Culture in Toronto

Toronto is the largest city in Canada and one of the most multicultural cities in the world. Many immigrant cultures have brought their traditions languages and music to Toronto. Toronto, the capital of the province of Ontario, is a major Canadian city along Lake Ontario's northwestern shore. It's a dynamic metropolis with a core of soaring skyscrapers, all dwarfed by the iconic, free-standing CN Tower. Toronto also has many green spaces, from the orderly oval of Queen's Park to 400-acre High Park and its trails, sports facilities and zoo.

Toronto is a business-minded, conscientious, socially progressive, and pluralistic city. It is a city of many museums, theatres, festival events and sports activities. The city features many distinctive neighbourhoods bustling with activity and vitality. Many of these neighbourhoods were originally built as streetcar suburbs in the past and are still vibrant today. This is partially because of an influx of residents in the downtown caused by a large amount of new condominium construction in the city since the mid 2000s.^[1]

Toronto is one of the few cities in North America to retain its historic streetcar lines. These streetcars are not touristic streetcars, but are an integral part of the transit system. This streetcar network crisscrosses the downtown area and some of the suburban parts of the city as well. The city also features many unique neighbourhoods. These include the largest collection of Victorian-era industrial architecture in North America (a legacy from Toronto's past as a major whisky distilling centre), the largest urban car-free community in North America, and the bohemian heart of the city, Kensington Market.

The city features a number of notable, internationally known festivals. The city is home to the Toronto International Film Festival, one of the largest and most prestigious events of its kind in the world.^[2] It is also home to the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, the largest documentary festival in North America. The Scotiabank CONTACT photography festival, one of the largest photography festivals in the world, showcases notable photographs from throughout the world.^[3] The Toronto International Festival of Authors welcomes authors from throughout the world to promote interest and enthusiasm in writing and reading on both a local and international level. Another notable festival beloved by Torontonians and tourists alike is Caribana, a Caribbean culture festival billed as the largest street festival in North America. The city also features one of the largest public library systems in the world and unique museums such as the Bata Shoe Museum, the Aga Khan Museum, and the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The city is the third-largest film and television production centre in North America, after Los Angeles and New York, and has the third-largest English language theatre district in the world, after New York and London.^[4][5] Successful television shows shot or set in the city and surrounding areas include Kim's Convenience, Schitt's Creek, SCTV, Kids in the Hall, Orphan Black, and the Degrassi franchise. The city is also home to the OVO Sound recording company. A few famous music artists that have emerged from the city or its suburbs include Peaches, Rush, Drake, Jessie Reyez, Shawn Mendes, Alessia Cara, Tory Lanez and The Weeknd.

Dishes that originated in the city or that are unique to it include Peameal bacon, Peameal bacon sandwiches, East Indian rotis, Toronto-style pizza, sushi pizza, and many unique fusion cuisine dishes.^[6]