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A multitude of languages have always been spoken in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Prior to
Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
, the territories that would become Canada were home to over 70 distinct languages across 12 or so
language families A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term ''family'' is a metaphor borrowed from biology, with the tree model used in historical linguistics ana ...
. Today, a majority of those
indigenous languages An indigenous language, or autochthonous language, is a language that is native to a region and spoken by its indigenous peoples. Indigenous languages are not necessarily national languages but they can be; for example, Aymara is both an indigeno ...
are still spoken; however, most are endangered and only about 0.6% of the Canadian population report an indigenous language as their mother tongue. Since the establishment of the Canadian
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
, English and French have been the co-official languages and are, by far, the most-spoken languages in the country. According to the 2021 census, English and French are the
mother tongue A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...
s of 56.6% and 20.2% of
Canadians Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
respectively. In total, 86.2% of Canadians have a working knowledge of English, while 29.8% have a working knowledge of French. Under the ''Official Languages Act'' of 1969, both English and French have official status throughout Canada in respect of federal government services and most courts. All federal legislation is enacted bilingually. Provincially, only in
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
are both English and French official to the same extent. French is
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
's official language, although legislation is enacted in both French and English and court proceedings may be conducted in either language. English is the official language of
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
,
Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...
and
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
, but government services are available in French in many regions of each, particularly in regions and cities where Francophones form the majority. Legislation is enacted in both languages and courts conduct cases in both. In 2022,
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
recognized Mi'kmawi'simk as the first language of the province, and maintains two provincial language secretariats: the Office of
Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...
Affairs and Francophonie (French language) and the Office of Gaelic Affairs (
Canadian Gaelic Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic (, or ), often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada. Scottish Gaels were settled in Nova Scotia from 1773, with the ...
). The remaining provinces (
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
,
Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
,
Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
, and
Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...
) do not have an official provincial language but government is primarily English-speaking. Territorially, both the
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...
and
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
have official indigenous languages alongside French and English:
Inuktut Inuktut is the collective name for the Inuit languages. It is used by Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the Inuit Circumpolar Council, and the Government of Nunavut throughout Inuit Nunaat and Inuit Nunangat. Usage Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) says ...
(
Inuktitut Inuktitut ( ; , Inuktitut syllabics, syllabics ), also known as Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the North American tree line, including parts of the provinces of ...
and
Inuinnaqtun Inuinnaqtun (, ; natively meaning 'like the real human beings/peoples') is an Inuit language. It is spoken in the central Canadian Arctic. It is related very closely to Inuktitut, and some scholars, such as Richard Condon, believe that Inuinna ...
) in Nunavut and, in the NWT, nine others (
Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...
, Dënësųłıné, Dene Yatıé/Zhatıé, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut,
Inuvialuktun Inuvialuktun (part of ''Western Canadian Inuit'' / ''Inuktitut'' / '' Inuktut'' / '' Inuktun'') comprises several Inuit language varieties spoken in the northern Northwest Territories by Canadian Inuit who call themselves ''Inuvialuit''. Some d ...
, Sahtúgot’įné Yatı̨́ / Shíhgot’įne Yatı̨́ / K’ashógot’įne Goxedǝ́, and Tłįchǫ Yatıì). Canada's
official languages commissioner An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of the ...
(the federal government official charged with monitoring the two languages) said in 2009, " the same way that race is at the core of what it means to be American and at the core of an American experience and class is at the core of British experience, I think that language is at the core of Canadian experience." To assist in more accurately monitoring the two official languages, Canada's
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
collects a number of demolinguistic descriptors not enumerated in the censuses of most other countries, including
home language A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...
,
mother tongue A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...
, first official language, and language of work. Canada's linguistic diversity extends beyond English, French and numerous indigenous languages. "In Canada, 4.7 million people (14.2% of the population) reported speaking a language other than English or French most often at home and 1.9 million people (5.8%) reported speaking such a language on a regular basis as a second language (in addition to their main home language, English or French). In all, 20.0% of Canada's population reported speaking a language other than English or French at home. For roughly 6.4 million people, the other language was an immigrant language, spoken most often or on a regular basis at home, alone or together with English or French whereas for more than 213,000 people, the other language was an indigenous language. Finally, the number of people reporting sign languages as the languages spoken at home was nearly 25,000 people (15,000 most often and 9,800 on a regular basis)."


The two official languages


Home language: rates of language use 1971–2011

The percentage of the population speaking English, French or both languages most often at home has declined since 1986; the decline has been greatest for French. The proportion of the population who speak neither English nor French in the home has increased. Geographically, this trend remains constant, as usage of English and French have declined in both English and French speaking regions of the country, but French has declined more rapidly both inside and outside Quebec. The table below shows the percentage of the total Canadian population who speak Canada's official languages most often at home from 1971 to 2006. Note that there are nuances between "language most spoken at home", "mother-language" and "first official language": data is collected for all three, which together provide a more detailed and complete picture of language-use in Canada.


Use of English

In 2011, just under 21.5 million Canadians, representing 65% of the population, spoke English most of the time at home, while 58% declared it their mother language. English is the major language everywhere in Canada except
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
and
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
, and most Canadians (85%) can speak English. While English is not the preferred language in Quebec, 36.1% of Québécois can speak English. Nationally,
Francophones The French language became an international language, the second international language alongside Latin, in the Middle Ages, "from the fourteenth century onwards". It was not by virtue of the power of the Kingdom of France: '"... until the end ...
are five times more likely to speak English than Anglophones are to speak French – 44% and 9% respectively. Only 3.2% of Canada's English-speaking population resides in Quebec—mostly in Montreal. In 2011, 28.4 million Canadians had knowledge of English while only 21.6 million Canadians spoke it most often at home.


