For more detailed information about Québec, please check the official website www.mri.gouv.qc.ca

Area

• Three times the size of Spain
• Almost five times the size of Japan
• Larger than any American state

Quebec occupies a vast continental peninsula bordering the North Antlantic .  Its landmass, half of which is covered with forest covers close to 1.7 million square kilometres.

Dotted with a million lakes and rivers, Québec is bisected by the 1,200-kilometre-long St.Lawrence River.  A hundred kilometres wide at its estuary, the St. lawrence is one of North America's main rivers and among the world's largest inland waterways.

Population

• 7.5 million people, or close to a quarter of the Canadian population.  It has a demographic density of 4.5 inhabitants per square kilometre.
• Close to 80% of Quebecers live along the St. Lawrence River, in a continental-type temperate climate zone featuring four distinct seasons:  a warm spring, hot summer, colourful fall and cold, snowy winter.
• Just over 80,000 members of First Nations - ten Amerindian nations and one Inuit nation - account for approximately 1% of Québec's population

Language

• Québec is an overwhelmingly Francophone society and has made French its official language.  French is thus the language used by the governement and the normal and everyday language of work, education, communication,   commerce and business.
• The majority of Quebecers (83%) speak French at home, while 10% speak English and 6% speak another language.  Over 40% of Quebecers speak both French and English.
• Montréal is the largest Frenchspeaking city in the Americas.