Atlas of Canada

Canada
Canada with administrative divisions shown.
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Location of Canada
Canada is a country located in the continent of North America, and the second largest country in the world by size, reaching from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Atlantic in the East, and from the Arctic Ocean in the north to its border with the United States in the south. Canada’s Bahá’í community has played a prominent role in the unfoldment of the Bahá’í Faith: it is one of the "co-inheritors" of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's Divine Plan;[1] its National Spiritual Assembly acted as one of the twelve protagonists of the Ten Year Crusade; and it has been noted for its "distinctive contribution" to the spread of the Faith through pioneering.[2]

The beginnings of the Bahá’í community of Canada date from 1898 when Edith Magee, a youth from London, Ontario, became the first Canadian believer. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited the Canadian city of Montreal during His journey to North America in 1912, where the country's first Bahá’í group was formed in 1902, and its first Local Spiritual Assembly would later be founded. He stayed in the home of May and William Sutherland Maxwell during his visit, which is now preserved as the only Bahá’í Shrine outside of the Middle East. Their daughter, Mary, would later marry the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, Shoghi Effendi.

The Canadian Bahá’í community lists its current membership at 30,000.[3] Main population centres in Canada include Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.

National Assembly: Canada
Official Website: http://www.ca.bahai.org/
Statistics
Population: 36,289,822
Bahá’í pop.: 30,000
Clusters: 136
Local Assemblies: 255
History
First local Bahá’í: Edith Magee
First Local Assembly: Dec. 10, 1922, Montreal
First National Assembly: 1925, with United States
1948, independently
First National Convention: April, 1948

Regions of Canada[edit]

Canada is divided into ten provinces and three territories. The ten provinces are spread across the country's south and are generally divided into Western and Eastern regions, the latter being subdivided into the Central and Atlantic regions:

  • Western Canada (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba)
    Western Canada
    (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba)
  • Eastern Canada (Central and Atlantic provinces)
    Eastern Canada
    (Central and Atlantic provinces)
  • Central Canada (Ontario, Québec)
    Central Canada
    (Ontario, Québec)
  • Atlantic Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador)
    Atlantic Canada
    (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador)

The Prairie and Maritime provinces are further subdivisions of the above:

  • Canadian Prairies (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba)
    Canadian Prairies
    (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba)
  • Maritime provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island)
    Maritime provinces
    (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island)

Canada's three territories are all located in the country's Northern region:

  • Northern Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut)
    Northern Canada
    (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut)

Demography[edit]

Population[edit]

  • Census Metropolitan Areas
    Census Metropolitan Areas
  • Population density (2005)
    Population density (2005)
  • Population density (2016)
    Population density (2016)

Language, ethnicity, and religion[edit]

  • Prevalence of the two official languages of Canada, English (red) and French (blue)
    Prevalence of the two official languages of Canada, English (red) and French (blue)
  • Rate of English–French bilingualism in Canada
    Rate of English–French bilingualism in Canada
  • Self-identified ethnicity by census division
    Self-identified ethnicity by census division
  • Majority religious group: Catholic (red) and Protestant (blue)
    Majority religious group: Catholic (red) and Protestant (blue)

History[edit]

Background[edit]

First Nations[edit]

A 1914 map of the traditional lands of Canada's First Nations, or indigenous peoples.

The northern part of North America, much of which would later become known as Canada, was populated by indigenous peoples known as First Nations. These included the Iroquois, Algonquin (Anishinaabe), Sioux, Athabascan, Kootenay, Salish, Kwakiutl-Nootka, Haida, Tsimshian, Tlingit, Beothuk, and Inuit peoples among others. They had established long-standing civilizations with rich cultures and complex social structures, many millenia before contact with European civilizations who would eventually send settlers to the continent.

European settlement[edit]

Territorial evolution in North America from 1750–2008.

Despite initial coexistence, the arrival of European settlers beginning in the 16th century brought sweeping change throughout the North American continent. Driven to expand their reach by the desire to exploit natural resources—whether for profit or to fuel the conflicts between European empires—settlers eventually gained control of ever-increasing amounts of land, by negotiation or force.

Apart from an early Norse (Viking) presence in Newfoundland around the turn of the 1st millennium CE, the first substantial European settlement in northern North America came from the Kingdom of France, which established the colony of Nouvelle-France (New France) based in Québec in the 17th century, spreading east to the Maritime provinces, west to the North American prairies, and south to Louisiana.

During the 18th century, the British Empire gained possession of most of the French colonies, forming what became known as British America. After a British defeat in the American Revolutionary War, the Thirteen Colonies on the Atlantic coast gained its independence as the United States of America. Much of what remained of British territory—by then known as British North America—would eventually become part of the Dominion of Canada.

