The explorer Jacques Cartier, known for exploring the St. Lawrence River and naming Canada, was from:

Jacques Cartier (1491-1557) was a French explorer, from Saint-Malo in Brittany, France.

About Jacques Cartier:

• He made three voyages to North America for King Francis I of France, in 1534, 1535-1536 and 1541-1542.
• He was looking for a north-west passage to Asia and for gold and spices.

First voyage (1534): he explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence and landed on the Gaspe Peninsula, where he planted a cross and claimed the land for France.

Second voyage (1535-1536): he sailed up the St. Lawrence River and reached the Iroquoian villages of "Stadacona" (present-day Quebec City) and "Hochelaga" (present-day Montreal). He named the mountain there "Mont Royal", from which Montreal gets its name.

He is credited with giving the name "Canada" to the region. He used the word "kanata", an Iroquoian word meaning "village" or "settlement", to refer to the area around Stadacona.

He is considered the first European to describe and map the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the St. Lawrence River.

His exploration laid the basis for France's later claims to the region, which became "New France".

Later French exploration and settlement:

• Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec City in 1608 and is called the "Father of New France".
• France lost most of its North American territories to Britain after the Seven Years' War (Treaty of Paris, 1763).
• French is still the main language in the Canadian province of Quebec, and Canada is officially bilingual (English and French).

Other famous explorers:

• Christopher Columbus (Italian, sailing for Spain): reached the Americas in 1492.
• Vasco da Gama (Portugal): first to reach India by sea, at Calicut (Kappad), in 1498.
• John Cabot (Italian, sailing for England): reached Newfoundland in 1497.
• Ferdinand Magellan (Portugal, sailing for Spain): led the first expedition to circumnavigate the Earth (1519-1522).
• Henry Hudson (England): explored the Hudson river and Hudson Bay.

About Canada:

• Its capital is Ottawa.
• It is the second-largest country in the world by area.
• Its national symbol is the maple leaf.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Spain sponsored explorers such as Columbus and Magellan.
• ✗Portugal was the home of Vasco da Gama and Magellan.
• ✗England sponsored explorers such as John Cabot and Henry Hudson.