Maple leaf

Maple Leaf

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Maple leaf

The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf

Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
of the maple tree, and is one of the most widely recognized national symbols of Canada

National symbols of Canada

National symbols of Canada are the symbols that are used in Canada and abroad to national symbol. Prominently, the use of the maple leaf as a Canadian symbol dates back to the early 18th century, and is depicted on its Flag of Canada and Red Ensign flags, the penny , and on the Coat of arms of Canada....
.

At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the settlements of New France

New France

The Viceroyalty of New France was the area French colonization of the Americas by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River, by Jacques Cartier in 1534, to the cession of New France to Spain and Kingdom of Great Britain in 1763....
had attained a population of about 18,000. Also by this time, the maple leaf had been adopted as an emblem by the Canadiens along the Saint Lawrence River

Saint Lawrence River

Saint Lawrence River is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean....
.

Its popularity with French Canadians continued, and was reinforced when, at the inaugural meeting of the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste in 1834, the maple leaf was one of numerous emblems proposed to represent the society.

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The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf

Leaf

National symbols of Canada

New France

Saint Lawrence River

Jacques Viger

Jacques Viger was an antiquarian, archaeologist, and the first mayor of the Canada city of Montreal, Quebec.Viger was born in Montreal, the son of Jacques Viger who represented Kent in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada, and studied at the Sulpician college of Montreal....
, the first mayor of Montreal

Montreal

Montreal, or Montr?al, is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada of Quebec and the List of largest cities and second largest cities by country List of the 100 largest municipalities in Canada by population....
, described the maple as "the king of our forest; ... the symbol of the Canadian people."

showing a sprig of three maple leaves as part of the design.]] , featuring a stylized maple leaf in the centre.]] The maple leaf slowly caught on as a national symbol: in 1868, it was included in the coat of arms

Coat of arms

A coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by them in a wide variety of ways....
of both Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a Provinces and territories of Canada located in the Central Canada part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest, after Quebec, in total area....
and Quebec

Quebec

Quebec , in French language, Qu?bec , is a Provinces and territories of Canada in the Central Canada and Eastern Canada regions of Canada....
, and was added to the Canadian coat of arms in 1921. In 1867, Alexander Muir

Alexander Muir

Alexander Muir was a songwriter, poet and school headmaster. A childhood immigrant to Canada from his native Scotland, he grew up in Toronto, Ontario, and studied at Queen's University, where he graduated in 1851....
composed the patriotic "The Maple Leaf Forever

The Maple Leaf Forever

"The Maple Leaf Forever" is a Canadian song written by Alexander Muir in 1867, the year of Canada's Canadian Confederation.Muir was said to have been inspired to write this song by a huge maple tree which stood on his property: Maple Cottage, a house at Memory Lane and Laing Street in Toronto....
," which became an unofficial anthem

Anthem

The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem"....
in English-speaking Canada. From 1876 until 1901, the leaf appeared on all Canadian coins, and remained on the penny

Penny

A penny is a coin or a unit of currency used in several English-speaking countries....
after 1901. During the First World War, badges of the Canadian Expeditionary Force

Canadian Expeditionary Force

For the organisation that fought in Europe, see Canadian Corps.The Canadian Expeditionary warfare was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War....
were often based on a maple leaf design. The use of the maple leaf as a regimental symbol

Regimental symbol

A regimental symbol is a distinguishing emblem used by soldiers during times of war. Usually, it is some easily identifible icon that can be displayed on uniforms, vehicles, and buildings to alert others of the nationality of the respective military force....
extended back to the 1800s, and Canadian soldiers in the Second Boer War

Second Boer War

The Second Boer War , commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War , the Anglo-Boer War and in Afrikaans as the Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog , was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902, between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics of the Orange Fre...
were distinguished by a maple leaf on their sun helmets.

The maple leaf finally became the central national symbol with the introduction of the Canadian flag (designed by George F. G. Stanley

George Stanley

Colonel George Francis Gillman Stanley, Order of Canada, Canadian Forces Decoration, Royal Society of Canada, Royal Heraldry Society of Canada was a historian, author, soldier, teacher, public servant, and designer of the current Canadian flag....
) in 1965, which uses a highly-stylized eleven-pointed maple leaf, referring to no specific species of maple. Earlier official uses of a maple leaf design often used over 30 points and a short stem. The one chosen is a generic maple leaf representing the ten species of maple tree native to Canada—at least one of these species grows natively in every province. The maple leaf is currently used on the Canadian flag

Flag of Canada

The 'National Flag of Canada', also known as the 'Maple Leaf', and , is a red flag with a white square in its centre, had been officially adopted in Canada to replace the Union Flag....
, logos of various Canadian based companies and the logos of Canadian sports teams. Examples include Air Canada

Air Canada

Air Canada is Canada's largest airline and flag carrier. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transportation for passengers and cargo to 160 destinations worldwide....
, the Toronto Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League ....
NHL franchise and the Toronto FC

Toronto FC

Toronto FC is a Canada professional football club located in Toronto, Ontario and the first non-American team in Major League Soccer . The club was founded in 2006, is owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment and plays its home games at BMO Field....
soccer club.

Since 1979, the Royal Canadian Mint

Royal Canadian Mint

The Royal Canadian Mint produces all of Canada's circulation coins, and manufactures circulation coins on behalf of other nations. The mint also designs and manufactures: collector coins; gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bullion coins; customized medals, token s, trade dollar watches, and, for a brief time, high end jewellery featurin...
has produced gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and atomic number 79. It is a highly sought-after precious metal, having been used as money, as a store of value, in jewelry, in sculpture, and for ornamentation since the beginning of recorded history....
, silver

Silver

Silver is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal....
, platinum

Platinum

Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is in Group 10 of the periodic table of elements....
, and palladium

Palladium

Palladium is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal that was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, who named it palladium after the 2 Pallas, which in turn, was named after the epithet of the Greek mythology goddess Athena, acquired by her when she slew Athena#Pallas_Athena....
bullion coin

Coin

A coin is a piece of hard material, usually metal or a metallic material, usually in the shape of a Disk , and most often issued by a government....
s, which are officially known as Maple Leafs, as geometric maple leaves are stamped on them.

The U.S. city of Carthage, Missouri

Carthage, Missouri

Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Missouri, United States. The population was 12,668 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County, Missouri and is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City."...
is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City."

The mascot of Goshen College

Goshen College

Goshen College, is a private Mennonite liberal arts college in Goshen, Indiana, USA with an enrollment of around 1,000 students. The college is school accreditation by North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities....
in Goshen, Indiana

Goshen, Indiana

Goshen is a city located in Elkhart County, Indiana, Indiana, United States. It is the smaller of the two principal cities of the Elkhart-Goshen Metropolitan Statistical Area, which in turn is part of the South Bend-Elkhart-Mishawaka Combined Statistical Area....
is the Maple Leaf and the nickname for Goshen College

Goshen College

Sammatti

Sammatti is a List of former municipalities of Finland of Finland. It was consolidated with the city of Lohja in the beginning of 2009.It is located in the provinces of Finland of Southern Finland and is part of the Uusimaa regions of Finland....
, Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland , is a Nordic countries situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It borders Sweden on the west, Russia on the east, and Norway on the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland....
.

Maple leaf

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