- Languages of Canada
-
A multitude of languages are used in Canada. According to the 2006 census, English and French are the mother tongues of 58.8% and 23.2% of Canadians respectively. New Brunswick is the only Canadian province that has both English and French as its official languages. Quebec's official language is French.[4][5] English and French are recognized by the Constitution of Canada as "official languages." This means that all laws of the federal government are enacted in both English and French and that federal government services must be available in both languages.
Many Canadians believe that the relationship between the English and French languages is the central or defining aspect of the Canadian experience. Canada's Official Languages Commissioner (the federal government official charged with monitoring the two languages) has stated, "[I]n the same way that race is at the core of what it means to be American and at the core of an American experience and class is at the core of British experience, I think that language is at the core of Canadian experience."[6]
To assist in more accurately monitoring the two official languages, Canada's census collects a number of demolinguistic descriptors not enumerated in the censuses of most other countries, including home language, mother tongue, first official language and language of work.
Canada’s linguistic diversity extends beyond the two official languages. About 18% of Canadians (roughly 6.1 million people, most of whom are first-generation immigrants) have a language other than English or French as their first language or mother tongue.[7] Nearly 3.5 million Canadians continue to use a non-official language most often, when in home or social settings.[8]
Canada is also home to many indigenous languages. Taken together, these are spoken by less than one percent of the population, and are mostly in decline[citation needed].
Contents
- 1 Geographic distribution
- 2 The two official languages
- 3 Non-official languages that are unique to Canada
- 4 Official bilingualism
- 5 See also
- 6 Notes
- 7 Further reading
- 8 Notes
- 9 External links
Geographic distribution
The following table details the population of each province and territory, with summary national totals, by language spoken most often in the home (“Home language”).
Province/Territory Total population English % French % Other languages % Official Language(s) 
Ontario12,028,895 9,789,937 81.4% 304,727 2.5% 1,934,235 16.1% English (de facto), French (de jure) 
Quebec7,435,905 787,885 10.6% 6,085,152 81.8% 562,860 7.6% French 
British Columbia4,074,800 3,380,253 83.0% 19,361 0.5% 676,911 16.6% English (de facto) 
Alberta3,256,356 2,915,867 89.5% 21,347 0.7% 319,142 9.8% English (de facto) 
Manitoba1,133,515 997,598 88.0% 20,515 1.8% 115,398 10.1% English (de facto), French (de jure) 
Saskatchewan953,850 900,231 94.4% 4,318 0.5% 49,301 5.2% English (de facto) 
Nova Scotia903,090 868,408 96.2% 17,871 1.9% 16,811 1.9% English (de facto) 
New Brunswick719,650 496,850 69.0% 213,878 29.7% 8,913 1.2% English, French 
Newfoundland and Labrador500,605 494,695 98.9% 740 0.1% 5,170 1.0% English (de facto) 
Prince Edward Island134,205 130,270 97.1% 2,755 2.1% 1,175 0.9% English (de facto) 
Northwest Territories41,055 36,918 89.9% 458 1.1% 3,678 9.0% English, French, other aboriginal languages 
Yukon30,195 28,711 94.8% 578 1.9% 985 3.3% English, French 
Nunavut29,325 13,120 44.7% 228 0.8% 15,950 54.5% Inuit language (Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun), English, French[9] 
Canada31,241,446 20,840,743 66.7% 6,691,928 21.4% 3,710,529 11.9% English, French Source: Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. (Figures combine single and multiple responses. Multiple responses for “French/English”, “French/Other” and “English/Other” were allocated with one-half of all respondents placed in either linguistic category. Multiple responses for English/French/Other” were allocated with one-third of all respondents being placed in each of the three categories.). The two official languages
Home language: rates of language use 1971-2006
The percentage of the population speaking English, French or both languages most often at home has declined since 1986, the decline has been greatest for French. The proportion of the population who speak neither English nor French in the home has increased substantially. Geographically, this trend remains constant, as usage of English and French have declined in both English and French speaking regions of the country, but French has declined more rapidly both inside and outside of Quebec. The table below shows the percentage of the total Canadian population who speak Canada's official languages most often at home from 1971-2006.[10]
Language used most often at home 1981-2006.[11]
Use of English
In 2006, just under 20.6 million Canadians, representing 58% of the population, spoke English at home.[12] English is the major language everywhere in Canada except Quebec, and most Canadians (85%) can speak English. In Quebec, English is the preferred language of only 13.4% of the population, but 46% of Québécois can speak English.[13] Nationally, Francophones are five times more likely to speak English than Anglophones are to speak French - 44% and 9% respectively.[14] Only 3.6% of Canada's English-speaking population resides in Quebec—mostly in Montreal.