Use of French

In 2011, just over 7.1 million Canadians spoke French most often at home, this was a rise of 4.2%, although the proportion of people in Canada who spoke French "most often" at home fell slightly from 21.7% to 21.5% . Of these, about 6.1 million or 85% resided in Quebec. Outside Quebec, the largest French-speaking populations are found in New Brunswick (which is home to 3.1% of Canada's Francophones) and
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
(4.2%, residing primarily in the eastern and northeastern parts of the province and in Toronto and Ottawa). Overall, 22% of people in Canada declare French to be their mother language, while one in three Canadians speak French and 70% are unilingual Anglophones. Smaller indigenous French-speaking communities exist in some other provinces. For example, a vestigial community exists on Newfoundland's
Port au Port Peninsula The Port au Port Peninsula (; ) is a peninsula in the Canada, Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Roughly triangular in shape, it is located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland. Geography The pe ...
, a remnant of the "
French Shore The French Shore (French language, French: ''Côte française de Terre-Neuve''), also called The Treaty Shore, resulted from the 1713 ratifications of the Treaty of Utrecht. The provisions of the treaty allowed the French to fish in season along t ...
" along the island's west coast. The percentage of the population who speak French both by mother tongue and home language has decreased over the past three decades. Whereas the number of those who speak English at home is higher than the number of people whose mother tongue is English, the opposite is true for Francophones. There are fewer people who speak French at home, than learned French after birth. Ethnic diversity is growing in
French Canada Francophone Canadians or French-speaking Canadians are citizens of Canada who speak French, and sometimes refers only to those who speak it as their first language. In 2021, 10,669,575 people in Canada or 29.2% of the total population spoke Fren ...
but still lags behind the English-speaking parts of the country. In 2006, 91.5% of Quebecers considered themselves to be of either "French" or "Canadian" origin. As a result of the growth in immigration, since the 1970s, from countries in which French is a widely used language, 3.4% of Quebecers indicated that they were of Haitian, Belgian, Swiss, Lebanese or Moroccan origin. Other groups of non-francophone immigrants (Irish Catholics, Italian, Portuguese, etc.) have also assimilated into French over the generations. The Irish, who started arriving in large numbers in Quebec in the 1830s, were the first such group, which explains why it has been possible for Quebec to have had five
premiers Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
of Irish ethnic origin:
John Jones Ross John Jones Ross (August 16, 1831 – May 4, 1901) was a Canadian politician. Ross served as the seventh premier of Quebec and later as a member of the Senate of Canada. Personal life Ross was born in Quebec City, Canada. He was the son of a Sco ...
(1884–87),
Edmund James Flynn Edmund James Flynn (November 16, 1847 – June 7, 1927) was a Canadian lawyer, politician and the tenth premier of Quebec, from 1896 to 1897. Background Flynn, the son of Jacques Flynn and Elizabeth Tostevin, was born at Percé on Novembe ...
(1896–97), Daniel Johnson Sr. (1966–68), Pierre-Marc Johnson (1985), and Daniel Johnson Jr. (1994). In 1991, due to linguistic assimilation of Francophones outside Quebec, over one million Canadians who claimed English as their mother tongue were of French ethnic origin (1991 Census).


Bilingualism and multilingualism versus English–French bilingualism

According to the 2011 census, 98.2% of Canadian residents have knowledge of one or both of the country's two official languages, Between 2006 and 2011, the number of persons who reported being able to conduct a conversation in both of Canada's official languages increased by nearly 350,000 to 5.8 million. The bilingualism rate of the Canadian population edged up from 17.4% in 2006 to 17.5% in 2011. This growth of English-French bilingualism in Canada was mainly due to the increased number of Quebecers who reported being able to conduct a conversation in English and French. Bilingualism with regard to nonofficial languages also increased, most individuals speaking English plus an immigrant language such as Punjabi or Mandarin.


Geographic distribution of English–French bilingualism

According to the 2011 census, 94.3% of Quebecers have knowledge of French, and 47.2% have knowledge of English. Bilingualism (of the two official languages) is largely limited to Quebec itself, and to a strip of territory sometimes referred to as the " bilingual belt", that stretches east from Quebec into northern New Brunswick and west into parts of Ottawa and northeastern Ontario. 85% of bilingual Canadians live within Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick. A majority of all bilingual Canadians, (57.4%) are themselves Quebecers, and a high percentage of the bilingual population in the rest of Canada resides in close proximity to the Quebec border. Similarly, the rate of bilingualism in Quebec has risen higher, and more quickly than in the rest of Canada. In Quebec, the rate of bilingualism has increased from 26% of the population being able to speak English and French in 1951 to 42.5% in 2011. As of 2011, in the rest of Canada (excluding Quebec) the rate of bilingualism was 7.5%.


English–French bilingualism rates

English–French bilingualism is highest among members of local linguistic minorities. It is very uncommon for Canadians to be capable of speaking only the minority official language of their region (French outside Quebec or English in Quebec). Only 1.5% of Canadians are able to speak only the minority official language, and of these most (90%) live in the bilingual belt.Statistics Canada. "Cumulative Profile, 2006 – Canada (308 electoral districts)" (table), 2006 Census of Population (Federal Electoral Districts, 2003 Representation Order) (database), using E-STAT (distributor)

(accessed: June 28, 2010).
As the table below shows, rates of bilingualism are much higher among individuals who belong to the linguistic minority group for their region of Canada, than among members of the local linguistic majority. For example, within Quebec around 37% of bilingual Canadians are Francophones, whereas Francophones only represent 4.5% of the population outside Quebec.


Official language minority communities

French-speaking Canadians from outside Quebec and English-speaking Quebecers are, together, the official language minority communities. These communities are:


French outside Quebec

The language continuity index represents the relationship between the number of people who speak French most often at home and the number for whom French is their mother tongue. A continuity index of less than one indicates that French has more losses than gains – that more people with French as a mother tongue speak another language at home. Outside Quebec, New Brunswick has the highest French language continuity ratio.
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
and
Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
have the lowest French language continuity ratio and thus the lowest retention of French. From 1971 to 2011, the overall ratio for French language continuity outside Quebec declined from 0.73 to 0.45. Declines were the greatest for
Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...
, Saskatchewan, and
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
.


Non-official languages used in Canada


Indigenous languages

Canada is home to a rich variety of indigenous languages, most of which are spoken nowhere else. There are 14 indigenous
language groups A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term ''family'' is a metaphor borrowed from biology, with the tree model used in historical linguistics anal ...
in Canada with about 100 distinct languages and dialects, including many sign languages. Almost all indigenous languages in Canada are considered
endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...
, with the exception of
Inuktitut Inuktitut ( ; , Inuktitut syllabics, syllabics ), also known as Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the North American tree line, including parts of the provinces of ...
,
Inuinnaqtun Inuinnaqtun (, ; natively meaning 'like the real human beings/peoples') is an Inuit language. It is spoken in the central Canadian Arctic. It is related very closely to Inuktitut, and some scholars, such as Richard Condon, believe that Inuinna ...
, and the Cree varieties
Naskapi The Naskapi (Nascapi, Naskapee, Nascapee) are an Indigenous people of the Subarctic native to the historical region St'aschinuw (ᒋᑦ ᐊᔅᒋᓄᐤ, meaning 'our Clusivity, nclusiveland'), which was located in present day northern Qu ...
,
Atikamekw The Atikamekw are an Indigenous people in Canada. Their historic territory, ('Our Land'), is in the upper Saint-Maurice River valley of Quebec (about north of Montreal). One of the main communities is Manawan, about northeast of Montreal. ...
,
East Cree East Cree, also known as James Bay (Eastern) Cree, and East Main Cree, is a group of Cree dialects spoken in Quebec, Canada on the east coast of lower Hudson Bay and James Bay, and inland southeastward from James Bay. Cree is one of the most s ...
, and Plains Cree. Prior to
colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...
,
multilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...
was common across indigenous nations, many of whom often seasonally migrated. However, the reserve system created more permanent stationary
bands Bands may refer to: * Bands (song), song by American rapper Comethazine * Bands (neckwear), form of formal neckwear * Bands (Italian Army irregulars) Bands () was an Italian military term for Irregular military, irregular forces, composed of nati ...
, which have generally selected only one of their various ancestral languages to try to preserve in the face of increasing
Anglicization Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English languag ...
,
Francization Francization (in American English, Canadian English, and Oxford English) or Francisation (in other British English), also known as Frenchification, is the expansion of French language use—either through willful adoption or coercion—by more an ...
, or Amslanization (the process by which
American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...
replaces local
sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with #Non-manual elements, no ...
s). In addition, the residential school system attempted to institutionally exterminate languages and cultures from coast to coast to coast. The cruel methods (such as physical and
sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...
, as well as death rates as high as one in twenty children) resulted in a sharp declines in language use across all nations, including amongst
deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...
and signing communities. Robert Falcon Ouellette, a Cree Member of Parliament, played a pivotal role in promoting indigenous languages within the
Canadian Parliament The Parliament of Canada () is the federal legislature of Canada. The Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate and the House of Commons, form the bicameral legislature. The 343 members of the lower house, the House of Commons, are styled a ...
and Canadian House of Commons. He was instrumental in obtaining unanimous consent from all political parties to change the standing orders to allow indigenous languages to be spoken in the House of Commons, with full translation services provided. This historic change enabled Ouellette to deliver a speech in Cree, marking the first use of an indigenous language in the House on Jan 28, 2019. Furthermore, Bill C-91, the Indigenous Languages Act passed in 2019, was enacted to support and revitalize indigenous languages across Canada. This legislation, aims to reclaim, revitalize, and maintain indigenous languages through sustainable funding and the establishment of the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages. Ouellette was the chair of the indigenous caucus in the House of Commons and helped ensure it passage before the election of 2019. Two of Canada's
territories A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...
give official status to native languages. In
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
, Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun, known collectively as
Inuktut Inuktut is the collective name for the Inuit languages. It is used by Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the Inuit Circumpolar Council, and the Government of Nunavut throughout Inuit Nunaat and Inuit Nunangat. Usage Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) says ...
, are official languages alongside the national languages of English and French, and Inuktitut is a common vehicular language in territorial government. In the
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...
, the ''Official Languages Act'' declares that there are eleven different languages: Cree, Dënësųłıné, Dene Yatıé / Dene Zhatıé, English, French, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut,
Inuvialuktun Inuvialuktun (part of ''Western Canadian Inuit'' / ''Inuktitut'' / '' Inuktut'' / '' Inuktun'') comprises several Inuit language varieties spoken in the northern Northwest Territories by Canadian Inuit who call themselves ''Inuvialuit''. Some d ...
, Sahtúgot’įné Yatı̨́ / K’ashógot’įne Goxedǝ́ / Shíhgot’įne Yatı̨́, and Tłįchǫ. Besides English and French, these languages are not vehicular in government; official status entitles citizens to receive services in them on request and to deal with the government in them. Since 2015 demands have been made to recognize all Aboriginal languages as official languages in Canada. Awaiting
royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...
in October 2022 on Treaty Day,
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
has affirmed Mi'kmawi'simk as the "First Language" of the province through a bill titled the "Mi'kmaw Language Act" (No. 148). The Act establishes a language committee co-developed and co-run by Miꞌkmaw Kinaꞌmatnewey as well as ensuring "government support for the preservation, revitalization, promotion and protection of the Mi’kmaw language for generations to come," collaboratively developing strategy between the
Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...
of Nova Scotia and the
Government of Nova Scotia The Government of Nova Scotia (, ) is the government of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The powers and structure of the province are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term ...
. According to the 2016 census, less than one per cent of Canadians (213,225) reported an indigenous language as their mother tongue, and less than one per cent of Canadians (137,515) reported an indigenous language as the language spoken most often at home. Whilst most Canadian indigenous languages are endangered and their current speaker numbers are frequently low, the number of speakers has grown and even outpaced the number with an indigenous mother tongue, indicating that many people continue to learn the languages even if not initially raised with them. Given the destruction of indigenous state structures, academics usually classify indigenous peoples of Canada by region into " culture areas", or by their language family. * Arctic cultural area (
Inuit languages The Inuit languages are a closely related group of Indigenous languages of the Americas, indigenous American languages traditionally spoken across the North American Arctic and the adjacent subarctic regions as far south as Labrador. The Inuit ...
, including
Inuit Sign Language Inuit Sign Language (IUR; ) is one of the Inuit languages and the indigenous sign language of the Inuit people. It is a language isolate native to Inuit communities in the Canadian Arctic. It is currently only attested within certain communities ...
) * Subarctic culture area (
Na-Dene Na-Dene ( ; also Nadene, Na-Dené, Athabaskan–Eyak–Tlingit, Tlina–Dene) is a family of Native American languages that includes at least the Athabaskan languages, Eyak, and Tlingit languages. Haida was formerly included but is now general ...
and
Algonquian languages The Algonquian languages ( ; also Algonkian) are a family of Indigenous languages of the Americas and most of the languages in the Algic language family are included in the group. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from ...
) * Eastern Woodlands (Northeast) cultural area (Algonquian and
Iroquoian languages The Iroquoian languages () are a language family of indigenous peoples of North America. They are known for their general lack of labial consonants. The Iroquoian languages are polysynthetic and head-marking. As of 2020, almost all surviving I ...
) * Plains cultural area (Algonquian, Plains Sign, and
Siouan languages Siouan ( ), also known as Siouan–Catawban ( ), is a language family of North America located primarily in the Great Plains, Ohio and Mississippi valleys and southeastern North America with a few other languages in the east. Name Authors who ...
) * Northwest Plateau cultural area (
Ktunaxa The Kutenai ( ), also known as the Ktunaxa ( ; ), Ksanka ( ), Kootenay (in Canada) and Kootenai (in the United States), are an indigenous people of Canada and the United States. Kutenai bands live in southeastern British Columbia, norther ...
, Na-Dene, and
Salishan languages The Salishan languages ( ), also known as the Salish languages ( ), are a Language family, family of languages found in the Pacific Northwest in North America, namely the Canadian province of British Columbia and the American states of Washingt ...
, including Secwepemcékst and '' Plateau Sign Language'') * Northwest Coast cultural area ( Haida, Salishan, Tsimshianic, and
Wakashan languages Wakashan is a family of languages spoken in British Columbia around and on Vancouver Island, and in the northwestern corner of the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, on the south side of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. As is typical of the No ...
, possibly including Coast Salish Sign Language) Source: Statistics Canada, ''2006 Census Profile of Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order): Language, Mobility and Migration and Immigration and Citizenship'' Ottawa, 2007, pp. 2, 6, 10.
There exist numerous Cree languages, such as Plains Cree ( ), Woods Cree ( ),
Swampy Cree The Swampy Cree people, also known by their Exonym and endonym, autonyms ''Néhinaw'', ''Maskiki Wi Iniwak'', ''Mushkekowuk,'' ''Maškékowak, Maskegon'' or ''Maskekon'' (and therefore also ''Muskegon'' and ''Muskegoes'') or by exonyms includin ...
(E: , W: ), Moose Cree ( ), and
East Cree East Cree, also known as James Bay (Eastern) Cree, and East Main Cree, is a group of Cree dialects spoken in Quebec, Canada on the east coast of lower Hudson Bay and James Bay, and inland southeastward from James Bay. Cree is one of the most s ...
(N: S: ).
Although small in number, these languages have been included without data to show the disparity in information between
oral The word oral may refer to: Relating to the mouth * Relating to the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that primarily receives food and liquid **Oral administration of medicines ** Oral examination (also known as an oral exam or ora ...
and
sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with #Non-manual elements, no ...
s. The Canadian Association of the Deaf state that, in their opinion, "no fully credible census of
Deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...
, deafened, and hard of hearing people has ever been conducted in Canada." By extension, there exists no credible data on sign languages, especially of indigenous sign languages. ''
Glottolog ''Glottolog'' is an open-access online bibliographic database of the world's languages. In addition to listing linguistic materials ( grammars, articles, dictionaries) describing individual languages, the database also contains the most up-to-d ...
'' 4.3 (2020) counted 13 independent indigenous language families and/or isolates in Canada. A potential fourteenth family, that of the sign languages of the Plateau, possibly hosting languages like Secwepemcékst and Ktunaxa Sign Language, remains unlisted by Glottolog. It remains unknown to academia the extent which sign languages are spoken and how they relate to and across linguistic families.


