About this tabulation

General information

Catalogue number :	95F0312XCB2001004
Release date :	October 22, 2002
Topic :	Families and Household Living Arrangements
Data dimensions :	Geography (Geographic Index) Number of Children at Home (8) Family Structure (7)

Note

Special Note: Nunavut (1)

A new territory called Nunavut came into effect on April 1, 1999. For additional information, please refer to the 2001 Census Dictionary, Catalogue Number 92-378-XIE or 92-378-XPE.

Special Note: Private Household

Refers to a person or a group of persons (other than foreign residents) who occupy a private dwelling and do not have a usual place of residence elsewhere in Canada. For additional information, please refer to the 2001 Census Dictionary, Catalogue Number 92-378-XIE or 92-378-XPE.

Special Note: Census Family

Refers to a married couple (with or without children of either or both spouses), a couple living common-law (with or without children of either or both partners) or a lone parent of any marital status, with at least one child living in the same dwelling. A couple living common-law may be of opposite or same sex. 'Children' in a census family include grandchildren living with their grandparent(s) but with no parents present. For additional information, please refer to the 2001 Census Dictionary, Catalogue Number 92-378-XIE or 92-378-XPE.

Special Note: Changes to family concepts for the 2001 Census

For the 1996 Census, the definition of census family was as follows:

Refers to a now-married couple (with or without never-married sons and/or daughters of either or both spouses), a couple living common-law (with or without never-married sons and/or daughters of either or both partners) or a lone-parent of any marital status, with at least one never-married son or daughter living in the same dwelling.

This reflected a concept that had not changed since 1976. However, during the planning for the 2001 Census, it was decided that some changes were required, due to the following factors: (1) changes to federal and provincial legislation putting same-sex couples on an equal footing with opposite-sex common-law couples (most notably Bill C-23, the Modernization of Benefits and Obligations Act, which was passed by the Government of Canada in 2000); (2) recommendations by the United Nations as part of a process of standardization of concepts for the 2000-2001 round of censuses in member countries; and (3) a significant number of persons less than 15 years of age classified as 'non-family persons' in previous censuses.

As a result, the census family concept for the 2001 Census reflects the following changes:

· Two persons living in a same-sex common-law relationship, along with any of their children residing in the household, are considered a census family.

· Children in a census family can have been previously married (as long as they are not currently living with a spouse or common-law partner). Previously, they had to be 'never-married'.

· A grandchild living in a three-generation household where the parent (middle generation) is never-married is, contrary to previous censuses, now considered as a child in the census family of his or her parent, provided the grandchild is not living with his or her own spouse, common-law partner, or child. Traditionally, the census family usually consisted of the two older generations.

· A grandchild of another household member, where a middle-generation parent is not present, is now considered as a child in the census family of his or her grandparent, provided the grandchild is not living with his or her own spouse, common-law partner, or child. Traditionally, such a grandchild would not be considered as a member of a census family.

The last three changes listed (definition of 'child'), together, result in a 1.5% increase in the total number of census families, and in a 10.1% increase in the number of lone-parent families. The inclusion of same-sex couples results in a 0.4% increase in the number of census families at the national level.

The term economic family refers to a group of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling and are related to each other by blood, marriage, common-law or adoption. This definition has not changed for 2001. The only effect of conceptual changes on economic families is that same-sex partners are now considered to be common-law partners. Thus they are considered related and members of the same economic family.

Outside of the 'family universe', there are two related concepts that are affected by the change in the census family definition: common-law status and household type. Prior to 2001, two people living together as husband and wife without being legally married to each other were considered to be living common-law. For 2001, this has been expanded to include persons living in a same-sex partnership. The concept of household type refers to the basic division of private households into family and non-family households. Since it is based on the census family concept, the household type (whether a household is 'family' or 'non-family') is affected by the change. Also, the detailed classification of this variable is affected, since married couples and common-law couples were broken down into those 'without never-married sons or daughters' and 'with never-married sons or daughters'. For 2001 this reads 'without children' and 'with children', with the attendant change in meaning.

For additional information, please refer to the 2001 Census Dictionary, Catalogue Number 92-378-XIE or 92-378-XPE.

