Statistics on official languages in Canada

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The demographic picture varies by province or territory

Table 1: Population by first official language spoken and bilingualism, provinces and territories
Province or territory French-speaking population English-speaking population Bilingual population (English and French)
Newfoundland-and-Labrador 2,283 (0.5 %) 501,818 (99.4 %) 25,950 (5.1 %)
Prince Edward Island 4,558 (3.0 %) 146,473 (99.4 %) 19,385 (12.7 %)
Nova Scotia 27,935 (2.9 %) 928,020 (96.8 %) 98,940 (10.3 %)
New Brunswick 231,850 (30.3 %) 531,070 (69.5 %) 260,120 (34.0 %)
Quebec 7,074,328 (84.1 %) 1,253,578 (14.9 %) 3,898,980 (46.4 %)
Ontario 533,560 (3.8 %) 13,228,670 (93.8 %) 1,519,365 (10.8 %)
Manitoba 38,378 (2.9 %) 1,271,893 (95.9 %) 110,435 (8.3 %)
Saskatchewan 12,243 (1.1 %) 1,095,598 (98.2 %) 51,970 (4.7 %)
Alberta 72,203 (1.7 %) 4,085,898 (96.8 %) 258,335 (6.1 %)
British Columbia 65,568 (1.3 %) 4,727,268 (95.5 %) 326,865 (6.6 %)
Yukon 1,895 (4.8 %) 37,805 (94.9 %) 5,660 (14.2 %)
Northwest Territories 1,213 (3 %) 39,133 (96.5 %) 4,295 (10.6 %)
Nunavut 23 (1.7 %) 34,003 (92.8 %) 1,390 (3.8 %)
Total 8,066,633 (22.0 %) 27,881,228 (76.1 %) 6,581,680 (18.0 %)

Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census

French and English are the languages of inclusion

Table 2: Population by mother tongue, Canada
Mother tongue Percentage
French 20.2%
English 56.6%
Other 23.2%

In 2021, there were over 200 other languages. The most important, Mandarin, was spoken by 679,255 people (1.9%).

Table 3: Population by first official language spoken, Canada
First official language spoken Percentage
French 22.0 %
English 76.1 %
Neither English nor French 1.8 %

French and/or English are spoken by 98.1% of Canadians.

Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census

Official languages and bilingualism are at the heart of Canadian identity

Table 4: Population by first official language spoken and bilingualism, Canada
Year French English Bilingual (English-French)
2011 7,691,703 (23.2 %) 24,846,713 (75.0 %) 5,795,575 (17.5%)
2021 8,066,633 (22.0 %) 27,881,228 (76.1 %) 6,581,680 (18.0 %)

Sources: Statistics Canada, 2011 and 2021 Censuses

Bilingualism varies considerably by group

Table 5: Bilingualism rate by mother tongue
Year French, Quebec French, rest of Canada English, Quebec English, rest of Canada
2001 36.9% 84.8 % 67.2 % 7.2 %
2006 36.1 % 83.4 % 69.8 % 7.5 %
2011 38.6 % 83.3 % 69.0 % 7.2%
2016 40.6 % 84.9 % 70.1 % 7.5 %
2021 42.8 % 85.0 % 69.2 % 7.4 %

Sources: Statistics Canada, 2001 - 2021 Censuses

More and more young people study their second language

Table 6: Number of young Canadians enrolled in French immersion programs outside Quebec
Year Number of young Canadians
2010–2011 341,694
2011–2012 356,580
2012–2013 372,879
2013–2014 392,430
2014–2015 409,893
2015–2016 428,619
2016–2017 449,745
2017-2018 463,113
2018-2019 477,675
2019-2020 487,191
2020-2021 482,733

French immersion enrolment has increased by 41.3% since 2010-2011.

Sources: Statistics Canada, 2010-2021

The demographic weight of Francophones is declining

Table 7: Evolution of the demographic weight of Francophones by first official language spoken, Canada and Canada outside Quebec
Year Canada Canada outside Quebec
1971 27.5% 6.1%
1981 26.3% 5.1%
1991 25.2% 4.8%
1996 24.6% 4.5%
2001 24.1% 4.4%
2006 23.6% 4.2%
2011 23.2% 4%
2016 22.8% 3.8%
2021 22.0 % 3.5 %

Sources: Statistics Canada, 1971– 2021 Censuses

Supporting minority community institutions enhances their vitality

Sources: Statistics Canada, 2020-2021; Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, 2018; Canadian Heritage, 2022

The majority of Canadians perceive official languages positively

Source: Environics. on behalf of PCH, 2022

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© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2019
Catalogue number: CH14-42/2019E-PDF, ISBN: 978-0-660-32294-0

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