Dictionary, Census of Population, 2021
Mother tongue

Definition

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 more than one language 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 more than one mother tongue only if they learned these languages at the same time, and still understands them. For a child who has not yet learned to speak, the mother tongue is the language spoken most often to this child at home. A child who has not yet learned to speak has more than one mother tongue only if these languages are spoken to them equally often so that the child learns these languages at the same time.

Statistical unit(s)

• Person

Classification(s)

• Collapsed classification of languages 2021
• Languages 2021 - Inuit languages variant
• List of languages 2021
• List of languages 2021 - Indigenous languages variant
• List of languages 2021 - total responses

Reported in

2021, 2016, 2011, 2006, 2001, 1996, 1991, 1986 and 1981 (100% data). For availability prior to 1981, please refer to Appendix 2.1.

Reported for

Total population

Question number(s)

Direct variable: Question 10

Responses

Refer to figures 2.4, 2.4A, 2.4B, 2.4C, 2.4D, 2.4E, 2.4F, 2.4G, 2.4H, 2.4I, 2.4J and 2.4K for the detailed list of languages disseminated in the 2021 Census. A comparison of languages disseminated in the 2021, 2016 and 2011 censuses is available in Appendix 2.2.

Remarks

In the 2021 Census of Population, the question about mother tongue asked "What is the language that this person first learned at home in childhood and still understands?"

A note accompanying the mother tongue question on both the paper and the electronic questionnaires stated that "If the person no longer understands the first language learned, indicate the second language learned."

The following additional instructions on how to complete the 2021 mother tongue question were provided to respondents via a help button accessed in the electronic questionnaire:

• Report two languages or more only if those languages were learned at the same time at home before the person started school.
• For a child who has not yet learned to speak, report the language used most often at home to communicate with the child. Two languages can be reported, as long as they are used equally often with the child.
• Respondents who are deaf or respondents who have a speech impairment should report knowledge of English or French, by selecting the appropriate option. Knowledge of other languages, including sign languages, should be entered in the type‑in box under the category labelled "Other language."
• When reporting other languages, be specific. For example, people who report Chinese should instead report the specific Chinese language: Cantonese, Mandarin, Hakka, Min Nan, Min Dong, Wu, Pu‑Xian, Xiang, Gan, Huizhou, Jinyu, Dungan, Min Bei or Min Zhong.

For more information on language variables, including information on their classifications, the questions from which they are derived, data quality and their comparability with other sources of data, please refer to the Languages Reference Guide, Census of Population, 2021.

