Two Languages

I live in the bilingual country of Canada where English and French are the official languages.

For you history buffs, in 1867 the Constitution Act permitted the use of either English or French in the debates of Parliament as well as in the proceedings before the federal courts. It also specified that both languages must be used in the records and journals of Parliament, and that its laws must be enacted and published in both languages.

It took until 1927 before postage stamps were bilingual and until 1936 for bank notes to be bilingual.

In 1974 the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act came into force with regulations respecting bilingual labelling of consumer products. All of our goods are labeled in both languages.

So after thinking about the mouth-watering French cuisine and wines that had possibilities for today's challenge, I opted for this photo which shows the local post office (federal service) with it's sign in both English and French. Our little city has a large population of Francophones ( French people). Many streets and buildings have French names like this Courtyard on Perron Street. (go large to read)

I am happy to be living in Canada, sometimes called a "melting-pot" with its many cultures and languages. It is a country that has respect for differences.