Group of Seven, G7, G8, G20

The phrase Group of Seven has two meanings.

Canadian art

A group of Canadian painters active in the 1920s and 1930s is known as the Group of Seven.

• Tom Thomson was not a member of the Group of Seven, but was closely associated with them.

Global economy

The group of seven industrialized nations that was founded in 1975 to address issues affecting the global economy is also known as the Group of Seven, or the G7. The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

• Finance ministers of the G7 (or Group of Seven) held emergency talks in the wake of the unfolding economic crisis.

When Russia joined the group in 1998, it became known as the Group of Eight, or the G8; but Russia’s membership was suspended in 2014, following Russian annexation of the Crimea.

A larger group, consisting of the European Union and 19 industrialized nations, is known as the Group of Twenty, or the G20.

The G20 held its first meeting in December 1999 in Berlin.

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