Humanities & Social Sciences 2 (2016 9) 350-357 ~ ~ ~ УДК 81`1(71) Language Situation and Language Policy in Canada (In the Aspect of Multiculturalism) Elena B. Grishaeva and Irina S. Dobriaeva* Siberian Federal University 79 Svobodny, Krasnoyarsk, 660041, Russia Received 18.07.2015, received in revised form 27.09.2015, accepted 07.01.2016 The article examines issues related to the typological arrangement and existence of the exoglossic, unbalanced language situation in Canada. <...> Special attention is paid to the role of indigenous languages against the background of the language situation in the country. <...> Canada’s linguistic profi le is described in the background of certain theoretical assumptions of multiculturalism and multilingualism. <...> The article contains quantitative indicators related to the composition of the indigenous population speaking indigenous languages. <...> An integral method (and a tool) for self-identifi cation and self-realization, as well as an important part of culture of an ethnic group or nation is its language. <...> Canada, the fi rst country to offi cially recognize the policy of multiculturalism, is an example of a post-national (immigrant) state combining polyethnicity and multi nationality, where the indigenous peoples greatly succeeded in preservation of diversity. expanding their political rights their cultural and and linguistic © Siberian Federal University. <...> All rights reserved * Corresponding author E-mail address: e-grishaeva@mail.ru, elena.grishaeva2@mail.ru # 350 # Unlike the USA that are inhabited by a large number of indigenous and immigrant groups, but aimed at levelling national and cultural differences and conversion to mononational and monocultural country, Canada has always tended toward a multicultural structure with a unifi ed super nation. <...> A.I. Cherkasov characterizes the Canadian multiculturalism mechanism as “one super ethnic nation (Canadians), follows: two offi cial languages (English and French) and many ethnic cultures.” (Alpatov, 2000, p. 105) Elena B. Grishaeva and Irina S. Dobriaeva. <...> The term “nation” in this case refers to “any community of people who see themselves as an ethnic, cultural and linguistic unity and oppose themselves to other communities around them.” (Bell, 1980, p. 408) In 1982, the Canadian Constitution identifi ed three main groups of the indigenous population that are considered to be the “First Nations”. <...> These are the Indians (60 % of the indigenous <...>