Founded in 1867, Canada was a confederation initially composed of the four colonies of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. Over time, more provinces and territories joined Canada; the last province to be admitted was Newfoundland in 1949 (now Newfoundland and Labrador), and the last territory to be proclaimed was Nunavut, created in 1999 from the former Districts of Keewatin and Franklin.

Ministry of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá[edit]

An early map of the Dominion of Canada. From Complete World Geography, Macmillan (1912).

In 1912, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited the Canadian city of Montreal during his tour of North America. “The future of Canada, whether from a material or a spiritual standpoint, is very great,” He later wrote in His Tablets of the Divine Plan, calling the Canadian believers to arise and contribute to fulfilling the goals of the Divine Plan through pioneering:

‘Abdu’l-Bahá urged the Bahá’ís to "[a]ttach great importance to the indigenous population of America", explaining:

He further called on the Bahá’ís to teach the indigenous peoples of the Arctic (then commonly referred to as "Eskimos"), noting:

Ministry of Shoghi Effendi[edit]

Raising Spiritual Assemblies[edit]

Map of Local Spiritual Assemblies in Canada.
Orange marker
Vancouver (1927)
Yellow marker
Moncton (1938)
Yellow marker
St. Lambert (1938)
Red marker
Montreal (1922)
Yellow marker
Toronto (1938)
Green marker
Hamilton (1940)
Green marker
Halifax (1942)
Green marker
Winnipeg (1942)
Green marker
Edmonton (1943)
Blue marker
Charlottetown (1944)
Blue marker
Regina (1944)
Establishment of Local Spiritual Assemblies in Canada, 1922–1944.[4]

After the passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in 1921, His grandson, Shoghi Effendi—whom He had named as His successor, the Guardian of the Cause—began a systematic process of building an administrative structure for the worldwide Bahá’í community. In time, the raising of this structure would lead to the election of the Universal House of Justice, an institution ordained by Bahá’u’lláh.

One of the earliest Canadian communities to respond to the Guardian's call was Montreal, which formed its first Local Spiritual Assembly in 1922. Pioneers to British Columbia helped to form the first Assembly in Western Canada in Vancouver, in 1927. Several more Assemblies followed in the following years, and by 1944 at least one Local Spiritual Assembly had been formed in each Canadian province.

First Seven-Year Plan (1937-1944)[edit]

Unsettled provinces as of January 1, 1942. Although New Brunswick is marked as unsettled, a Bahá’í group was nevertheless noted in Moncton.

In its early years, the Canadian Bahá’í community shared a National Spiritual Assembly with the United States while it gained strength, both numerically and in administrative capacity. In the early 1940s, most of Canada's prairie and maritime provinces still remained as virgin territories for Bahá’í pioneers; these became goals during the earliest parts of the Divine Plan.

In 1948, Canada formed its first independent Assembly, which went on to become one of the twelve major protagonists of the Ten Year Crusade. At the time, Newfoundland and Labrador were still independent British colonies; they would join the Dominion of Canada the following year, in 1949.

Second Seven-Year Plan (1946-1953)[edit]

The Bahá’í community of Canada in 1954.

Ten Year Crusade[edit]

...

Plans under the Universal House of Justice[edit]

Nine-Year Plan (1963-1973)[edit]

...

Five-Year Plan (1974-1979)[edit]

Regions of Canada assigned to various teaching committees as of 1974.

Seven-Year Plan (1979-1986)[edit]

Bahá’í communities in Canada receiving Iranian refugees following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Media[edit]

A collection of media related to Canada

Events (Conferences • Conventions (Nat'l) • Establishments • Holy days • Publications • Seasonal schools (Summer • Winter))
Maps • Buildings and structures • Bahá’í centres (Local • National) • Cities • Schools • Houses of Worship
People (Children) • Spiritual Assemblies (Local • National) • Atlas

Notes and references[edit]

General remarks

  • The Bahai.media Atlas of the World is an organized and commented collection of geographical and historical maps. The main page is therefore the portal to maps and cartography. That page contains links to entries by country, continent and by topic as well as general notes and references.
  • Every entry has an introduction section in English. The text of the introduction(s) is based on the content of the Bahaipedia encyclopedia. For sources of the introduction see therefore the Bahaipedia entries linked to. The same goes for the texts in the history sections.
  • Historical maps are included in the continent, country and dependency entries.
  • The status of various entities is disputed. See the content for the entities concerned.

