O Canada! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Manitoba

The word 'initially' indicates that the first letters of the following eight words, "Men Are Named In The Old Boys' Almanac" will give the eight letter answer - Manitoba.

Manitoba was the fifth province to join the Dominion of Canada on 15 July 1870. Its capital city is Winnipeg, and it is the easternmost of the three prairie provinces. The province has many lakes including Lake Winnipeg, as well as a coastline in the north-east on Hudson Bay.

Answer: New Brunswick

The word 'around' indicates an anagram of the previous three words - "bucks win wren", which gives the answer - New Brunswick.

New Brunswick was one of the first four provinces to form the Dominion of Canada on 1 July 1867. The capital city of New Brunswick is Fredericton. As well as English, New Brunswick also has French as an official language. The colony was named after the town of Brunswick in northern Germany to honour the reigning British monarch, George III, who was also Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

Answer: Quebec

This is a hidden word clue - the answer lies in "picturesQUE BEChuanaland" - Quebec. Don't be confused by the apparent geography - Bechuanaland is nowhere near Canada, it is the former name of the British colony in Africa, which is now the independent country of Botswana.

French speaking Quebec is another of the original four provinces. Its capital city is Quebec City, although the largest city is Montreal. It is the only province not to have English as its official language. Quebec has coastlines on both the Gulf of St. Lawrence as well as Hudson Bay. It is the largest of the Canadian provinces - Nunavut, which is larger, is a territory, not a province.

Answer: Alberta

The word 'alternately' means that we need every other letter from the phrase "AbLe BeEf RaT cAn", giving the answer - Alberta.

Alberta was one of the first two provinces to join the Dominion in the twentieth century, on 1 September 1905. Its capital city is Edmonton, although Calgary, known for its famous stampede, has a larger population. Originally part of the Northwest Territories, Alberta was named for the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert - Princess Louise Caroline Alberta.

Answer: Nunavut

The French word for 'one' is 'un'; 'AV' is the abbreviation for 'audiovisual'; putting these two inside 'nut' gives the answer 'N-un-AV-ut' or Nunavut.

Nunavut was the last territory to be designated in Canada in the twentieth century; it entered the confederation on 1 April 1999. It takes its name from an Inuktitut word meaning 'our land'. The capital city is Iqaluit, which was formerly known as Frobisher Bay.

Answer: British Columbia

The word 'about' indicates an anagram of the preceding three words - built chamois rib', which leads to the answer - British Columbia.

British Columbia was the sixth province to join the Dominion on 20 July 1871. Its capital city is Victoria on Vancouver Island. The name of the province was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858; it reflects the fact that it was the British part of the territory drained by the Columbia River, the American part became the state of Oregon. It is bordered by two distinct parts of the United States, as well as other parts of Canada; to the south is the State of Washington and to the northwest is Alaska, one of the two non-contiguous states of America.

Answer: Nova Scotia

Taking every other letter of "NeOn VeAl SaCk On TwIn Al" gives the answer - Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia was another of the first four provinces when the Dominion was formed on 1 July 1867. Its capital city is Halifax, and the province takes its name from the Latin for 'new Scotland'. It is one of the three maritime provinces, and is Canada's second smallest - only Prince Edward Island is smaller. Nova Scotia's only land border is with New Brunswick in the west.

Answer: Ontario

The two rings are 'O' and 'O'; an anagram of 'train' between them gives the answer 'O-ntari-O' or Ontario.

Ontario is another of the first four provinces of the Dominion. Its capital city is Toronto, although it is also home to the national capital - Ottawa. The province takes its name from the great lake - Lake Ontario, which, in its turn, probably gets its name from a native American word meaning 'great lake'. As well as its freshwater coast in the south on Lake Ontario, the province also has a coastline in the north on Hudson Bay.

Answer: Saskatchewan

'Stirred', here, indicates an anagram of 'cat was shaken' which leads to the answer - Saskatchewan.

Along with Alberta, Saskatchewan also joined the Dominion on 1 September 1905. Its capital city is Regina, named in honour of Queen Victoria. The province takes its name from the Saskatchewan River, which comes from the Cree word for a swift flowing river. Saskatchewan is the only part of Canada to have all of its borders as straight lines, with no reference to geographical features.

Answer: Yukon

The last letters of the five words 'finallY, yoU speaK tO childreN' lead to the five letter word - Yukon.

Yukon was admitted to the confederation on 13 June 1898. Its capital city is Whitehorse. The territory is named after the Yukon River, which gets its name from a native American word meaning 'white water river', referring to the glacial runoff. Yukon has borders with British Columbia and the Northwest Territories to the south and east as well as a land border with Alaska in the west and a coastline on the Beaufort Sea to the north. Yukon is home to Canada's tallest mountain - Mount Logan.