More Canadians know how to speak English than speak it at home.[15] Since 1971, Knowledge of English has increased slightly and usage of English at home has remained relatively constant.[16]
Use of French
In 2006, just over 6.6 million Canadians spoke French at home. Of these, 91.2% resided in Quebec. Outside Quebec, the largest French-speaking populations are found in New Brunswick (which is home to 3.5% of Canada’s francophones) and Ontario (4.4%, residing primarily in the eastern and northeastern parts of the province and in Toronto). Overall, 69% of Canadians cannot speak French; outside of Quebec only 11% of Canadians report that they can have a conversation in French. Smaller indigenous French-speaking communities exist in some other provinces.[17] For example, a vestigial community exists on Newfoundland's Port au Port Peninsula; a remnant of the "French Shore" along the island's west coast.
The percentage of the population who speak French both by Mother tongue and home language has decreased over the past three decades. Whereas the number of those who speak English at home is higher than the number of people whose mother tongue is English, the opposite is true for Francophones. There are fewer people who speak French at home, than learned French after birth.[18]
Ethnic diversity is growing in French Canada, but still lags behind the English-speaking parts of the country. In 2006, 91.5% of Quebecers considered themselves to be of either "French" or "Canadian" origin. As a result of the growth in immigration, since the 1970s, from countries in which French is a widely-used language, 3.4% of Quebecers indicated that they were of Haitian, Belgian, Swiss, Lebanese or Moroccan origin.[19] Other groups of non-francophone immigrants (Irish Catholics, Italian, Portuguese, etc.) have also assimilated into French over the generations. The Irish, who started arriving in large numbers in Quebec in the 1830s, were the first such group, which explains why it has been possible for Quebec to have had five premiers of Anglo-Irish ethnic origin: John Jones Ross (1884–87), Edmund James Flynn (1896–97), Daniel Johnson, Sr. (1966–68), Pierre-Marc Johnson (1985) and Daniel Johnson, Jr. (1994).
The assimilation of francophones outside Quebec into the English-Canadian society means that outside Quebec, over one million Canadians who claim English as their mother tongue are of French ethnic origin. (1991 Census, ethnic origin and mother tongue, by province).
Bilingualism and multilingualism versus French-English bilingualism
Ability of Canadians to speak English and French 1941-2006.[16]
Rate of bilingualism in Canada, Quebec and the rest of Canada, by knowledge of official languages, 1941-2001.[20]According to the 2006 census, 98% of Canadian residents are able to speak at least one of the country’s two official languages,[21] As well, at least 35% of Canadians speak more than one language. Bilingualism in the two official languages is much less widespread; of these multilingual Canadians, less than half (5,448,850 persons, or 17.4% of all Canadians) are able to speak both the official languages.[22]
However, in Canada the terms "bilingual" and "unilingual" are normally used to refer to bilingualism in English and French. In this sense, nearly 83% of Canadians are "unilingual".
Since the implementation of the Official Languages Act in 1969, the percentage of bilingual Canadians has risen from about 13% to 17%. However the rate has leveled off since the 1996 census.
Geographic distribution of French-English bilingualism
Main article: Bilingual belt
Geographical distribution of bilingual Canadians as compared to total Canadian population 1941-2006.[23]
The Bilingual Belt. In most of Canada, either English or French is predominant. Only in the intermittent “belt” stretching between northern Ontario and northern New Brunswick, and in a few other isolated pockets, do the two languages mix on a regular basis.EnglishEnglish and French (Bilingual Belt)FrenchSparsely populated areas (< 0.4 persons per km2)Nearly 95% of Quebecers can speak French, and 45% know how to speak English.[13] In the rest of the country, 97.6% of the population is capable of speaking English, and 7.5% know how to speak French.[24] Because knowledge of English in Quebec is over five times higher, in percentage terms, than knowledge of French in the rest of the country, personal bilingualism is largely limited to Quebec itself, and to a strip of territory sometimes referred to as the “bilingual belt”, that stretches east from Quebec into northern New Brunswick and west into parts of Ottawa and northeastern Ontario. 63% of bilingual Canadians live in this region.[25] Thus, a majority of bilingual Canadians are themselves Quebecers,[26] and a high percentage of the bilingual population in the rest of Canada resides in close proximity to the Quebec border.
