Demographics of British Columbia

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Estimated Population of British Columbia (2005): 4,254,500

Percentage of National Population: 13.2%

Population Growth Rate: 4.9%

See Also: Demographics of Canada

Contents

[edit] Vital Statistics

Birth rate: 9.7 births p/1,000 [1](Canadian Average = ~11)

Death rate: ?

Infant mortality rate: 4.0 deaths p/1,000 live births [2]

Life expectancy at Birth: 81.12 years [3]

Total fertility rate: 1.4 children born p/woman [4] (Canadian Average = 1.61)

[edit] Population of British Columbia since 1851

Year Population Five Year
% change
Ten Year
% change
Rank Among
Provinces
1851 55,000 n/a n/a 6
1861 51,524 n/a -6.3 6
1871 36,247 n/a -29.7 7
1881 49,459 n/a 36.4 8
1891 98,173 n/a 98.5 8
1901 178,657 n/a 82.0 6
1911 392,480 n/a 119.7 6
1921 524,582 n/a 33.7 6
1931 694,263 n/a 32.3 6
1941 817,861 n/a 17.8 6
1951 1,165,210 n/a 42.5 3
1956 1,398,464 20.0 n/a 3
1961 1,629,082 16.5 39.8 3
1966 1,873,674 15.0 34.0 3
1971 2,184,620 16.6 34.1 3
1976 2,466,610 12.9 31.6 3
1981 2,744,467 11.3 25.6 3
1986 2,883,370 5.1 16.9 3
1991 3,282,061 13.8 19.6 3
1996 3,724,500 13.5 29.2 3
2001 3,907,738 4.9 19.1 3
Source: Statistics Canada[5]

[edit] Age Structure

  Males Females
Age
Group  
Number Per cent Number Per cent
0-4 105,808 2.4% 100,116 2.2%
5-9 117,909 2.8% 111,383 2.6%
10-14 133,809 3.1% 126,388 3.0%
15-19 143,449 3.4% 136,227 3.2%
20-24 155,369 3.7% 147,770 3.5%
25-29 139,521 3.3% 138,299 3.3%
30-34 144,788 3.4% 145,869 3.4%
35-39 155,429 3.7% 158,364 3.7%
40-44 177,381 4.2% 179,216 4.2%
45-49 172,786 4.1% 177,082 4.2%
50-54 157,596 3.7% 159,965 3.8%
55-59 138,096 3.2% 139,772 3.3%
60-64 101,610 2.4% 103,764 2.4%
65-69 80,051 1.9% 82,363 1.9%
70-74 70,060 1.6% 72,493 1.7%
75-79 54,572 1.3% 64,344 1.5%
80-84 36,304 0.8% 53,047 1.2%
85+ 24,544 0.6% 48,978 1.1%
Totals 2,109,082 49.6% 2,145,440 50.4%
Source: BC Stats [6]

[edit] Ethnicity

Note: The following statistics represent both single (e.g., "German") and multiple (e.g., "part Chinese, part English") responses to the 2001 Census, and thus do not add up to 100%. Note that "Canadian" is not considered to be an ethnic origin.

Ethnic Origin Population Percent
English 1,144,335 25.58%
Canadian 939,460 24.28%
Scottish 748,905 19.36%
Irish 562,895 14.55%
German 500,675 12.94%
Chinese 373,830 9.66%
French 331,535 8.57%
East Indian 183,650 4.75%
Dutch (Netherlands) 180,635 4.67%
Ukrainian 178,880 4.62%
North American Indian 175,085 4.53%
Italian 126,420 3.27%
Norwegian 112,045 2.90%
Polish 107,340 2.77%
Swedish 89,630 2.32%
Welsh 86,710 2.24%
Russian 86,110 2.23%
Filipino 69,345 1.79%
American (USA) 59,075 1.53%
Danish 49,685 1.28%
Métis 45,455 1.17%
Hungarian (Magyar) 43,515 1.12%
Source: Statistic Canada[7]

[edit] Ethnic Groups

British Columbia has a very diverse ethnic population, with a large number of immigrants having lived in the province for 30 years or less. Asians are by far the largest visible minority demographic, with many of the Lower Mainland's large cities having sizeable Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, and Korean communities. The East Indian population is also considerable, especially in Surrey and South Vancouver.

Also present in large numbers relative to other cities in Canada (except Toronto), and ever since the province was first settled (unlike Toronto), are many European ethnicities of the first and second generation, notably Germans, Scandinavians, Yugoslavs and Italians; third-generation Europeans are generally of mixed lineage, and traditionally intermarried with Asian or other non-European ethnicities more than in any other Canadian province. First-generation Britons remain a strong component of local society despite limitations on immigration from Britain since the ending of special status for British subjects in the 1960s.

The percentages add to more than 100% because of dual responses (e.g. "French-Canadian" generates an entry in both the category "French" and the category "Canadian".) Groups with greater than 40,000 responses are included.

Further information: Statistics Canada. "British Columbia ethno-cultural profile"[8]

[edit] Religions

Population by religion, Canada and BC
(2001 Census)
Canada B.C.
number % number %
Total population 29,639,035 3,868,875
No religious affiliation 4,900,090 17% 1,388,300 36%
Protestant 8,654,850 29% 1,213,295 31%
Catholic 12,936,905 44% 675,320 17%
Christian not included elsewhere 780,450 3% 200,345 5%
Sikh 278,410 1% 135,310 3%
Buddhist 300,345 1% 85,540 2%
Muslim 579,640 2% 56,220 1%
Christian Orthodox 479,620 2% 35,655 1%
Hindu 297,200 1% 31,500 1%
Jewish 329,995 1% 21,230 1%
Eastern religions 37,550 0% 9,970 0%
Other religions 63,975 0% 16,205 0%
Source: Statistics Canada 2001 Census
http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/demo30c.htm

[edit] Languages

Language(s) first learned and still understood Total % Male Female
English Only 2,825,780 73.03% 1,403,230 1,422,545
French Only 54,405 1.41% 27,340 27,060
Both English and French 6,784 0.18% 3,360 3,452
Other Languages 981,910 25.38% 470,145 511,765
Source: Statistics Canada 2001 Census

[edit] Literacy

[edit] References