Montréal

Montreal is the principal and largest city in Quebec. A large island metropolis and port on the St. Lawrence River, at the foot of the Lachine Rapids, it is Canada's second-largest city (with 2,200,807 inhabitants in 2024), after Toronto, and the largest French-speaking city in the Americas. Its urban area, the Montreal Metropolitan Area, is home to nearly 4.3 million inhabitants, or about half of Quebec's population. Montreal is one of North America's major metropolitan areas and a major hub of finance, knowledge, culture, and aeronautics. It is often considered one of North America's finest cultural cities. Montreal is home to the International Civil Aviation Organization, the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the World Anti-Doping Agency. The city takes its name from Mount Royal, which overlooks the city's financial and historic centers, both located in the Ville-Marie borough. Montreal is divided into 19 boroughs that cover three-quarters of the Island of Montreal, the largest in the Hochelaga Archipelago, as well as Île Bizard, Île des Sœurs, and Île Sainte-Hélène and Île Notre-Dame. There are over 1.8 million residents within its municipal boundaries. French, the official language of government, is spoken by the majority of the population. However, English and other languages ​​also play a significant role; half of Montrealers are bilingual and nearly a quarter are trilingual.

The economic, commercial, and financial heart of Quebec, the city has over 400 head offices and numerous industrial clusters. Considered the world's "best student city" by international rankings, often tied with Vienna and Melbourne, and the "university metropolis of Canada" with six universities and 450 research centers, Montreal is also a major cultural center for video games, film, and design. The city's public transportation system, including a metro, is one of the most efficient, fastest, and punctual in North America. Montreal-Trudeau International Airport welcomes over 21 million passengers annually. The Montreal region is the gateway for immigration to Quebec. More than 70% of foreign-born residents of Quebec live here.

Host of the 1967 World's Fair and the 1976 Summer Olympics, Montreal annually hosts the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix and numerous festivals, such as the International Jazz Festival, the Francos, and Just for Laughs. The Canadiens are the oldest continuously active hockey team in the world.

Montreal is considered a global city.