Daily life and cultural practices
An overview of documented cultural practices — not an exhaustive list, and without claiming to sum up the real diversity of people's habits.
Ice hockey, the national winter sport
Born in the 19th century in the British North American provinces, ice hockey has officially been Canada's national winter sport since a 1994 law, which also made lacrosse the national summer sport. The National Hockey League (NHL), founded in Montreal in 1917, is still followed fervently across the country.
Multiculturalism, official policy since 1971
In 1971 Canada became the first country in the world to adopt an official policy of multiculturalism, enshrined in 1988 in the Canadian Multiculturalism Act and then in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This approach, distinct from the French model of assimilation, encourages people to keep their cultural identities of origin within Canadian society.
Maple syrup and poutine
The world's leading producer of maple syrup, with Quebec alone supplying most of the world's output, Canada also saw the birth of poutine (fries, cheese curds and brown gravy) in rural Quebec in the 1950s, now an iconic dish well beyond the province.
The Group of Seven and Inuit art
The Group of Seven, a collective of landscape painters active in the 1920s, strongly shaped Canada's visual identity with its depictions of the Canadian Shield and the vast northern spaces. Inuit sculpture and printmaking, notably from the Cape Dorset co-operative (Nunavut) founded in the late 1950s, are internationally recognised.
A vast network of national parks
Banff National Park, created in 1885 in the Alberta Rockies, is Canada's oldest national park and one of the first in the world. The Parks Canada network now includes dozens of national parks and historic sites in every province and territory.
Cirque du Soleil and the Quebec music scene
Founded in Baie-Saint-Paul (Quebec) in 1984 by former street performers, Cirque du Soleil has become the largest contemporary circus company in the world, present on every continent. French-speaking Quebec also has its own music industry and star system, distinct from the English-language scene in the rest of the country.