Saskatchewan is one of Canada’s three
Prairie Provinces. It is known for its vast
fields of wheat and its valuable minerals.
The name Saskatchewan was first used
for the province’s most important river.
It comes from a Cree Indian word
meaning “fast-flowing river.” The capital
of Saskatchewan is Regina.
Geography
Saskatchewan is bordered by Manitoba
on the east and Alberta on the west.
Manitoba and Alberta are the other two
Prairie Provinces. To the north are the
Northwest Territories, and to the south
are the U.S. states of Montana and
North Dakota.
Most of southern Saskatchewan
is prairie—flat, treeless plains
with some low hills. Wheat fields
and cattle ranches cover huge stretches
of land. North of the prairie is a rocky
region with patches of forest and many
lakes. Farther north, the forests get
thicker. The extreme north of the province,
however, is treeless tundra.
Throughout the province winters are
long and cold.
People
Most of Saskatchewan’s people have
European ancestors. People of German
origin are the most numerous, followed
by people with English, Scottish, Irish,
Ukrainian, or French heritage. Residents
with American Indian roots make up
another large group. The Cree, the
Assiniboin, and the Chipewyan are
among the major Indian groups.
Nearly two thirds of Saskatchewan’s
people live in cities or towns. Even so,
the province’s largest cities are not particularly
large. Saskatoon, the largest,
has only about 225,000 people in the
city and suburbs combined. Regina is
slightly smaller. The University of
Saskatchewan is in Saskatoon.
Economy
Saskatchewan’s economy has always
depended on products of the land. The
province is a world leader in the production
of wheat, and it also grows great
amounts of barley, canola, oats, flax, and
rye. Ranchers raise cattle and pigs.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Saskatchewan 39
Saskatchewan ranks among Canada’s
leading provinces in oil, coal, and natural
gas production. Its mineral resources
also include potash, which is used to
make fertilizer, and uranium. Much of
the industry in the province is tied to
agriculture and mining—for example,
meatpacking, flour milling, oil refining,
and the production of farm equipment.
Although farming and mining are still
very important in Saskatchewan, fewer
workers make a living in these activities
today than in the past. Many more
people now work in the cities, providing
services such as sales, government, and
health care.
History
American Indians have lived in what is
now Saskatchewan for more than 5,000
years. The first Europeans arrived late in
the 1600s. They were fur trappers and
traders. They worked for the Hudson’s
Bay Company, an English corporation
that controlled a large part of what is
now Canada for about 200 years.
In 1869 the newly formed government
of Canada bought the Hudson’s Bay
Company’s land, including the
Saskatchewan area. In the early 1880s a
railroad reached Regina from the east.
Farmers soon moved in. The Indians
and the Metis (people of mixed Indian
and European descent) who lived in the
area feared that the newcomers would
take their land. In 1885 they rebelled
against the Canadian government,
which had encouraged the settlers. The
rebellion failed, and in the years that
followed many more settlers arrived to
farm on the prairie. In 1905 the Canadian
government created the province of
Saskatchewan.
The population of the province grew
rapidly in the first decades of the 1900s.
In the mid-1900s Saskatchewan’s government
introduced many new programs.
It was the first government in
North America to pay for medical care
for all its people.
..More to explore
Assiniboin • Canada • Chipewyan
• Cree • Fur Trade • Hudson’s Bay
Company
Fields of wheat are a common sight in
Saskatchewan.
The building housing Saskatchewan’s legislative
assembly stands among colorful flowers
in Regina, the capital of Saskatchewan.
Facts About
SASKATCHEWAN
Flag
Population
(2006 census)
968,157
Area
251,367 sq mi
(651,036 sq km)
Capital
Regina
Motto
Multis E Gentibus,
Vires (From Many
Peoples, Strength)
When
Saskatchewan
Became a
Province
1905
40 Saskatchewan BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
(120,600 kilometers). That is nine times
larger than Earth’s diameter. However,
Saturn is very light for its size. It would
float if placed in water.
Saturn is a kind of planet called a gas
giant. It is made up mostly of gases,
mainly hydrogen and helium. What
looks like a solid surface in photographs
is actually a layer of clouds. Under Saturn’s
huge layers of gases is a smaller
area of hot liquid metal. At its center the
planet probably has a hot, rocky core.
A system of very thin rings surrounds
Saturn. The rings extend thousands of
miles out from the planet. They are
made up mostly of pieces of water ice
and dust.
Orbit and Spin
Like all planets, Saturn has two types of
motion: orbit and spin. It takes Saturn
about 29 Earth years to complete one
orbit, or path around the sun. In other
words, a year on Saturn is about 29
Earth years.
Saturn spins very quickly about its center.
It takes the planet less than 11 hours
to complete one rotation. That is the
length of a day on Saturn.
Moons
