O Canada – the land of Mounties, maple syrup and Tim Hortons coffee – has found itself in President Trump's sights, with the POTUS potentially eyeing it as the next addition to the United States. That's if Greenland or the Panama Canal don't get there first, of course.

While “there isn't a snowball's chance in hell” this will happen, at least according to outgoing Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, the notion of Canada becoming the 51st state has certainly got people talking about the home of the Canucks.

With this in mind, read on to discover 31 facts about the nation that might surprise you.

The name 'Canada' derives from a misunderstanding. In 1535, French explorer Jacques Cartier mistook the Huron-Iroquois word 'kanata' (meaning village) for the name of the entire region around present-day Québec City.

Canada was first used officially in 1791 when Québec was divided into Upper and Lower Canada. It became the name of the country in 1867 when the Dominion of Canada was formed, beating other suggestions such as Albionora, Borealis, Hochelaga, Superior, Tuponia and Victorialand.

Canada is enormous. It spans 3.9 million square miles (10 million sq km) and makes up 6.1% of the world's landmass. At 6.6 million square miles (17.1 million sq km), only Russia is bigger.

Canada encompasses an impressive six time zones, 10 provinces and three territories, and has 48 national parks and reserves, some of which are bigger than entire nations. But only 10% of the country is inhabited, with much of the Great White North made up of a vast wilderness.

The Canada-US border stretches an incredible 5,525 miles (8,891km), from the southern end of Vancouver Island eastward to Nova Scotia/New Brunswick. The runner-up is the frontier between Russia and Kazakhstan, which measures 4,750 miles (7,644km).

Straddling the border are 13 US states, seven Canadian provinces and one Canadian territory. Astonishingly, most Canadians – two out of three in fact – live within a mere 62 miles (100km) of the border.

Adding to the superlatives, Canada is blessed with the longest coastline on the planet and has more beaches than any other country.

With coastlines on the Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic oceans, Canada's shores span a whopping 125,571 miles (202,080km), making it a truly diverse maritime nation.

If lakes are your thing, Canada has got you covered. The nation has 863,550 lakes that measure over 24 acres (9.7ha), while the five Great Lakes, which it shares with the US, contain 18% of the world's fresh water.

That said, contrary to popular belief, Canada doesn't have more lakes than the rest of the world combined.

Canada certainly doesn't do things by halves, including thoroughfares, with the country home to the longest streets on the planet.

The Guinness World Records has declared Airport Road in Mississauga the lengthiest. It runs from Toronto Pearson International Airport to the border of Simcoe County, a distance of 50.3 miles (81km), though the road stretches a further 9.4 miles (15.1km) on some maps. Nearby Oshawa's Simcoe Road is 49.7 miles (80km) long, though its name does change slightly along the way. Yonge Street in Toronto is often cited as the world's longest actual street, though it spans only 35.4 miles (57km).

Canadian winters aren't for the faint-hearted, with temperatures dipping well below freezing for months on end across large swathes of the nation.

Incredibly, Canada can get as cold as the surface of Mars. The country's absolute minimum temperature of -81.4°F (-63°C), which was recorded on 3 February 1947 in Snag, Yukon more or less mimics the typical surface temperature of the Red Planet, which comes in at -85°F (-65°C).

Canada's bone-chilling temperatures are ideal for the world's largest land predator. Around 16,000 polar bears live in the country. The population represents about two-thirds of the global total of 26,000.

Churchill, Manitoba is dubbed “the polar bear capital of the world”. From July to November, around 1,000 of the fearsome animals congregate in the Canadian town, comfortably outnumbering its human population of 870.

Crude oil is Canada's number one export. In 2023, the nation exported a record four million barrels daily, an increase of 3% from 2022.

Canada's oil exports amounted to an eye-popping C$124 billion ($86.2bn/£70.6bn) in 2023, representing 16% of the country's total exports. The US is by far the biggest market for Canada's oil, accounting for a staggering 97% of these exports.

