Canada's Asian population

Over two thirds of Canadians having an Asian mother tongue live in either Toronto or Vancouver. Among the metropolitian areas mentioned here, Quebec City has the lowest percentage of Canadians with an Asian mother tongue in contrast to Montreal which has over 7%.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified).

Of those Canadians having an Asian mother tongue, over half reside in Ontario. Amost 28% reside in British Columbia, and less than 1% live in the Maritime provinces. Of notable interest is Ontario, where the number of Asian mother tongue speakers has grown almost 2%. British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec show a decrease in Asian mother tongue since the 2001 census.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified).

Since the 2001 census, the proportion of the population with an Asian mother tongue has increased in all metropolitan areas. Quebec has the lowest percentage of its population having an Asian mother tongue. Vancouver is the Canadian city with the highest percentage of its population having an Asian mother tongue. In Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto, Chinese is the most common mother tongue, followed by Punjabi and Tagalog (Philipino). Vietnamese is the second most common mother tongue in Ottawa-Gatineau, Montreal and Quebec.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified).

While over 8% of Canadians have an Asian mother tongue, the percentage is greater in British Columbia and Ontario, and lower in all other provinces, especially the Maritimes. In B.C., those having an Asian mother tongue form over 17% of the population. The 2006 census data reveals that Chinese has replaced French as the second most commonly spoken language outside of Quebec.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified).

Chinese is the most common Asian mother tongue in the ten metropolitan areas, except Winnipeg, where Tagalog (Philipino) is the largest group. In Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto, Punjabi is the second most common Asian mother tongue. In Ottawa-Gatineau, Montreal and Quebec, Vietnamese is the second most commonly spoken Asian mother tongue.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified).

Mother tongue is defined as the first language a child learns and still understands at the time of the census. Chinese is the most widely spoken mother tongue across all provinces, with the exception of Manitoba where Tagalog (Philipino) is the largest group. In British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, Punjabi is the second most common Asian mother language. In New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Korean is the second most common Asian mother tongue.

Source: Detailed Mother Tongue. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 4 December 2007. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-555-XCB2006007. 13 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Notes: 1. Mother tongue refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census.
2. Figures are taken from the single response category.
* The figures for Chinese include Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Taiwanese, Chaochow (Teochow), Fukien and Shanghainese, as well as Chinese languages not otherwise specified.
** Other Asian Mother Tongue includes: Konkani, Marathi, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Pashto, Indo-Iranian languages (not specified), Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Dravidian languages (not specified), Tibetan languages (not specified), Sino-Tibetan languages (not specified), Lao, Thai, Khmer (Cambodian), Bisayan languages (not specified), Ilocano, Malay-Bahasa, Pampango and Malayo-Polynesian languages (not specified). 

For each of the top ten Asian ethnic groups mentioned here, the majority live in either Toronto or Vancouver. The exception are Vietnamese Canadians (those indicating Vietnamese ethnicity in the 2006 Census) with large percentages living in Montreal and Calgary. Among the metropolitan areas mentioned here, Quebec city has the lowest percentage of Canadians with an Asian mother tongue, in contrast to Montreal which has over 7%.

Source: Ethnic Origin. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, April 2, 2008. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-562-X2006006. 2 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Note: 1. Ethnic origin refers to the ethnic or cultural origins of the respondent’s ancestors and should not be confused with his or her citizenship, nationality, language or place of birth.
2. Figures are taken from the total responses category. Multiple responses may be given.
* Other Asian includes: Afghan, Bangladeshi, Bengali, Burmese, Cambodian, Goan, Gujarati, Hmong, Indonesian, Kashmiri, Khmer, Laotian, Malaysian, Mongolian, Nepali, Pashtun, Sinhalese, Singaporean, Taiwanese, Thai and Tibetan.

Over 47% of all Canadians indicating Chinese ethnicity in the 2006 census reside in Ontario; for those indicating Tamil ethnicity, the percentage is over 89%. By contrast, less than one percent of each of the top ten Asian ethnic groups in Canada reside in the Maritime provinces.

Source: Ethnic Origin. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, April 2, 2008. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-562-X2006006. 2 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Note: 1. Ethnic origin refers to the ethnic or cultural origins of the respondent’s ancestors and should not be confused with his or her citizenship, nationality, language or place of birth.
2. Figures are taken from the total responses category. Multiple responses may be given.
* Other Asian includes: Afghan, Bangladeshi, Bengali, Burmese, Cambodian, Goan, Gujarati, Hmong, Indonesian, Kashmiri, Khmer, Laotian, Malaysian, Mongolian, Nepali, Pashtun, Sinhalese, Singaporean, Taiwanese, Thai and Tibetan.

As a proportion of total metropolitan area population, Canadians of Asian origins are making the largest impact in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Toronto. When compared to the last census, taken in 2001, the proportion of Asian Canadians increased in all cities mentioned. In the 2006 Census, almost 40% of Vancouver-area residents indicated an Asian ethnicity; for Toronto, over 30% of their population belong to an Asian ethnic group. Of notable interest, is the proportion of Chinese-Canadians residing in Vancouver - this group alone accounted for 18.99% of the city’s total population.

Source: Ethnic Origin. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, April 2, 2008. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-562-X2006006. 2 April 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy this material and/or redisseminate the data, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without the expressed permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at http://www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Note: 1. Ethnic origin refers to the ethnic or cultural origins of the respondent’s ancestors and should not be confused with his or her citizenship, nationality, language or place of birth.
2. Figures are taken from the total responses category. Multiple responses may be given.
* Other Asian includes: Afghan, Bangladeshi, Bengali, Burmese, Cambodian, Goan, Gujarati, Hmong, Indonesian, Kashmiri, Khmer, Laotian, Malaysian, Mongolian, Nepali, Pashtun, Sinhalese, Singaporean, Taiwanese, Thai and Tibetan.

As a percentage of total population, the concentration of Asian Canadians increased in all provinces (since the 2001 census). Concentration is greatest in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario. In B.C., the percentage of the total population who indicated an Asian ethnic origin in the 2006 census is over 27% – the highest in the country. The proportion is second-highest in Ontario (16.3%) and third-highest in Alberta (11.2%). It is interesting to note the proportion of Asian ethnicities over a 20 year span. From 1981 to 2006, the percentage of Asian Canadians in Canada has tripled. The percentage of those with East Indian origins have also increased greatly, from 0.3% to 3.1%.

Source: Ethnic Origin. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, April 2, 2008. 2006 Census of Canada. Catalogue number 97-562-X2006006. 30 March 2009.

Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Users are forbidden to copy the data and redisseminate them, in an original or modified form, for commercial purposes, without permission from Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from Statistics Canada’s Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at www.statcan.gc.ca, and its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.

Note: 1. Ethnic origin refers to the ethnic or cultural origins of the respondent’s ancestors and should not be confused with his or her citizenship, nationality, language or place of birth.
2. Figures are taken from the total responses category. Multiple responses may be given.
* Other Asian includes: Afghan, Bangladeshi, Bengali, Burmese, Cambodian, Goan, Gujarati, Hmong, Indonesian, Kashmiri, Khmer, Laotian, Malaysian, Mongolian, Nepali, Pashtun, Sinhalese, Singaporean, Taiwanese, Thai and Tibetan.