Discover Canada study notes: Canada's Regions
This chapter takes you across Canada's five regions, from the Atlantic coast to the Arctic. Learn every province, territory and capital, plus the facts about each place that often appear on the citizenship test.
Canada's size and borders
Canada is the second-largest country in the world, with about 10 million square kilometres of land. It touches three oceans: the Pacific in the west, the Atlantic in the east and the Arctic in the north. To the south, Canada shares a border with the United States.
The guide divides Canada into five regions: the Atlantic Provinces, Central Canada, the Prairie Provinces, the West Coast and the Northern Territories. Canada has 10 provinces and 3 territories, each with its own capital. You should know Canada's capital and the capital of your own province or territory.
The capital, Ottawa, was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1857. It is on the Ottawa River and is now Canada's fourth-largest metropolitan area. The National Capital Region covers about 4,700 square kilometres. The printed guide gives Canada's population as about 34 million (an older figure; Canada's population is larger today); most Canadians live in cities.
Provinces, territories and capitals
- Atlantic: Newfoundland and Labrador (St. John's), Prince Edward Island (Charlottetown), Nova Scotia (Halifax), New Brunswick (Fredericton)
- Central: Quebec (Québec City), Ontario (Toronto)
- Prairies: Manitoba (Winnipeg), Saskatchewan (Regina), Alberta (Edmonton)
- West Coast: British Columbia (Victoria)
- North: Nunavut (Iqaluit), Northwest Territories (Yellowknife), Yukon (Whitehorse)
The Atlantic Provinces
Fishing, farming, forestry and mining shaped this region. The ocean brings cool winters and cool, humid summers.
- Newfoundland and Labrador: the most easterly point in North America, with its own time zone; the oldest colony of the British Empire. Known for fisheries and coastal villages; offshore oil and gas and Labrador's hydro power are important.
- Prince Edward Island: the smallest province and the birthplace of Confederation. Known for beaches, red soil and potatoes. The Confederation Bridge links it to the mainland. Anne of Green Gables is set here.
- Nova Scotia: the most populous Atlantic province. The Bay of Fundy has the highest tides in the world. Halifax is Canada's largest east coast port and home of its largest naval base.
- New Brunswick: founded by the United Empire Loyalists; Canada's only officially bilingual province. About one-third of people live and work in French.
Central Canada
More than half of Canadians live in southern Quebec and Ontario, near the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. This is Canada's industrial heartland: the two provinces make more than three-quarters of Canada's manufactured goods.
- Quebec: nearly 8 million people; more than three-quarters speak French as their first language. Main producer of pulp and paper and the largest producer of hydroelectricity. Montreal is Canada's second-largest city and the second-largest mainly French-speaking city in the world, after Paris.
- Ontario: more than 12 million people, over one-third of Canadians. Toronto is the largest city and main financial centre. Niagara is known for wine and fruit. Ontario has the largest French-speaking population outside Quebec. Lake Superior is the world's largest freshwater lake.
The Prairie Provinces
Rich in energy and very fertile farmland; mostly dry, with cold winters and hot summers.
- Manitoba: farming, mining and hydro power. Winnipeg's Portage and Main is Canada's best-known intersection. St. Boniface has the largest Francophone community in Western Canada. Manitoba has the largest Aboriginal population of any province (over 15%) and is a centre of Ukrainian culture.
- Saskatchewan: the "breadbasket of the world," with about 40% of Canada's farmland. Rich in uranium and potash. Regina has the RCMP training academy; Saskatoon is the largest city.
- Alberta: the most populous Prairie province, named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta. It has five national parks, including Banff (1885). The Badlands are famous for dinosaur fossils. Canada's largest producer of oil and gas, including the oil sands, and known for beef.
The West Coast
British Columbia is the westernmost province, with about 4 million people. The Port of Vancouver is Canada's largest and busiest, linking Canada to Asia-Pacific. Forestry is B.C.'s most valuable industry, and it has about 600 provincial parks. After English, Chinese and Punjabi are the most spoken languages in its cities. Victoria is the capital and home of the navy's Pacific fleet.
The Northern Territories
The three territories cover one-third of Canada's land but have only about 100,000 people. It is the "Land of the Midnight Sun": summer days can last 24 hours, and in winter the sun can disappear for three months. Much of it is tundra, a treeless Arctic plain with frozen ground.
- Yukon: the Gold Rush of the 1890s; the coldest temperature in Canada (-63°C); Mount Logan, Canada's highest mountain.
- Northwest Territories: formed in 1870. Yellowknife is the "diamond capital of North America." More than half the people are Aboriginal. The Mackenzie River is North America's second-longest river system.
- Nunavut: created in 1999; the name means "our land" in Inuktitut. About 85% of people are Inuit.
The Canadian Rangers, part of the Canadian Forces Reserves, protect Canada's presence in the Arctic.
Key facts to remember
- Canada: second-largest country; three oceans; five regions; 10 provinces and 3 territories.
- Ottawa chosen as capital by Queen Victoria in 1857.
- Smallest province: Prince Edward Island. Only officially bilingual province: New Brunswick.
- Highest tides: Bay of Fundy. Largest freshwater lake: Lake Superior.
- Largest city: Toronto. Second-largest: Montreal.
- Most people live in Central Canada (Ontario and Quebec).
- Largest oil and gas producer: Alberta. "Breadbasket of the world": Saskatchewan.
- Largest, busiest port: Vancouver.
- Highest mountain: Mount Logan (Yukon). Coldest: -63°C (Yukon).
- Nunavut created 1999; capital Iqaluit.