Similarly, the rate of bilingualism in Quebec has risen higher, and more quickly than in the rest of Canada. In Quebec the rate of bilingualism has increased from 26% of the population being able to speak English and French in 1951 to 40% in 2006. In the rest of Canada (excluding Quebec) the rate has increased from 7% to 10% in the same time span. Taken together, bilingualism has risen from 12% to 17% for Canadians overall.[27]
French-English bilingualism is highest among members of local linguistic minorities
It is very uncommon for Canadians to be capable of speaking only the minority official language of their region (French outside of Quebec or English in Quebec). Only 1.5% of Canadians are able to speak only the minority official language, and of these most (90%) live in the bilingual belt.[25]
As the table below shows, rates of bilingualism are much higher among individuals who belong to the linguistic minority group for their region of Canada, than among members of the local linguistic majority. For example, within Quebec around 37% of bilingual Canadians are Francophones, whereas Francophones only represent 4.5% of the population outside of Quebec.[28]
Rates of French-English bilingualism among linguistic groups.[29] Anglophones Francophones Allophones Quebec 66.1% 36.6% 50.4% Rest of Canada 7.1% 85.1% 5.7% Outside Quebec, French language continuity is low
The language continuity index represents the relationship between the number of people who speak French most often at home and the number for whom French is their mother tongue. A continuity index of less than one indicates that French has more losses than gains – that more people with French as a mother tongue speak another language at home. New Brunswick has the highest French language continuity ratio, but still registers more losses than gains. British Columbia and Saskatchewan have the lowest ratio and thus the lowest retention of French. From 1971 to 1996 the overall ratio for French language continuity outside of Quebec declined from 0.73 to 0.64. Declines were the greatest for Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland.
French language continuity ratio 1971-1996[30] Province/Territory 1971 1981 1991 1996 New Brunswick0.92 0.93 0.93 0.92 Ontario0.73 0.72 0.63 0.61 Nova Scotia0.69 0.69 0.59 0.57 Prince Edward Island0.60 0.64 0.53 0.53 Manitoba0.65 0.60 0.49 0.47 Yukon0.30 0.45 0.43 0.46 Northwest Territories0.50 0.51 0.47 0.43 Newfoundland and Labrador0.63 0.72 0.47 0.42 Alberta0.49 0.49 0.36 0.32 Saskatchewan0.50 0.41 0.33 0.29 British Columbia0.30 0.35 0.28 0.29 Non-official languages that are unique to Canada
Aboriginal languages
Main articles: Canadian Aboriginal syllabics and Indigenous languages of the AmericasCanada is home to a rich variety of indigenous languages that are spoken nowhere else. There are 11 Aboriginal language groups in Canada, made up of more than 65 distinct languages and dialects.[31] Of these, only Cree, Inuktitut and Ojibway have a large enough population of fluent speakers to be considered viable to survive in the long term.[32]
Two of Canada's territories give official status to native languages. In Nunavut, Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun are official languages alongside the national languages of English and French, and Inuktitut is a common vehicular language in territorial government.[33] In the Northwest Territories, the Official Languages Act declares that there are eleven different languages: Chipewyan, Cree, English, French, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey, South Slavey and Tłįchǫ.[34] Besides English and French, these languages are not vehicular in government; official status entitles citizens to receive services in them on request and to deal with the government in them.[32]
According to the 2006 census, less than one percent of Canadians (just over 250,000 individuals) know how to speak an aboriginal language. About half this number (129,865) reported using an aboriginal language on a daily basis.[32]
In the absence of state structures, academics usually classify Aboriginal peoples of Canada by region into "culture areas", or by their Indigenous language family.[35]
- Arctic cultural area - (Eskimo–Aleut languages)
- Subarctic culture area - (Na-Dene languages - Algic languages)
- Eastern Woodlands (Northeast) cultural area - (Algic languages and Iroquoian languages)
- Plains cultural area - (Siouan–Catawban languages)
- Northwest Plateau cultural area - (Salishan languages)
- Northwest Coast cultural area - (Haida language, Tsimshianic languages and Wakashan languages)
Aboriginal language dialects No. of speakers Mother tongue Home language Cree 99,950 78,855 47,190 Inuktitut 35,690 32,010 25,290 Ojibwe 32,460 11,115 11,115 Montagnais-Naskapi (Innu) 11,815 10,970 9,720 Dene Suline 11,130 9,750 7,490 Oji-Cree (Anishinini) 12,605 8,480 8,480 Mi’kmaq 8,750 7,365 3,985 Siouan languages (Dakota/Sioux) 6,495 5,585 3,780 Atikamekw 5,645 5,245 4,745 Blackfoot 4,915 3,085 3,085 Tłįchǫ or Dogrib 2,645 2,015 1,110 Algonquin 2,685 1,920 385 Carrier 2,495 1,560 605 Gitksan 1,575 1,175 320 Chilcotin 1,400 1,070 435 North Slave (Hare) 1,235 650 650 South Slave 2,315 600 600 Malecite 790 535 140 Chipewyan 770 525 125 Inuinnaqtun 580 370 70 Kutchin-Gwich’in (Loucheaux) 570 355 25 Mohawk 615 290 20 Shuswap 1,650 250 250 Nisga’a 1,090 250 250 Tlingit 175 0 0 Source: Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship Ottawa, 2007, pp. 2, 6, 10.[31] Pidgins, mixed languages, & trade languages
In Canada as elsewhere in the world of European colonization, the frontier of European exploration and settlement tended to be a linguistically diverse and fluid place, as cultures using different languages met and interacted. The need for a common means of communication between the indigenous inhabitants and new arrivals for the purposes of trade and (in some cases) intermarriage led to the development of hybrid languages. These languages tended to be highly localized, were often spoken by only a small number of individuals who were frequently capable of speaking another language, and often persisted only briefly, before being wiped out by the arrival of a large population of permanent settlers, speaking either English or French.
