: International Indigenous Art | publisher=National Gallery of Canada | year=2013 | isbn=978-0-88884-912-0 | page=18}}</ref>

===Music===
{{main|Music of Canada}}
[[File:O-Canada-1908.pdf|thumb|upright|Original publication of "[[O Canada]]" in English, 1908 (French, 1880)<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia 2018 g033">{{cite web |title="O Canada" |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=February 7, 2018 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/o-canada |access-date=January 11, 2024}}</ref>]]
Canadian music reflects a [[Music of Canadian cultures|variety of regional scenes]].<ref>{{cite book |editor-first=Shane |editor-last=Homan |date=January 13, 2022 |title=The Bloomsbury Handbook of Popular Music Policy |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |page=179 |isbn=978-1-5013-4534-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HCdVEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA179}}</ref> Canada has developed a vast music infrastructure that includes [[church hall]]s, [[Chamber music|chamber halls]], [[Music school|conservatories]], [[academies]], [[performing arts center|performing arts centres]], [[record company|record companies]], [[radio stations]], and television [[music video]] channels.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.broadcasting-history.ca/timeline/CCFTimeline.html |title=The history of broadcasting in Canada |publisher=The Canadian Communications Foundation |access-date=October 28, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309132436/http://www.broadcasting-history.ca/timeline/CCFTimeline.html |archive-date=March 9, 2012}}</ref> Government support programs, such as the Canada Music Fund, assist a wide range of musicians and entrepreneurs who create, produce and market original and diverse Canadian music.<ref>{{cite book |editor-first1=Shane |editor-last1=Homan |editor-first2=Martin |editor-last2=Cloonan |editor-first3=Jen |editor-last3=Cattermole |year=2017 |title=Popular Music and Cultural Policy |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-65952-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GUg4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT161}}</ref> As a result of its cultural importance, as well as government initiatives and regulations, the Canadian music industry is one of the largest in the world,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ifpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Global_Music_Report_2023_State_of_the_Industry.pdf |title=IFPI Global Music Report 2023 |page=10 |access-date=April 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325055720/https://www.ifpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Global_Music_Report_2023_State_of_the_Industry.pdf |archive-date=March 25, 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> producing internationally renowned [[List of Canadian composers|composers]], [[List of Canadian musicians|musicians]], and [[List of bands from Canada|ensembles]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hull |first1=Geoffrey P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BWUil8OuXS8C&pg=PA304 |title=The Music Business and Recording Industry: Delivering Music in the 21st Century |last2=Hutchison |first2=Thomas William |last3=Strasser |first3=Richard |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-415-87560-8 |page=304}}</ref> Music broadcasting in the country is regulated by the CRTC.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Acheson |first1=Archibald Lloyd Keith |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5gCzOUo6YhkC&pg=PA181 |title=Much Ado about Culture: North American Trade Disputes |last2=Maule |first2=Christopher John |publisher=University of Michigan Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-472-02241-0 |page=181}}</ref> The [[Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]] presents Canada's music industry awards, the [[Juno Award]]s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Edwardson |first=Ryan |url=https://archive.org/details/canadiancontentc0000edwa |title=Canadian Content: Culture and the Quest for Nationhood |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-8020-9759-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/canadiancontentc0000edwa/page/127 127] |url-access=registration}}</ref> The [[Canadian Music Hall of Fame]] honours Canadian musicians for their lifetime achievements.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hoffmann |first=Frank |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-FOSAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA324 |title=Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound |publisher=Routledge |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-135-94950-1 |page=324}}</ref>

