Joie de vivre—or “joy of living” in its English translation—is a phrase used to express an enthusiastic, buoyant enjoyment of life. In use in France since the late 17th century, the term was chronicled by Émile Zola in his 1883 novel, La Joie de vivre. Since then, joie de vivre has evolved into something approaching a secular religion in the French-speaking world, but it’s the Canadians who have taken the idea most to heart to describe their national temperament.