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Ts’msyen (Tsim-she-yan, meaning “Inside the Skeena River”; sometime spelled Tsimshian or Tsm’syen) is a name that is often broadly applied to Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. They speak languages of the Ts’msyen language family. In the 2016 census, 2,695 people reported speaking a Ts’msyen language. The largest concentration of Ts’msyen speakers (98.1 per cent) live in British Columbia. In the 2016 census, 5,910 people claimed Ts’msyen ancestry.

Before European settlement in Canada, Indigenous peoples spoke a wide variety of languages. As a means of assimilating Indigenous peoples, colonial policies like the Indian Act and residential schools forbade the speaking of Indigenous languages. These restrictions have led to the ongoing endangerment of Indigenous languages in Canada. Indigenous communities and various educational institutions have taken measures to prevent more language loss and to preserve Indigenous languages.

Alphonso Boyle Davies, soccer player (born 2 November 2000 in Buduburam, Ghana). Alphonso Davies is one of the world’s most promising young soccer stars. The youngest player ever on Team Canada, he was named the Canadian Men’s Player of the Year in 2018 and 2020. After being named an MLS All-Star and the Player of the Year with Vancouver Whitecaps FC in 2018, he signed a six-year contract with FC Bayern Munich of the Bundesliga in 2019. He was named the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season in 2019–20 and became the first Canadian men’s international to play on a team that won the Champions League. In 2020, he received the Lionel Conacher Award as Canada’s top male athlete and was a co-winner, with football player Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, of the Lou Marsh Trophy (now the Northern Star Award) as Canada’s athlete of the year.

Louis Burt Mayer (born Eliezer Mayer), studio executive (born 12 July 1884 in Dymer, Russian Empire [now Ukraine]; died 29 October 1957 in Los Angeles, California). Louis B. Mayer was one of the first Hollywood movie moguls, and arguably the most powerful. After running a successful chain of movie theatres, Mayer founded his own production company in 1917. In 1924, it merged with two other companies to become Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Mayer served as head of MGM until 1951, presiding over the biggest and most prestigious studio of Hollywood’s golden age. He was also instrumental in creating the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which administers the Academy Awards.

Albert Jackson, letter carrier (born 2 November 1857 in Delaware; died 14 January 1918 in Toronto, ON). Albert Jackson was the first Black letter carrier employed by Royal Mail Canada (see Postal System). Jackson was born into enslavement in the United States and escaped to Canada with his mother and siblings when he was a toddler in 1858. In 1882, Jackson was hired as a letter carrier in Toronto, but his white co-workers refused to train him on the job. While his story was debated in the press for weeks, the Black community in Toronto organized in support of Jackson, meeting with Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald to have Jackson properly instated. Jackson returned to his post days later and served as a letter carrier for almost 36 years.

Turtle Island is another name for North America. The origin of the name comes from the Algonquian-and-Iroquoian-speaking peoples. They are from the Northeastern part of North America. The stories are about a turtle that carries the world on its back. It is a symbol for life, the earth, and Indigenous identity. It also shows a deep appreciation for nature.

This article is a plain-language summary of Turtle Island. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Turtle Island.

South Asians trace their origins to South Asia, which encompasses India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Most South Asian Canadians are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from these countries, but immigrants from South Asian communities established during British colonial times also include those from East and South Africa, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji and Mauritius. Others come from Britain, the US and Europe. In the 2016 census, 1, 963,330 Canadians reported South Asian origins (1,603,000 single and 360,330 multiple responses).

The Numbered Treaties are a series of 11 treaties. A treaty is an agreement between two or more nations. The Numbered Treaties were signed by the Canadian government and Indigenous people. All 11 treaties were signed between 1871 and 1921. The Numbered Treaties cover parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario. They also cover portions of Yukon and the Northwest Territories.

The treaties provided the Canadian government with land. The government wanted land for industrial development and white settlement. In exchange, the government promised Indigenous people special rights and benefits. These treaty terms are controversial and contested. The Numbered Treaties have ongoing legal, social, and economic impacts on Indigenous communities. (See also Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada.)

(This is a plain-language summary of the Numbered Treaties. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Numbered Treaties.)

Immigration from Indonesia to Canada began after the Second World War. In the wake of the decolonization process, 300,000 “Indos” (Indische Nederlander), persons of mixed Dutch and Asian ancestry, were repatriated to the Netherlands. Some of them decided to continue their journeys, settling in Australia, the United States and Canada. Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, political instability also led many Indonesians to immigrate to Canada. According to the 2016 census, 21,395 individuals indicated that they had Indonesian origins. Notable Indonesian Canadians include violin maker Piet Molenaar and Toronto filmmaker Mike Hoolboom.

