We have a canada running through our property on Pico. It's a footpath running from the rua up the side of the hill to allow access to the various terraces which are land-locked. Canadas started as footpaths, whether providing access to terraces above, cutting through a woods, or leading to someone’s house from one of the “caminhos,” which were more used roads within and between towns. To identify where someone lived or something was, villagers gave names to many of the canadas. Over time, some of the canadas got widened so a cart could get through and some got gravel put on them. Outside of the established cities such as Ponta Delgada, Angra, Horta, and a few others, most Azorean roads had only popular names the locals used until the second half of the 20th century, when "official" names came into being. Some canadas became newly-named roads that kept the word "canada" in their names, but often these new roads were given names honoring various individuals. Thus, a canada name that appears on an old birth, marriage, or death registration may no longer exist by that name—if it exists at all today. Sometimes, oldtimers remember where a certain canada used to be or what name a current road popularly had in the past. As a result, a canada can be a nameless footpath but today it could also be a back alley or a minor road in a town.
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