Cold Lake is a city in northeastern Alberta, Canada and is named after the lake nearby. Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake (CFB Cold Lake) is situated within the city's outer limits. History Cold Lake was first recorded on a 1790 map, by the name of Coldwater Lake. Originally three communities, Cold Lake was formed by merging the Town of Grand Centre, the Town of Cold Lake, and Medley (Canadian Forces Base 4 Wing) on October 1, 1996. Grand Centre was renamed Cold Lake South, and the original Cold Lake is known as Cold Lake North. Because of its origins, the area is also known as the Tri-Town. Geography The city is situated in Alberta's "Lakeland" district, northeast of Edmonton, near the Alberta-Saskatchewan provincial border. The area surrounding the city is sparsely populated, and consists mostly of farmland. Climate Cold Lake's climate is humid continental (Köppen climate classification Dfb). Summers are generally warm with cool nights, and winters are very cold with moderate snowfall. Demographics The population of the City of Cold Lake according to its 2022 municipal census is 16,302, a change of from its 2014 municipal census population of 15.736. In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the City of Cold Lake had a population of 15,661 living in 6,114 of its 6,767 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 14,976. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the City of Cold Lake had a population of 14,961 living in 5,597 of its 6,657 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 13,839. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016. About 8.7% of residents identified themselves as aboriginal at the time of the 2006 census. Almost 89% of residents identified English and more than 7% identified French as their first language. Almost 1% identified German, 0.5% identified Chinese, 0.4% each identified Dutch and Ukrainian, and 0.3% each identified Cree and Arabic as their first language learned. About 82 percent of residents identified as Christian at the time of the 2001 census, while more than 17 percent indicated they had no religious affiliation. For specific denominations Statistics Canada found that 40% of residents identified as Roman Catholic, 14% identified with the United Church of Canada, 5.5%