Michif
Michif (also known as Mitchif, Mechif, Michif-Cree, Métif, Métchif and French Cree) is a mixed language which evolved within the Prairie Metis community. It is based on elements of Cree, Ojibwa, Assiniboine and French. Michif is today spoken by less than 1,000 individuals in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and North Dakota. At its peak, around 1900, Michif was understood by perhaps three times this number.
Basque pidgin
In the 16th century, a Basque pidgin developed in coastal areas along the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Strait of Belle Isle as the result of contact between Basque whalers and local aboriginals.
Chinook Jargon
In British Columbia, Yukon and throughout the Pacific Northwest a pidgin language known as the Chinook Jargon emerged in the early 19th Century which was a combination of Chinookan, Nootka, Chehalis, French and English, with a smattering of words from other languages including Hawaiian and Spanish.[36] Certain words and expressions remain current in local use, such as skookum, tyee and saltchuck, while a few have become part of worldwide English ("high mucketymuck" or "high muckamuck" for a high-ranking and perhaps self-important official).
Sign Languages found in Canada
American Sign Language
Canada is a diverse mix of many Deaf cultures and their own sign languages. The main sign language in Anglophone Canada is American Sign Language.
Maritime Sign Language
Maritime Sign Language is a language from the BANZSL Language Family. It was used to educate the Deaf in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island before ASL became available in the mid-Twentieth Century. It is still remembered by some elderly people, but moribund.
Quebec Sign Language
The major sign language of the Deaf in Quebec and other major Canadian cities is Quebec Sign Language (LSQ). In some major cities, American Sign Language is also used. Although approximately 10% of the population of Quebec is deaf or hard-of-hearing, it is estimated that only 50,000 to 60,000 children use LSQ as their native language.
Inuit Sign Language
Inuit Sign Language (also called Inuktitut Sign Language or Eskimo Sign Language) is used by the deaf Inuit peoples in northern Canadian territories and other Arctic Circle countries. Little is known about its history or signers.
Canadian dialects of European languages
Canadian Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic was spoken by many immigrants who settled in the Maritimes and Glengarry County, Ontario. Scottish Gaelic was spoken predominantly in New Brunswick's Restigouche River valley, central and southeastern Prince Edward Island, and across the whole of northern Nova Scotia--particularly Cape Breton Island and a few speaks in Ontario primarily Glengarry County.
While the Canadian Gaelic dialect has mostly disappeared, regional pockets persist. These are mostly centred on families deeply committed to their Celtic traditions. Nova Scotia currently has 500-1000 fluent speakers, mostly in northwestern Cape Breton Island.
There have been attempts in Nova Scotia to institute Gaelic immersion on the model of French immersion. As well, formal post-secondary studies in Gaelic language and culture are available through St. Francis Xavier University, Saint Mary's University, and the Gaelic College.
In 1890, a private member's was tabled in the Canadian Senate, calling for Gaelic to be made Canada's third official language. However, the bill was defeated 42-7.
Franglais and Chiac
A portmanteau language which is said to combine English and French syntax, grammar and lexicons to form a unique interlanguage, sometimes ascribed to mandatory basic French education in the Canadian anglophone school systems. While many Canadians are barely conversant in French they will often borrow French words into their sentences. Simple words and phrases like "c'est quoi ça?" (what is that?) or words like "arrête" (stop) can alternate with their English counterparts. This phenomenon is more common in the Eastern half of the country where there is a greater density of Francophone populations. Franglais can also refer to the supposed degradation of the French language thanks to the overwhelming impact English Canadian has on the country's Francophone inhabitants, though many linguists would argue that while English vocabulary can be freely borrowed as a stylistic device, the grammar of French has been resistant to influences from English[37] and the same conservatism holds true in Canadian English grammar,[38] even in Quebec City. One interesting example of is Chiac, popularly a combination of Acadian French and Canadian English, but actually an unmistakable variety of French, which is native to the Maritimes (particularly New Brunswick which has a large Acadian population).
