Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba. It is located near the longitudinal center of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers. Winnipeg's metropolitan area is home to around 730,000 people, which accounts for about 60% of the province's total population. It is easily the primate city of Manitoba.
The name Winnipeg comes from the Western Cree words for "muddy waters". The region was a trading center for aboriginal peoples before the arrival of Europeans. French traders built the first fort on the site in 1738. A settlement was later founded by the Selkirk settlers in 1812, the nucleus of which was incorporated as the City of Winnipeg in 1873. As of 2011, Winnipeg is the seventh most populated municipality in Canada.
Known as the "Gateway to the West", Winnipeg is a railway and transportation hub with a diversified economy.
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