"[[God Save the King]]" has been used in Canada since the late 1700s and is the country's de facto royal anthem.<ref name="t663">{{cite web | title=National and Royal Anthems | website=The Canadian Encyclopedia | date=2006-02-08 | url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/national-and-royal-anthems-emc | access-date=2025-06-27}}</ref> [[Anthems and nationalistic songs of Canada|Patriotic music by Canadians]] dates back over 200 years, with "[[The Bold Canadian]]", written in 1812, popular throughout the 19th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jortner |first=Adam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l6whyXqA7BUC&pg=PA217 |title=The Gods of Prophetstown: The Battle of Tippecanoe and the Holy War for the American Frontier |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-19-976529-4 |page=217}}</ref> "[[The Maple Leaf Forever]]", written in 1866, was popular and served as an unofficial national anthem of [[English Canada]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.utoronto.ca/icm/0101b.html |title=Maple Cottage, Leslieville, Toronto |work=Institute for Canadian Music |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090331095214/http://www.utoronto.ca/icm/0101b.html |archive-date=March 31, 2009}}</ref> "[[O Canada]]", originally composed in French in 1880, also served as an unofficial national anthem during the 20th century and was adopted as the country's official anthem in 1980.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kallmann |first1=Helmut |author-link=Helmut Kallmann |last2=Potvin |first2=Gilles |date=February 7, 2018 |title=O Canada |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/o-canada |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203021353/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/en/article/o-canada/ |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |website=Encyclopedia of Music in Canada}}</ref>

===Sports===
{{main|Sports in Canada}}
[[File:Hockey Hall of Fame Statue (9162222032).jpg|thumb| ''Our Game'' sculpture by [[Edie Parker (artist)|Edie Parker]] outside the [[Hockey Hall of Fame]] in Toronto.<ref name="k228">{{cite web |last=Fame |first=Hockey Hall of |title=Exterior Sculptures | website=Hockey Hall of Fame |date=September 28, 1972 |url=https://www.hhof.com/visit/exteriorsculptures.html |access-date=August 30, 2024}}</ref>]]

Canada's official national sports are [[Ice hockey in Canada|ice hockey]] and [[Lacrosse in Canada|lacrosse]].<ref>{{cite web |date=November 5, 2015 |title=National Sports of Canada Act |url=http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/n-16.7/page-1.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124142348/http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/n-16.7/page-1.html |archive-date=November 24, 2015 |publisher=Government of Canada}}</ref> Other major professional games include [[curling]], [[Basketball in Canada|basketball]], [[Baseball in Canada|baseball]], [[Soccer in Canada|soccer]], and [[Canadian football|football]].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Canadian Sports History |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sports-history |date=September 30, 2016 |last2=West |first2=J. Thomas |last1=Lindsay |first1=Peter}}</ref> Great achievements in Canadian sports are recognized by numerous "Halls of Fame" and museums, such as [[Canada's Sports Hall of Fame]].<ref name="Danilov1997cv">{{cite book |first=Victor J. |last=Danilov |title=Hall of fame museums: a reference guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VUO_J0YzpP0C&pg=PA24 |year=1997 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-30000-4 |page=24}}</ref>

Canada shares several [[Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada|major professional sports leagues]] with the United States.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Butenko |first1=Sergiy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Lh7tPTtYelUC&pg=PA42 |title=Optimal Strategies in Sports Economics and Management |last2=Gil-Lafuente |first2=Jaime |last3=Pardalos |first3=Panos M. |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |year=2010 |isbn=978-3-642-13205-6 |pages=42–44}}</ref> Canadian teams in these leagues include seven franchises in the [[National Hockey League]], three [[Soccer in Canada#Major League Soccer|Major League Soccer]] teams, and one team in each of [[Major League Baseball]] and the [[National Basketball Association]]. Other popular professional competitions include the [[Canadian Football League]], [[National Lacrosse League]], the [[Canadian Premier League]], and the curling tournaments hosted by [[Curling Canada]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Morrow |first1=Don |title=Sport in Canada: A History |last2=Wamsley |first2=Kevin B. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-0-19-902157-4 |pages=xxi – intro}}</ref> Canadians identified hockey as their preferred sport for viewing, followed by soccer and then basketball.<ref name="n113">{{cite web | last=Block | first=Beau | title=Hockey emerges as Canadians' favourite sport to watch, and the generational responses pose interesting insights for the popularity of Canada's national sport. | website=Narrative Research | date=April 3, 2024 | url=https://narrativeresearch.ca/hockey-emerges-as-canadians-favourite-sport-to-watch-and-the-generational-responses-pose-interesting-insights-for-the-popularity-of-canadas-national-sport/ | access-date=January 20, 2025}}</ref>

