Canada is known around the world as a strong and free country. Canadians are proud of their unique identity. We have inherited the oldest continuous constitutional tradition in the world. We are the only constitutional monarchy in North America. Our institutions uphold a commitment to Peace, Order, and Good Government, a key phrase in Canada\u2019s original constitutional document in 1867, the British North
America Act. A belief in ordered liberty, enterprise, hard work and fair play have enabled Canadians to build a prosperous society in a rugged environment from our Atlantic shores to the Pacific Ocean and to the Arctic Circle\u2014so much so that poets and songwriters have hailed Canada as the \u201cGreat Dominion<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To understand what it means to be Canadian, it is important to know about our three founding peoples\u2014 Aboriginal, French and British.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ABORIGINAL PEOPLES<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The ancestors of Aboriginal peoples are believed to have migrated from Asia many thousands of years ago. They were well established here long before explorers from Europe first came to North America. Diverse, vibrant First Nations cultures were rooted in religious beliefs about their relationship to the
Creator, the natural environment and each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aboriginal and treaty rights are in the Canadian Constitution. Territorial rights were first guaranteed through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by King George III, and established the basis for negotiating treaties with the newcomers\u2014 treaties that were not always fully respected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the 1800s until the 1980s, the federal government placed many Aboriginal children in residential schools to educate and assimilate them into mainstream Canadian culture. The schools were poorly funded and inflicted hardship on the students; some were physically abused. Aboriginal languages and cultural practices were mostly prohibited. In 2008, Ottawa formally apologized to the former students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In today\u2019s Canada, Aboriginal peoples enjoy renewed pride and confidence, and have made significant achievements in agriculture, the environment, business and the arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, the term Aboriginal peoples refers to three distinct groups:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indian refers to all Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or M\u00e9tis. In the 1970s, the term First Nations began to be used. Today, about half of First Nations people live on reserve land in about 600 communities while the other half live off-reserve, mainly in urban centres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unity in Diversity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

John Buchan, the 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, was a popular Governor General of Canada (1935-40). Immigrant groups, he said, \u201cshould retain their individuality and each make its contribution to the national character.\u201d Each could learn \u201cfrom the other, and \u2026 while they cherish their own special loyalties
and traditions, they cherish not less that new loyalty and tradition which springs from their union.\u201d (Canadian Club of Halifax, 1937). The 15th Governor General is shown here in Blood (Kainai First Nation) headdress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Inuit<\/strong>, which means \u201cthe people\u201d in the Inuktitut language, live in small, scattered communities across the Arctic. Their knowledge of the land, sea and wildlife enabled them to adapt to one of the harshest environments on earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The M\u00e9tis <\/strong>are a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry, the majority of whom live in the Prairie provinces. They come from both French- and English-speaking backgrounds and speak their own dialect, Michif.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 65% of the Aboriginal people are First Nations, while 30% are M\u00e9tis and 4% Inuit.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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