Calgary
Calgary (/ˈkælɡəri/ ⓘ KAL-gər-ee) is the largest city in the Canadian province of Alberta. It is the largest metro area within the three Prairie Provinces region. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in Canada.[11]
This article is about the Canadian city. For the hamlet in Scotland, see Calgary, Mull. For other uses, see Calgary (disambiguation).
Calgary
Canada
1875
November 7, 1884
January 1, 1894
David Duckworth[4]
820.62 km2 (316.84 sq mi)
621.72 km2 (240.05 sq mi)
5,098.68 km2 (1,968.61 sq mi)
1,045 m (3,428 ft)
1,306,784 (3rd)
1,592.4/km2 (4,124/sq mi)
1,305,550 (4th)
2,099.9/km2 (5,439/sq mi)
1,481,806 (5th)
290.6/km2 (753/sq mi)
Calgarian
UTC−06:00 (MDT)
082O01
IAKID
CA$79,885 (2022)[10]
Calgary is situated at the confluence of the Bow River and the Elbow River in the southwest of the province, in the transitional area between the Rocky Mountain Foothills and the Canadian Prairies, about 80 km (50 mi) east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies, roughly 299 km (186 mi) south of the provincial capital of Edmonton and approximately 240 km (150 mi) north of the Canada–United States border. The city anchors the south end of the Statistics Canada-defined urban area, the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor.[12]
Calgary's economy includes activity in the energy, financial services, film and television, transportation, and logistics, technology, manufacturing, aerospace, health and wellness, retail, and tourism sectors.[13] The Calgary Metropolitan Region is home to Canada's second-largest number of corporate head offices among the country's 800 largest corporations.[14] In 2015, Calgary had the largest number of millionaires per capita of any major Canadian city.[15] In 2022, Calgary was ranked alongside Zürich as the third most livable city in the world, ranking first in Canada and in North America.[16] In 1988, it became the first Canadian city to host the Olympic Winter Games.[17]
Etymology[edit]
Calgary was named after Calgary Castle (in Scottish Gaelic, Caisteal Chalgairidh) on the Isle of Mull in Scotland.[18] Colonel James Macleod, the Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police, had been a frequent summer guest there. In 1876, shortly after returning to Canada, he suggested its name for what became Fort Calgary. The Scottish Gaelic placename Calgairidh, in turn, possibly originates from a compound of kald and gart, Old Norse words, meaning "cold" and "garden". If so, the placename is likely a relic of Norse settler-colonists who occupied the Inner Hebrides in the medieval period.[19] A competing etymology cites the Gaelic cala[dh] gàrraidh, which means "enclosed meadow (or pasture) harbour", or, alternatively, cala[dh]-gheàrraidh, meaning "harbour pasture".[18][20][21][22] The first of these two possibilities, arguably translatable as "meadow harbour", has some relevance to local geography: the town of Calgary, such as it is, has a large meadow to its east, and this meadow leads to Calgary beach.
The Indigenous peoples of Southern Alberta refer to the Calgary area as "elbow", in reference to the sharp bend made by the Bow River and the Elbow River. In some cases, the area was named after the reeds that grew along the riverbanks, reeds that had been used to fashion bows. In the Blackfoot language (Siksiká) the area is known as Mohkínstsis akápiyoyis, meaning "elbow many houses", reflecting its strong settler presence. The shorter form of the Blackfoot name, Mohkínstsis, simply meaning "elbow",[23][24][25] is the popular Indigenous term for the Calgary area.[26][27][28][29][30] In the Nakoda or Stoney language, the area is known as Wîchîspa Oyade or Wenchi Ispase, both meaning "elbow".[23][25] In the Cree language, the area is known as otôskwanihk (ᐅᑑᐢᑿᓂᕽ) meaning "at the elbow"[31] or otôskwunee meaning "elbow". In the Tsuutʼina language (Sarcee), the area is known as Guts’ists’i (older orthography, Kootsisáw) meaning "elbow".[23][25] In Kutenai language, the city is referred to as ʔaknuqtapȼik’.[32] In the Slavey language, the area is known as Klincho-tinay-indihay meaning "many horse town", referring to the Calgary Stampede[23] and the city's settler heritage.[25]
There have been several attempts to revive the Indigenous names of Calgary. In response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, local post-secondary institutions adopted "official acknowledgements" of Indigenous territory using the Blackfoot name of the city, Mohkínstsis.[28][29][33][34][35] In 2017, the Stoney Nakoda sent an application to the Government of Alberta, to rename Calgary as Wichispa Oyade meaning "elbow town";[36] however, this was challenged by the Piikani Blackfoot.[37]
Within Calgary, there are approximately 8,000 ha (20,000 acres) of parkland available for public usage and recreation.[259] These parks include Fish Creek Provincial Park, Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, Bowness Park, Edworthy Park, Confederation Park, Prince's Island Park, Nose Hill Park, and Central Memorial Park. Nose Hill Park is one of the largest municipal parks in Canada at 1,129 ha (2,790 acres). The park has been subject to a revitalization plan that began in 2006. Its trail system is currently undergoing rehabilitation in accordance with this plan.[260][261] The oldest park in Calgary, Central Memorial Park, dates back to 1911. Similar to Nose Hill Park, revitalization also took place in Central Memorial Park in 2008–2009 and reopened to the public in 2010 while still maintaining its Victorian style.[262] An 800 km (500 mi) pathway system connects these parks and various neighbourhoods.[259][263] Calgary also has multiple private sporting clubs including the Glencoe Club and the Calgary Winter Club.