In terms of participation, [[swimming]] was the most commonly reported sport by over one-third (35&nbsp;percent) of Canadians in 2023.<ref name="h903">{{cite web | title=The Daily — Participation in Canadian society through sport and work | website=Statistics Canada | date=October 10, 2023 | url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231010/dq231010b-eng.htm | access-date=August 30, 2024}}</ref> This was closely followed by [[cycling]] (33&nbsp;percent) and [[running]] (27&nbsp;percent).<ref name="h903"/> The popularity of specific sports varies;<ref>
{{cite web | last1=Fournier-Savard | first1=Patric | last2=Gagnon | first2=Valerie | last3=Durocher | first3=Dominic | title=Sports: More than just a game | website=Statistics Canada | date=March 5, 2024 | url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-627-m/11-627-m2024008-eng.htm | access-date=August 30, 2024}}

{{cite web | title=The Daily — Participation in Canadian society through sport and work | website=Statistics Canada | date=October 10, 2023 | url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231010/dq231010b-eng.htm | access-date=August 30, 2024}}</ref> in general, the Canadian-born population was more likely to have participated in [[winter sports]] such as ice hockey (the most popular young adult team sport),<ref name="h903"/>  [[Ice skating|skating]], [[skiing]] and [[snowboarding]], compared with immigrants, who were more likely to have played soccer (the most popular youth team sport),<ref name="a691">{{cite web | agency=The Canadian Press | title=Study: Soccer most popular sport among Canadian kids post-pandemic | website=Sportsnet.ca | date=July 27, 2023 | url=https://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/article/study-soccer-most-popular-sport-among-canadian-kids-post-pandemic/ | access-date=August 30, 2024}}</ref> [[tennis]] or basketball.<ref name="h903"/> Sports such as [[golf]], [[Volleyball in Canada|volleyball]], [[badminton]], [[bowling]], and [[martial arts]] are also widely enjoyed at the youth and amateur levels.<ref>{{cite web |year=2013 |title=Canadian sport participation – Most frequently played sports in Canada (2010) |url=http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2013/pc-ch/CH24-1-2012-eng.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170110193033/http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2013/pc-ch/CH24-1-2012-eng.pdf |archive-date=January 10, 2017 |access-date=January 27, 2017 |publisher=Government of Canada |page=34}}</ref>

Canada has enjoyed success both [[Canada at the Winter Olympics|at the Winter Olympics]] and [[Canada at the Summer Olympics|at the Summer Olympics]]<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Mallon |first1=Bill |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9mM0XzW03AcC&pg=PA71 |title=Historical Dictionary of the Olympic Movement |last2=Heijmans |first2=Jeroen |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-8108-7522-7 |page=71}}</ref>—particularly the Winter Games as a "winter sports nation"—and has hosted high-profile international sporting events such as the [[1976 Summer Olympics]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Howell |first=Paul Charles |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E2mTzjIKkNcC&pg=PA3 |title=Montreal Olympics: An Insider's View of Organizing a Self-financing Games |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-7735-7656-8 |page=3}}</ref> the [[1988 Winter Olympics]],<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Horne |first1=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UQozDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT157 |title=Understanding the Olympics |last2=Whannel |first2=Garry |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-317-49519-2 |page=157}}</ref> the [[2010 Winter Olympics]],<ref>{{multiref2
| {{cite book |author=United States Senate Subcommittee on Trade, Tourism and Economic Development |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l4XN6eyYqiUC |title=The Economic Impact of the 2010 Vancouver, Canada, Winter Olympics on Oregon and the Pacific Northwest: hearing before the Subcommittee on Trade, Tourism, and Economic Development of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, United States Senate, One Hundred Ninth Congress, first session, August 5, 2005 |date=January 2006 |publisher=US GPO |isbn=978-0-16-076789-0}}
| {{cite book |last=Fromm |first=Zuzana |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kXYgkSsrnaMC |title=Economic Issues of Vancouver-Whistler 2010 Olympics |publisher=Pearson Prentice Hall |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-13-197843-0}}
}}</ref> the [[2015 FIFA Women's World Cup]],<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY2lnQAACAAJ |title=Temporary Importations Using the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Remission Order |publisher=Canada Border Services Agency |year=2015}}</ref> the [[2015 Pan American Games]] and [[2015 Parapan American Games]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Peterson |first=David |date=July 10, 2014 |title=Why Toronto should get excited about the Pan Am Games |work=[[The Globe and Mail]] |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/why-toronto-should-get-excited-about-the-pan-am-games/article19543736/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925011444/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/why-toronto-should-get-excited-about-the-pan-am-games/article19543736/ |archive-date=September 25, 2020}}</ref> The country is scheduled to co-host the [[2026 FIFA World Cup]] alongside Mexico and the United States.<ref>{{cite news |date=June 13, 2018 |title=World Cup 2026: Canada, US & Mexico joint bid wins right to host tournament |publisher=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44464913 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114150230/https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/44464913 |archive-date=January 14, 2021}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|border=no|Canada|Countries}}
* [[Index of Canada-related articles]]
* [[List of Canada-related topics by provinces and territories]]
* [[Outline of Canada]]{{Clear}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Statistics Canada licence}}

