2006 Census Topic-based tabulations

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Topic-based tabulation: Ethnic Origin (247), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3) and Sex (3) for the Population of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2006 Census - 20% Sample Data

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General information

Catalogue number :97-562-XCB2006006
Release date :April 2, 2008
Topic :Ethnic origin and visible minorities
Data dimensions :

Note

Note: Ethnic origin

In 2006, the Ethnic origin question asked: 'What were the ethnic or cultural origins of this person's ancestors?' Respondents were asked to specify as many origins as applicable. Four write-in spaces were provided and up to six ethnic origins were retained.

Since 1981, when respondents were first permitted to report more than one ethnic origin in the census, a distinction has been made between single and multiple ethnic origin responses. A 'single' response is given when a respondent provides one ethnic origin only. A 'multiple' response is given when a respondent provides two or more ethnic origins. A 'total response' indicates the sum of single and multiple responses for each specific group.

It must be noted that the measurement of ethnicity is affected by changes in the social environment in which the question is asked, and changes in the respondent's understanding or views about the topic. Awareness of family background or length of time since immigration can affect responses to the ethnic origin question. Some respondents may confuse or combine the concept of ethnic origin with other concepts such as citizenship, nationality, language or cultural identity.

As well, some respondents may choose to provide very specific ethnic origins in the census, while others may choose to give more general responses. This means that two respondents with the same ethnic ancestry could have different response patterns and thus could be counted as having different ethnic origins. For example, one respondent may report 'East Indian' ethnic origin while another respondent, with a similar ancestral background, may report 'Punjabi' or 'South Asian' origins; one respondent may report 'Black' while another, similar respondent, may report 'Ghanaian' or 'African.' As a result, ethnic origin data are very fluid, and counts for certain origins, such as 'East Indian' and 'Black,' may seem lower than initially expected. Users who wish to obtain broader response counts may wish to combine data for two or more ethnic origins together or use counts for ethnic categories such as 'South Asian origins' or 'African origins.'

For additional information on issues related to the collection and dissemination of ethnic origin data, and on the comparability of ethnic origin data over time, refer to the Ethnic Origin Reference Guide, 2006 Census, Catalogue number 97-562-GWE2006025.

Note: Institutional residents

People in seniors' residences in the 2006 Census are classified as 'not living in an institution'. This is a change from the 2001 Census where they were classified as institutional residents, specifically, 'living in an institution, resident under care or custody'.

Note: Non-permanent residents and the census universe

In the 2006 Census, non-permanent residents are defined as people from another country who, at the time of the census, held a Work or Study Permit, or who were refugee claimants, as well as family members living in Canada with them. In the 1991, 1996 and 2001 censuses, non-permanent residents also included persons who held a Minister's permit; this was discontinued by Citizenship and Immigration Canada prior to the 2006 Census.

From 1991 on, the Census of Population has enumerated both permanent and non-permanent residents of Canada. Prior to 1991, only permanent residents of Canada were included in the census. (The only exception to this occurred in 1941.) Non-permanent residents were considered foreign residents and were not enumerated.

Total population counts, as well as counts for all variables, are affected by this change in the census universe. Users should be especially careful when comparing data from 1991, 1996, 2001 or 2006 with data from previous censuses in geographic areas where there is a concentration of non-permanent residents.

Today in Canada, non-permanent residents make up a significant segment of the population, especially in several census metropolitan areas. Their presence can affect the demand for such government services as health care, schooling, employment programs and language training. The inclusion of non-permanent residents in the census facilitates comparisons with provincial and territorial statistics (marriages, divorces, births and deaths) which include this population. In addition, this inclusion of non-permanent residents brings Canadian practice closer to the United Nations (UN) recommendation that long-term residents (persons living in a country for one year or longer) be enumerated in the census.

Although every attempt has been made to enumerate non-permanent residents, factors such as language difficulties, the reluctance to complete a government form or to understand the need to participate may have affected the enumeration of this population.

For additional information, please refer to the 2006 Census Dictionary, catalogue number 92-566-XWE or 92-566-XPE.

For counts of the non-permanent resident population in 1991, 2001 and 2006, please refer to the 2006 Census table 97-557-XCB2006006.


Note: Population universe

The population universe of the 2006 Census includes the following groups:
- Canadian citizens (by birth or by naturalization) and landed immigrants with a usual place of residence in Canada;
- Canadian citizens (by birth or by naturalization) and landed immigrants who are abroad, either on a military base or attached to a diplomatic mission;
- Canadian citizens (by birth or by naturalization) and landed immigrants at sea or in port aboard merchant vessels under Canadian registry;
- persons with a usual place of residence in Canada who are claiming refugee status and members of their families living with them;
- persons with a usual place of residence in Canada who hold Study Permits and members of their families living with them;
- persons with a usual place of residence in Canada who hold Work Permits and members of their families living with them.

For census purposes, the last three groups in this list are referred to as 'non-permanent residents'. For further information, refer to the variable Immigration: Non-permanent resident found in the 2006 Census Dictionary, catalogue number 92-566-XWE or 92-566-XPE.

