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GET TO KNOW CANADA 23
government granted the Inuit this oicial homeland, the name of which aptly means “Our Land.” In this territory, the Inuit’s culture is successfully preserved, and their native language, Inuktitut, plus Inuinnaqtun, a dialect of western Nunavut, form two of the territory’s four oicial languages. he other two remain English and French.
he First European Migrants
he Canada 2006 Census data showed that about 20.6 million Canadians, of a total 31.2 million, trace their ethnic origin as English (6.6 million), French (4.9 million), Scottish (4.7 million) or Irish (4.4 million).
In 1497, the Italian explorer, John Cabot, was commissioned by the British Government to explore previously uncharted territories. In this mission, he discovered Newfoundland, an original province of Canada. Although Cabot was credited with this “discovery,” the First Nations had inhabited the major parts of North America for several hundred years even before Cabot’s historical quest. It was not until a century after Cabot that Britain explored and took advantage of the vast potential and richness of the New World — the Americas. From thereon, British settlements were built, sustained largely by trade and agriculture.
A large inlux of immigrants from the British Isles followed, motivated by the hope of alleviating their previously far poorer living conditions. he majority of them were Irish settlers who led the Potato Famine in Ireland between the years 1845 and 1849.
More European settlers journeyed into Canada after the government had decreed the distribution of free land in the western regions for the purpose of populating the provinces and stimulating progress.
An Inuit building an igloo.
As history shows, the British, Irish and Scottish migrants played major roles and generated a profound inluence in building what we know today as Canada. he largest impact came from Britain, whose laws and traditions reverberate with the rich colonial heritage of Canada.
French Canadians
French Canadians make up more than 15 percent of Canada’s population.
As early as the 16th century, the French had been ishing of the coast of Newfoundland, even long before the French government commissioned the Italian mercenary, Giovanni de Verrazano, in 1523, to discover the coastlines of the New World. He came upon a fertile land south of Newfoundland and named it Acadia.
In 1534, the French navigator, Jacques Cartier, set out in search a western route to Asia and found himself on the shores of Acadia where he erected a lofty cross, claiming the land for France. Within a century, missionaries, fur traders and farmers had immigrated to this area establishing the colony of New France.
Tension between France and England made its way to North America in the mid-18th century, sparking the Seven Years War (1756 to 1763) where French settlers were forced to become English subjects. Despite this, the French persisted in preserving their language and religion. For more than two centuries, French culture lourished and greatly fostered a strong sense of independence. his lingering sense of nationalism has survived until now, with Québec nationalists passionately advocating that Québec be granted autonomy as a self-determined and independent state. Today, the Bloc Québecois (BQ) political party remains a strong promoter of a sovereign Québec state.