==Further reading==
{{Main|Bibliography of Canada|Bibliography of Canadian history}}

{{Refbegin|30em}}

'''Overview'''
* {{Cite book |last=Marsh |first=James H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wR_-aSFyvuYC&pg=PP1 |title=The Canadian Encyclopedia |publisher=McClelland & Stewart |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-7710-2099-5 |ref=none}}

'''Culture'''
* {{Cite book |last=Cohen |first=Andrew |url=https://archive.org/details/unfinishedcanadi00andr |title=The Unfinished Canadian: The People We Are |publisher=McClelland & Stewart |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7710-2181-7 |ref=none |author-link=Andrew Cohen (journalist) |url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book |last=Vance |first=Jonathan F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TOR9SwAACAAJ |title=A History of Canadian Culture |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-19-544422-3 |ref=none}}
*{{cite book |last=Forbes |first=H.D. |title=Multiculturalism in Canada: Constructing a Model Multiculture with Multicultural Values |publisher=Springer International Publishing |series=Recovering Political Philosophy |year=2019 |isbn=978-3-030-19835-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t9W1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PR1 |ref=none}}

'''Demography and statistics'''
* {{Cite book |url=https://www5.statcan.gc.ca/bsolc/olc-cel/olc-cel?catno=11-402-X&chropg=1&lang=eng |title=Canada Year Book (CYB) annual 1867–1967 |publisher=Statistics Canada |year=2008 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Carment |first1=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VNYqAxXOxNIC&pg=PP1 |title=The World in Canada: Diaspora, Demography, and Domestic Politics |last2=Bercuson |first2=David |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7735-7854-8 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite report |url=https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-402-x/11-402-x2012000-eng.htm |title=Canada Year Book, 2012 |date=December 2012 |publisher=Statistics Canada|id=Catalogue no 11-402-XWE |ref=none}}

'''Economy'''
* {{Cite book |last1=Easterbrook |first1=W.T. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wQGNBgAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |title=Canadian Economic History |last2=Aitken |first2=Hugh G. J. |publisher=University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-4426-5814-1 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |url=https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/oecd-economic-surveys-canada-2023_7eb16f83-en.html |title=Economic Survey of Canada - 12 March 2023|publisher=OECD |year=2024|ref=none}} – ([http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/economics/oecd-economic-surveys-canada_19990081 Previous surveys])
* {{Cite book |last1=Jones-Imhotep |first1=Edward |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o4x8DwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |title=Made Modern: Science and Technology in Canadian History |last2=Adcock |first2=Tina |publisher=UBC Press |year=2018 |isbn=978-0-7748-3726-2 |ref=none}}

