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• Canada was home to Aboriginal peoples for thousands of years before Europeans made contact. The first European settlement, located at L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland was created by the Vikings around 1,000.

• Fast Facts

  1. The name Canada comes from the Huron-Iroquois word "kanata" which means village
  2. In 1534, France sent Jacques Cartier to explore the "new lands" of North America
  3. Canada was officially named in 1867
  4. Canada became independent from The United Kingdom in 1931
  5. Canada's constitution was patriated in 1982

• European Settlers

  British explorer John Cabot claimed what is now known as Canada in the name of King Henry VII of England in 1497, but it was the French, led by Jacques Cartier who explored further inland via the St.Lawrence River and created the first mainland colony, which he called New France.

  After the Seven Years' War ended in 1763, France ceded most of its North American territory territory to England and Canada came under British rule.

• Canada

  Canada is the second largest country in the world, surpassed only by Russia and is home to approximately 33 million people. A member of the Commonwealth of Nations, Canada is rich in natural resources, with logging and oil being it's top two industries. Approximately three quarters of Canada's population lives within 90 miles of the Canadian and United States borders.

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Canada | How to Become a Canadian Citizen | John Cabot | Jacques Carier | Samuel de Champlain | Commonwealth Of Nations | Pierre Trudeau | Quebec | Ottawa | Royal Canadian Mounted Police | Montreal | McMaster University

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