Canada holds vast oil reserves, primarily located in the oil sands of Alberta and Saskatchewan. These deposits are estimated to contain around 164 billion barrels of oil, placing Canada among the top countries globally in terms of oil reserves, behind only Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.

The oil sands play a crucial role in Canada's energy sector, accounting for a significant portion of the country's oil production. In 2023, they contributed approximately 58% of Canada's total oil output.

Canada is synonymous with maple syrup, and for good reason. The Great White North produces no less than 71% of the world's supply of this sweet treat, making it the planet's biggest exporter by far.

In 2024, Canada produced a record-breaking 19.9 million gallons (90 million litres) of maple syrup, which is enough to fill 30 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The majority of this liquid gold is exported, with the US being the biggest customer, receiving 61% of Canada's maple syrup exports.

In addition to maple syrup, Canada is the world's leading exporter of a variety of commodities, a testament to the nation's rich natural resources and agricultural prowess.

The list includes lobster meat, oats, newsprint, canola/rapeseed, lentils, durum wheat, sawn wood and potash, a key ingredient of fertiliser.

The name and location of Canada's capital city often results in confusion outside the country's borders. For the record, the capital of Canada is not Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver or Quebec City. It's Ottawa. 

Ottawa is located in the south of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. The capital of Ontario? That's Toronto. But the capital of Canada? That's Ottawa all day long.

French is the mother tongue of over eight million Canadians, representing 22% of the nation's population of 36.6 million. And a further 2.7 million Canadians can converse in the language.

Québec is home to the vast majority of French-speaking Canadians, with 84.1% of the total residing in the province.

Ask a non-Canadian to name a French-Canadian and chances are Céline Dion will be the first and perhaps only name that comes to mind. But a bewildering number of famous people, both Canadian and not, have French-Canadian ancestry.

They include Alanis Morissette, Justin Bieber, Avril Lavigne, Ryan Gosling, Grimes, Beyoncé, Madonna, Hillary Clinton, Angelina Jolie, Jim Carrey, Ellen DeGeneres, John Cena, Jane Fonda, Ricky Gervais and even Queen Camilla of the UK.

Indeed, it may comfort some anti-monarchists in the country to learn that Queen Camilla has Canadian roots, as it would appear Canadians are stuck with King Charles III as head of state.

The Canadian Constitution makes it exceedingly difficult to get rid of the monarchy since becoming a republic would require the unanimous agreement of every single province as well as the federal government, which experts believe is a virtual impossibility.

Commonly referred to as the Mounties, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), or Gendarmerie royale du Canada (GRC) in French, dates back to 1873.

While the force was originally a mounted service, relying heavily on horses for patrolling Canada's vast territories, today it's a modern police force with diverse responsibilities. The RCMP is still famed for its red serge uniforms and stetson cowboy hats, but horses are few and far between. These days, the force owns only around 200 steeds, which are primarily used for ceremonial events like the Musical Ride. The spectacle tours Canada between May and October, performing in up to 50 communities every year.

Playing cards inscribed with a value and personally signed by the governor of New France constituted Canada's first paper currency. They circulated in the French territory from 1685 to 1714.

Sadly, no genuine examples of this quirky form of currency are known to have survived to the present day (the specimen in the photo is a reproduction).

The moniker 'loonie' dates back to 1987 when the C$1 coin was introduced. The coin features a loon bird on one side, which inspired the nickname shortly after its introduction. The name has since become synonymous with the Canadian dollar itself and was even trademarked by the Canadian Mint in 2006.

Following in the loonie's footsteps, the C$2 coin, introduced in 1996, is fondly referred to as the toonie.

Canada scored a global first in 2004 when it launched the first coloured circulation coin: a quarter featuring a red poppy within a maple leaf to honour the country's war dead.

The country's mint followed this up in 2017 by introducing the world's first glow-in-the-dark circulation coin: a toonie depicting boaters looking up at the Northern Lights, which was produced to mark Canada's 150th anniversary.

