Manitoba
Glorious and Free
Where is it?
Flag
Geography
|
Location:
|
Central Canada. |
|
Area:
|
total: 649,950 sq km (250,950 sq mi)
land: 548,360 sq km (211,720 sq mi) water: 101,593 sq km (39,225 sq mi) coastline: 917 km (570 miles) |
|
Bordering Provinces:
|
Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Nunavut |
|
Elevation extremes:
|
highest point: Baldy Mountain 832m (2,730 ft) |
| Manitoba is bordered by the provinces of Ontario to the east and Saskatchewan to the west, the territories of Nunavut and Northwest Territories to the north, and the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota to the south. It adjoins Hudson Bay to the northeast, and is the only prairie province to have a saltwater coastline. The Port of Churchill is the only arctic deep-water port in Canada and the shortest shipping route between North America and Asia. Lake Winnipeg is the tenth-largest freshwater lake in the world. Hudson Bay is the second-largest bay in the world. Manitoba is at the heart of the giant Hudson Bay watershed, once known as Rupert's Land. It was a vital area of the Hudson's Bay Company, with many rivers and lakes that provided excellent opportunities for the lucrative fur trade. |
Population
|
Population:
|
1,208,268 (2011) |
|
Largest City:
|
Winnipeg: 663,617 (2011) |
History
| Winnipeg lies at the confluence of the Assiniboine and the Red River of the North, a location now known as "The Forks". This point was at the crossroads of canoe routes travelled by First Nations before European contact. Winnipeg is named after nearby Lake Winnipeg. Winnipeg is a transcription of the Western Cree word wi-nipe-k, meaning muddy or brackish water, which was used to describe Lake Winnipeg. The area was populated for several thousands of years by First Nations. Evidence provided by archaeology, petroglyphs, rock art and oral history indicates that native peoples used the area in prehistoric times for camping, harvesting, hunting, tool making, fishing, trading and, farther north, for agriculture. Estimates of the date of first settlement in this area are varied and range from 11,500 years ago for a site southwest of the present city to 6,000 years ago at the Forks. In 1805, Canadian colonists observed First Nations peoples engaged in farming activity along the Red River. The practice quickly expanded, driven by the demand by traders for provisions. The rivers provided an extensive transportation network linking northern First Peoples with those to the south along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. The Ojibwe made some of the first maps on birch bark, which helped fur traders navigate the waterways of the area |
Government
|
Capital:
|
Winnipeg |
Confederation:
|
15 July 1870 |
|
Provincial Tree:
|
White spruce |
|
Provincial Bird:
|
Great grey owl |
|
Provincial Flower:
|
Prairie crocus |
| After the control of Rupert's Land was passed from Great Britain to the Government of Canada in 1869, Manitoba attained full-fledged rights and responsibilities of self-government as the first Canadian province carved out of the Northwest Territories. The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba was established on 14 July 1870. Political parties first emerged between 1878 and 1883, with a two-party system (Liberals and Conservatives). The United Farmers of Manitoba appeared in 1922, and later merged with the Liberals in 1932. Other parties, including the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), appeared during the Great Depression; in the 1950s, Manitoban politics became a three-party system, and the Liberals gradually declined in power. The CCF became the New Democratic Party of Manitoba (NDP), which came to power in 1969. Since then, the Conservatives and the NDP have been the dominant parties. Like all Canadian provinces, Manitoba is governed by a unicameral legislative assembly. The executive branch is formed by the governing party; the party leader is the premier of Manitoba, the head of the executive branch. The head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, is represented by the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, who is appointed by the Governor General of Canada on advice of the Prime Minister. The head of state is primarily a ceremonial role, although the Lieutenant Governor has the official responsibility of ensuring that Manitoba has a duly constituted government. |
Economy
| Manitoba has a moderately strong economy based largely on natural resources. Its Gross Domestic Product was C$50.834 billion in 2008. The province's economy grew 2.4 percent in 2008, the third consecutive year of growth; in 2009, it neither increased nor decreased. The average individual income in Manitoba in 2006 was C$25,100 (compared to a national average of C$26,500), ranking fifth-highest among the provinces. As of October 2009, Manitoba's unemployment rate was 5.8 percent. Manitoba's economy relies heavily on agriculture, tourism, energy, oil, mining, and forestry. Agriculture is vital and is found mostly in the southern half of the province, although grain farming occurs as far north as The Pas. Around 12 percent of Canadian farmland is in Manitoba. The most common type of farm found in rural areas is cattle farming (34.6%), followed by assorted grains (19.0%) and oilseed (7.9%) |