PRE-AP GEOGRAPHYCHAPTER 6 – CANADA

CANADA'S GEOGRAPHY

6.1CANADA: PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

I. A HUGE COUNTRY (2ND LARGEST), CANADA HAS A

WIDE VARIETY OF PHYSICAL FEATURES, INCLUDING

RUGGED MOUNTAINS, PLAINS, AND SWAMPS.

II. CANADA AND THE U.S. SHARE MANY PHYSICAL

FEATURES.

A. THE MOUNTAINS ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST AND

THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS EXTEND NORTH INTO

WESTERN CANADA.

• BROAD PLAINS STRETCH ACROSS THE INTERIORS OF

BOTH COUNTRIES.

B. BOTH COUNTRIES BORDER THE ST. LAWRENCE

RIVER, WHICH LINKS THE GREAT LAKES TO THE

ATLANTIC OCEAN.

C. THE NIAGARA FALLS, LOCATED BETWEEN

ONTARIO AND NEW YORK STATE, PLUNGE AN

AVERAGE OF 162 FEET BETWEEN LAKE ERIE AND LAKE

ONTARIO.

D. CANADA HAS A REGION OF ROCKY UPLANDS, LAKES, AND SWAMPS CALLED THE CANADIAN SHIELD, WHICH COVERS ABOUT HALF THE COUNTRY.

• CANADIAN LAND BORDERING THE ARCTIC OCEAN IS COVERED WITH ICE YEAR-ROUND. VERY FEW PEOPLE LIVE HERE, BUT SOME WILDLIFE HAVE ADAPTED TO THE HARSH ENVIRONMENT.

III. CANADA’S LOCATION GREATLY INFLUENCES THE COUNTRY’S CLIMATE.

• LOCATED FAR FROM THE EQUATOR

• COOL TO FREEZING TEMPERATURES YEAR-ROUND

• THE FARTHER NORTH, THE COLDER THE CLIMATE.

• MUCH OF CENTRAL AND NORTHERN CANADA HAS A SUB-ARCTIC CLIMATE.

• THE FAR NORTH HAS TUNDRA AND ICE CAP CLIMATES.

• ABOUT HALF OF CANADA LIES IN THESE EXTREMELY COLD CLIMATES.

• CENTRAL AND EASTERN SOUTHERN CANADA IS HUMID AND RELATIVELY MILD.

• THE COAST OF BRITISH COLUMBIA IS THE MILDEST. THE PACIFIC COAST BRINGS RAINY WINTERS AND MILD TEMPERATURES.

• INLAND SOUTHERN CANADA IS COLDER AND DRIER.

CANADA – PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

IV. CANADA IS RICH IN NATURAL RESOURCES LIKE FISH, MINERALS, FERTILE SOIL, AND FORESTS.

A. FISHING

• CANADA’S ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC COASTAL WATERS ARE AMONG THE WORLD’S RICHEST FISHING AREAS.

1. GRAND BANKS - OFF THE ATLANTIC COAST WHERE THE COLD WATERS FROM THE LABRADOR SEA MEET THE WARM WATERS OF THE GULF STREAM.

• IDEAL FOR THE GROWTH OF TINY ORGANISMS, OR PLANKTON WHERE LARGE SCHOOLS OF FISH GATHER TO EAT THE PLANKTON. (RECENT OVER-FISHING)

B. MINERALS

1. THE CANADIAN SHIELD HAS MANY MINERAL DEPOSITS. WORLD’S MAIN SOURCE OF NICKEL, ZINC, AND URANIUM. OTHER RESOURCES: LEAD, COPPER, GOLD, AND SILVER

2. SASKATCHEWAN: POTASH, A MINERAL USED TO MAKE FERTILIZER

3. ALBERTA: OIL AND NATURAL GAS

C. FOREST

1. VAST AREAS OF FORESTS FROM LABRADOR TO THE PACIFIC COAST PROVIDE LUMBER AND PULP. PULP—SOFTENED WOOD FIBERS—IS USED TO MAKE PAPER.

