Canada

From Mardecristal

Revision as of 05:33, 8 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 63 departments (départements), and four indigenous territories (territoires autochthones).

Canada

• National_motto = A Mari Usque Ad Mare (From Sea to Sea)
• National anthem = Ô Canada
• Capital = Québec
• Largest city = Montréal
• Official language = French
• Government type = republic
• Leaders:
  • President: Michaëlle Jean
  • Prime minister: Gilles Duceppe
• Independence: from France, July 1, 18...
• Population estimate = 32.4 million, 2006.
• GDP PPP = $1.318 trillion (2005)
• GDP PPP percapita = $34,444
• HDI = 0.949 (2003)
• HDI rank = 5th
• currency = Canadian franc (F)
• currency code = CAF
• Time zones = UTC -5 to -8 (summer -4 to -7)
• Internet TLD = .ca
• Calling code = +12

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), La Vérendrye (in Manitoba), and Séhalte (in Île-Ste-Hélène).

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.
• In Île-Sainte-Hélène: Tacoma, Port-Vancouver.

History

Regions, departments and territories

Île Sainte-Hélène

Capital: Olympie

• Pacifique (48) (prefecture: Olympie)
• Volcans (63) (prefecture: Tacoma).

Manitoba

Capital: Saint-Boniface

• Assiniboine (05) (prefecture: Portage-La-Prairie)
• Deux-Saskatchewan (11) (prefecture: Batoche)
• Glaciers (17) (prefecture: Coeur-d'Alène)
• Haute-Rouge (21) (prefecture: St-Fargeau)
• Haute-Saskatchewan (22) (prefecture: St-Albert)
• Lac-Winnipeg (31) (prefecture: Beauséjour)
• Mer-de-l'Ouest (37) (prefecture: La Vérendrye)
• Piémont (49) (prefecture: Cerf-Rouge)
• Prairies (50) (prefecture: Gravelbourg)
• Qu'Appelle (51) (prefecture: La Reine)
• Rocheuses (55) (prefecture: Juillet)
• Rouge-et-Assiniboine (56) (prefecture: Saint-Boniface)
• Saskatchewan (57) (prefecture: Dauphin)

Ontario

Capital: Toronto

• Algoman (02) (prefecture: Sault-Ste-Marie)
• Algonquins (03) (prefecture: Bonnechère)
• Baie-Huronne (07) (prefecture: Pénétanguichène)
• Falaises (13) (prefecture: La Fayette)
• Grande-Rivière (18) (prefecture: Berlin)
• Lac-des-Bois (25) (prefecture: Fort-Françoise)
• Lac-Érié (26) (prefecture: Versailles)
• Mer-Douce (27) (prefecture: St-Ouen)
• Lac-Ontario (28) (prefecture: Toronto)
• Lac-Supérieur (30) (prefecture: Duluth)
• Manitoulin (35) (prefecture: Sainte-Anne-des-Pins)
• Mille-Îles (38) (prefecture: Frontenac)
• Missinaba (39) (prefecture: Barry)
• Missisuaga (65) (prefecture: Missisauga)
• Muscoca (42) (prefecture: Pierrebourg)
• Niagara (43) (prefecture: Sainte-Catherine)
• Nipigon (44) (prefecture: Baie-du-Tonnerre)
• Nipissin (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)
• Appalaches (04) (prefecture: Lac-Mégantic)
• Bas-Saint-Laurent (08) (prefecture: Rimouski)
• Basse-Chaudière (09) (prefecture: Lévis)
• Côte-Nord (10) (prefecture: Sept-Îles)
• Fjord (14) (prefecture: Chicoutimi)
• Gaspésie (15) (prefecture: Gaspé)
• Gatineau (16) (prefecture: Gatineau)
• Haut-Saint-Laurent (19) (prefecture: Salaberry)
• Haute-Chaudière (20) (prefecture: St-Georges)
• Haute-Yamaska (23) (prefecture: Avignon)
• Îles-de-la-Madeleine (24) (prefecture: Cap-aux-Meules)
• Lac-Saint-Jean (29) (prefecture: Alma)
• L'Assomption (32) (prefecture: Joliette)
• Laurentides (33) (prefecture: St-Jérôme)
• Malbaie (43) (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

• Athabasca (07) (capital: Grande-Prairie)
• Eeyou Istchi (11) (capital: Chibougamau) - Cree
• Nitassinan (45) (capital: Natashquan) - Innu
• Nunatsiavut (46) (capital: Nain) - Inuit

Note on numbering:

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), and were numbered after the original sequence.

Nitassinan took over 45 from the former territory of Nord-Est, which included it and Nunatsiavut. Nunatsiavut took over 46, formerly the number of the territory of Nord-Ouest, which included Denenedeh, Nahiyaw, and Nunavut before they gained full autonomy.