Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta, situated in the central region of the province, an area with some of the most fertile farm land on the prairies. It is the second largest city in Alberta and is the hub of the country's sixth largest Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) with a population of 1,016,000 (2005 est.). A resident of Edmonton is known as an Edmontonian.

At 684 km2, Edmonton has a large city boundary— larger in area than Chicago, Illinois, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Toronto, Ontario, and Montreal, Quebec. It must be noted that the 684 km2 is measured from the border of the city limits and not the actual extent of the built up area of the city. Edmonton also has the one of the lowest population densities in North America — about 67 times less than New York.