Newfoundland Irish
Some of the original immigrants to Newfoundland were native speakers of Irish, who passed on a version of their language to their children. As a result, Newfoundland became the only place outside Europe to have its own Irish dialect. Newfoundland was also the only place outside Europe to have its own distinct name in Irish: Talamh an Éisc, which means 'land of the fish'. The Irish language is now extinct in Newfoundland.
Welsh language
Some Welsh is found in Newfoundland. In part, this is as a result of Welsh settlement since the 17th century. Also there was an influx of about 1,000 Patagonian Welsh migrated to Canada from Argentina after the 1982 Falkland Islands War. Welsh-Argentines are fluent in Spanish as well as English and Welsh.
Acadian French
Acadian French is a unique form of Canadian French which incorporates not only distinctly Canadian phrases but also nautical terms, English loan words, linguistic features found only in older forms of French as well as ones found in the Maritimer English dialect.
Canadian Ukrainian
Canada is also home to Canadian Ukrainian, a distinct dialect of the Ukrainian language, spoken mostly in Western Canada by the descendants of first two waves of Ukrainian settlement in Canada who developed in a degree of isolation from their cousins in what was then Austria-Hungary, the Russian Empire, Poland, and the Soviet Union.
Doukhobor Russian
Canada's Doukhobor community, especially in Grand Forks and Castlegar, British Columbia, has kept its distinct dialect of Russian. It has a lot in common with South Russian dialects, showing some common features with Ukrainian. This dialect's versions are becoming extinct in their home regions of Georgia and Russia where the Doukhobors have split into smaller groups.
Bungee
The meagerly documented Bungee language (also known as Bungy, Bungie, Bungay, and as the Red River Dialect) is a dialect of English which evolved within the Prairie Metis community. It is influenced by Cree and Scots Gaelic. Bungee was spoken in the Red River area of Manitoba. In 1989, at the time of the only academic study ever undertaken on the language, only six speakers of Bungee were known to still be alive.
Official bilingualism
Main articles: Official bilingualism in Canada, and Official bilingualism in the public service of Canada
Language policy of the federal government
A bilingual sign in Montreal.English and French have equal status in federal courts, Parliament, and in all federal institutions. The public has the right, where there is sufficient demand, to receive federal government services in either English or French. Immigrants who are applying for Canadian citizenship must normally be able to speak either English or French.
The principles of bilingualism in Canada are protected in sections 16 to 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms of 1982 which establishes that:
- French and English are equal to each other as federal official languages;
- Debate in Parliament may take place in either official language;
- Federal laws shall be printed in both official languages, with equal authority;
- Anyone may deal with any court established by Parliament, in either official language;
- Everyone has the right to receive services from the federal government in his or her choice of official language;
- Members of a minority language group of one of the official languages if learned and still understood (i.e., French speakers in a majority English-speaking province, or vice versa) or received primary school education in that language has the right to have their children receive a public education in their language, where numbers warrant.
Canada's Official Languages Act, first adopted in 1969 and updated in 1988, gives English and French equal status throughout federal institutions.
Language policies of Canada's provinces and territories
Main article: Language policies of Canada's provinces and territoriesOfficially bilingual or multilingual: New Brunswick and the three territories
New Brunswick and Canada's three territories have all given official status to more than one language. In the case of New Brunswick, this means perfect equality. In the other cases, the recognition sometimes amounts to a formal recognition of official languages, but limited services in official languages other than English.
The official languages are:
- New Brunswick: English and French. New Brunswick has been officially bilingual since the 1960s. The province's officially bilingual status has been entrenched in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms since the 1980s.
- Northwest Territories: Chipewyan, Cree, English, French, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey, South Slavey and Tłįchǫ or Dogrib.
- Nunavut: English, Inuit language (Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun) and French.[9]
- Yukon: English and French.
Officially French-only: Quebec
Until 1969, Quebec was the only officially bilingual province in Canada and most public institutions functioned in both languages. English was also used in the legislature, government commissions and courts. With the adoption of the Charter of the French Language (also known as "Bill 101") by Quebec's National Assembly in August 1977, however, French became Quebec's sole official language. However, the Charter of the French Language enumerates a defined set of language rights for the English language and for aboriginal languages, and government services are available, to certain citizens and in certain regions, in English. As well, a series of court decisions have forced the Quebec government to increase its English-language services beyond those provided for under the original terms of the Charter of the French Language. Regional institutions in the Nunavik region of northern Quebec offer services in Inuktitut and Cree.
