3.7 - Culture of North America
The Modern Culture of North America
Instructor's Video
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Culturally, our tastes are crossing borders and influencing one another. Cultures have subtly converged over 
the years in North America in ways that we now take for granted. For example, we order Mexican food as casually as we might order Chinese or Italian. While we weren’t looking, Mexico became the U.S. mainstream.This extends to the languages that we speak, the TV shows that we watch, our favorite music groups, and the sports that we play.
Technology has helped spur this cultural convergence, but it also stems from demography. 34 million Mexicans and Mexican- Americans and some 3 million Canadians and Canadian-Americans live in the United States. As we move around the region, we are bringing our cultures and preferences along. This is not meant to suggest that, each North American country lacks its own identity. In fact, if you look around the United States, each part of the country also has its own identity. Southern Texas feels pretty different from say Oregon or Connecticut.
We have much in common. North Americans–both Canadians and citizens of the United States– are the most satisfied people in the world, notably more satisfied than other wealthy republics—particularly Western Europeans. North Americans are also quite optimistic about the future, decidedly more so than most Western Europeans. When asked about various aspects of their lives, Americans and Canadians are most satisfied with their family lives, less satisfied with their jobs, and least satisfied with their incomes.
Events of the last few years have taken their toll on U.S.-Canadian relations, but cross-border ties still remain stronger than U.S. ties with Europe. Canadians, however, share with many people around the world a frustration with U.S. foreign policy. And there is a sharp difference between how Canadians and Europeans view America’s role in the world and how Americans see those same global activities.
Canadians and Americans share a number of similar values. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (65%) and Canadians (63%) think people determine their own success in life. This sense of personal empowerment is not shared by Europeans. The North American neighbors part ways over individualism. Nearly three-in-five Americans (58%) believe that freedom to pursue their life’s goals is more important than guaranteeing that no one is in need. Only 43% of Canadians and even fewer Europeans agree.
Language
Although the United States does not have an official language, the most commonly used language is English which is the de -facto national language. Many other languages are also spoken in the United States, especially Spanish. While the majority of Americans speak English, 21.6% of Americans speak a language other than English at home. 13% identified Spanish as their primary language followed by Chinese and Tagalog.
Under the Official Languages Act of 1969, both English and French have official federal status throughout Canada - all government services, including the courts, and all federal legislation are bilingual. English and French are the primary languages of 56% and 21% of Canadians respectively. In total 86% of Canadians have working knowledge of English while 30% have a working knowledge of French. Most French speaking Canadians live in Quebec.
Religion
Christianity is the largest religion in the United States with the various Protestant Churches having the most adherents. In 2019, Christians represented 65% of the total adult U.S. population, 43% identified as Protestants, 20% as Catholics, and 2% as Mormons. People with no formal religious identity comprised 26% of the total population in 2019. Judaism is the second-largest religion in the U.S., practiced by 2% of the population, followed by Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism with about 1% each one. Participation in organized religion varies significantly by region: the most religious State (with the highest number of people attending services weekly) is Mississippi. The least religious state is New Hampshire.
Christianity is also the largest religion in Canada, with Roman Catholics having the most adherents. Christians, represented about 67.3% of the population in 2011 and were followed by the 23.9% of the total population which identifies with no religious practice. Other faiths include: Muslims (3.2%), Hindus (1.5%), Sikhs (1.4%), Buddhists (1.1%), and Jews (1.0%). Rates of religious adherence are steadily decreasing. The preamble to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms does refer to God. And the Queen carries the title of "Defender of the Faith". However, Canada has no official religion, and support for religious pluralism and freedom of religion is an important part of Canada's political culture.
Food
America is a country of immigrants. Our food culture reflects that diversity. If you are from the West Coast, Sushi and Mexican foods are staples. But then again it might be Pho or Pad Thai you crave. If you are from the Southwest, Tex Mex may be your go to comfort food. In Louisiana, you might need a fix of Cajun Food.
Canada is also a country of immigrants. Indigenous cuisine has found its way into common Canadian meals: bannock, moose, deer, bison, pemmican, maple taffy, and Métis stews such as barley stew all can be credited to the cuisine of the First Nations. Canadian Chinese food restaurants can be found in almost every Canadian city. In the Maritimes the cuisine is heavily influenced by Irish, English, and Acadian immigrants. Seafood is a mainstay of Maritime cooking. Montreal is home to one of the oldest Jewish populations in Canada, meaning that its fare is heavily influenced by Jewish cuisine. And the cuisine of the Canadian prairies is primarily influenced by Ukrainian, German, and Polish food thanks to a surge in settlers between 1891 and 1914.
Learn More
An irreverent look at "What Canadians Would Really Like to Say to Americans"
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