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Canadian editors are in a dictionary dispute with the Carney government.
Driving the news: Editors Canada, a professional association of Canadian editors and linguists, sent an open letter to Mark Carney asking the PM to use Canadian English spelling in federal documents, instead of the similar, but pointedly different, British English spelling.
The letter highlighted examples in the recent federal budget where British spellings were used for words like “utilisation” and “catalyse” — note the ‘s’ instead of a ‘z’.
Catch-up: Canadian English is a hodgepodge, developed by taking spellings from both our colonial motherland and our next-door neighbour. This is why we spell colour with a ‘u’ and centre with an ‘re,’ as the Brits do. But it’s also why we use “encyclopedia” and “jail” like the Yanks instead of the British versions “encyclopaedia” and “gaol” (which is a horrific spelling).
In 1890, Canada’s first PM, Sir John A. MacDonald, ordered British spelling to be used in government documents. However, Canada’s unique spelling (and American influence) could not be suppressed, and Canadian English has been the federal standard since the 1970s.
Why it matters: The change is reportedly a direct order from Carney, an Oxford grad who is married to a Brit and governed the Bank of England. The potential rationale might be to remove U.S. influence, but this presupposes that being more British is somehow the same as being more Canadian.
Our take: Editors Canada argues that the weird quirks in Canadian spelling aren’t a sign of American dominance, but a wholly unique signifier that is all Canada’s own. We’re inclined to agree.—QH