• THE UNITED STATES, THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND JAPAN GET MUCH OF THEIR NEWSPRINT FROM CANADA. NEWSPRINT IS CHEAP PAPER USED MAINLY FOR NEWSPAPERS.

BIG IDEA

• CANADA IS A HUGE COUNTRY WITH A NORTHERLY LOCATION, COLD CLIMATES, AND RICH RESOURCES.

MAIN IDEAS

• A HUGE COUNTRY, CANADA HAS A WIDE VARIETY OF PHYSICAL FEATURES, INCLUDING RUGGED MOUNTAINS, PLAINS, AND SWAMPS.

• BECAUSE OF ITS NORTHERLY LOCATION, CANADA IS DOMINATED BY COLD CLIMATES.

• CANADA IS RICH IN NATURAL RESOURCES LIKE FISH, MINERALS, FERTILE SOIL, AND FORESTS.

CANADA

6.1 CANADA – PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

6.2 CANADA: HISTORY &

CULTURE

• BEGINNING IN THE 1600S, EUROPEANS SETTLED THE REGION THAT WOULD LATER BECOME CANADA.

I. NATIVE CANADIANS

• THE FIRST NATIONS: THE CREE HUNTED BISON ON THE INTERIOR PLAINS.

• THE INUIT HUNTED SEALS, WHALES, AND WALRUSES IN THE FAR NORTH.

• TODAY, CANADA HAS ABOUT 400,000 INDIANS AND INUIT.

II. EUROPEAN SETTLERS

• VIKINGS SETTLED ON NEWFOUNDLAND IN AD 1000, BUT ABANDONED SETTLEMENTS.

• 1400S: OTHER EUROPEAN SETTLERS ARRIVED.

• EUROPEANS TRADED METAL GOODS LIKE AXES AND GUNS FOR FURS THAT NATIVE CANADIANS SUPPLIED.

A. NEW FRANCE

• 1608: THE FRENCH ESTABLISHED QUEBEC CITY.

• AT ITS HEIGHT, NEW FRANCE INCLUDED MUCH OF EASTERN

CANADA AND CENTRAL UNITED STATES.

• NEW FRANCE WAS PART OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE.

• TO DEFEND NEW FRANCE AGAINST THE BRITISH, THE FRENCH

ESTABLISHED GOOD TRADE AND DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH

NATIVE CANADIANS.

• FRENCH MISSIONARIES ALSO CONVERTED PEOPLE TO

CHRISTIANITY.

• AFTER 150 YEARS, THE BRITISH DEFEATED THE FRENCH, BUT THE

CULTURAL LEGACY REMAINED.

B. BRITISH CONQUEST

• MID-1700S: THE BRITISH TOOK CONTROL OF NEW FRANCE AFTER

WINNING THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. MOST FRENCH STAYED.

FRENCH & INDIAN WAR

• THE BRITISH DIVIDED QUEBEC INTO TWO COLONIES AND

ESTABLISHED PART OF THE BORDER BETWEEN TODAY’S PROVINCES

OF QUEBEC AND ONTARIO.

• PROVINCES ARE ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS OF A COUNTRY.

• FEW ENGLISH-SPEAKING SETTLERS CAME TO QUEBEC.

• NOVA SCOTIA WAS DIVIDED.

• THE NEW BRITISH COLONY OF NEW BRUNSWICK WAS CREATED.

C. CREATION OF CANADA

• EACH COLONY DEVELOPED SEPARATELY AT FIRST.

• 1867: PARLIAMENT CREATED THE DOMINION OF CANADA.

• 1885: THE TRANSCONTINENTAL CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY WAS

BUILT TO CONNECT BRITISH COLUMBIA, ON THE PACIFIC COAST,

WITH PROVINCES IN THE EAST.

• CANADA ACQUIRED NEW LANDS IN THE NORTH, MAINLY BY BUYING

THEM FROM THE HUDSON’S BAY COMPANY, A FUR-TRADING

BUSINESS.

• CANADA ALSO SIGNED TREATIES WITH NATIVE CANADIANS.

