Canada: Introduction

Total Population: 38,246,108

Natural Increase: 0.5%

Density: 4 Inhabitants/km²

Urban Population: 81.7%

Population of main metropolitan areas: Toronto (5,429,600); Montreal (3,519,600); Vancouver (2,264,900); Calgary (1,237,700); Edmonton (1,062,700); Ottawa-Gatineau (989,600); Winnipeg (712,000); Quebec (705,100); Hamilton (693,700); Kitchener (470,000)

Ethnic Origins: In the last century, the majority of Canadians were of British and French origin, in addition to indigenous peoples.
However, successive waves of immigrants from many different countries have considerably diversified Canada's ethnic makeup: Canadian about 32%, about 32% from the British Isles, French 13% and North American Indian about 6.2%. The other most frequently reported ancestries are German, Chinese, Italian, Indian, Ukrainian, Dutch, Polish and Filipino.
Four out of ten people mentioned more than one ancestry because it is possible to report more than one origin in Canadian statistics. (Statistics Canada)

Official Language: English and French

Other Languages Spoken: Spanish is the third most widely spoken language in Canada. More than 100 different languages were declared when an inventory was made of mother tongues. The list includes Chinese, German, Italian, Ukrainian, Dutch, Polish and various Asian and Middle Eastern languages. Aboriginal languages are also widely spoken in many regions.

Business Language(s): English is the most commonly spoken language in Canada. All government departments must be bilingual in English and French.

Religion: Catholics 39%, Protestants 24.1%, Orthodox Christians 1.7%, Non-religious 23.9%, Muslims 3.2%, Jews 1%, Buddhists 1.1%, Hindus 1.5%, Sikhs 1.4%.

Area: 9,879,750 km²

Type of State: Constitutional monarchy, parliamentary democracy and federation.

Type of Economy: High-income economy, OECD member, G8 member.
The second largest country in the world; the leading producer of zinc and uranium; a major importer of agricultural products.

HDI*: 0.913/1

HDI (World Rank): 9/188

Telephone Code:
To call from Canada, dial 011
To call Canada, dial 1

Internet Suffix: .ca
.qc.com

Computers: 94.3 per 100 Inhabitants

Telephone Lines: 51.9 per 100 Inhabitants

Internet Users: 86.8 per 100 Inhabitants

Access to Electricity: 100% of the Population