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Canadian Citizenship Test questions and answers

Every question in the bank, with the answer and an explanation. Written from Discover Canada. Browsing is free and needs no account. But you will learn far more by taking a timed test than by reading answers.

1. 1.Who were the founding peoples of Canada?

   • ABritish, German and Ukrainian
   • BAboriginal, French and American
   • CFrench, British and Irish
   • DAboriginal, French and British

   Canada's three founding peoples are Aboriginal, French and British. (Canada’s three founding peoples)

2. 2.What is said to be unique about Canada in North America?

   • AIt is the only parliamentary democracy
   • BIt is the only bilingual country
   • CIt is the only constitutional monarchy
   • DIt is the only federal state

   Canada is the only constitutional monarchy in North America. (Canada’s three founding peoples)

3. 3.Which phrase from Canada’s original constitutional document describes its institutions?

   • AOrdered Liberty and Fair Play
   • BPeace, Order and Good Government
   • CLife, Liberty and Property
   • DFrom Sea to Sea

   Peace, Order and Good Government is a key phrase in Canada's original constitutional document of 1867, the British North America Act. (Canada’s three founding peoples)

4. 4.What was Canada’s original constitutional document of 1867 called?

   • AThe British North America Act
   • BThe Quebec Act
   • CThe Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
   • DThe Constitutional Act

   Peace, Order and Good Government is a key phrase in Canada's original constitutional document of 1867, the British North America Act. (Canada’s three founding peoples)

5. 5.What constitutional tradition has Canada inherited?

   • AThe oldest continuous constitutional tradition in the world
   • BA constitution modelled on the United States
   • CA constitution drawn up entirely in 1982
   • DThe newest written constitution in the Commonwealth

   Canada has inherited the oldest continuous constitutional tradition in the world. (Canada’s three founding peoples)

6. 6.Where are the ancestors of Aboriginal peoples believed to have migrated from?

   • AEurope
   • BPolynesia
   • CAfrica
   • DAsia

   The ancestors of Aboriginal peoples are believed to have migrated from Asia many thousands of years ago. (Aboriginal peoples)

7. 7.Which 1763 document first guaranteed Aboriginal territorial rights?

   • AThe British North America Act
   • BThe Quebec Act
   • CThe Royal Proclamation
   • DThe Constitutional Act

   Territorial rights were first guaranteed through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by King George III. (Aboriginal peoples)

8. 8.Which king issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763?

   • AKing Charles II
   • BKing George III
   • CKing Francis I
   • DKing George V

   Territorial rights were first guaranteed through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by King George III. (Aboriginal peoples)

9. 9.What did the Royal Proclamation of 1763 establish the basis for?

   • ANegotiating treaties with the newcomers
   • BAbolishing slavery in the colonies
   • CCreating the province of Quebec
   • DElecting a representative assembly

   The Royal Proclamation of 1763 established the basis for negotiating treaties with the newcomers. (Aboriginal peoples)

10. 10.What was the purpose of the residential schools?

    • ATo train Aboriginal children as interpreters and guides
    • BTo teach Aboriginal languages and cultural traditions
    • CTo educate and assimilate Aboriginal children into mainstream Canadian culture
    • DTo prepare Aboriginal children for entry to university

    From the 1800s until the 1980s the federal government placed many Aboriginal children in residential schools to assimilate them. (Aboriginal peoples)

11. 11.In which year did Ottawa formally apologise to former residential school students?

    • A2008
    • B1988
    • C2012
    • D1998

    In 2008 Ottawa formally apologized to the former students of residential schools. (Aboriginal peoples)

12. 12.Where are Aboriginal and treaty rights set out?

    • AIn the Royal Proclamation alone
    • BIn the Official Languages Act
    • CIn the Canadian Constitution
    • DIn provincial legislation only

    Aboriginal and treaty rights are in the Canadian Constitution. (Aboriginal peoples)

13. 13.What does the word Inuit mean?

    • AThe people
    • BOur land
    • CThe north
    • DThe hunters

    Inuit means the people in the Inuktitut language. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

14. 14.In which language does the word Inuit mean “the people”?

    • AInuktitut
    • BCree, spoken across the northwest
    • CMichif, the dialect of the Métis
    • DOjibwe, spoken around the Great Lakes

    Inuit means the people in the Inuktitut language. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

15. 15.Who are the Métis?

    • AThe descendants of French colonists in Acadia
    • BAboriginal people who live in the Arctic
    • CFirst Nations people living off-reserve
    • DA distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry

    The Métis are a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

16. 16.Where do the majority of Métis live?

    • AIn Quebec
    • BIn the Prairie provinces
    • CIn the Arctic territories
    • DIn the Atlantic provinces

    The majority of Métis live in the Prairie provinces. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

17. 17.What is the Métis dialect called?

    • AChinook
    • BMichif
    • CJoual
    • DInuktitut

    The Métis speak their own dialect, Michif. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

18. 18.Which term refers to Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or Métis?

    • AAnglophone
    • BHabitant
    • CAcadian
    • DIndian

    Indian refers to all Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or Métis. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

19. 19.When did the term First Nations begin to be used?

