Professor Lynx Presents: Alberta 101
Welcome to Alberta 101, your link to
the basics about the Province of Alberta! If you’ve
never heard of Alberta before, then this page is for
you! If you’ve lived in Alberta all your life and you’re
feeling sentimental about it, then this page is for you
as well. If you’ve lived in Alberta all your life, but
you’ve never heard of Alberta before, then you might
consider getting some professional help after you’ve
studied all the fabulous tidbits on this page!
Alberta: What Is It? Alberta is a
province of the country of Canada. It is one of ten
provinces and three territories making up the Canadian
nation. See map here.
Alberta: Where Is It? Alberta is the
province located second from the left on the Canadian
map. In other words, it is located in Western Canada.
The only province further west than Alberta is the
Province of British Columbia. Alberta is also bordered
by the Province of Saskatchewan in the east, and by the
Northwest Territories in the north. In the south, it is
bordered by the State of Montana from the United States
of America. See map here.
How Did Alberta Get Its Name? Alberta
is named after Great Britain’s Princess Louise Caroline
Alberta. She was the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria,
and wife of Sir John Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll and
the Marquess of Lorne, who served as Governor General of
Canada from 1878 to 1883. Alberta was not yet a province
when it received its name, but a district of the
Northwest Territories. Lake Louise, a popular tourist
spot in Alberta, is also named after the Princess.
What Is Alberta’s Capital City? The
City of Edmonton, located in the north central portion
of the province. Including Edmonton, Alberta has a total
of 15 cities.
When Did Alberta Become A Province?
Alberta became a province on 1 September, 1905. It
shares its birthday with the Province of Saskatchewan.
What Is the Provincial Motto?
Fortis
et Liber (or “Strong and Free” for those who don’t speak
Latin) Aside from a motto, Alberta has a number of
official emblems. For more on these, click
here.
How Big Is Alberta? Alberta’ s total
land area is 661,190 square kilometres, or 258,777
square miles. It makes up about 6.6 percent of Canada’s
total land area.
What Time Zone is Alberta In? Alberta
is in the Rocky Mountain time zone, 7 hours behind
Greenwich Mean Time (or GMT).
How Many People Live In Alberta?
As
of 1 September, 2004, Alberta has 3,066,257 residents.
Of this total, 2,018,010 people live in cities. The top
3 cities in Alberta in terms of population are Calgary,
with 933,495 residents, Edmonton, with 666,104
residents, and Red Deer with 75,923.
How Is Alberta Governed? As a
province of Canada, Alberta has representatives that
hold seats in the House of Commons and the Senate in
Ottawa, Ontario. Alberta is currently represented in the
House of Commons by 26 elected Members of Parliament (or
MPs) and in the Senate by 6 appointed Senators.
Provincially, Alberta’s government
resides in the 83 seat Provincial Legislature, located
in Edmonton. The government is led by a Premier, who is
the leader of the political party that holds the most
seats. As of 1 September, 2005, the Progressive
Conservative Party in Alberta holds the most seats in
the Alberta Legislature, with 62 seats. The leader of
the Progressive Conservative Party, the Honorable Ralph
Klein, is the Premier of the province.
Because Canada is a Constitutional
Monarchy, the reigning King or Queen of England is the
head of state, and leader of all the Provinces in
Canada. The Queen’s representative in Alberta is the
Lieutenant Governor, who while not being able to be
involved in the political affairs of the Province (in
order to be able to represent all Albertans at official
ceremonies or affairs of state), is responsible for
ensuring that the Province of Alberta has a legitimate
government in office. As of January, 2005, Alberta’s
Lieutenant Governor is Norman Kwong.
What Fuels the Alberta Economy? What
fuels the Alberta economy is…well… fuel. Natural
resources, especially crude oil and natural gas, are the
backbone of Alberta’s economy. 70 percent of Canada’s
crude oil and 80 percent of Canada’s natural gas is
produced in Alberta. As of the 2004 / 2005 fiscal year
end, 34 percent of Alberta’s total revenues, or about
$10 billion dollars, came from this sector of Alberta’s
industry.
Other major industries in Alberta
include Agriculture, Forestry, and Manufacturing.
Alberta’s strong economy carries a
number of perks, including high employment (Alberta has
the lowest unemployment rate in Canada at 3.9 percent)
and no provincial sales tax (Alberta is the only
province that does this)!
How’s the Weather In Alberta?
Alberta’s climate ranges from long, cold winters to
mild, hot summers. And when someone welcomes you to
“Sunny Alberta”, they mean it! Alberta has the highest
number of sunny days of any province in Canada!
Sources:
Delainey, Gary, Marshall Jamieson,
and Gerry Rasmussen, So, This Is Canada! Edmonton: Oz
New Media Inc., 1995 revised edition 1996
Municipal Services Branch, Local
Government Services Division, Alberta Municipal Affairs:
2004 Official Population List URL:
http://www.municipalaffairs.gov.ab.ca/ms/pdf/2004Pop.pdf
Legislative Assembly of Alberta:
Elected Members of the Assembly URL:
http://www.assembly.ab.ca/net/index.aspx?p=mla_home
Alberta Economic Development:
Alberta, Canada – Alberta Economy URL:
http://www.alberta-canada.com/economy/
Heritage Community Foundation:
Alberta Online Encyclopedia – Alberta’s Political
History
Educationcanada.com – Canada Facts:
Alberta: Quick Facts URL:
http://educationcanada.com/facts/index.phtml?sid=ab...
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