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Alberta / Quick Facts
Alberta: Quick Facts
Quick Facts
- Capital - Edmonton
- Motto - (Strong and Free) Fortis et Liber
- Flower - Wild Rose
- Entered Confederation - 1 September 1905
- Members of the Legislative Assembly - 83
- Members of Parliament - 26
- Senators - 6
- Population, 1998 - 2,913,350
- Average annual family income, 1996 - $57,735
- Employment rate, 1997 - 67.5%
- Per capita health expenditures, 1995 - $2,315
- Inflation as measured by the CPI, 1997 - 2.1%
- Average weekly earnings, 1997 - $600.47
- Housing starts, 1997 - 23,671
- Provincial sales tax, 1998 - 0%
- Urban population, 1996 - 79.5%
- GDP per capita, 1995 - $31,092
- Land area out of Canada's total area - 6.6%
Sources: Statistics Canada, 1999 Canadian Encyclopedia
Cities:
Edmonton, a city of 863,000, is the capital of Alberta. Edmonton is in Central Alberta and is home to the Parliament Buildings, the University of Alberta, the Edmonton Eskimos football team and the famous West Edmonton Mall.
The southern city of Calgary (pop.821,628, 1996 census) is roughly the same size as Edmonton and plays a large role in the economy of the province and the country. Calgary is home to the world famous Calgary Stampede.
Time Zone:
Alberta is in the Rocky Mountain time zone, seven hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
Climate:
Alberta has a continental climate, characterized by dramatic seasonal contrasts in which long, cold winters are offset by mild to hot summers with a high number of sunny days, no matter what the season. Although cold air covers the whole province in winter, it is frequently replaced in the southwest of the province by the "chinook," a mild wind, which funnels through the mountains from the Pacific Ocean.
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