A city of southern Quebec, Canada, on Montreal Island in the St. Lawrence River. Named after Mount Royal, a hill at its center, it was founded by the French as Ville Marie de Montréal in 1642 and grew rapidly as a fur-trading center and starting point for western exploration. The English captured the city in 1760. Today Montreal is a major Canadian port and a cultural, commercial, and industrial hub. Population: 1,620,000.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
