Focus on Geography Series, 2016 Census

Feedback

Canada

Data quality

Data quality note(s): Canada

  • Excludes census data for one or more incompletely enumerated Indian reserves or Indian settlements.
  • Global non-response rate (GNR), long-form census questionnaire: 5.1%

Total population by Aboriginal identity and Registered or Treaty Indian status, Canada, 2016

Total population by Aboriginal identity and Registered or Treaty Indian status, Canada, 2016
Aboriginal identity Number Percent (%)
Total – Population by Aboriginal identity 34,460,065 100.0
Aboriginal identity 1,673,780 4.9
Single Aboriginal response 1,629,800 4.7
First Nations (North American Indian) single identity 977,235 2.8
First Nations single identity (Registered or Treaty Indian) 744,855 2.2
First Nations single identity (not a Registered or Treaty Indian) 232,380 0.7
Métis single identity 587,545 1.7
Inuk (Inuit) single identity 65,025 0.2
Multiple Aboriginal identities 21,305 0.1
Aboriginal identities not included elsewhere 22,670 0.1
Non-Aboriginal identity 32,786,280 95.1
  • In 2016, there were 1,673,780 Aboriginal people in Canada, making up 4.9% of the population.
  • The majority of the Aboriginal population reported a single Aboriginal identity – either First Nations, Métis or Inuk (Inuit). Of the Aboriginal population in Canada, 58.4% (977,235) were First Nations people, 35.1% (587,545) were Métis, and 3.9% (65,025) were Inuit.
  • Within the First Nations population, 76.2% (744,855) had Registered or Treaty Indian status, as defined under the Indian Act. The other 23.8% (232,380) of the First Nations population did not have Registered or Treaty Indian status.
  • In addition to those who reported a single Aboriginal identity, 21,305 people reported more than one Aboriginal identity and 22,670 were defined as having an Aboriginal identity that was not included elsewhere.

Figure 1.1 Distribution of the Aboriginal population by population centre size, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.1 description Long description for Figure 1.1 Distribution of the Aboriginal population by population centre size, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.2 Distribution of the First Nations population with registered Indian status by residence on or off reserve, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.2 description Long description for Figure 1.2 Distribution of the First Nations population with registered Indian status by residence on or off reserve, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.3 Distribution of the Inuit population by residence inside or outside Inuit Nunangat, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.3 description Long description for Figure 1.3 Distribution of the Inuit population by residence inside or outside Inuit Nunangat, Canada, 2016

In general, the Aboriginal population in Canada is younger than the non-Aboriginal population.

Aboriginal children aged 14 and under represented 26.8% of the total Aboriginal population, while non-Aboriginal children aged 14 and under accounted for 16.4% of the non-Aboriginal population.

The average age of the Aboriginal population in Canada was 32.1 years, compared with 40.9 years for the non-Aboriginal population.

The average age was 30.6 years for First Nations people; it was 34.7 years for Métis; and it was 27.7 years for Inuit.

Figure 1.4 Age distribution by Aboriginal identity, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.4 description Long description for Figure 1.4 Age distribution by Aboriginal identity, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.5 Top 15 Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations by Aboriginal identity, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.5 description Long description for Figure 1.5 Top 15 Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations by Aboriginal identity, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.6 First Nations people, Métis and Inuit for selected Aboriginal language indicators, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.6 description Long description for Figure 1.6 First Nations people, Métis and Inuit for selected Aboriginal language indicators, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.7 Top 10 most common Aboriginal mother tongues for the total Aboriginal Population, Canada, 2016

Figure 1.7 description Long description for Figure 1.7 Top 10 most common Aboriginal mother tongues for the total Aboriginal Population, Canada, 2016

Symbols:

···
not applicable
··
incompletely enumerated Indian reserve or Indian settlement
r
revised
E
use with caution

Source:

Statistics Canada. 2017. Focus on Geography Series, 2016 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-404-X2016001. Ottawa, Ontario. Data products, 2016 Census.

Date modified: