Across the globe, us Canadians are known for a few things; hockey, the use of “eh,” our tolerance of the cold and, of course, our politeness.
It may come as a surprise that some of Canada’s rudest cities are right here in Ontario… and the rudest one is in York Region.
Preply, an online learning platform, surveyed more than 1,500 residents of 44 major cities in Canada between July 24 and 28 to try to pinpoint where the rudest and politest cities in the country lay and Vaughan took the crown.
"I've lived in Vaughan for close to 40 years, and I've always found our community to be caring, generous and home to hard-working families who look out for one another,” Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca told NewmarketToday. "While we are always looking for ways to grow stronger and we are open to feedback, there is no doubt that Vaughan is one of Canada's most dynamic, exciting and fastest growing cities."
So how did Preply’s study lead to Vaughan being named Canada’s rudest city? Well, factors that came into play were where people are most absorbed by their phones, where drivers refuse to let people merge in traffic and where people are noisy in shared spaces.
“Canadians have garnered the stereotype of being exceedingly polite. Known for their welcoming attitude and over-apologizing, politeness is seen as a cultural norm,” the study said. “But is this representation just a myth? And where in Canada breaks this stereotype?”
To figure it out, they asked Canadians about the rudeness they witness in their cities. Once the data was collected, it was curated to determine which cities are the rudest and most polite on a scale of one to 10 (10 being the rudest).
Vaughan sits atop the rudeness ranking with an 8.05 followed by Coquitlam, British Columbia (7.85); Brampton, Ontario (7.05); Surrey, British Columbia (6.91); Windsor, Ontario (6.88); Thunder Bay, Ontario (6.71); Regina, Saskatchewan (6.54); Edmonton, Alberta (6.54); Sudbury (6.41), Ontario; and Winnipeg, Manitoba (6.24).
The most common rude behaviours in Canada include being absorbed by your phone in public, being noisy in public, not letting people merge in traffic, not slowing down when driving near pedestrians, and not picking up dog feces.
“Home to many commuters, Vaughan has become somewhat of a hub for traffic,” the study said. “This may be part of the reason why residents have become frustrated and why you’re more likely to encounter people who won’t wave a thank you if you let them merge here than anywhere else. Vaughan’s neighbouring city, Brampton, likely makes it into the top three for similar reasons.”
While there are ruder cities than others, Canada being known for its politeness carries weight with 83 per cent of Canadians agreeing with the stereotype.
And just about 20 kilometres from Vaughan, Markham was named the politest city in Canada.
“People (in Vaughan) were almost three times as rude as people in the least rude city, Markham,” the study said.
Markham led the way with a score of 2.91 followed by Saguenay, Québec (3.87); Cape Breton, Nova Scotia (3.88); Chatham-Kent, Ontario (3.93); Lévis, Québec (4.24); Québec City (4.33); St. Catharines, Ontario (4.36); Oakville, Ontario (4.46); Kingston, Ontario (4.53); and London, Ontario (4.55).
“In the top spot is Markam, Canada’s most diverse community,” the study said. “Markham’s cultural richness and varied residents may contribute to them being the most tolerable and polite, unlike some of the other cities in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).”
In terms of rudest cities in the GTA, Richmond Hill joined Vaughan in the top five with a score of 4.89 with Brampton, Toronto, and Mississauga sandwiched between them.
Key findings within the data included that over four in five Canadians agree with the stereotype that Canadians are polite; Canadians swear nine times per day on average, but Burlingtonians swear the most (15 times per day); and on average, Canadians apologize nine times per day.
“While our study may have outlined some cities that are ruder than others, it’s important to note that overall, Canadians are relatively polite in public,” the study said. “With an average rudeness score of 5.41 on our scale of one to ten and a strong tendency to apologize, Canada’s reputation still rings true.”
Read the study here.
