Central Canada

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Central Canada
Canada ottawa parliament monument landscape-1051590.jpg
August 2012 Bay and King Bank Towers Toronto Looking Up (7695092848) (cropped).jpg
Assemblée nationale du Québec, l'Hôtel du Parlement (cropped).jpg
J38002 ArtVille 20120407-134630 PlaceDArmes.jpg
Map of Central Canada, defined politically
Map of Central Canada, defined politically
Historic politiesThe Canadas
     Upper Canada
     Lower Canada
Province of Canada
 • Total2,265,154 km2 (874,581 sq mi)
 • Total21,612,855
 • Density9.5/km2 (25/sq mi)

Central Canada (sometimes the Central provinces) is a region consisting of Canada's two largest and most populous provinces: Ontario and Quebec.[1] Geographically, they are not at the centre of Canada but instead overlap with Eastern Canada toward the east. Due to their high populations, Ontario and Quebec have traditionally held a significant amount of political power in Canada, leading to some amount of resentment from other regions of the country. Before Confederation, the term "Canada" specifically referred to Central Canada. Today, the term "Central Canada" is less often used than the names of the individual provinces.


The longitudinal centre of Canada passes just east of Winnipeg, Manitoba; the geographic centre of Canada is located near Baker Lake, Nunavut.

Before Confederation, the region known as Canada was what is now called Central Canada. Southern Ontario was once called Upper Canada and later Canada West and southern Quebec Lower Canada and later Canada East. Both were made part of the United Province of Canada in 1841.[2]


Combined, the two provinces have approximately 23 million inhabitants which represents 62% of Canada's population. They are represented in the House of Commons of Canada by 199 Members of Parliament (Ontario: 121, Quebec: 78) out of a total of 338. The southern portions of the two provinces — particularly the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor — are the most urbanized and industrialized areas of Canada, containing the country's two largest cities, Toronto and Montreal and the national capital, Ottawa.

Census Metropolitan Areas, 2016 Census[3]
  1. Toronto, ON: 5,928,040
  2. Montréal, QC: 4,098,927
  3. Ottawa, ON–Gatineau, QC: 1,323,783
  4. Québec, QC: 800,296
  5. Hamilton, ON: 747,545
  6. Kitchener, ON: 523,894
  7. London, ON: 494,069
  8. St. Catharines–Niagara, ON: 406,074
  9. Oshawa, ON: 379,848
  10. Windsor, ON: 329,144
  11. Sherbrooke, QC: 212,105
  12. Barrie, ON: 197,059
  13. Sudbury, ON: 164,689
  14. Kingston, ON: 161,175
  15. Saguenay, QC: 160,980
  16. Trois-Rivières, QC: 156,042
  17. Guelph, ON: 151,984
  18. Peterborough, ON: 121,721
  19. Brantford, ON: 134,203
  20. Thunder Bay, ON: 121,621
  21. Belleville, ON: 103,472

See also[edit]


  1. ^ "National Post View: Couillard touts the force of Central Canada". National Post. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  2. ^ Constitutional Act of 1791, Act of Union 1840, British North America Acts (1867)
  3. ^ Population and Dwelling Count Highlight Tables, 2016 Census

Coordinates: 50°N 79°W﻿ / ﻿50°N 79°W﻿ / 50; -79