Culture is a vague term referring to the ways in which a particular nation's people think and behave. There is such diversity of cultural expression in Canada that it is very difficult to speak of a single culture.

One understanding shared by many Canadians during the past quarter-century, is that cultural identity is what makes Canadians individuals, while national identity is what makes Canadians citizens.

Since the federal government introduced a policy of Multiculturalism in 1971, Canadians have grown increasingly comfortable about self-identifying in terms of these two concepts, even though they may seem contradictory.