Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan (ⁱ/səˈskætʃəwᵻn/ or /səˈskætʃəˌwɑːn/) is a prairie province in Canada, which has a total area of 651,900 square kilometres (251,700 sq mi) and a land area of 592,534 square kilometres (228,800 sq mi), the remainder being water area (covered by lakes/ponds, reservoirs and rivers). Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the American states of Montana and North Dakota. As of December 2013, the population of Saskatchewan was estimated at 1,114,170. Residents primarily live in the southern half of the province. Of the total population, 257,300 live in the province's largest city, Saskatoon, while 210,000 live in the provincial capital, Regina. Other major cities include Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Yorkton, Estevan, Swift Current, and North Battleford.

Saskatchewan is a landlocked province with large distances to moderating bodies of waters. As a result, its climate is extremely continental, rendering severe winters all throughout the province. Southern areas have very warm or hot summers. Midale and Yellow Grass near the U.S. border are tied for the highest ever recorded temperatures in Canada with 45 °C (113 °F) observed at both locations in July 1937. In winter, temperatures below −45 °C (−49 °F) are possible even in the south during extreme cold snaps.

Saskatoon

Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344. In December 2014 it was the largest city in the province with an estimated population at that time of 257,300 and an estimated metropolitan area population of 305,000.

Etymology

The name Saskatoon [in Cree: sâskwatôn, "Saskatoon" or the locatives: misâskwatôminihk, lit: "at the saskatoon berry", misâskwatôminiskâhk, "at the place of many saskatoon berries", mînisihk "at the berry"] comes from the Cree inanimate noun misâskwatômina "saskatoon berries", which refers to the sweet, violet-coloured berry that grows in the area. It is also popularly described as the "Bridge City", for its 8 river crossings.

History

In 1882, the Toronto-based Temperance Colonization Society was granted 21 sections of land straddling the South Saskatchewan River, between what is now Warman and Dundurn. The aim of the group was to escape the liquor trade in that city and set up a "dry" community in the Prairie region. The following year settlers, led by John Neilson Lake, arrived on the site of what is now Saskatoon and established the first permanent settlement. The settlers travelled by railway from Ontario to Moose Jaw and then completed the final leg via horse-drawn cart as the railway had yet to be completed to Saskatoon.

Canada

Coordinates: 60°N 95°W / 60°N 95°W / 60; -95

Canada (ⁱ/ˈkænədə/; French: [ka.na.da]) is a country in the northern part of North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering 9.98 million square kilometres (3.85 million square miles), making it the world's second-largest country by total area and the fourth-largest country by land area. Canada's border with the United States is the world's longest land border. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its land territory being dominated by forest and tundra and the Rocky Mountains; about four-fifths of the country's population of 35 million people live near the southern border. The majority of Canada has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer.

The land now called Canada has been inhabited for millennia by various Aboriginal peoples. Beginning in the 15th century, British and French colonies were established on the Atlantic coast, with the first establishment of a region called "Canada" occurring in 1537. As a consequence of various conflicts, the United Kingdom gained and lost territories within British North America until left, in the late 18th century, with what mostly geographically comprises Canada today. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1, 1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia joined to form the autonomous federal Dominion of Canada. This began an accretion of provinces and territories to the self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. In 1931, Canada achieved near total independence from the United Kingdom with the Statute of Westminster 1931, and full sovereignty was attained when the Canada Act 1982 removed the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the British parliament.

Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International Airport

Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International Airport (IATA: YXE, ICAO: CYXE), is an international airport located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The airport is served by passenger, courier and air freight operators. It is named for John Diefenbaker, the 13th Prime Minister of Canada.

The airport has nine passenger bridges, three ground loading positions, 32 check-in points and a customs/immigration arrivals area.

For international arrivals the airport is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). CBSA officers at this airport can handle aircraft with no more than 200 passengers. However, they can handle up to 300 if the aircraft is unloaded in stages.

In 2001, traffic at YXE exceeded 800,000 passengers, making it the largest airport in the province; by 2005 traffic reached over 900,000 passengers. In 2007 passenger traffic exceeded the 1,000,000 mark. In 2010, it handled 1,215,923 passengers and 90,719 aircraft movements. With 1,246,405 passengers in 2011, it was the 14th busiest airport in Canada. Passenger traffic increased in both 2012 and 2013. Saskatoon International reported the second highest passenger increase of 6.5% of Canada's major airports in 2012; servicing 1,326,838 passenger through the gates. In 2013, passenger traffic increased by 4.7% serving 1,389,900 passengers. 2014 traffic increased to 1,484,615 or 6.85%.

Spadina Avenue

Spadina Avenue (/spəˈdaɪnə/, rarely /spəˈdiːnə/) is one of the most prominent streets in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Running through the western section of downtown, the road has a very different character in different neighbourhoods.

Spadina Avenue runs south from Bloor Street to the Gardiner Expressway, just north of Lake Ontario. Lower Spadina Avenue continues the last block to the lake after the expressway. Another street named Spadina Road continues north from Bloor, but with new street address numbering starting over at zero. For much of its extent, Spadina Road is a less busy residential road (especially north of Dupont Street and the railway track underpass).

History

Spadina Avenue is commonly pronounced with the i as /aɪ/ as in mine; the Spadina House museum on Spadina Road is always pronounced with the i as in /iː/ as in ski. Historically, the latter pronunciation was used, with the former a colloquialism that has developed over the years.

The name originates from the Ojibwa word ishpadinaa, meaning "high place/ridge" or "sudden rise in the land." The Ishpatina Ridge, in Northern Ontario, which is the highest point of land in the province of Ontario, and the city of Ishpeming, in the state of Michigan's Upper Peninsula in Marquette County both derive their name from the same word.