    • AIn the 1970s
    • BIn 1999
    • CIn the 1940s
    • DIn the 1870s

    In the 1970s the term First Nations began to be used. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

20. 20.About how many communities is First Nations reserve land divided into?

    • AAbout 60
    • BAbout 600
    • CAbout 100
    • DAbout 6,000

    About half of First Nations people live on reserve land in about 600 communities, and the other half live off-reserve mainly in urban centres. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

21. 21.What share of Aboriginal people are First Nations?

    • AAbout 50%
    • BAbout 30%
    • CAbout 4%
    • DAbout 65%

    About 65% of Aboriginal people are First Nations, 30% are Métis and 4% are Inuit. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

22. 22.What share of Aboriginal people are Inuit?

    • AAbout 65%
    • BAbout 30%
    • CAbout 4%
    • DAbout 15%

    About half of First Nations people live on reserve land in about 600 communities, and the other half live off-reserve mainly in urban centres. (First Nations, Inuit and Métis)

23. 23.What are Canada’s two official languages?

    • AEnglish and French
    • BEnglish and Inuktitut
    • CFrench and Michif
    • DEnglish and Spanish

    English and French are the official languages of Canada. (English, French and the Acadians)

24. 24.Which is the only officially bilingual province?

    • AManitoba, with its Francophone community
    • BOntario, with the largest Francophone minority
    • CQuebec, where French is the first language
    • DNew Brunswick

    One million Francophones live in Ontario, New Brunswick and Manitoba. (English, French and the Acadians)

25. 25.Roughly how many Anglophones are there in Canada?

    • A7 million
    • B1 million
    • C18 million
    • D34 million

    There are 18 million Anglophones, people who speak English as a first language. (English, French and the Acadians)

26. 26.Roughly how many Francophones are there in Canada?

    • AEighteen million
    • BOne million
    • CSeven million
    • DThirty-four million

    There are seven million Francophones, people who speak French as their first language. (English, French and the Acadians)

27. 27.Who are the Acadians?

    • AFrench settlers who founded Québec City under Champlain
    • BLoyalists who fled north during the American Revolution
    • CFrancophones living in Manitoba and northern Ontario
    • DDescendants of French colonists who settled the Maritimes from 1604

    The Acadians are the descendants of French colonists who began settling in what are now the Maritime provinces in 1604. (English, French and the Acadians)

28. 28.What is the deportation of the Acadians known as?

    • AThe Underground Railroad
    • BThe Quiet Revolution
    • CThe Great Migration
    • DThe Great Upheaval

    The deportation of the Acadians is known as the Great Upheaval. (English, French and the Acadians)

29. 29.In which years were more than two-thirds of the Acadians deported?

    • A1604 to 1610
    • B1812 to 1814
    • C1837 to 1838
    • D1755 to 1763

    Between 1755 and 1763 more than two-thirds of the Acadians were deported from their homeland. (English, French and the Acadians)

30. 30.What is the federal government required by law to provide in both official languages?

    • APrivate-sector employment contracts
    • BMunicipal by-laws
    • CProvincial school curricula
    • DServices throughout Canada

    The federal government is required by law to provide services throughout Canada in English and French. (English, French and the Acadians)

31. 31.What did the House of Commons recognise in 2006?

    • AThat Quebec may leave Canada by referendum
    • BThat Quebec is a sovereign state
    • CThat the Quebecois form a nation within a united Canada
    • DThat French is Quebec’s only official language

    The House of Commons recognized in 2006 that the Quebecois form a nation within a united Canada. (Quebec, diversity and religion)

32. 32.How many French settlers are most Quebecers descended from?

    • A85,000
    • B850
    • C8,500
    • D40,000

    Most Quebecers are descendants of 8,500 French settlers from the 1600s and 1700s. (Quebec, diversity and religion)

33. 33.Since the 1970s, where have most immigrants to Canada come from?

    • AAsian countries
    • BSouth American countries
    • CAfrican countries
    • DEuropean countries

    Since the 1970s most immigrants have come from Asian countries. (Quebec, diversity and religion)

34. 34.What is the largest religious affiliation in Canada?

    • ACatholic
    • BJewish
    • CMuslim
    • DAnglican

    The great majority of Canadians identify as Christians, and the largest religious affiliation is Catholic. (Quebec, diversity and religion)

35. 35.What protection do gay and lesbian Canadians have under the law?

    • AProtection in employment matters but not elsewhere
    • BFull protection and equal treatment, including access to civil marriage
    • CNo protection specific to them under Canadian law
    • DProtection that varies from province to province

    Gay and lesbian Canadians enjoy the full protection of and equal treatment under the law, including access to civil marriage. (Quebec, diversity and religion)

36. 36.Why is Canada often called a land of immigrants?

    • AImmigration to Canada is unrestricted by law
    • BMost Canadians alive today were born outside Canada
    • CThe country has almost no native-born population
    • DMillions of newcomers have helped build the country over the past 200 years

    Canada is often referred to as a land of immigrants because millions of newcomers have arrived over the past 200 years. (Quebec, diversity and religion)