Together Today for Our Children Tomorrow was a document that set out land claim grievances in Yukon and recommended an approach to settlement. The Council of Yukon Indians, the organization that authored the document, presented it to then Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau in Ottawa on 14 February 1973. The document told the story of traditional Indigenous ways in the territory. It chronicles ways in which life changed with the arrival of the “Whiteman.” It identifies some of the contemporary challenges the local First Nations faced at the time. Additionally, it proposes solutions and offers a roadmap forward. Finally, it sets out a vision for the future that sees control and authority for decision-making returned to the First Nations of the territory. Fifty years later, it continues to be a guiding force for First Nation and non-First Nation Yukoners. It promotes “walking together down the same road.” In other words, it suggests participating equitably as partners in the fabric and governance of Yukon society.

Rose Marie “Tantoo” Cardinal, CM, actor (born 20 Jul 1950 in Fort McMurray, AB). Cree and Métis actor Tantoo Cardinal has broken barriers for onscreen representation of Indigenous peoples. She has more than 120 film, television and theatre roles to her credit, including the films Dances With Wolves (1990), Black Robe (1991), Smoke Signals (1998) and Through Black Spruce (2018); as well as the TV series Street Legal (1987–94), Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993–95), North of 60 (1993–97), Moccasin Flats (2003-06) and Mohawk Girls (2010–17). She is known for her strong presence, the depth of her performances and her activism on behalf of the environment. A Member of the Order of Canada, she has won a Gemini Award, the Earle Grey Award for lifetime achievement in Canadian television, a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, and a National Aboriginal Achievement Award.

Zalman “Zal” Yanovsky, guitarist, songwriter, restaurateur (born 19 December 1944 in Toronto, ON; died 13 December 2002 in Kingston, ON). A product of the Yorkville and Greenwich Village folk music scenes of the early 1960s, Zal Yanovsky was best known as the lead guitarist in the folk-rock band The Lovin’ Spoonful. Formed in 1965, the group had seven top 10 hits in two years, including “Do You Believe in Magic,” “Daydream” and the No. 1 hit “Summer in the City.” Yanovsky was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with The Lovin’ Spoonful in 2000.

Laurence George Decore (born Lavrentiy Dikur), CM, lawyer, entrepreneur, community activist, alderman and mayor of Edmonton, Alberta MLA, leader of the Alberta Liberal Party, Alberta’s opposition leader (born 18 June 1940 in Vegreville, AB; died 6 November 1999 in Edmonton, AB). Laurence Decore was a Ukrainian Canadian community activist and politician. He served as an Edmonton alderman (1974–77) and mayor (1983–88) and chaired the Canadian Consultative Council on Multiculturalism. In this role, he led the drafting of section 27 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It entrenched multiculturalism in Canada’s Constitution. Decore also served as an Alberta MLA (1989–97). He led the Alberta Liberal Party (1988–94) and was leader of the Opposition (1993–94).

Abenaki (also referred to as Wobanaki or Wabanaki) take their name from a word in their own language meaning “dawn-land people” or “people from the east.” Their traditional lands included parts of southeastern Quebec, western Maine and northern New England. As of 2021, the total registered population of Abenaki people on the Wôlinak and Odanak reserves in Quebec is 469 and 2,747, respectively.

Filipinos have been in Canada as early as the late 19th century. Migration from the Philippines to Canada significantly increased from the 1960s onward. (See Immigration to Canada.) In the 2016 Census, 837,130 people reported being of Filipino ethnic origin. Filipino Canadians are the largest group of Southeast Asian Canadians. Among Filipino Canadians, women outnumber men by 56 per cent to 44 per cent. The Philippines was the most common country of birth among people who immigrated to Canada between 2011 and 2016.

Sammy Luftspring, boxer, referee, businessman (born 14 March 1915 in Toronto, ON; died 27 September 2000 in Toronto). Sammy Luftspring was the Ontario amateur featherweight champion in 1933 and the Canadian amateur welterweight champion in 1938. A proud Jew, Luftspring wore the Star of David on his trunks and was subjected to anti-Semitism throughout his life. He fought Nazi youth in the Christie Pits Riot and is perhaps best remembered for boycotting the 1936 Olympic Summer Games in Berlin. He also landed in the Guinness Book of World Records for officiating some 2,000 fights. He has been inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame and the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.

Dominic (Dick) Patrick, war hero, activist (born 1920 in Saik’uz First Nation, near Vanderhoof, BC; died 1980 in Saik’uz First Nation).

Thomas George Prince, war hero, Indigenous advocate (born 25 October 1915 in Petersfield, MB; died 25 November 1977 in Winnipeg, MB). Tommy Prince of the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation is one of the most-decorated Indigenous war veterans in Canada, having been awarded a total of 11 medals for his service in the Second World War and the Korean War. When he died, he was honoured at his funeral by his First Nation, the province of Manitoba, Canada and the governments of France, Italy and the United States. ( See also Indigenous Peoples and the World Wars.)