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The city of Vancouver is found along Canada's west seacoast in the province of British Columbia. A British explorer called George Vancouver arrived in the area around 1790, where the city's name is derived from. The word Vancouver came from from the Dutch van Coevorden meaning of Coevorden referring to a resident of Coevordena city in the Netherlands.
Right after the development of sawmills in 1867, Vancouver began to develop in industry. The downtown area referred to as Gastown was the center of the town from which the city grew. Situated on a busy seaport, Vancouver was formally incorporated in 1886 and began to expand rapidly due to the introduction of the transcontinental railway linked to the city. The seaport was, and still is an essential route of trade linking Vancouver to London, the Orient and Eastern Canada. Today, the seaport is the busiest and biggest port in Canada.
Vancouver is known for its urban, ethnic and modern culture. Nicknamed Hollywood North, the city also offers a strong and popular film industry. Vancouver is also no stranger to playing host to worldwide events such as the Commonwealth Games (1954), the World Exposition (1986) and most recently the Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games (2010).
Geographical Features
The city is located directly on the Fraser River and the Burrard Peninsula. Rolling slopes and flat ground make up the city area of 114 square km or 44 square miles. Bowen Island west of the city and Vancouver Island west and southwest of the city are apparent from various points in the city as well as the Northshore Mountains. Another landmark that can be seen from the city is Mount Baker, a snow-covered volcano located in the state of Washington. The two great bodies of water adjacent to the city are the Strait of Georgia and the Pacific Ocean. Another dominant geographic city feature is Stanley Park. The park spans 404.9 hectares (1001 acres) providing a breathtaking woodland in the city. The park is home to countless attractions, the Seawall and is one of the largest urban parks in North America containing 150 year old forest.
Environment
The climate in Vancouver is mentioned as being moderate and Oceanic. The average high temperatures during the summer are 72?F. The city usually receives little rainfall during July and August, experiencing drought-like conditions. On July 30, 2009, Vancouver documented its highest temperature at 34.4 C. During the winter months the weather is wet with average rain of 1,199 millimetres (47.2 in) annually of rainfall and an average snowfall of 48.2 centimetres (19.0 in) that typically does not remain intact. Seldomly will temperatures go below 14.0 F or remain below freezing for a long period of time.
Demographic Details
Vancouver is made up of many different people groups. Areas of the city such as Little Italy, Greektown, and Chinatown make up a city of neighbourhoods. Vancouver is furthermore home to a large gay community in the downtown core. In the most recent census (2006) it was reported that 52% of the city's population list an alternative language other than English as their mother tongue. One third of the population is of Chinese source with the rest of the population being made up of other global people groups. Some of the biggest people groups are still people of Irish, German and British descent but Asian immigrants have increased greatly in recent years.
Citizens aged 20-39 and 40-64 make up the biggest demographic at 34.5% each. The tiniest age demographic is made up of people aged 65 and older at 13.1% of the population. The human population of Vancouver is comprised of 51% visible minorities.