Notes

References

  1. ↑ Message from the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá’ís of Canada, Naw-Rúz 1986; published as "First World-wide Teaching Plan in the Fourth Epoch of the Formative Age" (PDF). Bahá'í Canada. 8 (3). May 1986. p. 2. Retrieved 25 December 2021. 
  2. ↑ Message from the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Canada, 15 January 1991; quoted in "Canadian Bahai News" (PDF). bahai.works (4). National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Canada. August 1991 / Kamal-Asmá, 148 BE. Retrieved 25 December 2021.  Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ↑ The Bahá’í Community of Canada. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
  4. ↑ van den Hoonard, Will (1996). The Origins of the Bahai Community of Canada 1898-1948. pp.306-8.

Entries available in the atlas[edit]

General pages
Quick reference

Themes
Bahá’í World Centre • Holy places (in Israel, Iran, Iraq) • Houses of Worship

Administrative divisions • Arts and culture • Bahá’í institutions (Local, National Spiritual Assemblies • Regional Councils • Continental Boards of Counsellors) • Central Figures • Demography • Divine Plan (Ten Year Crusade) • Facilities • Languages • Persecution • Social and economic development (Schools and education) • Training institutes

History
Historical maps • Old maps • Religious history • Shaykhism • Heroic Age (Ministry of the Báb • Bahá’u’lláh • ‘Abdu’l-Bahá) • Formative Age • Former National Spiritual Assemblies • Former sovereign nations: Czechoslovakia • Ottoman Empire • Soviet Union • Yugoslavia

Continents and oceans
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Sub-continental and intercontinental regions
Central Asia and the Caucasus • East Asia • Latin America and the Caribbean • Middle East and Northern Africa • South Asia • Southeast Asia • Subsaharan Africa

Countries
A: Afghanistan • Albania • Algeria • Andorra • Angola • Antigua and Barbuda • Argentina • Armenia • Australia • Austria • Azerbaijan • B: Bahamas • Bahrain • Bangladesh • Barbados • Belarus • Belgium • Belize • Benin • Bhutan • Bolivia • Bosnia and Herzegovina • Botswana • Brazil • Brunei • Bulgaria • Burkina Faso • Burundi • C: Cambodia • Cameroon • Canada • Cape Verde • Central African Republic • Chad • Chile • China • Colombia • Comoros • Congo (Democratic Republic) • Congo (Republic) • Costa Rica • Côte d’Ivoire • Croatia • Cuba • Cyprus • Czech Republic • D: Denmark • Djibouti • Dominica • Dominican Republic • E: East Timor • Ecuador • Egypt • El Salvador • Equatorial Guinea • Eritrea • Estonia • Ethiopia • F: Fiji • Finland • France • G: Gabon • Gambia • Georgia • Germany • Ghana • Greece • Grenada • Guatemala • Guinea • Guinea-Bissau • Guyana • H: Haiti • Honduras • Hungary • I: Iceland • India • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Ireland • Israel • Italy • J: Jamaica • Japan • Jordan • K: Kazakhstan • Kenya • Kiribati • Korea (Democratic People’s Republic) • Korea (Republic) • Kuwait • Kyrgyzstan • L: Laos • Latvia • Lebanon • Lesotho • Liberia • Libya • Liechtenstein • Lithuania • Luxembourg • M: Macedonia (Republic) • Madagascar • Malawi • Malaysia • Maldives • Mali • Malta • Marshall Islands • Mauritania • Mauritius • Mexico • Micronesia (Federated States) • Moldova • Monaco • Mongolia • Montenegro • Morocco • Mozambique • Myanmar • N: Namibia • Nauru • Nepal • The Netherlands • New Zealand • Nicaragua • Niger • Nigeria • Norway • O: Oman • P: Pakistan • Palau • Panama • Papua New Guinea • Paraguay • Peru • Philippines • Poland • Portugal • Q: Qatar • R: Romania • Russia • Rwanda • S: Saint Kitts and Nevis • Saint Lucia • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines • Samoa • San Marino • São Tomé and Príncipe • Saudi Arabia • Senegal • Serbia • Seychelles • Sierra Leone • Singapore • Slovakia • Slovenia • Solomon Islands • Somalia • South Africa • South Sudan • Spain • Sri Lanka • Sudan • Suriname • Swaziland • Sweden • Switzerland • Syria • T: China (Republic)/Taiwan • Tajikistan • Tanzania • Thailand • Togo • Tonga • Trinidad and Tobago • Tunisia • Turkey • Turkmenistan • Tuvalu • U: Uganda • Ukraine • United Arab Emirates • United Kingdom • United States • Uruguay • Uzbekistan • V: Vanuatu • Vatican City • Venezuela • Vietnam • Y: Yemen • Z: Zambia • Zimbabwe

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