Canada 2001 Census

The Canada 2001 Census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. Census day was May 15, 2001. On that day, Statistics Canada attempted to count every person in Canada. The total population count of Canada was 30,007,094.[1] This was a 4% increase over 1996 Census of 28,846,761. In contrast, the official Statistics Canada population estimate for 2001 was 31,021,300. This is considered a more accurate population number than the actual count.[2]

The following census was the 2006 Census.

Canada by the numbers

A summary of information about Canada.

Total Population 30,007,094
Dwellings 12,548,588
Men 14,706,850
Women 15,300,245
Median age 37.6 years
Average earnings $ 31,757

Census summary

Canada has experienced one of the smallest census-to-census growth rates in its population. From 1996 to 2001, the nation's population increased only 4.0%. The Census counted 30,007,094 people on May 15, 2001, compared with 28,846,761 on May 14, 1996.

Only three provinces and one territory had growth rates above the national average. Alberta's population soared 10.3%, Ontario gained 6.1% and British Columbia, 4.9%. Nunavut's population rose 8.1%. The population of Newfoundland and Labrador declined for the second consecutive census period.

Urbanization continued. In 2001, 79.4% of Canadians lived in an urban centre of 10,000 people or more, compared with 78.5% in 1996. Outside the urban centres, the population of rural and small-town areas declined 0.4%.

In 2001, just over 64% of the nation's population, or about 19,297,000 people, lived in the 27 census metropolitan areas (CMAs), up slightly from 63% in 1996. Seven of these 27 CMAs saw their populations grow at a rate of at least double the national average. The strongest rise, by far, occurred in Calgary.

From 1996 to 2001, the nation's population concentrated further in four broad urban regions: the extended Golden Horseshoe in southern Ontario; Montreal and environs; British Columbia's Lower Mainland and southern Vancouver Island; and the Calgary-Edmonton corridor. In 2001, 51% of Canada's population lived in these regions, compared with 49% in 1996.

Population by province/territory

Province 2001 Census 1996 Census % Change
 Newfoundland and Labrador 512,930 551,792 -7.0
 Prince Edward Island 135,294 134,557 0.5
 Nova Scotia 908,007 909,282 -0.1
 New Brunswick 729,498 738,133 -1.2
 Quebec 7,237,479 7,138,795 1.4
 Ontario 11,410,046 10,753,573 6.1
 Manitoba 1,119,583 1,113,898 0.5
 Saskatchewan 978,933 990,237 -1.1
 Alberta 2,974,807 2,696,826 10.3
 British Columbia 3,907,738 3,724,500 4.9
 Yukon 28,674 30,766 -6.8
 Northwest Territories 37,360 39,672 -5.8
 Nunavut 26,745 24,730 A 8.1

Demographics

Mother tongue

Population by mother tongue of Canada's official languages:

Mother tongue Population
English 17,572,170
French 6,741,955
Bilingual 122,660
Other 5,202,240

Aboriginal peoples

Population of Aboriginal peoples in Canada:

Aboriginal Population 976,305
North American Indian 608,850
Métis 292,305
Inuit 45,070

Ethnic origin

Population by ethnic origin. Only those origins with more than 250,000 respondents are included here. This is based entirely on self reporting.

Ethnic origins Total responses Single responses Multiple responses 2
Total population 29,639,035 18,307,540 11,331,490
Canadian 11,682,680 6,748,135 4,934,550
English 5,978,875 1,479,520 4,499,355
French 4,668,410 1,060,755 3,607,655
Scottish 4,157,210 607,235 3,549,975
Irish 3,822,660 496,865 3,325,800
German 2,742,765 705,595 2,037,170
Italian 1,270,370 726,275 544,090
Chinese 1,094,700 936,210 158,490
Ukrainian 1,071,060 326,200 744,860
North American Indian 1,000,890 455,805 545,085
Dutch (Netherlands) 923,310 316,220 607,090
Polish 817,085 260,415 556,670
African 731,044 Unknown Unknown
East Indian 713,330 581,665 131,665
Norwegian 363,760 47,230 316,530
Portuguese 357,690 252,835 104,855
Welsh 350,365 28,445 321,925
Jewish 348,605 186,475 162,130
Russian 337,960 70,890 267,070
Filipino 327,545 266,140 61,410
Métis 307,845 72,210 235,635
Swedish 282,760 30,440 252,320
Hungarian (Magyar) 267,255 91,795 175,460
American (USA) 250,010 25,200 224,805

Religion

Main article: Religion in Canada

Population by religion. Only those religions with more than 250,000 respondents are included here. The census question was partly aided—that is, the questionnaire form gave examples of some of the denominations but not others. The actual question asked is noted below.

Religion Total responses % of Population
Roman Catholic 12,793,125 43.2
No religion 4,796,325 16.2
United Church 2,839,125 9.6
Anglican 2,035,500 6.9
Christian n.i.e.[3] 780,450 2.6
Baptist 729,470 2.5
Lutheran 606,590 2.0
Muslim 579,640 2.0
Protestant n.i.e.[3] 549,205 1.9
Presbyterian 409,830 1.4
Pentecostal 369,475 1.2
Jewish 329,995 1.1
Buddhist 300,345 1.0
Hindu 297,200 1.0
Sikh 278,410 0.9
Jediism 21,000 0.1
  1. ↑ "2001 Census facts: did you know..." (pdf). Statistics Canada. 2006. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
  2. ↑ "Population estimates". Statistics Canada. 2006. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 not included elsewhere

The actual question asked: "What is this person's religion? Indicate a specific denomination or religion even if this person is not currently a practising member of that group.

For example, Roman Catholic, Ukrainian Catholic, United Church, Anglican, Lutheran, Baptist, Coptic Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Jewish, Islam, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, etc."

Visible minorities

Visible minority Total responses % of Population
Chinese 1,029,395 3.47
South Asian 917,070 3.09
Black 662,215 2.23
Filipino 308,575 1.04
Others 1,066,590 3.60
Not a visible
minority 		25,655,185 86.56

Age

Population by age:

Age Population
0–4 years 1,696,285
5–14 years 4,029,255
15–19 years 2,053,325
20–24 years 1,955,810
25–44 years 9,096,560
45–54 years 4,419,290
55–64 years 2,868,015
65–74 years 2,142,835
75–84 years 1,329,810
85 years and over 415,910

Methodology

Every person was legally required to return the census questionnaire that required answering basic demographic information. In addition randomly selected people were legally required to complete a much more detailed questionnaire.

On May 15, 2001, Statistics Canada had thousands of canvassers who went around to try to ensure that the entire population was counted. For the first time, this included canvassers who went to homeless shelters to ensure that the homeless were included in the census.

In addition to a small number of individuals who refused to participate, some first nation communities refused to participate en masse and therefore some of the statistics are inaccurate. This is noted as footnotes in many of the affected results.

Effects of Census

The census numbers are the basis of the federal governments transfer payments to the provinces and therefore when a province loses population, its transfer payments are decreased.

In addition, the census numbers are one of the elements that Elections Canada uses to create the boundaries of federal ridings.

See also

References

    External links