Canada

From Mardecristal

Revision as of 23:24, 7 February 2006

The Republic of Canada (République du Canada) is a republic in North America, stretching across the width of North American landmass generally to the north of the Great Lakes, Saint Lawrence River, and Western Sea. The official language is French.

The national capital is Québec.

Although constitutionally defined as a unitary republic, Canada shares some power with its four regions (régions) which regroup the 64 departments (départements), and three indigenous territories (territoires autochthones).

The departments and indigenous territories are numbered together in alphabetical order, as in France. This is reflected in licence plate and postal codes, for example.

Three departments were added in 1967 (Missisauga for the suburbs of Toronto, Val-des-Mille-Îles and Val-St-Laurent for the suburbs of Montréal), so they are numbered after the original sequence.

Geography

Canada has land or water borders with most of the other countries in North America, including, clockwise from the north, Nahiyaw, Nunavut, New Wales, Musquodoboit, Massachusetts Bay, Vermont, the Philadelphian Union, California, and British Columbia.

The country's largest cities are Québec and Montréal (in Québec), Toronto (in Ontario), and La Vérendrye (in Manitoba).

Other important cities:

• In Québec: Beauchamp, Chicoutimi, Drumont, Gaspé, Gatineau, Grandes-Fourches, Laval, Longueuil, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Saint-Jérôme, Saint-Georges, Rimouski, Roberval, Trois-Rivières.
• In Ontario: Barry, La Fayette, Niagara, Sainte-Catherine, Ottawa, Paris, Ste-Anne-des-Pins, Versailles.
• In Manitoba: Coeur-d'Alène, Juillet (site of the 1988 Winter Olympics), Saint-Albert, Saint-Boniface.

History

Regions and departments

• Île Sainte-Hélène (capital: Olympie)
  • Pacifique-48 (prefecture: Olympie)
  • Volcans-63 (prefecture: Tacoma).

• Manitoba (capital: Saint-Boniface)
  • Assiniboine-06 (prefecture: Portage-La-Prairie)
  • Deux-Saskatchewan-10 (prefecture: Dauphin)
  • Glaciers-16 (prefecture: Coeur-d'Alène)
  • Haute-Rouge--20 (prefecture: St-Fargeau)
  • Haute-Saskatchewan--21 (prefecture: St-Albert)
  • Lac-Winnipeg--29 (prefecture: Beauséjour)
  • La Paix-30 (prefecture: Grande-Prairie)
  • Mer-de-l'Ouest--37 (prefecture: La Vérendrye)
  • Qu'Appelle-51 (prefecture: La Reine)
  • Piémont-49 (prefecture: Cerf-Rouge)
  • Prairies-50 (prefecture: Gravelbourg)
  • Rocheuses-55 (prefecture: Juillet)
  • Rouge-et-Assiniboine--56 (prefecture: Saint-Boniface)
  • Saskatchewan-57 (prefecture: Batoche)

• Ontario (capital: Toronto)
  • Algoma-03 (prefecture: Sault-Ste-Marie)
  • Algonquins-04 (prefecture: Bonnechère)
  • Falaises-12 (prefecture: La Fayette)
  • Grande-Rivière--18 (prefecture: Berlin)
  • Lac-des-Bois--23 (prefecture: Fort-Françoise)
  • Lac-Érié--24 (prefecture: Versailles)
  • Lac-Huron--25 (prefecture: St-Ouen)
  • Lac-Ontario--26 (prefecture: Toronto)
  • Lac-Supérieur--28 (prefecture: Duluth)
  • Manitoulin-35 (prefecture: Sainte-Anne-des-Pins)
  • Mille-Îles-38 (prefecture: Frontenac)
  • Missinaba-39 (prefecture: Lecocq)
  • Missisuaga-65 (prefecture: Missisauga)
  • Muscoca-42 (prefecture: Pierrebourg)
  • Niagara-43 (prefecture: Sainte-Catherine)
  • Nipigon-44 (prefecture: Baie-du-Tonnerre)
  • Nipisin-45 (prefecture: Baie-du-Nord)
  • Quinte-52 (prefecture: Belleville)
  • Rideau-54 (prefecture: Ottawa)
  • Saint-Laurent-et-Outaouais-59 (prefecture: Bretagne)
  • Seine-61 (prefecture: Paris)
  • Témiscamingue-62 (prefecture: Nouvelle-Lille)

• Québec (capital: Montréal)
  • Abitibi-01 (prefecture: Rouyn)
  • Acadie-02 (prefecture: Caraquet)
  • Appalaches-05 (prefecture: Lac-Mégantic)
  • Bas-Saint-Laurent--07 (prefecture: Rimouski)
  • Basse-Chaudière--08 (prefecture: Lévis)
  • Côte-Nord--09 (prefecture: Sept-Îles)
  • Fjord-13 (prefecture: Chicoutimi)
  • Gaspésie-14 (prefecture: Gaspé)
  • Gatineau-15 (prefecture: Gatineau)
  • Haut-Saint-Laurent--18 (prefecture: Salaberry)
  • Haute-Chaudière--19 (prefecture: St-Georges)
  • Îles-de-la-Madeleine--22 (prefecture: Cap-aux-Meules)
  • Lac-Saint-Jean--27 (prefecture: Alma)
  • L'Assomption-31 (prefecture: Joliette)
  • Laurentides-32 (prefecture: St-Jérôme)
  • Madawaska-33 ((prefecture: Grand-Sault)
  • Malbaie-34 (prefecture: Baie-St-Paul)
  • Memphremagog-36 (prefecture: Grandes-Fourches)
  • Montmorency-40 (prefecture: Québec)
  • Mont-Royal--41 (prefecture: Montréal)
  • Richelieu-53 (prefecture: St-Jean-s/Richelieu)
  • Saint-François--58 (prefecture: Drumont)
  • Saint-Maurice--60 (prefecture: Trois-Rivières)
  • Val-des-Mille-Îles--66 (prefecture: Laval)
  • Val-Saint-Laurent--67 (prefecture: Longueil)
  • Yamaska-64 (prefecture: St-Hyacinthe)

Indigenous territories

• Eeyou Istchi (nn) (capital: Chibougamau) - Cree
• Nitassinan (nn) (capital: Natashquan) - Innu
• Nunatsiavut (nn) (capital: Nain) - Inuit