Within the geographical areas of
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national
administrative division
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
s under the jurisdiction of the
Canadian Constitution
The Constitution of Canada (french: Constitution du Canada) is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents ar ...
. In the 1867
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Dominion ...
, three provinces of
British North America
British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestow ...
—
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
,
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, and the
Province of Canada
The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on th ...
(which upon Confederation was divided into
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
and
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
)—united to form a
federation
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...
, becoming a fully
independent country over the next century. Over its history, Canada's international borders have changed several times as it has added territories and provinces, making it the
world's second-largest country by area.
The major difference between a Canadian
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
and a
territory
A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal.
In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...
is that provinces receive their power and authority from the ''
Constitution Act, 1867
The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' (french: Loi constitutionnelle de 1867),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 186 ...
'' (formerly called the ''
British North America Act, 1867
The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' (french: Loi constitutionnelle de 1867),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 186 ...
''), whereas territorial governments are
creatures of statute
A creature of statute (also known as creature of the state) is a legal entity, such as a corporation, created by statute. Creatures of statute may include municipalities and other artificial legal entities or relationships. Thus, when a statute in ...
with powers delegated to them by the
Parliament of Canada. The powers flowing from the ''Constitution Act'' are divided between the
Government of Canada
The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...
(the federal government) and the provincial governments to exercise exclusively. A change to the division of powers between the federal government and the provinces requires a
constitutional amendment, whereas a similar change affecting the territories can be performed unilaterally by the Parliament of Canada or government.
In modern
Canadian constitutional theory, the provinces are considered to be
co-sovereign within certain areas based on the divisions of responsibility between the provincial and federal government within the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', and each province thus has its own representative of the Canadian
Crown
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
, the
lieutenant governor. The territories are not sovereign, but instead their authorities and responsibilities are
devolved
Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...
directly from the federal level, and as a result, have a
commissioner that represents the federal government.
Provinces
Notes:
Territories
There are three territories in Canada. Unlike the provinces, the territories of Canada have no inherent
sovereignty
Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...
and have only those powers delegated to them by the federal government. They include all of mainland Canada north of
latitude 60° north and west of
Hudson Bay and all islands north of the Canadian mainland (from those in
James Bay
James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost pa ...
to the
Queen Elizabeth Islands). The following table lists the territories in order of precedence (each province has precedence over all the territories, regardless of the date each territory was created).
Another territory, the
District of Keewatin, existed from October 7, 1876, until September 1, 1905, when it rejoined the Northwest Territories and became the
Keewatin Region. It occupied the area that is now the
Kenora District
Kenora District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The district seat is the City of Kenora.
It is geographically the largest division in Ontario: at , it covers 38 percent of the province's area, making it larger ...
of Ontario, northern Manitoba, and mainland Nunavut. The government of Keewatin was based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The territory did not have any representation in federal parliament.
Population
![2016 Canada Pop Pie](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/2016_Canada_Pop_Pie.svg)
The vast majority of Canada's population is concentrated in areas close to the
Canada–US border. Its four largest provinces by area (
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
and
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
) are also (with Quebec and Ontario switched in order) its most populous; together they account for 86% of the country's population. The territories (the
Northwest Territories,
Nunavut and
Yukon
Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
) account for over a third of Canada's area but are only home to 0.3% of its population, which skews the national
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
value.
[Series A2-14. Population of Canada](_blank)
by province, census dates, 1851 to 1976
Canada's population grew by 5.0% between the
2006 and
2011 censuses. Except for
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, all territories and provinces increased in population during this time. In terms of percent change, the fastest-growing province or territory was
Nunavut with an increase of 12.7% between 2011 and 2016, followed by
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
with 11.6% growth, while New Brunswick's population decreased by 0.5%.
Generally, Canadian provinces have steadily grown in population along with Canada. However, some provinces such as Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador have experienced long periods of stagnation or population decline. Ontario and Quebec have always been the two biggest provinces in Canada, with together over 60% of the population at any given time. The population of
the West
West is a cardinal direction or compass point.
West or The West may also refer to:
Geography and locations
Global context
* The Western world
* Western culture and Western civilization in general
* The Western Bloc, countries allied with NATO ...
relative to Canada as a whole has steadily grown over time, while that of
Atlantic Canada has declined.