Data table

Select data categories for this table


This table details ethnic origin , single and multiple ethnic origin responses and sex for the population in Wood BuffaloFootnote 1
Ethnic origin (247) Single and multiple ethnic origin responses (3)
Total - Single and multiple ethnic origin responsesFootnote 2 Single ethnic origin responsesFootnote 3 Multiple ethnic origin responsesFootnote 4
Total - Ethnic originFootnote 5 52,555 27,250 25,305
British Isles origins 26,010 6,750 19,260
Cornish 10 0 10
English 15,185 3,600 11,580
Irish 10,280 1,575 8,710
Manx 0 0 0
Scottish 10,610 1,310 9,300
Welsh 1,075 95 980
British Isles, n.i.e.Footnote 6 990 175 815
French origins 8,035 995 7,040
Acadian 175 15 160
French 7,960 975 6,980
Aboriginal origins 8,350 3,280 5,065
Inuit 485 130 355
Métis 2,525 595 1,930
North American Indian 5,765 2,560 3,210
Other North American origins 15,235 8,270 6,960
American 635 40 600
Canadian 14,620 8,130 6,490
Newfoundlander 175 95 80
Nova Scotian 0 0 0
Ontarian 0 0 0
Québécois 15 0 10
Other provincial or regional groups 10 10 0
Caribbean origins 270 145 125
Antiguan 0 0 0
Bahamian 0 0 0
Barbadian 10 0 10
Bermudan 0 0 0
Carib 0 0 0
Cuban 0 0 0
Dominican, n.o.s.Footnote 7 0 0 0
Grenadian 0 0 0
Guyanese 10 0 0
Haitian 0 0 0
Jamaican 105 70 30
Kittitian/Nevisian 0 0 0
Martinican 0 0 0
Montserratan 0 0 0
Puerto Rican 0 0 0
St. Lucian 0 0 0
Trinidadian/Tobagonian 35 0 35
Vincentian/Grenadinian 0 0 0
West Indian 55 10 40
Caribbean, n.i.e.Footnote 8 70 45 20
Latin, Central and South American origins 640 305 335
Aboriginal from Central/South America 0 0 0
Argentinian 0 0 0
Belizean 0 0 0
Bolivian 0 0 0
Brazilian 0 0 0
Chilean 105 15 90
Colombian 150 85 70
Costa Rican 0 0 10
Ecuadorian 0 0 0
Guatemalan 25 20 0
Hispanic 10 0 10
Honduran 0 0 0
Maya 10 10 0
Mexican 45 10 35
Nicaraguan 25 15 10
Panamanian 0 0 0
Paraguayan 0 0 0
Peruvian 30 0 20
Salvadorean 40 0 35
Uruguayan 0 0 0
Venezuelan 165 80 85
Latin, Central or South American, n.i.e.Footnote 9 65 65 10
European origins 14,900 3,170 11,730
Western European origins 7,360 1,140 6,220
Austrian 290 35 255
Belgian 275 25 250
Dutch (Netherlands) 1,565 265 1,300
Flemish 15 0 15
Frisian 0 10 0
German 5,740 805 4,935
Luxembourger 0 0 0
Swiss 120 0 110
Northern European origins 2,855 345 2,510
Finnish 265 30 230
Scandinavian origins 2,620 310 2,310
Danish 570 75 495
Icelandic 210 15 195
Norwegian 1,270 155 1,115
Swedish 700 50 650
Scandinavian, n.i.e.Footnote 10 85 20 70
Eastern European origins 5,710 1,070 4,640
Baltic origins 80 30 45
Estonian 0 0 10
Latvian 45 30 10
Lithuanian 30 0 30
Byelorussian 15 0 15
Czech and Slovak origins 240 50 185
Czech 135 35 95
Czechoslovakian 65 0 55
Slovak 40 10 30
Hungarian (Magyar) 300 80 225
Polish 1,480 190 1,290
Romanian 210 40 175
Russian 670 90 580
Ukrainian 3,455 585 2,865
Southern European origins 1,825 555 1,270
Albanian 0 0 0
Bosnian 35 35 0
Bulgarian 40 30 0
Croatian 25 15 0
Cypriot 0 0 0
Greek 115 15 105
Italian 725 140 585
Kosovar 0 0 0
Macedonian 0 0 0
Maltese 10 0 10
Montenegrin 15 0 15
Portuguese 205 90 110
Serbian 105 85 15
Sicilian 0 0 10
Slovenian 60 10 45
Spanish 505 90 415
Yugoslav, n.i.e.Footnote 11 110 30 80
Other European origins 245 65 175
Basque 0 0 0
Gypsy (Roma) 10 0 0
Jewish 100 10 95
Slav (European) 40 20 15
European, n.i.e.Footnote 12 95 35 60
African origins 860 630 225
Afrikaner 20 0 25
Akan 0 0 0
Amhara 0 0 0
Angolan 0 0 0
Ashanti 0 0 0
Bantu 0 0 0
Black 25 0 20
Burundian 0 0 0
Cameroonian 0 0 0
Chadian 0 0 0
Congolese (Zairian) 65 65 0
Congolese, n.o.s.Footnote 13 10 0 0
Dinka 0 0 0
East African 0 0 0
Eritrean 0 10 0
Ethiopian 25 25 10
Gabonese 0 0 0
Gambian 0 0 0
Ghanaian 0 0 0
Guinean, n.o.s.Footnote 14 0 0 0
Harari 0 0 0
Ibo 0 0 0
Ivorian 0 0 0
Kenyan 0 0 0
Malagasy 0 0 0
Malian 0 0 0
Mauritian 10 0 0
Nigerian 80 75 0
Oromo 0 0 0
Peulh 0 0 0
Rwandan 0 0 0
Senegalese 0 0 0
Seychellois 0 0 0
Sierra Leonean 0 0 0
Somali 265 265 0
South African 210 155 50
Sudanese 0 0 0
Tanzanian 0 0 0
Tigrian 0 0 0
Togolese 0 0 0
Ugandan 0 0 0
Yoruba 0 0 0
Zambian 0 0 0
Zimbabwean 0 0 0
Zulu 0 0 0
African, n.i.e.Footnote 15 145 25 115
Arab origins 1,005 765 245
Egyptian 40 40 0
Iraqi 0 0 0
Jordanian 0 0 0
Kuwaiti 0 0 0
Lebanese 605 510 100
Libyan 10 10 0
Maghrebi origins 90 25 60
Algerian 10 0 10
Berber 40 25 10
Moroccan 0 0 0
Tunisian 10 0 10
Maghrebi, n.i.e.Footnote 16 45 0 50
Palestinian 0 0 0
Saudi Arabian 0 0 0
Syrian 55 0 55
Yemeni 0 0 0
Arab, n.i.e.Footnote 17 245 175 70
West Asian origins 130 80 50
Afghan 0 0 0
Armenian 10 10 0
Assyrian 0 0 0
Azerbaijani 0 0 0
Georgian 0 0 0
Iranian 40 35 10
Israeli 0 0 0
Kurd 0 0 0
Pashtun 0 0 0
Tatar 0 0 0
Turk 65 20 45
West Asian, n.i.e.Footnote 18 10 10 0
South Asian origins 1,730 1,475 255
Bangladeshi 15 15 0
Bengali 0 0 0
East Indian 1,305 1,090 220
Goan 0 0 0
Gujarati 15 10 0
Kashmiri 0 0 0
Nepali 0 0 0
Pakistani 415 315 100
Punjabi 15 15 0
Sinhalese 0 0 0
Sri Lankan 15 15 0
Tamil 0 0 0
South Asian, n.i.e.Footnote 19 25 15 10
East and Southeast Asian origins 1,700 1,355 345
Burmese 0 0 0
Cambodian 0 0 0
Chinese 695 530 160
Filipino 805 620 180
Hmong 0 0 0
Indonesian 0 10 0
Japanese 40 15 25
Khmer 0 0 0
Korean 120 115 0
Laotian 0 0 0
Malaysian 30 0 30
Mongolian 0 0 0
Singaporean 0 0 0
Taiwanese 10 10 0
Thai 15 10 0
Tibetan 0 0 0
Vietnamese 60 45 15
East or Southeast Asian, n.i.e.Footnote 20 0 0 0
Asian, n.o.s.Footnote 21 0 0 0
Oceania origins 100 20 80
Australian 40 10 35
New Zealander 0 0 10
Pacific Islands origins 55 10 40
Fijian 40 10 30
Hawaiian 0 0 0
Maori 0 0 0
Polynesian 15 0 10
Samoan 0 0 0
Pacific Islander, n.i.e.Footnote 22 0 0 0

