Data tables, 2016 Census
Selected Demographic, Cultural, Educational, Labour Force and Income Characteristics (981), Mother Tongue (4), Age (8B) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces and Territories, Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions, 2016 Census - 25% Sample Data
About this variable: Mother tongue (4)
Definition
Mother tongue
'Mother tongue' refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the person at the time the data was collected. If the person no longer understands the first language learned, the mother tongue is the second language learned. For a person who learned two languages at the same time in early childhood, the mother tongue is the language this person spoke most often at home before starting school. The person has two mother tongues only if the two languages were used equally often and are still understood by the person. For a child who has not yet learned to speak, the mother tongue is the language spoken most often to this child at home. The child has two mother tongues only if both languages are spoken equally often so that the child learns both languages at the same time.
Values
- Total - Mother tongue Footnote 1
- English
- French
- English and French
Footnotes
- Footnote 1
-
Language groups are defined as follows: 'English' includes respondents who reported English only or English and one non-official language; 'French' includes respondents who reported French only or French and one non-official language; 'English and French' includes respondents who reported English and French, with or without one non-official language.
The 'Total - Mother tongue' category includes all groups mentioned in note 1 as well as respondents who reported a non-official language as their only mother tongue.
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