CANADA – HISTORY & CULTURE

III. IMMIGRATION

1. LATE 1800S/EARLY 1900S: IMMIGRANTS ARRIVED FROM EUROPE AND THE U.S. TO FARM AND WORK IN MINES, FACTORIES, AND FORESTS.

2. 1897: DISCOVERY OF GOLD IN THE YUKON TERRITORY LURED MORE IMMIGRANTS. CHINESE IMMIGRANTS CAME TO WORK ON THE RAILROAD.

3. EARLY 1900S: ECONOMIC BOOM

• QUEBEC, NEW BRUNSWICK, AND ONTARIO PRODUCED WHEAT, PULP, AND PAPER.

• BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ONTARIO SUPPLIED MINERALS AND HYDROELECTRICITY.

4. 1940S: CANADA ENJOYED ONE OF THE HIGHEST STANDARDS OF LIVING IN THE WORLD.

IV. MOVEMENT TO CITIES

• AFTER WWII: NEW IMMIGRATION FROM EUROPE

• MANY SETTLED IN CITIES.

1. TORONTO BECAME ONE OF THE MOST CULTURALLY DIVERSE CITIES IN THE WORLD WITH PEOPLE FROM EUROPE, AFRICA, THE CARIBBEAN, LATIN AMERICAN, AND ASIA.

• RECENTLY, CANADIANS HAVE MOVED

• TO CITIES IN ONTARIO TO FIND JOBS

2. TO VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA FOR JOBS AND CLIMATE

• POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC CENTERS ARE OTTAWA, TORONTO, AND MONTREAL.

BIG IDEA

CANADA’S HISTORY AND CULTURE REFLECT NATIVE CANADIAN AND

EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT, IMMIGRATION, AND MIGRATION TO CITIES.

MAIN IDEA

BEGINNING IN THE 1600S, EUROPEANS SETTLED THE REGION THAT

WOULD LATER BECOME CANADA.

IMMIGRATION AND MIGRATION TO CITIES HAVE SHAPED CANADIAN

CULTURE.

6.2 CANADA – HISTORY & CULTURE

6.3

CANADA TODAY

I. CANADA’S GOVERNMENT

A. DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT LED BY A PRIME MINISTER (HEAD OF GOVERNMENT-ELECTED) WHO OVERSEES THE PARLIAMENT.

• QUEEN ELISABETH II OF GREAT BRITAIN IS HEAD OF STATE (CEREMONIAL POSITION)

B. PARLIAMENT: HOUSE OF COMMONS (LOWER HOUSE) AND THE SENATE (UPPER HOUSE)

• PEOPLE ELECT MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.

• PRIME MINISTER APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE SENATE.

• TEN PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENTS ARE LED BY PREMIERS. (LIKE OUR GOVERNORS)

• PROVINCIAL AND CENTRAL SYSTEM IS SIMILAR TO U.S. STATE AND FEDERAL SYSTEM.

CANADIAN GOVERNMENT

II. REGIONALISM IS THE STRONG CONNECTION THAT PEOPLE FEEL

TOWARD THE REGION IN WHICH THEY LIVE.

A. CANADA’S PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY SPLITS THE COUNTRY INTO

FOUR REGIONS.

• CULTURAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FRENCH-SPEAKING AND ENGLISH-

SPEAKING CANADIANS ALSO LEADS TO REGIONALISM.

• IN CANADA, MOST PEOPLE SPEAK ENGLISH, EXCEPT IN QUEBEC

PROVINCE WHERE THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE IS FRENCH.

• SOME CANADIANS HAVE A STRONGER CONNECTION TO THEIR REGION

THAN TO THE COUNTRY AS A WHOLE.

III. CANADA’S REGIONS

A. THE EASTERN PROVINCES

1. INCLUDES NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR, NEW BRUNSWICK, NOVA SCOTIA,

AND PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND (NEW BRUNSWICK, NOVA SCOTIA, & PRINCE EDWARD

ISLAND ARE CALLED THE MARITIME PROVINCES) MARITIME MEANS ON OR NEAR THE

SEA.