Related 2021 data products

• Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population (98-316-X2021001)
• Focus on Geography Series, 2021 Census of Population (98-404-X2021001)
• Census Program Data Viewer (CPDV) (98-507-X2021001)
• All languages spoken at home by mother tongue, knowledge of official languages and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0617-01)
• All languages used at work by single and multiple responses of language used at work and mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0529-01)
• All languages used at work by single and multiple responses of language used at work, mother tongue and industry: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0528-01)
• Census metropolitan area and census agglomeration components of migration 1 year ago by mother tongue, age and gender: Canada (98-10-0380-01)
• Census metropolitan area and census agglomeration components of migration 5 years ago by mother tongue, age and gender: Canada (98-10-0381-01)
• English spoken at home by French spoken at home, Indigenous language spoken at home, other non-official language spoken at home and mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0199-01)
• English spoken at home by French spoken at home, Indigenous language spoken at home, other non-official language spoken at home and mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0198-01)
• Generation status by languages spoken at home and mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0321-01)
• Immigrant status and period of immigration by mother tongue, income, work activity during the reference year and highest level of education: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0311-01)
• Immigrant status and period of immigration by mother tongue, labour force status and highest level of education: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0309-01)
• Immigrant status and period of immigration by mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0300-01)
• Indigenous mother tongue by single and multiple mother tongue responses and Indigenous identity: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0273-01)
• Indigenous mother tongue by single and multiple mother tongue responses, Indigenous identity and residence by Indigenous geography: Canada, provinces and territories (98-10-0272-01)
• Interprovincial migrants 1 year ago by province or territory of origin and destination, mother tongue, age and gender: Current - Province or territory of residence (98-10-0378-01)
• Interprovincial migrants 5 years ago by province or territory of origin and destination, mother tongue, age and gender: Current - Province or territory of residence (98-10-0379-01)
• Knowledge of Indigenous languages by single and multiple knowledge of languages responses and Indigenous identity: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0271-01)
• Knowledge of Indigenous languages by single and multiple knowledge of languages responses, Indigenous identity and residence by Indigenous geography: Canada, provinces and territories (98-10-0270-01)
• Language spoken at home by single and multiple responses of language spoken at home and mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0201-01)
• Languages spoken at home by mother tongue, immigrant status and period of immigration and first official language spoken: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0301-01)
• Languages used at work by knowledge of official languages and highest certificate, diploma or degree: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0519-01)
• Languages used at work by mother tongue and industry: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0526-01)
• Languages used at work by mother tongue and knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0533-01)
• Languages used at work by mother tongue, immigrant status and occupation: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0525-01)
• Languages used at work by mother tongue, industry and highest certificate, diploma or degree: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0527-01)
• Languages used at work by mother tongue: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0522-01)
• Mobility status 1 year ago by mother tongue, marital status, age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0376-01)
• Mobility status 5 years ago by mother tongue, marital status, age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0377-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Canada and forward sortation areas © (98-10-0208-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories and federal electoral districts (2013 Representation Order) (98-10-0209-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0205-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions, census subdivisions and dissemination areas (98-10-0206-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0204-01)
• Mother tongue by age and gender: Census metropolitan areas, tracted census agglomerations and census tracts (98-10-0207-01)
• Mother tongue by age: Canada, provinces and territories (98-10-0218-01)
• Mother tongue by age: Canada, provinces and territories and census divisions (98-10-0220-01)
• Mother tongue by age: Canada, provinces and territories and census subdivisions with a population 5,000 or more (98-10-0221-01)
• Mother tongue by age: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0219-01)
• Mother tongue by first official language spoken and knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0170-01)
• Mother tongue by first official language spoken and knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0188-01)
• Mother tongue by first official language spoken, language spoken most often at home and other language(s) spoken regularly at home: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0169-01)
• Mother tongue by generation status and number of languages known: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0364-01)
• Mother tongue by immigrant status and period of immigration and number of languages known: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0618-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages for children in couple families: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0211-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages, language spoken most often at home and other language(s) spoken regularly at home: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0172-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages, language spoken most often at home and other language(s) spoken regularly at home: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0171-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada and forward sortation areas © (98-10-0177-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories and economic regions (98-10-0178-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories and federal electoral districts (2013 Representation Order) (98-10-0179-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0173-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions, census subdivisions and dissemination areas (98-10-0174-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0175-01)
• Mother tongue by knowledge of official languages: Census metropolitan areas, tracted census agglomerations and census tracts (98-10-0176-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home and other language(s) spoken regularly at home: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0182-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home for children in couple families: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0212-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home for children in different-gender couple families: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0213-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home, other language(s) spoken regularly at home and first official language spoken: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0185-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home, other language(s) spoken regularly at home and knowledge of official languages: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0184-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home, other language(s) spoken regularly at home and marital status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0190-01)
• Mother tongue by language spoken most often at home, other language(s) spoken regularly at home, knowledge of official languages and first official language spoken: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0183-01)
• Mother tongue by single and multiple mother tongue responses: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0180-01)
• Mother tongue by single and multiple mother tongue responses: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts (98-10-0181-01)
• Primary or secondary schooling in an English school in Canada by number of years of primary or secondary schooling and mother tongue: Quebec, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0538-01)
• Primary or secondary schooling in French in Canada by type of French program attended and mother tongue: Canada outside of Quebec, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0539-01)
• Province and territory components of migration 1 year ago by mother tongue, age and gender: Canada (98-10-0382-01)
• Province and territory components of migration 5 years ago by mother tongue, age and gender: Canada (98-10-0383-01)
• Type and level of French program attended and number of years of primary or secondary schooling in a regular French program in a French-language school by mother tongue: Canada outside of Quebec, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (98-10-0540-01)
• Visible minority by mother tongue and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts (98-10-0325-01)