Anthem-singing stokes patriotism, Canadian survey finds

Anthem-singing stokes patriotism, Canadian survey finds

Whether mumbling half-remembered lyrics or giving it the full-throated rendition, a clear majority of Canadians responding to a cross-country survey say they feel a swelling of pride whenever they sing the national anthem — something many will have a chance to do this Canada Day weekend.
But citizens are considerably less likely to display their love of country on shirts and hats, according to the web-panel poll of 1,500 people commissioned by the Montreal-based Association for Canadian Studies and carried out June 10-12 by the firm Leger Marketing.
About 75 per cent of the population gets a surge of patriotic feeling when warbling O Canada. And a “slight majority” of 53 per cent of Quebec residents expressed pride in singing the 133-year-old national song, which was composed in 1880 by Quebec musician Calixa Lavallee but only officially named Canada’s anthem in 1980.