Canadian Studies

Explore the topic of Canadian Studies, an interdisciplinary look at the culture and society of the country of Canada and its people. This broad topic includes Canadian languages, literature, geography, history, and the nation’s political, economic, and social organization. Students of Canadian Studies will likely also research Canada’s Indigenous peoples: the First Nations, native peoples located predominantly south of the Arctic circle; the Inuit tribes, the Indigenous people who live in the Arctic area; and the Metís, descendants of the earliest French settlers and the First Nations. Another popular focus is the French ethnic groups of Canada, which is a sizeable minority group in the predominantly Anglo nation; a separatist movement in the Franco-dominated province of Quebec that agitates for separation from the rest of Canada. Research may also examine the close relationship between Canada and its southern neighbor, the United States, as well as Canada’s position in the Commonwealth, an international association consisting of Great Britain and nations that were formerly part of the British Empire.

Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, founded the first Institute of Canadian Studies in 1957, but the movement to promote Canadian identity through dedicated academic programs became more widespread during the growth of a nationalist movement in Canada in the 1960s and 1970s. These programs both in Canada and abroad intended to combat ignorance of Canada and its culture both domestically and internationally. In the mid-2010s, however, reduced funding by the Canadian government and a trend toward the study of Canada through interdisciplinary departments had reduced interest.

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Canadian Studies Resources

Gale provides resources that support library and university research with collections from databases, primary source archives, and eBooks.

Databases

Gale databases include collections of published materials from newspaper, journal, and periodical articles, as well as primary source documents and multimedia, like images, audio, and videos, that support users interested in Canadian research.

Primary Source Archives

Gale Primary Sources contains digitized full-text archives and collections that provide firsthand content, including historical newspapers, primary documents, archives, journals, periodicals, and other publications, and ephemera that examine and analyze Canadian history.

Gale eBooks

Gale's eBook collection offers a variety of eBooks covering a wide range of subject areas, including Native American history, Inuit tribes, First Nation resources, Indigenous communities and peoples, and more. Users can add Gale eBooks to a customized collection and cross search to pinpoint relevant content. Workflow tools help users easily share, save, and download content.

  • Bands, Tribes, & First Peoples and Nations, 1st Edition

    Bands, Tribes, & First Peoples and Nations, 1st Edition

    Britannica Digital Learning   |   2015   |   ISBN-13: 9781622753635

    Anthropology, politics, and history come together to form an insightful blend in this authoritative title covering kinship, tribalism, and nonurban cultures the world over. Both the theory and practical examples of tribal cultures are presented, with several chapters dedicated to the various schools of anthropological thought on nonurban societies, accompanied by a survey of tribal and Indigenous cultures both historically and in modern times. American Indians, the Indigenous peoples of South America, nomadic tribes of the Middle East, and Aboriginal Australians are a few of the societies explored in this extensive text. 

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  • The Inuit, 1st Edition

    The Inuit, 1st Edition

    Facts on File   |   2014   |   ISBN-13: 9781438162119

    The Inuit, part of the Indians of North America series, presents a fascinating portrayal of the cultural history of these native people. The Inuit tribes, commonly known as Eskimos, have survived for thousands of years in the frigid Arctic region from the Pacific coast of Alaska to the west coast of Greenland. Since their first encounter with European settlers and explorers, the Inuit population has enjoyed generally friendly relations. By the late 1800s, the Inuit people had to contend with long-term changes brought about by outside contact, and struggled to maintain control of their lives. However, in the past few decades, they have adopted various strategies to preserve Inuit perspectives and Inuit culture. Today, the Inuit continue to demonstrate the intelligence and resilience that have sustained them through many difficult times.

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  • A New Psychology Based on Community, Equality, and Care of the Earth: An Indigenous American Perspective, 1st Edition

    A New Psychology Based on Community, Equality, and Care of the Earth: An Indigenous American Perspective, 1st Edition

    Praeger   |   2020   |   ISBN-13: 9781440869266

    Psychology is a relatively new discipline, with foundations formed narrowly and near-exclusively by white, European males. According to the author, a fellow of the American Psychological Association, those foundations, filled with implicit bias, are too narrow to best help diverse people and societies. A narrowly based perspective prevents out-of-the-box thinking, research, and treatment that could guide greater healing and avoidance of disorders. In this text, the author explains the Native American perspective on psychology, detailing why that needs to be incorporated as a new model for social work, mental health, and well-being. As a Native American psychologist, the author contrasts the enlightenment mindset of psychology's creators—as it includes individualism, autonomy, independence, and hierarchal relationships—with the indigenous knowledge of Native Americans—communalism, interdependence, earth-centeredness, and egalitarianism. As the author explains, psychological happiness is redefined by the reality of our interdependence rather than materialism and individualism, and how we do things becomes as important as what we accomplish.

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Resources to Boost Your Research

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