Territorial evolution
![Canada provinces evolution 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Canada_provinces_evolution_2.gif)
Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia were the original provinces, formed when several British North American colonies federated on July 1, 1867, into the Dominion of Canada and by stages began accruing the indicia of sovereignty from the United Kingdom.
Prior to this, Ontario and Quebec were united as the Province of Canada. Over the following years, Manitoba (1870), British Columbia (1871), and Prince Edward Island (1873) were added as provinces.
The British Crown had claimed two large areas north-west of the Canadian colony, known as
Rupert's Land
Rupert's Land (french: Terre de Rupert), or Prince Rupert's Land (french: Terre du Prince Rupert, link=no), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin; this was further extended from Rupert's Land t ...
and the
North-Western Territory, and assigned them to the
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...
. In 1870, the company relinquished its claims for £300,000 (CND$1.5 million), assigning the vast territory to the government of Canada.
Subsequently, the area was re-organized into the province of Manitoba and the North-West Territories.
The North-West Territories encompassed all of current
northern and western Canada, except for the British holdings in the
Arctic islands and the
Colony of British Columbia The Colony of British Columbia refers to one of two colonies of British North America, located on the Pacific coast of modern-day Canada:
*Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866)
*Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871)
See also
*History of Br ...
. NWT included the northern two-thirds of Ontario and Quebec. After the province of Manitoba was established in 1870, in a small area in the south of today's province, almost all of present-day Manitoba was still contained in the NWT. (Manitoba expanded to its present size in 1912.)
The British claims to the Arctic islands were transferred to Canada in 1880, adding to the size of the North-West Territories. In 1898 the Yukon Territory, later renamed "Yukon" in 2003, was carved from the area surrounding the
Klondike gold fields. On September 1, 1905, a portion of the North-West Territories south of the 60th parallel north became the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.
In 1912, the boundaries of Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba were expanded northward: Manitoba's to the 60° parallel, Ontario's to Hudson Bay and Quebec's to encompass the
District of Ungava.
In 1869, the people of Newfoundland voted to remain a
British colony over fears that taxes would increase with Confederation, and that the economic policy of the Canadian government would favour mainland industries. In 1907, Newfoundland acquired dominion status.
In the middle of the
Great Depression in Canada
The worldwide Great Depression of the early 1930s was a social and economic shock that left millions of Canadians unemployed, hungry and often homeless. Few countries were affected as severely as Canada during what became known as the "Dirty Thirt ...
, Newfoundland underwent a prolonged
economic crisis
An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with th ...
, and the legislature turned over political control to the
Newfoundland Commission of Government
The Commission of Government was a non-elected body that governed the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1934 to 1949. Established following the collapse of Newfoundland's economy during the Great Depression, it was dissolved when the dominion became ...
in 1933.
Following
Canada's participation in World War II, in a
1948 referendum, a narrow majority of Newfoundland citizens voted to join the Confederation, and on March 31, 1949, Newfoundland became Canada's tenth province.
The province was officially renamed Newfoundland and Labrador in 2001.
Bermuda
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = National song
, song = "Hail to Bermuda"
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, mapsize2 =
, map_caption2 =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name =
, es ...
, the last British North American colony, which had been somewhat subordinated to Nova Scotia, was one of two
Imperial fortress
Imperial fortress was the designation given in the British Empire to four colonies that were located in strategic positions from each of which Royal Navy squadrons could control the surrounding regions and, between them, much of the planet.
His ...
colonies in British North America - the other being Nova Scotia, and more particularly the city of Halifax. Halifax and Bermuda were the sites of the Royal Navy's
North America Station
The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when the t ...
(or, depending on the time period and the extent of the Western Hemisphere it included, the ''River St. Lawrence and Coast of America and North America and West Indies Station'', the ''North America and Newfoundland Station'', the ''North America and West Indies Station'', and finally the ''America and West Indies Station'') main bases, dockyards, and Admiralty Houses, and the squadron of the station was based at
Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax
Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax was a Royal Navy base in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Established in 1759, the Halifax Yard served as the headquarters for the Royal Navy's North American Station for sixty years, starting with the Seven Years' War. Th ...
during the summers and
Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda
HMD Bermuda ( Her/His Majesty's Dockyard, Bermuda) was the principal base of the Royal Navy in the Western Atlantic between American independence and the Cold War. The Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda had occupied a useful position astride ...
in the winters until the 1820s, when Bermuda (which was better located to control the Atlantic Seaboard of the United States, impossible to attack over land, and almost impregnable against attack over water) became the main base year round. A large
British Army garrison in Bermuda, which fell under the
Commander-in-Chief in Nova Scotia, existed to defend the colony as a naval base (and to prevent it becoming as useful a base to the navy of an adversary), as well as to support amphibious operations throughout the region (such as the
Chesapeake campaign
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
during the
American War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It ...
