British Canadians
Total population | |
---|---|
11,211,850 British New Zealanders, Old Stock Canadians |
British Canadians primarily refers to Canadians who were either born in or can trace their ancestry to the British Isles, which includes the nations of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.[a]
The term British Canadian[a] is a subgroup of European Canadians and, according to Statistics Canada, can further be divided by nationality, such as English Canadian, Irish Canadian, or Scottish Canadian.
As of 2016, 11,211,850 Canadians had British Isles geographical origins, constituting 32.5% of the total Canadian population and 44.6% of the total European Canadian population.[1] However, this number is likely an undercount due to the "Canadian" ethnic origin category on the census being the sole choice for many Canadians of British Isles descent who are several generations removed from their country of origin.[nb 1]
Terminology
"British Canadians" may include: Cornish Canadians; English Canadians (meaning either ethnic origin and heritage, or English-speaking (Anglophone) Canadians of any ethnic origin); Irish Canadians; Manx Canadians; Scottish Canadians; Scotch-Irish Canadians and Welsh Canadians.
History
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1871 | 2,110,502 | — |
1881 | 2,548,514 | +20.8% |
1901 | 3,063,195 | +20.2% |
1911 | 3,999,081 | +30.6% |
1921 | 4,868,738 | +21.7% |
1931 | 5,381,071 | +10.5% |
1941 | 5,715,904 | +6.2% |
1951 | 6,709,685 | +17.4% |
1961 | 7,996,669 | +19.2% |
1971 | 9,624,115 | +20.4% |
1981 | 11,110,925 | +15.4% |
1986 | 12,371,485 | +11.3% |
1991 | 12,047,920 | −2.6% |
1996 | 10,647,625 | −11.6% |
2001 | 9,971,615 | −6.3% |
2006 | 11,098,610 | +11.3% |
2011 | 11,343,710 | +2.2% |
2016 | 11,211,850 | −1.2% |
Source: Statistics Canada [5]: 17 [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][3][2][1] Note1: 1981 Canadian census only included partial multiple ethnic origin responses for individuals with British and French ancestry, thus population is an undercount. Note2: 1996-present census populations are undercounts, due to the creation of the "Canadian" ethnic origin category. |
The first documented source of individuals from the British Isles in what would become Canada comes from the Saga of Erik the Red and the Viking expedition of 1010 AD to Vinland (literally, the land of meadows), which is believed to refer to the island of Newfoundland. The Viking prince Thorfinn Karlsefni took two Scottish slaves to Vinland.[15] When the longships moored along the coast, they sent the slaves ashore to run along the waterfront to gauge whether it was safe for the rest of the crew to follow. After the Scots survived a day without being attacked, by either human or animal, the Vikings deemed it safe to spend the night ashore. The expedition was abandoned three years later; the original sagas were passed on in an oral tradition and then written down 250 years later.
16th century
English Canadian history starts with the attempts to establish English settlements in Newfoundland in the sixteenth century. The first English settlement in present-day Canada was at St. Johns Newfoundland, in 1583. Newfoundland's population was significantly influenced by Irish and English immigration, much of it as a result of the migratory fishery in the decades prior to the Great Famine of Ireland.
The first recorded Irish presence in the area of present-day Canada dates from 1536, when Irish fishermen from Cork traveled to Newfoundland.
18th century
The area that forms the present day province of
In 1749, Colonel
After the fall of
A large group of Ulster Scots, many of whom had first settled in New Hampshire, moved to Truro, Nova Scotia in 1761.
New Brunswick became the home for many Scots. In 1761, a Highland regiment garrisoned Fort Frederick. The surrounding lands surveyed by Captain Bruce in 1762 attracted many Scottish traders when William Davidson of Caithness arrived to settle two years later. Their numbers were swelled by the arrival of thousands of loyalists of Scottish origin both during and after the American Revolution. One of the New Brunswick and Canada's most famous regiments was "The King's First American Regiment" founded in 1776. It was composed mostly of Highlanders, many of whom fought with their traditional kilts to the sound of bagpipes. The regiment distinguished itself when it defeated Washington's forces at the Battle of Brandywine. When it disbanded after the War, most of its members settled in New Brunswick.