Pidgins, mixed languages, & trade languages

In Canada, as elsewhere in the world of
European colonization The phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by various civilizations such as the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Han Chinese, and A ...
, the frontier of European exploration and settlement tended to be a linguistically diverse and fluid place, as cultures using different languages met and interacted. The need for a common means of communication between the indigenous inhabitants and new arrivals for the purposes of trade and (in some cases) intermarriage led to the development of hybrid languages. These languages tended to be highly localized, were often spoken by only a small number of individuals who were frequently capable of speaking another language, and often persisted only briefly, before being wiped out by the arrival of a large population of permanent settlers, speaking either English or French.


Belle Isle Pidgin

Spoken until about 1760, this
pidgin A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified form of contact language that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn f ...
was spoken between
Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...
and
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
fishermen and
NunatuKavummiut NunatuKavummiut (or People of NunatuKavut) are an Indigenous collective descended from Inuit and European people in central to southern Labrador. They have also been called the Southern Inuit, Inuit-Métis and Labrador Métis. While some Nunatu ...
of
NunatuKavut NunatuKavut () is a proposed NunatuKavummiut territory in central and southern Labrador. The region proposed by the NunatuKavut Community Council (NCC) extends from north of the community of Makkovik in Nunatsiavut to south of the community of ...
(
Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...
).


Bungee

Named from the
Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...
word ''bangii'' meaning "a little bit," the meagrely documented
Bungi Creole Bungi (also called Bungee, Bungie, Bungay, Bangay, or the Red River Dialect) is a dialect of English with substratal influence from Scottish English, the Orcadian dialect of Scots, Norn, Scottish Gaelic, French, Cree, and Western Ojibwe. ...
(also known as Bungee, Bungy, Bungie, Bungay, and as the Red River Dialect) is a mixed language predominantly anchored in English that evolved within the Prairie
Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...
community, specifically the Countryborn or Anglo-Métis. Due to the multicultural nature of the Red River Settlement, Bungi was influenced by
Scottish English Scottish English is the set of varieties of the English language spoken in Scotland. The transregional, standardised variety is called Scottish Standard English or Standard Scottish English (SSE). Scottish Standard English may be defined ...
, Nehiyawewin, Nakawemowin, the
Orcadian dialect Orcadian dialect or Orcadian Scots is a dialect of Insular Scots, itself a dialect of the Scots language. It is derived from Lowland Scots, with a degree of Norwegian influence from the Norn language. Due to the influence of Orkney fur trad ...
of Scots, Norn,
Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...
, and
Canadian French Canadian French (, ) is the French language as it is spoken in Canada. It includes multiple varieties, the most prominent of which is Québécois (Quebec French). Formerly ''Canadian French'' referred solely to Quebec French and the closely re ...
. The vocabulary and word order were primarily English, but the speech was lilting like that of Gaelic speakers, with pronunciation and structural shifts coming from the
Cree language Cree ( ; also known as Cree–Montagnais language, Montagnais–Naskapi language, Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 86,475 people across Canada in 2021, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to ...
s, such as: ''shawl'' becoming ''sawl'', ''she'' becoming ''see'', and the popular greeting ''I’m well, you but?''. Bungi reached its peak in the nineteenth century, with about 5,000 Countryborn native speakers of the dialect in 1870. However, over the next century, standard Canadian English gradually replaced it; and by the late 1980s, only a handful of elderly speakers remained. It is generally considered to be
asleep Sleep is a state of reduced mental and physical activity in which consciousness is altered and certain sensory activity is inhibited. During sleep, there is a marked decrease in muscle activity and interactions with the surrounding environme ...
today.


Chiac

Spoken in the
Maritime provinces The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of ...
(mostly in
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
), Chiac is a
creole language A creole language, or simply creole, is a stable form of contact language that develops from the process of different languages simplifying and mixing into a new form (often a pidgin), and then that form expanding and elaborating into a full-fl ...
with a linguistic base in
Acadian French Acadian French () is a variety of French spoken by Acadians, mostly in the region of Acadia, Canada. Acadian French has seven regional accents, including Chiac and Brayon. Phonology Since there was relatively little linguistic contact with F ...
and Maritime English with significant contributions from Mi'kmawi'simk and the
Maliseet language Peskotomuhkati-Wolastoqey ( or Maliseet-Passamaquoddy ( ; ''skicinuwatuwewakon'' or ''skicinuwi-latuwewakon'') is an endangered Algonquian language spoken by the Wolastoqey and Passamaquoddy peoples along both sides of the border between Maine ...
. Notable for its
code-switching In linguistics, code-switching or language alternation occurs when a speaker alternates between two or more languages, or language varieties, in the context of a single conversation or situation. These alternations are generally intended to ...
between English and French, it is often popularly considered a variant of
Franglais Franglais () or Frenglish ( ) is a French blend that referred first to the overuse of English words by French speakers and later to diglossia or the macaronic mixture of French () and English (). Etymology The word ''Franglais'' was first ...
, with examples such as: ''Espère-moi su'l'corner, j'traverse le ch'min pi j'viens right back'' (Wait for me at the corner, I'm crossing the road and I'll be right back) and ''On va amarrer ça d'même pour faire sûr que ça tchenne'' (We will tie it like this to make sure it stays). However, Chiac is not simply a ''Franglais''/''Frenglish'' mix of French and English, as it differs distinctly from other French-English mixed-use cases such as those found amongst
Fransaskois Fransaskois (; cf. Québécois), Franco-Saskatchewanais () or Franco-Saskatchewanians are French Canadians or Canadian francophones living in the province of Saskatchewan. According to the 2016 Canadian Census, approximately 17,735 residents o ...
or Ontarois.


Chinook Jargon

In British Columbia,
Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...
and throughout the
Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...
, a pidgin language known as the
Chinook Jargon Chinook Jargon (' or ', also known simply as ''Chinook'' or ''Jargon'') is a language originating as a pidgin language, pidgin trade language in the Pacific Northwest. It spread during the 19th century from the lower Columbia River, first to othe ...
(also rendered "Chinook Wawa") emerged in the early 19th century that was a combination of
Chinookan The Chinookan languages are a small family of extinct languages spoken in Oregon and Washington along the Columbia River by Chinook peoples. Although the last known native speaker of any Chinookan language died in 2012, the 2009-2013 American C ...
, Nootka, Chehalis, French and English, with a smattering of words from other languages including Hawaiian and
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
. Later in that century, it had creolized in the Pacific Northwest. Certain words and expressions remain current in local use, such as skookum, tyee, and saltchuck, while a few have become part of worldwide English ("high mucketymuck" or "high muckamuck" for a high-ranking and perhaps self-important official).


