From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
See also: 1996 in Canada, other events of 1997, 1998 in Canada and the list of 'years in Canada'.
Incumbents
- Prime Minister - Jean Chretien
- Governor General - Romeo LeBlanc
- Premier of Alberta - Ralph Klein
- Premier of British Columbia - Glen Clark
- Premier of Manitoba - Gary Filmon
- Premier of New Brunswick - Frank McKenna then Raymond Frenette
- Premier of Newfoundland - Brian Tobin
- Premier of Nova Scotia - John Savage then Russell MacLellan
- Premier of Ontario - Mike Harris
- Premier of Prince Edward Island - Pat Bins
- Premier of Quebec - Lucien Bouchard
- Premier of Saskatchewan - Roy Romanow
Events
- January 4 - The Federal Government makes it much harder to obtain unemployment insurance
- February 7 - Lennox Lewis becomes heavyweight champion
- February 7 - Sarah McLachlan marries Ashwin Sood
- February 14 - Newsprint giants Abitibi-Price and Stone-Consolidated announce they are merging
- March 6 - A new rigourou anti-tobacco advertising law is passed
- March 11 - Alberta election: Ralph Klein's PCs win an eighth consecutive majority
- March 15 - Gilles Duceppe is elected leader of the Bloc Quebecois
- March 19 - Bre-X geologist Michael de Guzman jumps or is pushed from a helicopter in Indonesia
- March 21 - Nova Scotia Premier John Savage announces his resignation
- April 22 - Massive flooding of hte Red River in Manitoba leads to a state of emergency
- May 31 - Confederation Bridge opens
- June 2 - Federal election: Jean Chrétien's Liberals win a second consecutive majority, the Reform Party becomes the Official Opposition
- June 18 - The CRTC introduces a television rating system
- July 2 - The Somalia Inquiry is disbanded prematurely
- July 9 - Danielle House forced to give up her Miss Canada title after pleading guilty to assault
- July 18 - Russell MacLellan becomes the new Premier of Nova Scotia.
- July 30 - Phil Fontaine elected head of the Assembly of First Nations
- August 7 - Bjarni Tryggvason flies aboard the Space Shuttle
- September 2 - Newfoundlanders vote to do away with their religion based school systems
- September 3 - One is killed in a Saskatchewan train derailment
- September 25 - Chris Jericho is inducted into the Canadian Wrestling Hall Of Fame
- October 1 - Michel Bastarache is appointed to the Supreme Court
- October 2 - Canada recalls its abassador to Israel after Mossad uses forged Canadian passports
- October 7 - An out-of-court settlement is reached between Brian Mulroney and the federal government regarding the Airbus affair
- October 13 - Raymond Frenette becomes premier of New Brunswick, replacing Frank McKenna
- October 13 - 43 are killed in Canada's worst ever traffic accident as a tour bus falls off a cliff
- October 26 - Jacques Villeneuve becomes the first Canadian to capture a world racing title
- October 27-November 10 - A teachers strike hits Ontario
- November 3 - Canada destroys the last land mines in its arsenal
- November 9 - The scandal wracked Saskatchewan Conservative Party is mothballed
- November 14 - Fourteen year old Reena Virk is beaten to death by classmates in Victoria, BC
- November 16 - The Toronto Argonauts win the Grey Cup
- November 17 - The Hibernia oil project pumps its first barrel of oil
- November 21-November 25 - The APEC summit is held in Vancouver. COntroversy arrises when RCMP use force and pepper spray to remove protestors.
- The Calgary Declaration from the premiers, except Lucien Bouchard
- A second Sacred Assembly is held but issues no proclamation
Arts and literature
- New Books
- Timothy Findley - You Went Away
- Giller Prize for Canadian Fiction: Mordecai Richler - Barney's Version
- See 1997 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
- Books in Canada First Novel Award: Anne Michaels, Fugitive Pieces
- Geoffrey Bilson Award: Janet McNaughton, To Dance at the Palais Royale
- Gerald Lampert Award: Marilyn Dumont, A Really Good Brown Girl
- Marian Engel Award: Katherine Govier
- Pat Lowther Award: Marilyn Bowering, Autobiography
- Stephen Leacock Award: Arthur Black, Black in the Saddle Again
- Trillium Book Award English: Dionne Brand, Land to Light On
- Trillium Book Award French: Roger Levac, Petite Crapaude!
- Vicky Metcalf Award: Tim Wynne-Jones
- Atom Egoyan's The Sweet Hereafter is released, it is nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director
- The Arrow, a mini-series about the Avro Arrow shows plays to gret popularity and accliam and the CBC
- Oscar Peterson receives a Grammy for life time achievement.
Births
Deaths
