Most Canadians (79%) Can Tell You We’re A Maple Syrup Power House, Only a Quarter (27%) Know We’re A UFO Destination
Toronto, ON, June 27, 2018 — The majority (62%) of Canadians polled have failed a thirty-question true-or-false quiz administered by Ipsos and Historica Canada. The questions delved into quirky Canadian facts across several categories, and the average Canadian only gave 13 correct answers out of 30, showing significant room for improvement on Canadians’ knowledge of their own country. For each question, Canadians were asked to indicate if the answer was true, false, or admit that they did not know either way.
Those in Saskatchewan and Manitoba performed the best, with barely half (53%) failing the quiz. Women (67%) were considerably more likely to fail than men (56%), while those aged 35-54 (66%) were more likely to fail than those aged 55+ (60%) or 18-34 (59%).
Overall, 62% of Canadians failed the quiz (0-15 correct answers), 9% got a “D” (16-17 correct), 14% got a “C” (18-20 correct), 8% got a “B” (21-23 correct), and 8% got an “A” (24-30 correct), passing with flying colours. Even among those with a university degree, 54% failed while 46% passed, with an average score of 14 out of 30.
The quiz contained six questions on each of these five topics: arts and culture, geography, sports, history and general knowledge. The chart below shows how Canadians fared in each subject area, including the percentage who passed, failed, and the average number of questions that were answered correctly in each category.
|
Category |
% Pass |
% fail |
Avg # of correct answers out of 30 |
|
Arts and culture |
33% |
67% |
2.6/6 |
|
Geography |
35% |
65% |
2.7/6 |
|
Sports |
25% |
75% |
2.1/6 |
|
History |
25% |
75% |
2.4/6 |
|
General knowledge |
50% |
50% |
3.3/6 |
|
TOTAL |
38% |
62% |
13/30 |
Canadians performed much better on the general knowledge questions than any of the more specific subject matter, most notably sports and history, where only 25% of Canadians managed a passing grade. Eight in ten Canadians (79%) knew that Canada does in fact produce approximately 80% of the world’s maple syrup and that in winter the Rideau Canal in Ottawa becomes the world's largest skating rink – the most correctly answered questions on the quiz.
The specific questions which were asked are listed below, with the percentage of Canadians who answered correctly
|
Statements about arts and culture |
Correct Answer |
% correct |
|
X-Men's Wolverine has Canadian origins - according to his back story he was born in what is now Alberta |
True |
48% |
|
Children's author Robert Munsch is Canadian - and considered the country's best selling-author |
True |
50% |
|
Film actress Mary Pickford, known as "America's Sweetheart," was actually Canadian |
True |
47% |
|
Action hero Superman was co-created by Canadian Joe Shuster |
True |
44% |
|
Actor Kiefer Sutherland is the grandson of Tommy Douglas, the "Father of universal healthcare" |
True |
36% |
|
The Beatles performed their first North American show at Crescentwood Community Club in Winnipeg |
False |
33% |
|
Statements about geography |
Correct Answer |
% correct |
|
Churchill, Manitoba is known as the "Polar Bear capital of the world" |
True |
59% |
|
Place names in Canada include Joe Batt's Arm, Saint-Louis-du-Ha! Ha! and Vulcan |
True |
49% |
|
Wood Buffalo National Park, which straddles the Alberta/Northwest Territories border, is larger than Switzerland |
True |
49% |
|
St. Paul, Alberta, is home to the world's first UFO landing pad |
True |
27% |
|
Canada's own version of the Loch Ness Monster, Ogopogo, lives in Lake Okanagan |
True |
61% |
|
The Yukon is home to the world's highest unclimbed mountain, King Peak |
False |
21% |
|
Statements about sports |
Correct Answer |
% correct |
|
The first NBA game was played in Toronto in 1946 between the New York Knickerbockers and the Toronto Huskies |
True |
33% |
|
Babe Ruth hit his first professional homerun in Toronto, while playing for the Providence Grays |
True |
32% |
|
Montreal Canadiens players once lost the Stanley Cup after leaving it on the side of the road while changing a tire (and thankfully found it later) |
True |
45% |
|
Montreal Expos mascot Youppi was the first mascot ever to be ejected from a Major League Baseball game |
True |
39% |
|
Hockey player Paul Henderson, hero of the 1972 Summit Series, was born in a sleigh on Lake Huron |
True |
24% |
|
Zamboni racing was included in the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, as a demonstration sport |
False |
38% |
|
Statements about history |
Correct Answer |
% correct |
|
Every year the Netherlands sends tulips to Canada as a thank you for hosting the royal family during the Second World War |
True |
61% |
|
The first electric lightbulb was invented by Canadians Mathew Evans and Henry Woodward, who later sold the patent to Thomas Edison |
True |
33% |
|
Despite the name, Hawaiian pizza was invented in Canada |
True |
62% |
|
While vacationing in Barbados in 1965, future Prime Minister John Turner saw former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker struggling in the ocean and pulled him safely to shore |
True |
19% |
|
There are 60 distinct Indigenous languages spoken across Canada |
True |
53% |
|
After her coronation, Queen Elizabeth's first international visit was to Canada, to attend the inaugural performance at the now world-renowned Stratford Festival |
False |
10% |
|
Statements about general knowledge |
Correct Answer |
% correct |
|
Canada produces roughly 80% of the world's maple syrup |
True |
79% |
|
The coldest recorded temperature in Canada was -62.8 degrees Celsius in Snag, Yukon |
True |
58% |
|
The Wonderbra and the jockstrap are Canadian inventions |
True |
47% |
|
In the winter the Rideau Canal in Ottawa becomes the world's largest skating rink |
True |
79% |
|
Just 10 of the more than 125 species of maple trees found worldwide are native to Canada |
True |
47% |
|
Moncton, N.B., has been named the world's snowiest city |
False |
19% |
About the Study
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between June 13 and 15, 2018, on behalf of Historica Canada. For this survey, a sample of 1,000 Canadians aged 18+ was interviewed online via the Ipsos I-Say panel and non-panel sources. Quota sampling and weighting were employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ±3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Anthony Wilson-Smith, President and CEO
Historica Canada
+1 416 506 1867
[email protected]
Sean Simpson, Vice President
Ipsos, Canada
+1 416 324 2002
[email protected]
About Ipsos Public Affairs
Ipsos Public Affairs is a non-partisan, objective, survey-based research practice made up of seasoned professionals. We conduct strategic research initiatives for a diverse number of Canadian American and international organizations, based not only on public opinion research, but elite stakeholder, corporate, and media opinion research.
Ipsos has media partnerships with the most prestigious news organizations around the world. In Canada, Ipsos Public Affairs is the polling partner for Global News. Internationally, Ipsos Public Affairs is the media polling supplier to Reuters News, the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. Ipsos Public Affairs is a member of the Ipsos Group, a leading global survey-based market research company. We provide boutique-style customer service and work closely with our clients, while also undertaking global research.
About Ipsos
Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. Ipsos ranks fourth in the global research industry.
With offices in 88 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across five research specializations: brand, advertising and media; customer loyalty; marketing; public affairs research; and survey management.
Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe.
Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of €1,782.7 million in 2016.