'''Foreign relations and military'''
* {{Cite book |last=Conrad |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G8ypARC5JJkC&pg=PP1 |title=Scarce Heard Amid the Guns: An Inside Look at Canadian Peacekeeping |publisher=Dundurn Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-55488-981-5 |ref=none}}
*{{cite book |editor1=Thomas Juneau |editor2=Philippe Lagassé |editor3=Srdjan Vucetic |year=2019 |title=Canadian Defence Policy in Theory and Practice |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-03-026403-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EmKtDwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |ref=none}}

'''Geography and environment'''
*{{cite book |last=Leiss |first=W. |title=Canada and Climate Change |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |series=Canadian Essentials |year=2022 |isbn=978-0-2280-0985-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_vYrEAAAQBAJ&pg=PP1}}
* {{cite book |last=MacDowell |first=L.S. |title=An Environmental History of Canada |publisher=UBC Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7748-2103-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j7-803ot3DIC&pg=PP1}}
* {{cite book |first1=Daniel R. |last1=Montello |first2=Michael T. |last2=Applegarth |first3=Tom L. |last3=McKnight |year=2021 |title=Regional Geography of the United States and Canada |edition=5th |publisher=Waveland Press |isbn=978-1-4786-4712-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dRMoEAAAQBAJ&pg=PR1 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |title=Canadian Oxford World Atlas |publisher=Oxford University Press (Canada) |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-542928-2 |editor-last=Stanford |editor-first=Quentin H |edition=6th |ref=none}}

'''Government and law'''
* {{Cite book |last1=Malcolmson |first1=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-jpXFH_ZhY8C&pg=PP1 |title=The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Parliamentary Government in Canada |last2=Myers |first2=Richard |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4426-0047-8 |edition=4th |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last=Morton |first=Frederick Lee |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dj_4_H35nmYC&pg=PP1 |title=Law, politics, and the judicial process in Canada |publisher=Frederick Lee |year=2002 |isbn=978-1-55238-046-8 |ref=none}}

'''History'''
* {{Cite book |last=Careless |first=J. M. S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mARx1-EGwR0C&pg=PR1 |title=Canada: A Story of Challenge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-107-67581-0 |edition=Revised |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Francis |first1=RD |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GbbZRIOKclsC&pg=PP1 |title=Journeys: A History of Canada |last2=Jones |first2=Richard |last3=Smith |first3=Donald B |publisher=Nelson Education |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-17-644244-6 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Taylor |first1=Martin Brook |title=Canadian History |type=2 volumes |last2=Owram |first2=Doug |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1994 |ref=none}} {{ISBN|978-0-8020-5016-8}}, {{ISBN|978-0-8020-2801-3}}

'''Social welfare'''
* {{Cite book |last=Finkel |first=Alvin |url=https://archive.org/details/socialpolicyprac0000fink |title=Social Policy and Practice in Canada: A History |date=2006 |publisher=Wilfrid Laurier University Press |isbn=978-0-88920-475-1 |ref=none |url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book |last=Thompson |first=Valerie D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rd51BwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |title=Health and Health Care Delivery in Canada |publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-927406-31-1 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Burke |first1=Sara Z. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=apjYaExaI-QC&pg=PP1 |title=Schooling in Transition: Readings in Canadian History of Education |last2=Milewski |first2=Patrice |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-8020-9577-0 |ref=none}}

{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|collapsible=collapsed|voy=Canada|Canada}}

'''Overviews'''
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090204012447/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/canada.htm Canada] from [[University of Colorado Boulder|UCB]] Libraries GovPubs
* [https://www.oecd.org/canada/ Canada profile] from the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]]
* [https://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=CA Key Development Forecasts for Canada] from [[International Futures]]

'''Government'''
* [https://www.canada.ca/ Official website of the Government of Canada]<!--Archives of early pages are at wayback.archive.org/*/http://www.canada.gc.ca/-->
* [https://www.gg.ca/ Official website of the Governor General of Canada]
* [https://pm.gc.ca/eng Official website of the Prime Ministers of Canada]

'''Travel'''
* [https://travel.gc.ca Canada's official website for travel and tourism]

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