Quiz of the Day
Canada Day
Wednesday, 1 July 2026
159th Confederation anniversary — Canadian geography, maple facts, famous Canadians
1. In what year did Canada officially become a self-governing dominion through Confederation?
- 1849
- 1867
- 1776
- 1901
The British North America Act united three colonies — Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada — into one dominion on July 1, 1867. It wasn't called 'Canada Day' until 1982; before that it was known as 'Dominion Day.'
2. Canada is the world's second-largest country by total area. Which country is the largest?
- Russia
- United States
- Brazil
- China
Canada spans 9.98 million square kilometres, but Russia dwarfs it at 17.1 million. Despite its vast size, about 80% of Canadians live within 150 kilometres of the US border.
3. How many provinces and territories does Canada have?
- 10 provinces and 2 territories
- 10 provinces and 3 territories
- 12 provinces and 2 territories
- 8 provinces and 5 territories
The three territories — Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut — make up over 40% of Canada's land mass but are home to just over 100,000 people combined, roughly the population of a small city.
4. Which leaf appears on the Canadian flag?
- Elm leaf
- Oak leaf
- Maple leaf
- Birch leaf
The current maple leaf flag was adopted in 1965 after a fierce parliamentary debate known as the 'Great Canadian Flag Debate.' The 11-pointed leaf was designed by George Stanley and tested in a wind tunnel to ensure it was recognisable while fluttering.
5. What percentage of the world's maple syrup is produced in Canada?
- About 71%
- About 90%
- About 40%
- About 55%
Quebec alone produces roughly 70% of the global supply. Canada even has a 'Global Strategic Maple Syrup Reserve' — millions of kilograms stored in barrels, managed like an oil cartel to stabilise prices.
6. Which Canadian city is known as the 'City of Festivals'?
- Vancouver
- Edmonton
- Montreal
- Toronto
Edmonton hosts over 60 festivals a year, including the Edmonton Fringe Festival, the second-largest fringe theatre festival in the world after Edinburgh. Montreal also claims festival fame, particularly for jazz and comedy.
7. What is Canada's national winter sport?
- Curling
- Skiing
- Figure skating
- Ice hockey
Canada has two official national sports: ice hockey (winter) and lacrosse (summer). The first organised indoor hockey game was played in Montreal on March 3, 1875, using a flat wooden puck instead of a ball to keep it from flying into spectators.
8. Which famous Canadian invented the telephone?
- Alexander Graham Bell
- Lester B. Pearson
- Frederick Banting
- Terry Fox
Bell was born in Scotland but became a Canadian citizen and did much of his work in Brantford, Ontario. Both the US and Canada claim him — Canada even put him on the $100 bill from 1954 to 1971.
9. What is the longest highway in the world, stretching across Canada?
- Route 66
- Trans-Canada Highway
- Pan-American Highway
- Highway 1
The Trans-Canada Highway stretches 7,821 kilometres from St. John's, Newfoundland to Victoria, British Columbia. It was completed in 1962 and would take about 72 hours of non-stop driving to traverse.
10. Which Canadian scientist co-discovered insulin, saving millions of lives?
- Roberta Bondar
- Frederick Banting
- David Suzuki
- Alexander Graham Bell
Frederick Banting and Charles Best discovered insulin in 1921 at the University of Toronto. Banting sold the patent for $1 because he believed life-saving medicine should be accessible to all. He remains the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in Physiology or Medicine.
11. Canada has more lakes than all other countries combined. Roughly how many lakes does it have?
- About 1 million
- About 3 million
- About 2 million
- About 500,000
Canada contains roughly 60% of all the lakes on Earth. Many are so remote they don't even have names. The country holds about 20% of the world's fresh surface water.
12. What animal appears on the Canadian five-cent coin?
- Beaver
- Moose
- Loon
- Polar bear
The beaver became a symbol of Canada because the fur trade — built largely on beaver pelts — was the economic engine that drove early European exploration and settlement. A single beaver can fell over 200 trees per year.
13. Which Canadian province is the only officially bilingual one?
- New Brunswick
- Manitoba
- Quebec
- Ontario
While Quebec is predominantly French-speaking and many assume it's bilingual, New Brunswick is the only constitutionally bilingual province, with about a third of its population being francophone Acadians.
14. What is the name of Canada's one-dollar coin, introduced in 1987?
- The Canuck
- The Loonie
- The Beaver
- The Maple
The coin got its nickname from the common loon on its reverse side. When Canada introduced the two-dollar coin in 1996, Canadians naturally called it the 'Toonie' — a portmanteau of 'two' and 'Loonie.'
15. Which massive waterfall system sits on the border between Canada and the United States?
- Angel Falls
- Iguazu Falls
- Niagara Falls
- Victoria Falls
About 681,750 gallons of water flow over Niagara Falls every second. The Canadian side, called Horseshoe Falls, is wider and more powerful than the American Falls. In 1848, an ice jam stopped the falls for roughly 30 hours — the only known time this happened.