Canada is a place.
Canada . Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean , covering 9.98 e6km2 , making it the world 's second-largest country by total area and the fourth-largest country by land area . As a consequence of various conflicts , Great Britain gained and lost territories within British North America until it was left , in the late 18th century , with what mostly geographically comprises Canada today . Canada is a federal parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy , with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state .