De facto English only, or limited French-language services: the other eight provinces
Most provinces have laws that make either English or both English and French the official language(s) of the legislature and the courts, but may also have separate policies in regards to education and the bureaucracy.
For example, in Alberta, English and French are both official languages of debate in the Legislative Assembly, but laws are drafted solely in English and there is no legal requirement that they be translated into French. French can be used in some lower courts and education is offered in both languages, but the bureaucracy functions almost solely in English. Therefore, although Alberta is not officially an English-only province, English has a higher de facto status than French. Ontario and Manitoba are similar but allow for more services in French at the local level.
See also
- Demographics of Canada
- Immigration to Canada
- Constitution of Canada
- Official bilingualism in Canada
- French Canadian
- Franco-Albertan
- Franco-Columbian
- Franco-Manitoban
- Franco-Ontarian
- Fransaskois
- Franco-Ténois
- French in Canada
- Canadian English
- Newfoundland English
- Quebec English
- Quebec French
- Acadian French
- Newfoundland French
- Newfoundland Irish
- Scottish Gaelic in Canada
- Chinook Jargon
- Canadian Ukrainian
- Official Languages use in Canada
Notes
- ^ The percentage figures cited in this chart are the top languages spoken as a home language in Canada, shown as a percentage of total single responses. Source: Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, pp. 6-10. Data available online at: "Detailed Language Spoken Most Often at Home". 2006 Census of Canada: Topic-based tabulations. Statistics Canada. April 8, 2008. http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?TABID=0&LANG=E&A=R&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=01&GID=837928&GK=1&GRP=1&O=D&PID=94817&PRID=0&PTYPE=88971,97154&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=702&Temporal=2006&THEME=70&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=&D1=0&D2=0&D3=0&D4=0&D5=0&D6=0. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
- ^ cinnos
- ^ http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=89189&PRID=0&PTYPE=88971,97154&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=705&Temporal=2006&THEME=70&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=
- ^ "2006 Census: The Evolving Linguistic Portrait, 2006 Census: Highlights". Statistics Canada. 2006 (2010). http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/as-sa/97-555/p1-eng.cfm. Retrieved 2010-10-12.
- ^ "Population by mother tongue, by province and territory". Statistics Canada. 2005-01-27. http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/demo11a-eng.htm. Retrieved 2010-01-19.
- ^ Official Languages Commissioner Graham Fraser is quoted in the Hill Times, August 31, 2009, p. 14.
- ^ 6,147,840 Canadians have a non-official language as their mother tongue. See Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, p. 2, line 5.
- ^ 3,472,130 Canadians use a non-official language as their home language. See Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, p. 6, line 120.
- ^ a b Consolidation of (S.Nu. 2008,c.10) (NIF) Official Languages Act and Consolidation of Inuit Language Protection Act
- ^ given the large discrepanciesin the data for both official languages and neither language in 1971 and 1981, it is reasonable to assume that the manner in which the data collected for these years was different than for 1986-2006
- ^ 1981: Statistics Canada, 1981, Population by Selected Mother Tongues and Sex, Showing Official Language and Home Language, for Canada and Provinces, Urban and Rural, (table 2), 1981 Census. 1986: Statistics Canada, 1986, Population by Selected Mother Tongues and Sex, Showing Official Language and Home Language, for Canada and Provinces, Urban and Rural, (table 2), 1986 Census. 1991: Statistics Canada, 1991, 2B Profile, 1991 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 1991 (2b) detailed questionnaire, Provinces to Municipalities (database), using E-Stat (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English%7CSC_RR-eng.htm (accessed 10.05.26). 1996: Statistics Canada, Mother Tongue, Home Languages, Official and Non-official languages, 1996 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 1996 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-Stat (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed 10.05.26). 2001: Statistics Canada, Languages, Mobility and Migration, 2001 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2001 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (Database), Using E-STAT (Distributor). http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed 10.05.26). 2006: Statistics Canada, Cumulative Profile, 2006 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2006 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm . Retrieved 10.05.26.
- ^ Statistics Canada, Population by home language, by province or territory (2006 Census) (2006 Census), http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/demo61a-eng.htm.
- ^ a b Statistics Canada, Population by knowledge of official language, by province or territory (2006 Census), http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/demo15-eng.htm. The 2006 census showed that 40.6% of Quebecois are bilingual and 4.5% can speak only English.