In 1772, a wave of Gaels began to arrive in
Prince Edward Island (PEI) was also heavily influenced by Scottish Gaelic settlers. One prominent settler in PEI was John MacDonald of Glenaladale, who conceived the idea of sending Gaels to Nova Scotia on a grand scale after Culloden. The name Macdonald still dominates on the island, which received a large influx of settlers, predominantly Catholics from the Highlands, in the late 18th century.
The history of English Canadians is bound to the history of English settlement of North America, and particularly New England, because of the resettlement of many
At the end of the 18th century,
Welsh mapmaker David Thompson was one of the great explorers of the North West Company in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and is often called "Canada's Greatest Geographer". He covered 130,000 kilometres on foot and surveyed most of the Canada–United States border in the early days of exploration.
19th century
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Upper Canada was a primary destination for English, Scottish and Scots-Irish settlers to Canada in the nineteenth century, and was on the front lines in the War of 1812 between the British Empire and the United States.
Another large group of Scottish Gaels immigrated to Canada and settled in Prince Edward Island in 1803. This migration, primarily from the
After the permanent settlement in Newfoundland by Irish in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, overwhelmingly from
The earliest English and Scottish settlements in Assiniboia (part of present-day Manitoba) involved some 300 largely Scottish colonists under the sponsorship of Thomas Douglas, Lord Selkirk in 1811.
One of the first efforts to encourage Welsh emigration to Canada began in 1812, when Welsh native John Mathews endeavoured to bring his family to Canada. Mathews left home at a young age and went on to become a successful businessman in the United States. When he returned to Wales, he found his family living in poverty and became convinced they should emigrate to Canada. In 1817 his family settled in the township of Southwald, near what is now London, Ontario. By 1812, he had brought over more relatives who built homes on the 100-acre (0.40 km2) lots granted to them by Colonel Thomas Talbot.
English, Scottish, and Irish communities established themselves in Montreal in the 1800s. Montreal would become Canada's largest city and commercial hub in Canada.
A continual influx of immigrants from Scotland and Ulster meant that by 1843 there were over 30,000 Scots in New Brunswick.[17]
Broader English, Scottish, and Irish settlement of British Columbia began in earnest with the founding of Fort Victoria in 1843 and the subsequent creation of the Colony of Vancouver Island in 1849. The capital, Victoria developed during the height of the British Empire and long self-identified as being "more English than the English".
During the Great Famine of Ireland (1845–1852), Canada received the most destitute Irish Catholics, who left Ireland in grave circumstances. Land estate owners in Ireland would either evict landholder tenants to board on returning empty lumber ships, or in some cases pay their fares. Others left on ships from the overcrowded docks in Liverpool and Cork.[18] Most of the Irish immigrants who came to Canada and the United States in the nineteenth century and before were Irish speakers, with many knowing no other language on arrival.[19]
The French-English tensions that marked the establishment of the earliest English-speaking settlements in Nova Scotia were echoed on the Prairies in the late 19th century.
20th century
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In 1902, Welsh immigrants arrived from Patagonia, which had been incorporated into Argentina in 1881. Compulsory military service and a series of floods that ruined Welsh farmers' crops led to some emigrants resettling at Llewelyn near Bangor, Saskatchewan, where they once again took up farming. A community of Welsh farmers was also established at Wood River near Ponoka, Alberta.
