Thirty-nine per cent of Canadians believe Canadian citizens should not be allowed to simultaneously hold citizenship in another country, according to a new poll released by the Dominion Institute.

But the survey of 3,164 Canadians, conducted by Ipsos Reid, found that attitudes toward dual citizenship changed with age. For example, only a quarter of Canadians in the 18 to 34 range were against the concept, compared with 50 per cent of Canadians aged 55 and older.

Breaking it down by province, Albertans were most opposed, with 43 per cent against dual citizenship. British Columbians were least opposed, at 33 per cent.

Rudyard Griffiths, co-founder of the Dominion Institute, said the question about dual citizenship was prompted by the controversy over the evacuation of Canadians from Lebanon during the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict last summer. There were complaints that the costly evacuation included passport holders who had not lived in Canada for years.

As well, there has been some controversy over Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion's dual Canadian-French citizenship.

"We just wanted to get a pulse on where Canadians were at on this issue," Griffiths said. "I think four out of 10 was higher than I thought."

But Griffiths suggested it might not be as big an issue in the future, considering 75 per cent of people in the 18 to 34 range weren't bothered by dual citizenship.

What Griffiths did find disturbing was that around 30 per cent of Canadians say part of what makes Canada successful is the lack of a strong national identity.

The older generation seems to have a more traditional view of Canadian citizenship than younger people, who have a more "post-modern take" and believe lack of identity may be an asset for the country, he said.

Maple Leaf top Canadian symbol

The poll also looked at "quintessential" Canadian symbols. The survey found that 87 per cent of Canadians feel they are attached to the Maple Leaf, followed by the beaver (74 per cent), hockey (73 per cent,) and the Mountie (72 per cent).

Around 39 per cent of Canadians surveyed said they feel attached to the canoe and about a third felt strongly or somewhat attached to the Tim Hortons Timbit.

The poll also found that around four out of 10 Canadians said they first identify with Canada rather than any other geographic locale. Quebecers and Atlantic Canadians were more likely to identify closely with their provinces than with Canada.

Around 42 per cent of Quebecers said that they most closely associate with their province. Twenty per cent of Quebecers said they, first and foremost, belong to Canada.

Atlantic Canadians are similar, with 37 per cent indicating that they most closely belong to their province or region, compared with 31 per cent who were most likely to say they belong to Canada.

The survey was conducted from June 14 to 17. A randomly selected sample of 3,164 adults was interviewed online.

The results are considered accurate to within plus or minus 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.