Data table

Select data categories for this table

Geography Geographic index Canada Newfoundland and Labrador - Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador St. John's Grand Falls-Windsor Gander Corner Brook Labrador City Prince Edward Island - Île-du-Prince-Édouard Charlottetown Summerside Nova Scotia - Nouvelle-Écosse Halifax Kentville Truro New Glasgow Cape Breton New Brunswick - Nouveau-Brunswick Moncton Saint John Fredericton Bathurst Campbellton Campbellton (N.B. part - Partie N.-B.) Campbellton (Que. part - Partie Qc) Edmundston Quebec - Québec Matane Rimouski Rivière-du-Loup Baie-Comeau Chicoutimi - Jonquière Alma Dolbeau-Mistassini Sept-Îles Québec Saint-Georges Thetford Mines Sherbrooke Magog Cowansville Victoriaville Trois-Rivières Shawinigan La Tuque Drummondville Granby Saint-Hyacinthe Sorel-Tracy Joliette Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Montréal Salaberry-de-Valleyfield Lachute Val-d'Or Amos Rouyn-Noranda Ontario Cornwall Hawkesbury Hawkesbury (Que. part - Partie Qc) Hawkesbury (Ont. part - Partie Ont.) Ottawa - Hull Ottawa - Hull (Que. part - Partie Qc) Ottawa - Hull (Ont. part - Partie Ont.) Brockville Pembroke Pembroke (Que. part - Partie Qc) Pembroke (Ont. part - Partie Ont.) Petawawa Kingston Belleville Cobourg Port Hope and Hope Peterborough Kawartha Lakes Oshawa Toronto Hamilton St. Catharines - Niagara Kitchener Brantford Woodstock Tillsonburg Norfolk Guelph Stratford London Chatham-Kent Leamington Windsor Sarnia Owen Sound Collingwood Barrie Orillia Midland North Bay Greater Sudbury Elliot Lake Haileybury Timmins Sault Ste. Marie Thunder Bay Kenora Manitoba Winnipeg Portage la Prairie Brandon Thompson Saskatchewan Regina Yorkton Moose Jaw Swift Current Saskatoon North Battleford Prince Albert Estevan Alberta Medicine Hat Brooks Lethbridge Calgary Red Deer Camrose Edmonton Lloydminster Lloydminster (Sask. part - Partie Sask.) Lloydminster (Alta. part - Partie Alb.) Cold Lake Grande Prairie Wood Buffalo Wetaskiwin British Columbia - Colombie-Britannique Cranbrook Penticton Kelowna Vernon Kamloops Chilliwack Abbotsford Vancouver Squamish Victoria Duncan Nanaimo Parksville Port Alberni Courtenay Campbell River Powell River Williams Lake Quesnel Prince Rupert Kitimat Terrace Prince George Dawson Creek Fort St. John Yukon Territory - Territoire du Yukon Whitehorse Northwest Territories - Territoires du Nord-Ouest Yellowknife Nunavut

This table details number of children at home and family structure for census families in private households in Canada^{Footnote 1}

Number of Children at Home (8)	Family Structure (7)
	Total - Family structure	Total couple families	Married couples	Common-law couples	Total lone-parent families	Female parent	Male parent
Total - Families by number of children at homeFootnote 2	8,371,020	7,059,830	5,901,425	1,158,410	1,311,190	1,065,360	245,825
Total families without children at home	3,059,225	3,059,225	2,431,725	627,505	0	0	0
Total families with children at home	5,311,795	4,000,605	3,469,700	530,905	1,311,185	1,065,365	245,825
1 child at home	2,285,110	1,483,435	1,229,055	254,375	801,675	638,430	163,240
2 children at home	2,087,355	1,716,265	1,518,475	197,790	371,085	307,640	63,450
3 or more children at home	939,325	800,905	722,170	78,730	138,425	119,295	19,130
Total children at home	9,582,615	7,579,255	6,666,195	913,060	2,003,360	1,650,250	353,110
Average number of children at home per familyFootnote 3	1.1	1.1	1.1	0.8	1.5	1.5	1.4

Source: Statistics Canada, 2001 Census of Population, Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 95F0312XCB2001004.

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• 2006 Census analysis series:
• 2006 Census reference guides and technical reports: