16 Canada

CANADA

Canada is located in the north of the North America continent. This is the second largest country in the world. Its area is 9.98 million square kilometres and there are 37,8 million people. Its southern and western border with the United States, stretching 8,891 kilometres, is the world's longest binational land border. Canada's capital is Ottawa, and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.

History

Settlement in Canada goes back 25,000 years in some areas. The Vikings discovered Canada more than a thousand years ago, but it was rediscovered by Europeans (the Portuguese) only in the 15th century. 1583 – first English colony (Newfoundland). The French occupied large parts of the territory in the 17th century. They were followed by the English who captured most of Canada from the French in the wars of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. In 1812, the British colonies fought a war against the USA. In 1867, the country became a dominion of the United Kingdom. In 1982 through the Canada Act, Canada became formally separated from the United Kingdom.

Government type and administration

Canada is part of the Commonwealth. The Canadian political system is based on a constitutional monarchy. The monarch of the United Kingdom - King Charles III. He is represented by the Governor General. Canada has a federal system of government. The national parliament is located in the capital, Ottawa, and it has two chambers, the Senate and the House of Commons. Each province also has its own parliament. The leader of the government is called the prime minister and the prime minister is now Justin Trudeau - he has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015. Trudeau is the second-youngest prime minister in Canadian history.

The flag consists of two vertical bands of red with a white square between them and a red maple leaf centred in the white square. Canada is a bilingual country – two official languages – French (province of Quebec) and English. Native people are Indians and Eskimos/Inuits.

Climate, geography, nature

Canada is bordered by the USA to the south and the north-west (Alaska). It extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west. The country is divided into ten provinces - British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec. New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island – and three territories - Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon.

Canada has a continental climate with cold snowy winters and warm summers. The far north has a polar/arctic climate. Canada is famous for its varied and beautiful countryside, especially near the Great Lakes in the south-east and the Slave and Bear Lakes in the north-west. The country has more lakes than any other country, containing much of the world's fresh water. Visitors want to see Niagara Falls which are to be found between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. The Canadian fall is called the Horseshoe Fall and is 49 m high and almost 1 km wide. There are also many rivers, the Mackenzie and St Lawrence rivers are the longest. Canada also has high mountain ranges, such as the Rocky Mountains and the Mackenzie Mountains. The highest point is Mount Logan (5,956 m). There are about thirty national parks, one of them is Jasper National Park in Alberta.