Shortly after Canada debuted its polymer banknotes in 2011, a curious rumour began circulating: the new bills seemed to emit a faint but distinctly sweet aroma, reminiscent of maple syrup. This led some Canadians to believe the Bank of Canada had secretly embedded a scratch-and-sniff patch into the currency, infusing it with the nation's signature scent.

Alas, this turned out to be an urban myth. Bank officials denied adding any fragrance to the banknotes, leaving the source of the maple syrup aroma a delightful mystery.

Canada is a nation of small businesses, ranging from tiny mom-and-pop grocery stores to compact farms.

In fact, 98% of Canada's businesses are of the small variety, with large enterprises accounting for a minuscule 0.2%. The proportion of small businesses in the country is greater than the global average of 90% but lower than the US figure, which stands at 99.9%.

Although the maple leaf has been a Canadian symbol since the 18th century, the nation's iconic maple leaf flag wasn't officially adopted until 1965.

Officially replacing the British Union Jack, the new flag was chosen after a lengthy process that saw thousands of designs considered. Ultimately, the selection was narrowed down to three finalists: one with three maple leaves, another featuring a maple leaf alongside the Union Jack and French fleur-de-lys, and a third with a single, bold maple leaf. The simple elegance of the single-leaf design won out, becoming a powerful symbol of Canadian identity.

Canada has two national sports that are actually enshrined in the National Sports of Canada Act, which was passed in 1994.

Lacrosse is the country's official summer sport, while ice hockey, or simply hockey as it's referred to in Canada, is the nation's official winter sport.

Staying with sports, it may come as a surprise to learn that a Canadian rather than an American invented basketball.

The sport was invented in 1891 by Canada's James Naismith, though he did debut his creation in the US, specifically in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The Hawaiian pizza wasn't invented in the Aloha State. Its origins lie in Chatham-Kent in the Canadian province of Ontario, where it was invented in 1962 by Greek-born Canadian Sam Panopoulos. The innovative cook named it after the brand name of the canned pineapples he was using.

While there's some dispute over the origins of the California sushi roll, the most commonly accepted story goes that it was invented by Hidekazu Tojo, a Japanese chef who moved to Vancouver in the 1970s.

Famed for its coffee and doughnuts, Tim Hortons is considered a national institution in Canada.

The first Tim Hortons opened in Hamilton, Ontario in 1964 when a coffee and doughnut cost just 10 Canadian dollar cents apiece. Today, the chain counts more than 4,000 locations throughout Canada.

Thanks mainly to Tim Hortons, Canadians have the highest per capita doughnut consumption on the planet, five times more than the average American. It's said the nation eats more than a billion of the sugary treats per year.

The country also has the most doughnut stores per capita, which again is largely down to its large number of Tim Hortons outlets.

'Hollywood North' is the nickname for Canada's flourishing film and TV production industry, with Vancouver and Toronto acting as major hubs.

Canada has become a popular alternative to Hollywood for several reasons. Enticing tax breaks make it a cost-effective option for filmmakers, while the country boasts a skilled workforce of actors, crew members and post-production professionals. Moreover, Canada's diverse landscapes, ranging from bustling cityscapes to breathtaking natural scenery, provide ideal backdrops for a wide range of productions.

Forget the Great Wall of China. Canada boasts an engineering marvel that is actually visible from space: the world's largest beaver dam.

Located in Wood Buffalo National Park, which is incidentally larger than Switzerland, this humongous structure encompasses 753,473 square feet (70,000sqm) and makes for a striking example of the industriousness and construction skills of Canada's endearing national animal.

Québec City is a unique historical anomaly in North America. As the continent's only remaining walled city north of Mexico, its fortified Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, offers a glimpse into a bygone era of colonial fortifications.

Built in the 17th and 18th centuries, the walls served to protect the city from invaders. Today, they stand as a reminder of Québec City's strategic importance and its rich history, adding a distinctive character to the Canadian city.

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