Canada

  two vertical bands of red (hoist and fly side, half width), with white square between them; an 11-pointed red maple leaf is centered in the white square; the official colors of Canada are red and white

coat ofarms

General Information

Languages
Federally, the two official languages are English and French. Federal agencies and some provinces provide bilingual service. The official language in the province of Quebec is French. Canada has one of the world’s most multilingual societies. With over 100 languages identified as the mother tongue (Statistics Canada, 2001), the top 10 spoken in Canada are: English 58.6%, French 22.6%, Chinese (includes Mandarin and Cantonese) 2.9%, Italian 1.6%, German 1.5%, Punjabi 0.9%, Spanish 0.8%, and Portuguese, Polish and Arabic all 0.7%.

Religions
Roman Catholic 43.6%; Protestant 29.2%; Muslim 2.0%; Jewish 1.1%; Buddhist 1.0%; Hindu 1.0%; other 5.6%; no affiliation 16.5%.

A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada's paramount political problem is meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services after a decade of budget cuts. The issue of reconciling Quebec's francophone heritage with the majority Anglophone Canadian population has moved to the back burner in recent years; support for separatism abated after the Quebec government's referendum on independence failed to pass in October of 1995. 

Location:
Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Canada

Government type:
confederation with parliamentary democracy

Capital:
Ottawa

Administrative divisions:
10 provinces and 3 territories*; Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories*, Nova Scotia, Nunavut*, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon Territory*

Independence:
1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies);
11 December 1931 (independence recognized)

National holiday:
Canada Day, 1 July (1867)

Constitution:
17 April 1982 (Constitution Act); originally, the machinery of government was set up in the British North America Act of 1867; charter of rights and unwritten customs 

Legal system:
based on English common law, except in Quebec, where civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations 

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

International organization participation:
ACCT, AfDB, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CDB, CE (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ESA (cooperating state), FAO, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Francis Joseph MCKENNA
chancery: 501 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001
telephone: [1] (202) 682-1740
FAX: [1] (202) 682-7726

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, San Diego, and Seattle

consulate(s): Anchorage, Houston, Philadelphia, Princeton, Raleigh, San Francisco, and San Jose 

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Paul CELLUCCI
embassy: 490 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 1G8
mailing address: P. O. Box 5000, Ogdensburgh, NY 13669-0430
telephone: [1] (613) 238-5335, 4470
FAX: [1] (613) 688-3082

consulate(s) general: Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg

https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
http://www.investincanada.gc.ca/en/1788/Canada_at_a_Glance.html#geo

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