There’s a civilization north of the American border. Even among those who know of it, this “Canada” tends to be enigmatic. It is a place bigger by land mass than any country in the world apart from Russia and with a population smaller than Yemen’s, a place where the primary language is English but also French, and a place where people are uncommonly polite and friendly yet incongruously fierce and violent — when they play ice hockey.

Canada has occupied more of the American public imagination recently than it has typically. One reason is that Donald Trump is again the president of the United States, and as part of his opening act for the 47th presidency, he’s launched a trade war with Canada, along with Mexico and China. Unlike Mexico and China, however, Trump has given Canada the special attention of suggesting repeatedly that he’d like to annex it into the U.S. as a giant “51st state.” He even now refers to the country’s prime minister as “Gov. Trudeau.”