). Bermuda was consequently the most important British naval and military base in the Americas. Canadian confederation resulted in the Canadian Militia becoming responsible for the defence of the Maritimes, the abolishment of the British Army's commander-in-chief there, and the reduction of British military forces in the Maritimes to a small garrison for the protection of the Halifax dockyard, which would be withdrawn when that dockyard was handed over to the Dominion government in 1905 for use by the new Canadian naval service. Britain retained control of Bermuda as an imperial fortress, with the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Bermuda (a military officer previously ranking between lieutenant-colonel and major-general) becoming a lieutenant-general termed a ''
General Officer Commanding'' and the Bermuda garrison becoming a command in its own right. Bermuda was consequently left out of the confederation of Canada, though it retained naval links with Halifax and the
state church (or ''established church''), the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
, continued to place Bermuda under the
Bishop of Newfoundland
The Anglican Diocese of Newfoundland was, from its creation in 1839 until 1879, the Diocese of Newfoundland and Bermuda, with the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist at St. John's, Newfoundland, and a chapel-of-ease named ''Trinity Church'' in the ...
until 1919 (Bermuda also remained linked to the Maritimes under the Methodist and Roman Catholic churches).
In 1903, resolution of the
Alaska Panhandle Dispute fixed British Columbia's northwestern boundary.
This was one of only two provinces in Canadian history to have its size reduced. The second reduction, in 1927, occurred when a
boundary dispute
A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of land between two or more political entities.
Context and definitions
Territorial disputes are often related to the possession of natural resources s ...
between Canada and the Dominion of Newfoundland saw Labrador enlarged at Quebec's expense; this land returned to Canada, as part of the province of Newfoundland, in 1949.
In 1999, Nunavut was created from the eastern portion of the Northwest Territories.
Yukon lies in the western portion of Northern Canada, while Nunavut is in the east.
All three territories combined are the most sparsely populated region in Canada, covering in land area.
[ They are often referred to as a single region, the North, for organisational and economic purposes.] For much of the Northwest Territories' early history it was divided into several districts for ease of administration. The District of Keewatin was created as a separate territory from 1876 to 1905, after which, as the Keewatin Region, it became an administrative district of the Northwest Territories. In 1999, it was dissolved when it became part of Nunavut.
Government
Theoretically, provinces have a great deal of power relative to the federal government, with jurisdiction over many public goods such as health care, education, welfare, and intra-provincial transportation. They receive "transfer payment
In macroeconomics and finance, a transfer payment (also called a government transfer or simply transfer) is a redistribution of income and wealth by means of the government making a payment, without goods or services being received in return. Th ...
s" from the federal government to pay for these, as well as exacting their own taxes. In practice, however, the federal government can use these transfer payments to influence these provincial areas. For instance, in order to receive healthcare funding under Medicare, provinces must agree to meet certain federal mandates, such as universal access to required medical treatment.
Provincial and territorial legislatures have no second chamber like the Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada.
The Senate is modelled after the B ...
. Originally, most provinces had such bodies, known as legislative councils, with members titled councillors. These upper houses were abolished one by one, Quebec's being the last in 1968. In most provinces, the single house of the legislature is known as the Legislative Assembly; the exceptions are Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, where the chamber is called the House of Assembly
House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level.
Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible gove ...
, and Quebec where it is called the National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...
. Ontario has a Legislative Assembly but its members are called Members of the Provincial Parliament or MPPs. The legislative assemblies use a procedure similar to that of the House of Commons of Canada. The head of government of each province, called the premier, is generally the head of the party with the most seats. This is also the case in Yukon, but the Northwest Territories and Nunavut have no political parties at the territorial level. The King's representative in each province is the Lieutenant Governor. In each of the territories there is an analogous Commissioner, but they represent the federal government rather than the monarch.
Provincial legislature buildings
File:2011 Alberta Legislature Building 03.jpg, Alberta Legislature Building
The Alberta Legislature Building is located in Edmonton and is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and the Executive Council of Alberta. It is often shortened to "the Ledge".
