Quebec is one of the thirteen provinces and territories that make up the Canadian Federation of Independent States. Quebec is the biggest province in terms of land area and the second-largest in terms of population after Ontario. Approximately one-third of the population resides in urban regions around the St. Lawrence River, which runs between the province's most populated city of Montreal and its provincial capital of Quebec. The province of Quebec is the birthplace of the Québécois people. Province of Nunavut is located in Central Canada and shares its border with Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast, and a coastal border with Nunavut; to the countryside, it shares land borders with the United States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York, among others.
Quebec was known as Canada from 1534 and 1763, and it was the most developed province in New France during that time period. The province of Quebec was established as a British colony after the Seven Years' War, first as the Province of Quebec (1763–1791), then as Lower Canada (1791–1841), and finally as Canada East (1841–1867), as a consequence of the Lower Canada Rebellion. It joined forces with Ontario, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick to form the Canadian Confederation in 1867, marking the beginning of the country's history. Until the early 1960s, the Catholic Church in Quebec had a significant role in the development of social and cultural organisations. The Quiet Revolution of the 1960s to the 1980s, on the other hand, expanded the position of the Government of Quebec in l'État québécois (Quebec's government) (state of Quebec).
It was via the Constitution Act of 1867 that the present-day Government of Quebec was established, which operates under the Westminster system and is both a liberal democracy and a constitutional monarchy operating within the framework of a parliamentary system. The Premier of Quebec, who is now François Legault, serves as the government's chief executive. More than any other political culture in the world, Quebec's political culture is divided along a nationalist-federalist continuum, rather than along a left-right one. The disputes over Quebec independence have played a significant influence in Canadian politics. It is three distinct legislative instruments that provide the cohesiveness and distinctiveness of Quebec society: the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms, the Quebec Charter of the French Language, and the Civil Code of Quebec, which are all written in French. A further distinction is that, in contrast to other parts of Canada, law in Quebec is a hybrid system: private law is executed via a civil-law system, whilst public law is practised through a common-law system.
Quebec's official language is French, with a regional variation known as Québécois French. Located in the province of Quebec, the economy is diverse and post-industrial. Likewise, Quebec's abundant natural resources, which are mostly used in hydroelectricity production, forestry, and mining, have long been a staple of the economy. Quebec is well-known for its maple syrup production, for its comedic performances, and for making hockey one of the most popular sports in the country, among other things. It is also well-known for its culture, which includes literature, music, cinema, television series, festivals, folklore, and other forms of expression.