Franglais

A
portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.
language which is said to combine English and French syntax, grammar and lexicons to form a unique
interlanguage An interlanguage is an idiolect developed by a learner of a second language (L2) which preserves some features of their first language (L1) and can overgeneralize some L2 writing and speaking rules. These two characteristics give an interlangu ...
, is sometimes ascribed to mandatory basic French education in the Canadian anglophone school systems. Many unilingual anglophone Canadians, for instance, will borrow French words into their sentences. Simple words and phrases like "" (what is that?) or words like "" (stop) can alternate with their English counterparts. This phenomenon is more common in the eastern half of the country where there is a greater density of Francophone populations.
Franglais Franglais () or Frenglish ( ) is a French blend that referred first to the overuse of English words by French speakers and later to diglossia or the macaronic mixture of French () and English (). Etymology The word ''Franglais'' was first ...
can also refer to the supposed degradation of the French language thanks to the overwhelming impact Canadian English has on the country's Francophone inhabitants, though many linguists would argue that while English vocabulary can be freely borrowed as a stylistic device, the grammar of French has been resistant to influences from English and the same conservatism holds true in Canadian English grammar, even in Quebec City.


Haida Jargon

A pidgin trade language based on Haida, known as
Haida Jargon In the 1830s a pidgin trade language based on Haida, known as Haida Jargon, was used in the islands by speakers of English, Haida, Coast Tsimshian, and Heiltsuk.Lyle Campbell (1997) ''American Indian Languages'', p. 24 See also * Nootka Jar ...
, was used in the 1830s in and around
Haida Gwaii Haida Gwaii (; / , literally "Islands of the Haida people"), previously known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago located between off the British Columbia Coast, northern Pacific coast in the Canadian province of British Columbia ...
. It was used by speakers of English, Haida, Coast Tsimshian, Heiltsuk, and other languages.


Loucheux Jargon

As a result of cultural contact between the Gwich'in (formerly called "Loucheaux") and Europeans (predominately French
coureurs des bois A coureur des bois (; ) or coureur de bois (; ) were independent entrepreneurial French Canadians, French Canadian traders who travelled in New France and the interior of North America, usually to trade with Indigenous peoples of the Americas, ...
and
voyageurs Voyageurs (; ) were 18th- and 19th-century French and later French Canadians and others who transported furs by canoe at the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, including the ...
), a pidgin language was historically used across Gwich'in Nành, Denendeh. The language is often called in English "Jargon Loucheux" using the traditional French syntax.


Michif

Michif Michif (also Mitchif, Mechif, Michif-Cree, Métif, Métchif, French Cree) is one of the languages of the Métis people of Canada and the United States, who are the descendants of First Nations (mainly Cree, Nakota, and Ojibwe) and fur trade wo ...
(also known as Mitchif, Mechif, Michif-Cree, Métif, Métchif, and French Cree) is a mixed language which evolved within the Prairie
Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...
community that was oriented towards Cree and Franco-Catholic culture. It is based on elements of Cree and French along with elements of
Ojibwa The Ojibwe (; syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the northern plains, extending into the subarctic and thro ...
and
Assiniboine The Assiniboine or Assiniboin people ( when singular, Assiniboines / Assiniboins when plural; Ojibwe: ''Asiniibwaan'', "stone Sioux"; also in plural Assiniboine or Assiniboin), also known as the Hohe and known by the endonym Nakota (or Nakoda ...
. Michif is today spoken by fewer than 1,000 individuals in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and
North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...
. At its peak, around 1900, Michif was understood by perhaps three times this number.


Nootka Jargon

Based in the late 18th and early 19th centuries and likely one precursor to Chinook Wawa, Nootka Jargon was a trade language derived from Nuučaan̓uł, English, Spanish, and Russian, as well as other local languages.


Slavey Jargon

Also known as "Broken Slavey," this language was spoken until the mid-1900s, abruptly diminishing due to the influx of English into
Denendeh The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...
and
Inuit Nunangat Inuit Nunangat (; ), formerly Inuit Nunaat (), is the homeland of the Inuit in Canada. This Arctic homeland consists of four Northern Canada, northern Canadian regions called the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (, home of the Inuvialuit and th ...
. Documentation has also shown that the language was spoken by a range of fur traders, postmasters, and their wives, sisters, and daughters, who were often of Métis descent. The native languages of speakers who used Slavey Jargon were
Denesuline The Chipewyan ( , also called ''Denésoliné'' or ''Dënesųłı̨né'' or ''Dënë Sųłınë́'', meaning "the original/real people") are a Dene group of Indigenous Canadian people belonging to the Athabaskan language family, whose ancest ...
, French, Gwich'in,
Inuktitut Inuktitut ( ; , Inuktitut syllabics, syllabics ), also known as Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the North American tree line, including parts of the provinces of ...
, and the languages collectively known as "Slavey" (North: Sahtúgot’įné Yatı̨́, K’ashógot’įne Goxedǝ́, and Shíhgot’įne Yatı̨́; South: Dene Yatıé or Dene Zhatıé and Dené Dháh). The
Dene The Dene people () are an Indigenous group of First Nations who inhabit the northern boreal, subarctic and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages and it is the common Athabaskan word for "people". The term ...
,
Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...
, French, British, and Métis who spoke the language did so predominately for preaching the gospel, teasing and harassing clergymen, and for interpersonal relationships. The use of Slavey Jargon can be characterized as an innovation employed by speakers in order to meet several linguistic goals, such as introductions, advice, and disputes. Mishler specified, "For all these reasons, Slavey Jargon seems inaccurate to characterize it strictly as a trade jargon" (p. 277). Spoken predominately in the Liard and Dehcho Countries of Denendeh, the nouns of the language generally consisted of English, Dënësųłınë́ Yatıé, Sahtúgot’įné / Shíhgot’įne Yatı̨́ / K’ashógot’įne Goxedǝ́, and Dene Yatıé/Zhatıé, whereas the verbs and pronouns are derived from French. Adverbs are typically pulled from Dënësųłınë́ and Gwich’in. There is, however, a lot of variation in Slavey Jargon. Gwich’in verbs can be mixed with French nouns or phonemically modified French sentences exist.


Souriquois

Spoken alongside the Basque/Breton–Inuit Belle Isle pidgin was another
pidgin language A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified form of contact language that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn fro ...
that developed in the 16th century amongst the
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
in coastal areas along the
Gulf of Saint Lawrence The Gulf of St. Lawrence is a gulf that fringes the shores of the provinces of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, in Canada, plus the islands Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, possessions of France, in ...
and the
Strait of Belle Isle The Strait of Belle Isle ( ; ) is a waterway in eastern Canada, that separates Labrador from the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland, in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Location The strait is located in the southeast of the ...
as the result of contact between History of Basque whaling, Basque whalers and local Algonquian peoples, notably the
Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...
. The name "Souriquois" has an obscure history and most likely refers to region around Souris, Prince Edward Island, Souris and the Basque language, Basque suffix ''koa'', perhaps from ''zurikoa'' “that of the whites."