The Alberta Legislature Building is located at 10 ...
File:British Columbia Parliament Buildings - panoramio.jpg, British Columbia Parliament Buildings
The British Columbia Parliament Buildings are located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, and are home to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
The Speaker and the Serjeant-at-Arms are amongst those responsible for the legislative ...
File:Parliamentwinnipeg manitoba.jpg, Manitoba Legislative Building The Manitoba Legislative Building (french: Palais législatif du Manitoba), originally named the Manitoba Parliament Building, is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, located in central Winnipeg, as well as being the twelfth pr ...
File:New Brunswick Legislature.png, New Brunswick Legislative Building
The New Brunswick Legislative Building (french: Édifice de l'Assemblée législative du Nouveau-Brunswick) is the home to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, and is located in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. Opened in 1882, the Second ...
File:Confederation Building (front), St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada.jpg, Newfoundland and Labrador Confederation Building
File:Province House (Nova Scotia).jpg, Nova Scotia Province House
File:Ontario Legislative Building, Toronto, South view 20170417 1.jpg, Ontario Legislative Building
The Ontario Legislative Building (french: L'édifice de l'Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is a structure in central Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It houses the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, and the viceregal suite of the Lieutenant Governor ...
File:282 - Birthplace of Canada Charlottetown PEI.JPG, Prince Edward Island Province House
File:Quebec City (14765614666).jpg, Quebec Parliament Building
The Parliament Building of Quebec (french: Hôtel du Parlement du Québec, links=no) is an eight-floor structure and is home to the National Assembly of Quebec (french: Assemblée Nationale du Québec, links=no), located in Quebec City, Quebec, Ca ...
File:Saskatchewan legislative building.jpg, Saskatchewan Legislative Building
The Saskatchewan Legislative Building is located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and houses the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan.
History
The Saskatchewan Legislative Building was built between 1908 and 1912 in the Beaux Arts style to a d ...
Territorial legislature buildings
File:Northwest Territories Legislative Building.jpg, Northwest Territories Legislative Building
The Northwest Territories Legislative Building is the home of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The territory's legislature has used many permanent and temporary facilities throughout ...
File:Leg Building Iqaluit 2000-08-27.jpg, Nunavut Legislative Building
File:Yukon Legislature main entrance.jpg, Yukon Legislative Building
The Yukon Legislative Building is home to the Yukon Legislative Assembly. Located in Whitehorse, Yukon, the building is a three-storey white steel-clad structure. The complex is located next to the Yukon River and Rotary Park.
History
Before ...
Map
Provincial political parties
Most provinces have rough provincial counterparts to major federal parties. However, these provincial parties are not usually formally linked to the federal parties that share the same name. For example, no provincial Conservative or Progressive Conservative Party shares an organizational link to the federal Conservative Party of Canada, and neither do provincial Green Parties to the Green Party of Canada.
Provincial New Democratic Parties, on the other hand, are fully integrated with the federal New Democratic Party—meaning that provincial parties effectively operate as sections, with common membership, of the federal party.
The Liberal Party of Canada shares such an organizational integration with Atlantic Canada provincial Liberals in New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic Canada, Atlantic region. The province comprises t ...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, and Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
. Other provincial Liberal Parties are unaffiliated with their federal counterpart.
Some provinces have provincial political parties with no clear federal equivalent, such as the Alberta Party
The Alberta Party, formally the Alberta Party Political Association, is a political party in the province of Alberta, Canada. The party describes itself as a centrist and pragmatic in that is not dogmatically ideological in its approach to politi ...
and Saskatchewan Party.
The provincial political climate of Quebec is different: the main split is between sovereignty
Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...
, represented by the Parti Québécois
The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishin ...
and Québec solidaire
Québec solidaire (QS; ) is a democratic socialist and sovereigntist political party in Quebec, Canada. The party and media outlets in Canada usually use the name "Québec solidaire" in both French and English, but the party's name is sometimes ...
, and federalism, represented primarily by the Quebec Liberal Party. The Coalition Avenir Québec, meanwhile, takes an abstentionist position on the question and does not support or oppose sovereignty.
Currently, the one minority provincial/territorial government is held by the Liberals in Yukon
Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
.
Ceremonial territory
The Canadian National Vimy Memorial
The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a war memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during the First World War. It also serves as the place of commemoration for Canadian soldiers of the Fir ...
