Did you know? English and French are Canada’s two official languages. English is the native language of 57.8% population and French is the native language of 22.1%. Chinese dialects are the 3rd most common native language in Canada, followed by German, Italian, Punjabi and Spanish. Canada’s land mass is 9,093,507 square kilometers, making it the 2nd largest country in the world after Russia. Canada has the longest coastline of any country as it borders the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic Oceans. Canada shares a 8,893 km land border with the United States. Only 12% of Canada’s land is suitable for agriculture due to the harsh northern climate. Mount Logan in the Yukon is Canada’s highest mountain standing at 5,959 meters. There are more than 2 million lakes in Canada, covering about 7.6% of the country. Canada’s population is roughly 34 million people and enjoys one of the lowest population density ratios in the world (3.5 persons per square kilometer). As of 2011, Canada’s largest cities are: Toronto (5.6 million people), Montreal (3.8 million people), Vancouver (2.3 million), Ottawa (1.2 million) and Calgary (1.2 million). More than 1/3 of Canadians reported having 1 or more of 200 ethnic origins and over 16% classified themselves as a visible minority. Canada has a diverse aboriginal population, which consists of First Nations, Inuit and Metis people. Canada is a federation that is governed as a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state. Ottawa is the capital of Canada. Canada’s current Prime Minister is Stephen Harper. The Parliament of Canada consists of the House of Commons, whose 308 members are elected, and the Senate, whose 105 members are appointed. On average, members of parliament are elected every 4 years. The Prime Minister usually appoints 20-30 members of parliament who make up the Cabinet. Average winter and summer high temperatures across Canada can vary greatly according to the location.
Posted on: Tue, 17 Sep 2013 09:37:37 +0000
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