In large part due to its proximity to the Rocky Mountains, Calgary has traditionally been a popular destination for winter sports. Since hosting the 1988 Winter Olympics, the city has also been home to a number of major winter sporting facilities such as Canada Olympic Park (bobsleigh, luge, cross-country skiing, ski jumping, downhill skiing, snowboarding, and some summer sports) and the Olympic Oval (speed skating and hockey). These facilities serve as the primary training venues for a number of competitive athletes. Also, Canada Olympic Park serves as a mountain biking trail in the summer months. Calgary unsuccessfully bid to host the 2026 Winter Olympics, losing to Milan/Cortina Italy.
In the summer, the Bow River is frequented by river rafters[264] and fly-fishermen. Golfing is also an extremely popular activity for Calgarians, and the region has a large number of courses.[265] The Century Downs Racetrack and Casino is a 5+1⁄2-furlong (1.1 km) horse track located just north of the city.[266]
As part of the wider Battle of Alberta, the city's sports teams enjoy a popular rivalry with their Edmonton counterparts, most notably the rivalries between the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers, and the Canadian Football League's Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Elks.[267][268]
Calgary is the hometown of the Hart wrestling family and the location of the Hart family "Dungeon", where the patriarch of the Hart Family, Stu Hart,[269] trained numerous professional wrestlers including Superstar Billy Graham, Brian Pillman, the British Bulldogs, Adam Copeland, Christian Cage, Greg Valentine, Chris Jericho, Jushin Thunder Liger and many more. Also among the trainees were the Hart family members themselves, including WWE Hall of Fame member and former WWE champion Bret Hart and his brother, the 1994 WWF King of the Ring, Owen Hart.[269]
Notable sporting events held by Calgary include:
Education[edit]
Primary and secondary[edit]
In the 2011–2012 school year, 100,632 K-12 students enrolled in 221 schools in the English language public school system run by the Calgary Board of Education.[309] With other students enrolled in the associated CBe-learn and Chinook Learning Service programs, the school system's total enrolment is 104,182 students.[309] Another 43,000 attend about 95 schools in the separate English language Calgary Catholic School District board.[310] The much smaller Francophone community has their own French language school board (The Southern Francophone Education Region No. 4), which is also based in Calgary, but serves a larger regional district. There are also several public charter schools in the city. Calgary has the country's first high school exclusively designed for Olympic-calibre athletes, the National Sport School.[311] Calgary is also home to many private schools including Mountain View Academy, Rundle College, Rundle Academy, Clear Water Academy, Calgary French and International School, Chinook Winds Adventist Academy, Webber Academy, Delta West Academy, Masters Academy, Calgary Islamic School, Menno Simons Christian School, West Island College, Edge School, Calgary Christian School, Heritage Christian Academy, and Bearspaw Christian School.
Calgary is also home to what was Western Canada's largest public high school, Lord Beaverbrook High School, with 2,241 students enrolled in the 2005–2006 school year.[312] Currently the student population of Lord Beaverbrook is 1,812 students (September 2012) and several other schools are equally as large; Western Canada High School with 2,035 students (2009) and Sir Winston Churchill High School with 1,983 students (2009).