Sign languages

Alongside the numerous and varied oral languages, Canada also boasts several List of sign languages, sign languages. Currently, Canada is home to some five or more
sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with #Non-manual elements, no ...
s (that number rising with the probability that Plains Indian Sign Language, Plains Sign Talk is actually a language family with several languages under its umbrella), belonging to four to six distinct
language families A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term ''family'' is a metaphor borrowed from biology, with the tree model used in historical linguistics ana ...
, those being: the Francosign languages, Francosign family, the BANZSL family, the Plains Sign family, the Inuit Sign Language, Inuit Sign isolate, perhaps the Coast Salish Sign Language, Coast Salish Sign isolate, and perhaps a Plateau Sign Language, Plateau Sign family composed of Secwepemcékst and Ktunaxa Sign Language. As with all sign languages around the world that developed naturally, these are natural, human languages distinct from any oral language. As such,
American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...
(unlike Manually coded English#Signed English, Signed English) is no more a derivation of English than Russian is, all being distinct languages from one another. Some languages present here were trade pidgins which were used first as a system of communication across national and linguistic boundaries of First Nations, however, they have since developed into mature languages as children learned them as a first language. The sign languages of Canada share extremely limited rights within the country in large due to the general population's misinformation on the subject. Ontario is the only province or territory to formally make legal any sign language, enabling the use of American Sign Language, Quebec Sign Language (LSQ) and "First Nation Sign Language" (which could refer to Plains Sign Talk, Oneida Sign Language, or any other language) in only the domains of education, legislation and judiciary proceedings. The only other language afforded any other rights is Inuiuuk, which sees interpretation in the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut. There have been efforts to make LSQ an official language of Quebec, but all efforts have failed.


American Sign Language

The most utilized sign language in Canada,
American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...
or ASL, can be found across the country in mostly anglophone regions. The ties with anglophone Canada are not due to ASL and English's similarity, but to cultural similarities and linguistic history (as several ASL words are borrowed from English). As such, ASL can be found in areas where English is not the primary language, such as Montreal or
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
. ASL is part of the French Sign Language family, French Sign Language (Francosign) family, originating on the East Coast of the United States from a mix of French Sign Language, ''Langue des signes françaises'' (LSF) and other local languages.


= Black American Sign Language

= Amongst the Black Canadians, Black communities of Canada, Black American Sign Language (BASL) is also spoken.


Coast Salish Sign Language

There is evidence that Coast Salish citizens speak a distinct sign language.


Hand Talk

Hand Talk was the primary written language and of North America. It was used for all international relations, trade, and diplomacy across much of the continent until European colonization of the Americas, colonization. across the continent and the language stretched across the provinces down through Mexico. Its name comes from the language itself ("HANDS" + "TO-TALK-TO") and is preferred by Indigenous communities over other terms like "Plains Sign Language" or "First Nations Sign Languages". In fact, Hand Talk is a complex of several languages, with variants in the Northeast Woodlands, Great Basin, Southwest, and the Great Plains. It is unknown if Plateau Sign Language is related.


=Oneida Sign Language

= Born out of the Oneida Nation, OSL is a mixed language, descended primarily from both Hand Talk and the Oneida language, Oneida oral language, with some additions from ASL. Onʌyota'a:ká (or Oneida) Sign Language is a young and growing language, spreading especially amongst deaf Oneida citizens.


Inuit Sign Language

Inuit Sign Language Inuit Sign Language (IUR; ) is one of the Inuit languages and the indigenous sign language of the Inuit people. It is a language isolate native to Inuit communities in the Canadian Arctic. It is currently only attested within certain communities ...
, also known as Atgangmuurngniq or Uukturausingit, is a critically endangered language with some 50 speakers remaining. It is a language isolate and has only be found by researchers in
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
; however, there are theories it extends across the Arctic Circle. Little is known about its history, but efforts are being made to document and revitalize the language.


Maritime Sign Language

Maritime Sign Language is a BANZSL language. It was used as the language of education for Deaf populations in
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
, New Brunswick, and
Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
before ASL became available in the mid-20th century. It is still remembered by some elderly people but is Endangered language, moribund. The language, living alongside ASL, has produced a unique dialect of ASL in the Maritimes due to mixing of the languages. The exact number of speakers is unknown.


Plateau Sign Language

Another international language, Plateau Sign Language was/is spoken in the Columbia Plateau and surrounding regions of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho instead of Plains Sign Talk. There are few speakers left, mostly Elders.


= Ktunaxa Sign Language

= Called ''ʾa·qanⱡiⱡⱡitnam'' in the Ktunaxa language, Ktunaxa Sign Language has historically been spoken in Ktunaxa ɁamakaɁis (Ktunaxa Country).


= Secwépemc Sign Language

= Perhaps related to or descended from the old Plateau Sign Language, Secwepemcékst or Secwépemc Sign Language is spoken by a small number of Secwépemc citizens.


Quebec Sign Language

Alongside ASL, Quebec Sign Language or LSQ (''Langue des signes québécoise'') is the second most spoken sign language in the country. Centred mainly around and within Quebec, LSQ can also be found in Ontario, New Brunswick and various other parts of the country, generally around Deafness in Francophone Canada, francophone communities due to historical ties to the French language. Although approximately 10% of the population of Quebec is deaf or hard-of-hearing, it is estimated that only 50,000 to 60,000 children use LSQ as their native language. LSQ is part of the Francosign family with ASL. As such, both languages are Mutual intelligibility, mutually intelligible.


Sawmill Sign Language

Spoken by the sawmill workers of BC, this sign language was used by predominately hearing staff during work hours and in socializing with co-workers.


Canadian dialects of European languages


Acadian French

Acadian French Acadian French () is a variety of French spoken by Acadians, mostly in the region of Acadia, Canada. Acadian French has seven regional accents, including Chiac and Brayon. Phonology Since there was relatively little linguistic contact with F ...
is a unique form of
Canadian French Canadian French (, ) is the French language as it is spoken in Canada. It includes multiple varieties, the most prominent of which is Québécois (Quebec French). Formerly ''Canadian French'' referred solely to Quebec French and the closely re ...
which incorporates not only distinctly Canadian phrases but also nautical terms, English loanwords, Feature (linguistics), linguistic features found only in older forms of French as well as ones found in the Atlantic Canadian English, Maritimer English dialect.


= Brayon French

= A sub-dialect of
Acadian French Acadian French () is a variety of French spoken by Acadians, mostly in the region of Acadia, Canada. Acadian French has seven regional accents, including Chiac and Brayon. Phonology Since there was relatively little linguistic contact with F ...
, Brayon French is spoken by those in Madawaska County of
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
. The language is a mix of Acadian and Quebec French with influence from the local Mi'kmaq, Mi'kmaw and Maliseet languages, with only slight differentiation from the more standard Acadian French.


Québec French

As the most spoken variety of French in Canada, Québec French contains a significant number of dialects, generally grouped in two: the "old" dialects of the territories at the time of the Conquest of New France (1758–1760), British conquest and the "new" dialects that arose post-conquest.


= Chaouin French

= Around 1615 as the
coureurs des bois A coureur des bois (; ) or coureur de bois (; ) were independent entrepreneurial French Canadians, French Canadian traders who travelled in New France and the interior of North America, usually to trade with Indigenous peoples of the Americas, ...
moved past Quebec City, the city of Quebec, those who settled in ''Ndakinna'' (Abenaki land) developed unique features still found today, especially in the Bois-Francs region South of the St Lawrence River, St. Lawrence.