Footnotes

Footnote 1

Data quality index showing, for the long census questionnaire (20% sample data), a global non response rate higher than or equal to 5% but lower than 10%.

2001 adjusted count; most of these are the result of boundary changes.

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Footnote 2

The category 'Total - Single and multiple ethnic origin responses' indicates the number of respondents who reported each ethnic origin, either as their only response or in addition to one or more other ethnic origins. Total responses represent the sum of single responses and multiple responses received in the census.

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Footnote 3

A single ethnic origin response occurs when a respondent provides one ethnic origin only.

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Footnote 4

A multiple ethnic origin response occurs when a respondent provides two or more ethnic origins.

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Footnote 5

This is a total population count. The sum of the ethnic groups in this table is greater than the total population count because a person may report more than one ethnic origin in the census.

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Footnote 6

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 7

The abbreviation 'n.o.s.' means 'not otherwise specified.'

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Footnote 8

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 9

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 10

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 11

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 12

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 13

The abbreviation 'n.o.s.' means 'not otherwise specified.'

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Footnote 14

The abbreviation 'n.o.s.' means 'not otherwise specified.'

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Footnote 15

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 16

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 17

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 18

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 19

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 20

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Footnote 21

The abbreviation 'n.o.s.' means 'not otherwise specified.'

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Footnote 22

The abbreviation 'n.i.e.' means 'not included elsewhere.'

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Source: Statistics Canada, 2006 Census of Population, Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 97-562-XCB2006006.

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