• SHORT GROWING SEASON, SO ECONOMY RELIES MOSTLY ON FORESTRY AND FISHING

• BOTH ENGLISH AND FRENCH-SPEAKING PEOPLE & MOST PEOPLE LIVE IN COASTAL

CITIES.

• CITIES ARE INDUSTRIAL, FISHING, AND SHIPPING CENTERS.

• HALIFAX, IN NOVA SCOTIA, IS THE REGION’S LARGEST CITY.

EASTERN PROVINCES

B. THE HEARTLAND

1. INCLUDES QUEBEC AND ONTARIO

• MOST URBANIZED REGION

2. FRENCH-SPEAKING MONTREAL IN QUEBEC IS CANADA’S SECOND LARGEST CITY.

• MANY RESIDENTS OF QUEBEC, OR QUEBECOIS, ARGUE THAT QUEBEC SHOULD BE

INDEPENDENT OR BE GIVEN SPECIAL PRIVILEGES.

• ONTARIO HAS A LARGER POPULATION THAN QUEBEC AND IS THE MANUFACTURING

CENTER.

3. TORONTO, THE CAPITAL OF ONTARIO, IS AN INDUSTRIAL, FINANCIAL,

EDUCATIONAL, AND CULTURAL CENTER.

4. OTTAWA, THE CAPITAL OF CANADA, IS IN ONTARIO.

ONTARIO QUEBEC

C. THE WESTERN PROVINCES

1. INCLUDES THE PRAIRIE PROVINCES OF MANITOBA, SASKATCHEWAN,

AND ALBERTA AND BRITISH COLUMBIA

• MORE PEOPLE LIVE IN QUEBEC THAN IN ALL THE PRAIRIE PROVINCES.

• WHEAT, OIL, AND NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION ARE IMPORTANT INDUSTRIES.

• BRITISH COLUMBIA - FOUR MILLION PEOPLE

• RESOURCES: FORESTS, SALMON, AND MINERALS

2. VANCOUVER IS A COASTAL CITY THAT TRADES WITH ASIA.

WESTERN PROVINCES

D. THE CANADIAN NORTH

1. INCLUDES YUKON TERRITORY, THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, AND

NUNAVUT

• EXTREMELY COLD DUE TO LOCATION NEAR ARCTIC CIRCLE

• ONLY 100,000 PEOPLE ALTHOUGH THIS REGION COVERS MORE THAN A THIRD

OF CANADA.

2. NUNAVUT IS A NEW TERRITORY FOR THE 30,000 NATIVE INUIT PEOPLE

WHO LIVE THERE.

• MOSTLY FOREST, TUNDRA, AND TOWNS ISOLATED BY FROZEN WATERS OF

THE ARCTIC OCEAN.

CANADIAN NORTH

IV. INDUSTRIES

• ONE OF WORLD’S LEADING MINERAL PRODUCERS: TITANIUM, ZINC, IRON ORE, GOLD, AND COAL

• IRON AND STEEL INDUSTRY SUPPORTS PLANE, CAR, AND HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES.

• TOURISM IS A FAST-GROWING SERVICE INDUSTRY.

V. TRADE

• CANADA’S ECONOMY DEPENDS ON TRADE.

• CANADA AND THE U.S. HAVE THE WORLD’S LARGEST TRADING RELATIONSHIP.

• 60 PERCENT OF CANADA’S IMPORTS ARE FROM THE UNITED STATES.

• 85 PERCENT OF CANADA’S EXPORTS GOES TO THE UNITED STATES

• RECENT ISSUES INCLUDE A TARIFF ON CANADIAN LUMBER AND A 2003 CASE OF MAD COW DISEASE.

BIG IDEA

• CANADA’S DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT OVERSEES THE COUNTRY’S REGIONS AND ECONOMY.

MAIN IDEAS

• CANADA HAS A DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT WITH A PRIME MINISTER AND A PARLIAMENT.

• CANADA HAS FOUR DISTINCT GEOGRAPHIC AND CULTURAL REGIONS.

• CANADA’S ECONOMY IS LARGELY BASED ON TRADE WITH THE UNITED STATES.

6.3 CANADA TODAY