Canadians Choose The People, Places, Events, Accomplishments And Symbols That Define Canada

Toronto, ON- The definitive survey of the people, places, events, accomplishments and symbols that Canadians think define their country, conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of the Dominion Institute and the Department of Citizenship and Immigration, has found that Canadians have a different idea of what defines their country, depending on where they live. In short, placing at the top of the list in each of their respective categories are:

• People: Pierre Trudeau
• Place: Niagara Falls
• Event: Canada Day
• Accomplishment: Canadarm
• Symbol: Maple Leaf

The online survey of 3,114 adult Canadians includes 721 immigrants, with the broader study also capturing the opinions of 522 educators who deal with subject areas related to social sciences, history, geography, civics, music, art or culture, as well as 274 members of the Order of Canada. The portion of the survey reported on in this release is only that pertaining to the general population data, including the sample of immigrants contained therein.

The questionnaire that formed the basis of the study began with five questions, asking Canadians to describe, on an open-ended basis, the five most important people, places, events, innovations, and symbols that define Canada. Respondents were then presented with a randomized list of the all the things they mentioned in the previous five questions and were asked to select the 10 most important things from this list and to rank these 10 items in order of importance, from most important (numbered 1) to least important (numbered 10).

People...

In general, Canadians say Pierre Trudeau is the most defining person in Canadian history, followed by Wayne Gretzky and Terry Fox. Celine Dion is fourth, while Sir John A. MacDonald rounds out the top five. These first five are followed by David Suzuki, Tommy Douglas, Stephen Harper, Lester Pearson, and Maurice Richard.

Pierre Trudeau led the pack in every province or region of Canada except for Alberta (Wayne Gretzky) and Quebec (Celine Dion). Interestingly, in British Columbia, activist Rick Hansen placed seventh. Meanwhile, in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Tommy Douglas made it into third place, and Queen Elizabeth II was in ninth place.

Places...

For the general public, Niagara Falls is the most defining location in Canada, while the Rocky Mountains place in a close second. Parliament Hill, Ottawa, and the CN Tower make up the rest of the top five. Following are Quebec City, Toronto, Montreal, Quebec, and Vancouver.

In Western Canada, the Rocky Mountains are the universal first-place choice, while Eastern Canada is split between Niagara Falls (Ontario) and Parliament Hill (Quebec and Atlantic Canada). Interesting appearances on the list include Fort Garry (seventh place in Saskatchewan and Manitoba), Charlottetown (sixth place in Atlantic Canada) and Fort Louisburg (eighth place in Atlantic Canada).

Events...

Overall, Canada Day is the number-one most defining event in Canada, followed by Confederation and the two World Wars. The Calgary Stampede and the battle of Vimy Ridge are next in the rankings, filling out the top five. These are then followed in order by the battle at the Plains of Abraham, the Grey Cup, the Olympics, Expo '67 and the Quebec Winter Carnival.

Canada Day is the first choice across all provinces and regions, without any disagreement. After first place, however, regions appear to be biased toward events that happen in their own back yard. Examples of this include the Calgary Stampede (second-place in Alberta), and the battle at the Plains of Abraham (second-place in Quebec).

Accomplishments...

Interestingly, Canadians believe that the Canadarm is the most defining accomplishment in Canadian history, while Canada's Peacekeeping Forces are second on the list. Universal Healthcare, the discovery of insulin, and the invention of the telephone round out the top five. Filling out the top ten are diversity, the Canadian Constitution, the Canadian National Railway, Freedom, and the Avro Arrow Project.

The Canadarm is only the first-place item in Ontario and Quebec. It is supplanted in other provinces by Universal Healthcare (British Columbia and Saskatchewan and Manitoba) and Peacekeeping (Alberta and Atlantic Canada). Canadians living in Alberta are especially proud of Canada's oil industry (ninth place), while our country's bilingualism strikes a chord in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (tenth place) and Atlantic Canada (ninth place).

Symbols...

The first-place symbol of Canada as defined by the Canadian population coast to coast is the Maple Leaf. Following are hockey, the Canadian flag, the beaver, and the RCMP. Rounding out the top ten are the Stanley Cup, wilderness, the Loonie, maple syrup, and moose/caribou.

While the maple leaf is a unanimous choice for first place, the next four spots are shuffled considerably from province to province. There are also some interesting additions to the list near the bottom, as well. These include the Chateau Frontenac (sixth place in Quebec), the Bluenose (sixth place in Atlantic Canada), the Canada Goose and wheat (ninth and tenth place respectively in Saskatchewan and Manitoba).

Detailed Methodology...

The questionnaire that formed the basis of the study began with five questions, asking Canadians to describe, on an open-ended basis, the five most important people, places, events, innovations, and symbols that define Canada. Respondents were then presented with a randomized list of the all the things they mentioned in the previous five questions and were asked to select the 10 most important things from this list and to rank these 10 items in order of importance, from most important (numbered 1) to least important (numbered 10).

To arrive at the ranked list of items in order of importance attributed to them by respondents, a points system was used, whereby items ranked as number 1 on the list received ten points, those ranked number 2 received nine points, and so on, with those ranked number 10 on the list receiving just one point. In the end, the points were tallied together, allowing them to be ranked authoritatively from most important to least important.

The poll was conducted on behalf of the Dominion Institute and the Department of Citizenship and Immigration Canada from March 31 to April 22, 2008. For the survey, a sample of 3,114 adult Canadians, including 721 immigrants, was randomly selected from the Ipsos Household Internet Panel and interviewed online. In addition, interviews were conducted among 522 educators who deal with subject areas related to social sciences, history, geography, civics, music, art or culture, and 274 members of the Order of Canada. The portion of the survey reported on in this release is only that pertaining to the general population data, including the sample of immigrants contained therein.

For more information on this news release, please contact:
John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
(416) 324-2002
[email protected]

About Ipsos Reid
Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

To learn more, please visit www.ipsos.ca.

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