Manitoba:
Manitoba is a prairie province in Canada and has an area of 649,950 square kilometres (250,900 sq mi). Manitoba is bordered by the provinces of Ontario to the east and Saskatchewan to the west, the territory of Nunavut to the north, and the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota to the south. Manitoba also has a saltwater coastline on Hudson's Bay at Churchill.
Manitoba has a population of 1,213,815 (according to 2009 estimates), with more than half located within the Winnipeg Capital Region (which has a total population of 730,305). Manitoba's largest and capital city, Winnipeg, is also Western Canada's 8th largest CMA, and has Canada's 7th largest municipality. Other major cities, in order of size, are: Brandon, Thompson, Portage la Prairie, Steinbach, Selkirk, and Winkler.
The name "Manitoba" is believed to be derived from the Cree, Ojibwe or Assiniboine languages. Manitoba entered Confederation on July 15, 1870, and was the first province to enter under the British North America Act (BNA Act) after the original four provinces. Upon achievement of full independence from the United Kingdom in 1982, the BNA was re-christened the Constitution Act, 1867.
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