, near Vimy
Vimy ( or ; ; Dutch: ''Wimi'') is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Located east of Vimy is the Canadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the Canadian soldiers ...
, Pas-de-Calais, and the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial
The Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial is a memorial site in France dedicated to the commemoration of Dominion of Newfoundland forces members who were killed during World War I. The preserved battlefield park encompasses the grounds over wh ...
, near Beaumont-Hamel
Beaumont-Hamel () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
During the First World War, Beaumont-Hamel was close to the front line, near many attacks, especially during the Battle of the Somme, one of the larg ...
, both in France, are ceremonially considered Canadian territory. In 1922, the French government donated the land used for the Vimy Memorial "freely, and for all time, to the Government of Canada the free use of the land exempt from all taxes". The site of the Somme battlefield near Beaumont-Hamel site was purchased in 1921 by the people of the Dominion of Newfoundland. These sites do not, however, enjoy extraterritorial status
In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.
Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cla ...
and are thus subject to French law.
Proposed provinces and territories
Since Confederation in 1867, there have been several proposals for new Canadian provinces and territories. The Constitution of Canada requires an amendment An amendment is a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change for better. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. The ...
for the creation of a new province[An amendment to the Constitution of Canada in relation to the following matters may be made only in accordance with subsection 38(1)...notwithstanding any other law or practice, the establishment of new provinces.] but the creation of a new territory requires only an act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
, a legislatively simpler process.
In late 2004, Prime Minister Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006.
The son o ...
surprised some observers by expressing his personal support for all three territories gaining provincial status "eventually". He cited their importance to the country as a whole and the ongoing need to assert sovereignty in the Arctic, particularly as global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
could make that region more open to exploitation leading to more complex international waters disputes.
See also
* Canadian provincial and territorial name etymologies
This article lists the etymologies of the names of the provinces and territories of Canada.
Provinces and territories
Historical regions
*Acadia (french: Acadie): origin disputed:
:# Credited to Florentine navigator Giovanni da Verrazzano, who ...
** Canadian adjectival and demonymic forms of place names
* Language policies of Canada's provinces and territories
The language policies of Canada's province and territories vary between the provinces and territories of Canada. Although the federal government operates as an officially bilingual institution, providing services in English and French, several ...
* List of areas disputed by Canada and the United States
Canada and the United States have one land dispute over Machias Seal Island (off the coast of Maine), and four other maritime disputes in the Arctic and Pacific. Although they share the longest international border in the world, the two countri ...
* List of regions of Canada
The list of regions of Canada is a summary of geographical areas on a hierarchy that ranges from national (groups of provinces and territories) at the top to local regions and sub-regions of provinces at the bottom. Administrative regions that ran ...
*List of governments in Canada by annual expenditures
In Canada, governments at the federal, provincial, territorial and municipal levels have the power to spend public funds. This is a list of governments by annual expenditures, in Canadian dollars.
Notes
{{Lists of the provinces and territo ...
* Commonwealth Local Government Forum-Americas
* Provincial museums of Canada Provincial and territorial museums of Canada are museums maintained by the provinces and territories of Canada to preserve their local history and culture. However, the collections of some museums extend beyond its provincial boundaries, showcasing ...
* List of Canada-related topics by provinces and territories
This is a list of topics related to the provinces and territories of Canada, listed by topic type.
Geography
Infrastructure
History
Politics
Other
Summary
See also
* Bibliography of Canadian provinces and territories
*Outline of Cana ...
**
**List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols
This is a list of the symbols of the provinces and territories of Canada. Each province and territory has a unique set of official symbols.
Provinces and territories
See also
*
* Arms of Canada
* List of Canadian flags
** Flags of provinces ...
**List of Canadian provinces by unemployment rate
The list of Canadian provinces by unemployment rate are statistics that directly refer to the nation's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate. Below is a comparison of the seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by province/territory, sortable by n ...
**
** Population of Canada by province and territory
** Flags of provinces and territories of Canada
References
Further reading
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External links
Provincial and territorial government web sites
– Service Canada
Provincial and territorial legislature web sites
– Parliament of Canada
– Intergovernmental Affairs
Provincial and territorial statistics
– Statistics Canada
Provincial and territorial immigration information
– Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Canadian governments compared
– University of Public Administration
{{Authority control
Canada 1
Provinces, Canada