Demography
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Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Population
Year | Population | % of total population |
---|---|---|
1871 [5]: 17 [6] |
2,110,502 | 60.546% |
1881 [5]: 17 [6] |
2,548,514 | 58.928% |
1901 [5]: 17 [6][7] |
3,063,195 | 57.029% |
1911 [5]: 17 [6][7] |
3,999,081 | 55.492% |
1921 [5]: 17 [6][7][8] |
4,868,738 | 55.402% |
1931 [5]: 17 [6][7][8] |
5,381,071 | 51.857% |
1941 [5]: 17 [6][7][8] |
5,715,904 | 49.675% |
1951 [5]: 17 [6][7][8] |
6,709,685 | 47.894% |
1961 [5]: 17 [7][8] |
7,996,669 | 43.846% |
1971 [5]: 17 [8] |
9,624,115 | 44.622% |
1981 [9] |
11,110,925 | 46.135% |
1986 [10][11] |
12,371,485 | 49.442% |
1991 [12] |
12,047,920 | 44.632% |
1996 [13] |
10,647,625 | 37.323% |
2001 [14] |
9,971,615 | 33.644% |
2006 [3] |
11,098,610 | 35.526% |
2011 [2] |
11,343,710 | 34.529% |
2016 [1] |
11,211,850 | 32.536% |
Language
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Religion
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2022) |
See also
- European Canadians
- English Canadians
- Irish Canadians
- Scottish Canadians
- Welsh Canadians
- British North America
- British Columbia
- British Americans
- Canadian British
- British–Canadian relations
Notes
- ^ a b c Statistics Canada demi-decadal censuses officially use the name "British Isles Origins" for the various nationalities and ethnicities that are in the region. See 2016,[1] 2011,[2] or 2006[3] censuses as examples
- ISBN 978-1-55130-322-2.
References
- ^ a b c d e Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-06-17). "Ethnic Origin (279), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age (12) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces and Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2016 Census - 25% Sample Data". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b c Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-01-23). "Ethnic Origin (264), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2011 National Household Survey". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b c Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2020-05-01). "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". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ Wallace, Birgitta. "L'Anse aux Meadows". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (1999-07-29). "Historical statistics of Canada, section A: Population and migration - ARCHIVED". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "Ninth census of Canada, 1951 = Neuvième recensement du Canada Vol. 1. Population: general characteristics". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1961 Census of Canada : population : vol. I - part 2 = 1961 Recensement du Canada : population : vol. I - partie 2. Ethnic groups". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1971 Census of Canada : population : vol. I - part 3 = Recensement du Canada 1971 : population : vol. I - partie 3. Ethnic groups". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1981 Census of Canada : volume 1 - national series : population = Recensement du Canada de 1981 : volume 1 - série nationale : population. Ethnic origin". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "Census Canada 1986 Profile of ethnic groups". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1986 Census of Canada: Ethnic Diversity In Canada". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-04-03). "1991 Census: The nation. Ethnic origin". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-06-04). "Data tables, 1996 Census Population by Ethnic Origin (188) and Sex (3), Showing Single and Multiple Responses (3), for Canada, Provinces, Territories and Census Metropolitan Areas, 1996 Census (20% Sample Data)". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ a b Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-12-23). "Ethnic Origin (232), Sex (3) and Single and Multiple Responses (3) for Population, for Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2001 Census - 20% Sample Data". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ Corporation, British Broadcasting. "BBC – History – Scottish History". www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ Jonathan Dembling. "Gaelic in Canada: new evidence from an old census." In Cànan & Cultar/Language & Culture: Rannsachadh na Gàidhlig 3, edited by Wilson McLeod, James Fraser and Anja Gunderloch, 203-14. Edinburgh: Dunedin Academic Press, 2006.
- ^ Campbell & Bryce 1911, p. 131.
- ^ Power, Thomas P., ed. (1991). The Irish in Atlantic Canada, 1780–1900. Fredericton, NB: New Ireland Press.
- ISBN 978-0-9217-4500-6.
Bibliography
- Campbell, Wilfred; Bryce, George (1911). The Scotsman in Canada. The Musson Book Company.