= Joual French

= Originally the dialect of the French-speaking working class in Montréal, the cultural renaissance connected to the Quiet Revolution have resulted in Joual being spoken by people across the educational and economic spectrum.


= Màgoua French

= Possibly deriving from the Atikamekw language, Atikamekw word for "Common loon, loon" (''makwa''; standard French: ''huard''), the French spoken by the Magoua community is one of the most conservative French dialects in North America. This Post-creole continuum, basilectal dialect is found in Nitaskinan as the Trois-Rivières region became the first stronghold of the
coureurs des bois A coureur des bois (; ) or coureur de bois (; ) were independent entrepreneurial French Canadians, French Canadian traders who travelled in New France and the interior of North America, usually to trade with Indigenous peoples of the Americas, ...
outside the Quebec City, city of Quebec in 1615. Magoua French preserves the sontaient ("étaient") characteristic of Métis French and Cajun French, has a creole-like past tense particle tà, and has old present-tense contraction of a former verb "to be" that behave in the same manner as subject clitics.


Métis French

Alongside
Michif Michif (also Mitchif, Mechif, Michif-Cree, Métif, Métchif, French Cree) is one of the languages of the Métis people of Canada and the United States, who are the descendants of First Nations (mainly Cree, Nakota, and Ojibwe) and fur trade wo ...
and Bungi Creole, Bungi, the
Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...
dialect of French is one of the traditional languages of the Métis people, and the French-dialect source of the Michif language. Métis French is a variety of
Canadian French Canadian French (, ) is the French language as it is spoken in Canada. It includes multiple varieties, the most prominent of which is Québécois (Quebec French). Formerly ''Canadian French'' referred solely to Quebec French and the closely re ...
with some added characters Tilde, Ññ, Acute accent, Áá, Acute accent, Óó, and Ææ (from older French spellings), such as: English: "there is no birthmark on this boy." There are also significant amounts of words loaned from Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous languages such as Ojibwe language, Ojibwemowin, Dane-zaa language, Dane-zaa Ẕáágéʔ (Beaver), and several
Cree language Cree ( ; also known as Cree–Montagnais language, Montagnais–Naskapi language, Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 86,475 people across Canada in 2021, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to ...
s. Like Michif, Métis French is spoken predominantly in Manitoba as well as adjacent provinces and US states. As a general rule, Métis individuals tend to speak one or the other, rarely both.


Newfoundland French

Tracing their origins to Continental French fishermen who settled in the late 1800s and early 1900s, rather than the Québécois, Newfoundland French (or ''français terre-neuvien'') refers to the French spoken on the
Port au Port Peninsula The Port au Port Peninsula (; ) is a peninsula in the Canada, Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Roughly triangular in shape, it is located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland. Geography The pe ...
(part of the so-called “
French Shore The French Shore (French language, French: ''Côte française de Terre-Neuve''), also called The Treaty Shore, resulted from the 1713 ratifications of the Treaty of Utrecht. The provisions of the treaty allowed the French to fish in season along t ...
”) of Newfoundland. Some Acadians of the Maritimes also settled in the area. For this reason, Newfoundland French is most closely related to the
Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...
and Norman French of nearby St-Pierre-et-Miquelon. Today, heavy contact with Acadian French—and especially widespread bilingualism with Newfoundland English—have taken their toll, and the community is in decline. The degree to which lexical features of Newfoundland French constitute a distinct dialect is not presently known. It is uncertain how many speakers survive; the dialect could be moribund language, moribund. There is a provincial advocacy organisation ''Fédération des Francophones de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador'', representing both the Peninsular French and Acadian French communities.


Ontarois French

Although quite similar to Quebec French, the dialect of the Ontarois or Franco-Ontarians maintains distinctive features. These include the progressive disappearance of the subjunctive, the use of the possessive ''á'', the transfer of rules from English to French, e.g., "''J’ai vu un film sur/à la télévision''" which comes from "I saw a film on television", or "''Je vais à la maison/chez moi''" coming from "I'm going home," and the loaning of English conjunctions such as "so" for ''ça fait que'' or ''alors''.


Black English

In what is also called Black Canadian, Afro-Canadian, or African Canadian English, there exist several varieties of English spoken by Black Canadians. The most well-established is the dialect spoken by Afro-Nova Scotians. In places like Toronto where there is a large population of Afro-Caribbean people, Afro-Caribbean descendants and newcomers, localized varieties of Black English take on elements of Caribbean English, as well as mixing with African-American Vernacular English, African-American Vernacular English (AAVE). Although AAVE is not nearly as widespread in Canada as it is across the United States, Black Canadians have various lines of connection to the dialect. Sometimes that connection is historical, such as with Black Nova Scotians; sometimes it is hegemonic, where Afro-Canadians adopt speech mannerisms from the larger United States; sometimes it is diaspora, diasporic, where communities of African-American newcomers or African-American descendants coalesce, especially in larger cities.


= Afro-Nova Scotian English

= African Nova Scotian English is spoken by descendants of Black Nova Scotians, black immigrants from the United States. Though most Fugitive slaves in the United States, African American freedom seekers in Canada ended up in Ontario through the Underground Railroad, only the dialect of African Nova Scotians retains the influence of West African pidgin. In the 19th century, African Nova Scotian English would have been indistinguishable from English spoken in Jamaica or Suriname. However, it has been increasingly de-creolized since this time, due to interaction and influence from the white Nova Scotian population. Racial desegregation, Desegregation of the province's school boards in 1964 further accelerated the process of de-creolization. The language is a relative of the African-American Vernacular English, with significant variations unique to the group's history in the area. There are noted differences in the dialects of those from Guysborough County (Black Loyalists), and those from North Preston (Black Refugees), the Guysborough group having been in the province three generations earlier. Howe and Walker use data from early recordings of African Nova Scotian English, Samaná English, and the recordings of former slaves to demonstrate that speech patterns were inherited from nonstandard colonial English. The dialect was extensively studied in 1992 by Shana Poplack and Sali Tagliamonte from the University of Ottawa. A commonality between African Nova Scotian English and African-American Vernacular English is Rhoticity in English, (r)-deletion. This rate of deletion is 57% among Black Nova Scotians, and 60% among African Americans in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, in the surrounding mostly white communities of Nova Scotia, (r)-deletion does not occur.


Cascadian English

The English language in British Columbia shares numerous features with the neighbouring states of Washington (state), Washington and Oregon, such as the /æɡ/ raising (found words such as bag, vague and bagel). Boreal Cascadian English speakers exhibit more vowel retraction of /æ/ before nasals than people from Toronto, and younger speakers in the Greater Vancouver area do not raise /aʊ/ as much, but keep the drop in intonation, causing "about" to sound slightly like "a baht." The "o" in such words as holy, goal, load, know, etc. is pronounced as a close-mid back rounded vowel, [o], but not as rounded as in the Prairies where there are strong Scandinavian, Slavic and German influences, which can lend to a more stereotypical "Canadian" accent.