- ^ Marmen, Louise and Corbeil, Jean-Pierre, "New Canadian Perspectives, Languages in Canada 2001 Census," Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication, Statistics Canada Cat. No. Ch3-2/8-2004, (Canadian Heritage, 2004), pg. 60.
- ^ In 2006, 66.7% of Canadians spoke English most often at home, compared to 85% who can speak English. Statistics Canada, Cumulative Profile, 2006 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2006 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm . Retrieved 10.05.26.
- ^ a b 1931-1991: Statistics Canada, The 1997 Canada Year Book, “3.14 Official Language Knowledge,” Catalogue No. 11-402XPE/1997. 1996: Statistics Canada. Population by Knowledge of Official Languages (20% sample data), (table), 1996 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor). http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed: June 28, 2010). 2001: Statistics Canada. Languages, Mobility and Migration, 2001 - Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2001 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor). http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed: June 28, 2010) 2006: Statistics Canada. Languages, Mobility and Migration, 2006 - Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2006 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor). http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed: June 28, 2010).
- ^ Statistics Canada, Population by knowledge of official language, by province or territory (2006 Census), http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/demo15-eng.htm.
- ^ Statistics Canada, The Evolving Linguistic Portrait, 2006 Census, Catalogue no. 97-555-XIE, Ottawa, December 2007, pp. 15-16.
- ^ Statistics Canada, Place of birth for the immigrant population by period of immigration, 2006 counts and percentage distribution, for Canada, provinces and territories – 20% sample data, 2006 Census of Population, http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-557/T404-eng.cfm?SR=1.
- ^ 1941: Dominion Bureau of Statistics, "Table II. Percentage Distribution of the Population Classified According to Sex, by Official Language, For Canada and the Provinces, 1941," Eighth Census of Canada, 1941. 1951: Dominion Bureau of Statistics, "Table 54. Population by a) official language and sex, and b) mother tongue and sex, for provinces and territories, 1951," Ninth Census of Canada. 1961: Statistics Canada, "Table 64. Population by a) official language and sex, and b) mother tongue and sex, for provinces and territories, 1961," 1961 Census of Canada, Catalogue:92-549, Vol: I - Part: 2. 1971: Statistics Canada, "Table 26. Population by A) Official Language, B) Language Most Often Spoken at Home, and Sex, For Canada and Provinces, 1971," 1971 Census of Canada, Catalogue 92-726 Vol: 1-Part:3. 1981: Statistics Canada, "Table 3. Population by Selected Mother Tongues, age groups and sex, Showing Official Language and Home Language for Canada and Provinces, Urban and Rural, 1981," 1981 Census of Canada, Catalogue 92-910 (Volume 1). 1986: Statistics Canada, "Table 7. Population by Official Languages and Sex, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, 1986 Census - 20% Sample Data," 1986 Census, Catalogue 93-103. 1991: Statistics Canada, "Table 1A. Population by Knowledge of Official Languages and Sex, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, 1991 - 20% Sample Data," 1991 Census, Catalogue 93-318. 1996: Statistics Canada, "Table 1. Selected Characteristics for Census Subdivisions, 1996 Census - 100% Data and 20% Sample Data," 1996 Census, Catalogue 95-186-XPB. 2001: Statistics Canada, Languages, Mobility and Migration, 2001 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2001 Census of Population (Provinces, Census Divisions, Municipalities) (Database), Using E-STAT (Distributor). http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm (accessed 10.05.26). 2006: Statistics Canada, Cumulative Profice, 2006 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2006 Census of Population (Provinces, Sensus Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm . Retrieved 10.05.26.
- ^ Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, p. 6, line 108. In 2006, Canada’s population was 31,241,030. Of this, 520,385 Canadians, or 1.7%, did not speak either official language.
- ^ Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, pp. 2, 6. Statistics Canada collects data on mother tongue, on “first official language spoken,” and on bilingualism in French and English. However, the agency does not collect data on bilingualism in non-official languages (either persons who speak more than one non-official language, or who have an official language as their mother tongue and afterwards learn a non-official language). Thus, it is possible only to determine that 6,147,840 Canadians have a non-official language as their mother tongue (see p. 2, line 5), and that 520,385 Canadians do not speak either official language (see p. 6, line 108). Since all persons who speak neither official language must have a non-official language as their mother tongue, simple subtraction shows that 5,627,455 Canadians, or 18.0% of the population, are bilingual in a non-official language plus an official language.
