2006 Census: Portrait of the Canadian Population in 2006: Findings

By Laurent Martel and Éric Caron-Malenfant, Demography Division, Statistics Canada

This Internet report presents the highlights of the population and dwelling counts release from the 2006 Census of Population. Numerous coloured maps, figures and tables illustrate the latest trends and geographic patterns observed in the population data.

• Highlights
• National portrait
  • Population growth is up
  • Two out of three Canadians live near the southern border shared with the United States
• Population of the provinces and territories
  • Population growth is higher in most provinces, territories
  • The number of people in the Atlantic provinces is unchanged
  • Quebec: second-highest growth rate since the end of the baby boom
  • Ontario: half of Canada's population growth
  • Alberta: the engine of population growth in the Prairie provinces
  • Slight increase in the population growth of British Columbia
  • 100,000 people in the territories
• Subprovincial population dynamics
  • Canada's population becoming more urban
  • Population growth has been uneven across the country
  • Vast majority of Canada's population growth is concentrated in large metropolitan areas
  • Three large urban areas: the Montréal and Vancouver CMAs and the Greater Golden Horseshoe
  • Urban spread in Canada's six largest metropolitan centres
  • Portrait of mid-size urban centres
  • Portrait of small towns, rural areas and the territories
  • Small towns and communities in the territories

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