- ^ See table on description page for sources: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geographical_distribution_of_bilingual_Canadians,_as_proportion_of_overall_population.JPG
- ^ Statistics Canada, 2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship. Ottawa, 2007, pp. 6, 60.
- ^ a b Statistics Canada. “Cumulative Profile, 2006 – Canada (308 electoral districts)” (table), 2006 Census of Population (Federal Electoral Districts, 2003 Representation Order) (database), using E-STAT (distributor). <http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm> (accessed: June 28, 2010).
- ^ Statistics Canada, Population by knowledge of official language, by province or territory (2006 Census), http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/DEMO15-eng.htm. The 2006 census shows that 3017,860 Quebecers are bilingual, out of a total of 5,448,850 bilingual Canadians.
- ^ Dominion Bureau of Statistics, "Table 54. Population by a) official language and sex, and b) mother tongue and sex, for provinces and territories, 1951," Ninth Census of Canada. and Statistics Canada, Cumulative Profice, 2006 – Provinces and Territories in Canada (table), 2006 Census of Population (Provinces, Sensus Divisions, Municipalities) (database), Using E-STAT (distributor), http://estat.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-win/cnsmcgi.exe?Lang=E&EST-Fi=EStat\English\SC_RR-eng.htm . Retrieved 10.05.26.
- ^ O'Keefe, Michael, "Francophone Minorities: Assimilation and Community Vitality, second edition", New Canadian Percpectives, Canadian Heritage, (Cat. no. CH3-2/2001), 2001.
- ^ [1], Bilingualism Rate in Canada, Site for Language Management in Canada (SLMC).
- ^ O'Keefe, Michael, "Francophone Minorities: Assimilation and Community Vitality, second edition", New Canadian Perspectives, Canadian Heritage, (Cat. no. CH3-2/2001), 2001, pg. 55.
- ^ a b "Aboriginal languages". Statistics Canada. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-589-x/4067801-eng.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
- ^ a b c Gordon, Raymond G Jr. (2005) (Web Version online by SIL International,formerly known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics), Ethnologue: Languages of the world (15 ed.), Dallas, TX: SIL International, ISBN 1-55671-159-X, http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=CA, retrieved 2009-11-16
- ^ "Nunavut's Languages". Office of the Languages Commissioner of Nunavut. http://www.langcom.nu.ca/nunavuts-official-languages. Retrieved 2009-11-16.
- ^ "Highlights of the Official Languages Act". Legislative Assembly of the NWT. 2003. http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/_live/pages/wpPages/olahighlights.aspx. Retrieved 2010-10-12.
- ^ Handbook of the North American Indians. Smithsonian Institution. 2008. p. 1. ISBN 0-16-004574-6. http://books.google.ca/books?id=PHXIeG6JyKEC&lpg=PP1&dq=Handbook%20of%20the%20North%20American%20Indians&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=true. Retrieved 2010-08-11.
- ^ Mike Cleven. "Chinook Jargon website". Cayoosh.net. http://www.cayoosh.net/hiyu/. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ Poplack, Shana (1988) Conséquences linguistiques du contact de langues: un modèle d’analyse variationniste. Langage et société 43: 23-48.
- ^ Poplack, Shana, Walker, James & Malcolmson, Rebecca. 2006. An English “like no other”?: Language contact and change in Quebec. Canadian Journal of Linguistics. 185-213.
Further reading
- Boberg, Charles (2010). The English Language in Canada: Status, History and Comparative Analysis. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780511789816. http://books.google.com/books?id=uW2rM_6I3gMC&pg=PA242&dq=The+English+Language+in+Canada:+Status,+History+and+Comparative+Analysis#v=onepage&q&f=true.
- Edwards, John R (1998). Language in Canada. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521563283. http://books.google.ca/books?id=rgnJRCjuyKcC&lpg=PA125&dq=Aboriginal%20Languages%20in%20Canada&pg=PA125#v=onepage&q&f=true.
- Kosel, Jochen (2009), The Language Situation in Canada with Special Regard to Quebec, RWTH Aachen University, ISBN 978-3-640-65926-5, http://books.google.ca/books?id=hkVZOHj-i2AC&lpg=PP1&dq=government%20%20of%20canada&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true
Notes
Cite error:<ref>tag defined in<references>has group attribute"fn"which does not appear in prior text; see the help page.External links
- Ethnologue report for Canada
- Statistics Canada: Canadian Statistics: Population
- The Atlas of Canada - Mother tongue
- The Atlas of Canada - English-French Bilingualism
- 1996 Census: Aboriginal data
- Population autochtone du Canada (in French)
- Linguistic maps of Canada with 50 indigenous languages
- Language Portal of Canada
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