Indigenous English

The varieties of English spoken by Indigenous peoples in Canada, indigenous people are phonology, phonologically influenced by their first or traditional languages. This has resulted in an identifiable dialect spectrum distinct from other Canadian English dialects. Due to the ongoing Racism in Canada#Indigenous Peoples, stigmatization of indigenous cultures, indigenous children could be wrongly diagnosed as having a speech impairment or a learning disability, when what is identified by medical professionals are simply the dialectal features. Some written works use indigenous English dialects. For example, Maria Campbell, Maria Campbell's book ''Stories of the Road Allowance People'' is a collection of Métis folktales. An excerpt from that work illustrates the type of speech used by Elders in rural Métis communities during her research, but some stories were collected in Cree or other languages and translated into dialectical English by Campbell:


Lunenburg English

Spoken in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Lunenburg and Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, this moribund language, moribund dialect is sometimes called "Lunenburg Dutch" due to its rooting in the large Electoral Palatinate, Kurpfalzisch and Württembergisch population who settled the town. Although the German language subsided significantly, the English of the town and county continue to be marked by its influence. Indeed, the pronunciation in Lunenburg county is the only Canadian community to be Rhoticity in English, non-rhotic. The accent features Canadian raising and so flight [ˈflʌɪt] has a different vowel from fly [ˈflɑɪ], and the noun house [ˈhoʊs] has a different vowel from the verb house [ˈhɑʊz]. In Lunenburg, the phrase ''about a boat'' contains two identical stressed and two identical unstressed vowels: /əˌboʊt ə ˈboʊt/, rather than the Standard Canadian English /əˌbaʊt ə ˈboʊt/, with distinct stressed vowels. Due to German influence, there is a tendency to pronounce /w/ in witch the same as /v/ as in van. Another example is the lack of the dental fricatives /θ/ and /ð/, which are replaced by the alveolar stops /t/ and /d/ (rendering "thank" and "tank" homophonous as /ˈtæŋk/), and the "t" at the end of words is usually silent: "get" becomes "ge." For example, here is a sample of a conversation between two people:


Maritime English

Spoken across the provinces of
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
,
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
, and PEI, this English dialect has been influenced by British English, British and Irish English, Irish Gaelic, Irish and Scottish Gaelic, and some Acadian French, as well as by Mi'kmaq language, Mi'kmawi'simk.


Newfoundland English

The initial European settlers to Newfoundland were fishermen from the various coastal villages of the English West Country of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and Wiltshire beginning in the 1500s (previously they visited in summer and returned). This set the basic speech patterns for those settlers who fanned out into isolated coves and bays along the island's of coastline to take advantage of the scattered off-shore fishing areas.
Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...
, today the greater part of "Newfoundland", was then sparsely settled. The West Country dialects continued to be spoken in isolated coves and fjords of the island thus preserving varied dialects of what is today referred to as Newfoundland English. It was not until the 1700s that social disruptions in Ireland sent thousands of Irish from the southeastern counties of Waterford, Wexford, Kilkenny, and Cork and to the Avalon peninsula in the eastern part of Newfoundland where significant Irish influence on the Newfoundland dialects may still be heard. Some of the Irish immigrants to Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland were native speakers of Irish language, Irish making Newfoundland the only place outside Europe to have Irish language in Newfoundland, its own Irish dialect. Newfoundland was also the only place outside Europe to have its own distinct name in Irish: ''Talamh an Éisc'', which means 'land of the fish'. The Irish language is now extinct in Newfoundland. After 400 years, much of the dialectal differences between the isolated settlements has levelled out beginning in the 20th century when faster boats (using gas engines instead of oars or sails), and improved road connections provided easier social contact. As well, influences from mainland North America began to affect the local dialects beginning during WWII when US and Canadian servicemen were stationed in Newfoundland and accelerating after Newfoundland became a Canadian province in 1949. Lack of an official orthography, publications in dialect, speaker attrition and official disinterest in promoting the language has been contributing factors towards a decline of speakers of the older, traditional Newfoundland English in the original settlements.


Ottawa Valley Twang

Ottawa Valley English, Ottawa Valley Twang is the accent (sociolinguistics), accent, sometimes referred to as a dialect of English, that is spoken in the Ottawa Valley, in Ontario. The Ottawa Valley is considered to be a linguistics, linguistic Enclave and exclave, enclave within Ontario.


Quebec English

The language of English-speaking Quebecers generally aligns to Standard Canadian English, however established ethnic groups retain certain, distinctive lexical features, such as the dialects spoken by Mohawk people, Mohawk, James Bay Cree, Cree, wikt:Nunavimmiut, Inuit, Irish, Jewish, Italian, and Greek communities. Isolated fishing villages on the Basse-Côte-Nord speak Newfoundland English, and many Gaspésie, Gaspesian English-speakers use Maritime English.


Toronto slang

Spoken within the Greater Toronto Area, Toronto slang is the nuanced, multicultural English spoken in the city. This dialect is heavily influenced by the different communities present, most notably the Jamaican, Trinidadian, Guyanese, and other Caribbean communities and their ways of speaking. There is also influence from West African, East African, and South Asian communities.


Canadian Gaelic

Canadian Gaelic Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic (, or ), often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada. Scottish Gaels were settled in Nova Scotia from 1773, with the ...
was spoken by many immigrants who settled in Glengarry County, Ontario, Glengarry County (Ontario) and the Maritimes—predominantly in New Brunswick's Restigouche River valley, central and southeastern Prince Edward Island, and across the whole of northern Nova Scotia—particularly Cape Breton. While the
Canadian Gaelic Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic (, or ), often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada. Scottish Gaels were settled in Nova Scotia from 1773, with the ...
dialect has mostly disappeared, regional pockets persist. These are mostly centred on families deeply committed to their Celtic traditions. Nova Scotia currently has 500–1,000 fluent speakers, mostly in northwestern Cape Breton. There have been attempts in Nova Scotia to institute Gaelic immersion on the model of French immersion. As well, formal post-secondary studies in Gaelic language and culture are available through St. Francis Xavier University, Saint Mary's University (Halifax), Saint Mary's University, and Cape Breton University In 1890, a private member's bill was tabled in the Canadian Senate, calling for Gaelic to be made Canada's third Official bilingualism in Canada, official language. However, the bill was defeated 42–7.


Newfoundland Irish

Newfoundland is home to the largest population of Irish-descendants in Canada and once hosted a thriving Irish language, Irish Gaelic linguistic community. Although steep declines around the 20th century meant that the Irish language on the Island hardly remains, there exists today strong interest with consistent efforts to revive the language. Newfoundland Irish has left an impact on the English spoken on the Island, including terms like ''scrob'' "scratch" (Irish ), ''sleveen'' "rascal" (Irish ) and ''streel'' "slovenly person" (Irish ), along with grammatical features like the Hiberno-English#Recent past construction, "after" perfect as in "she's already after leavin (Irish ). As well, both Newfoundland (''Talamh an Éisc'', ''Land of the Fish'') and St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's (''Baile Sheáin'') have distinct names in the Irish-language. The dialect of Irish spoken in Newfoundland is said to resemble the Munster Irish of the 18th century. Events and institutions are increasingly supporting the language with ever larger Céilí, Céilithe móra, students participating in Conradh na Gaeilge events, people playing Gaelic games, Gaelic sports, and Irish film festivals attracting English- and Irish-speakers alike. There is also an Irish language instructor, appointed every year by the Ireland Canada University Foundation, who works at Memorial University in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, where the university's Digital Learning Centre provides resources for learning the Irish language.


Newfoundland Welsh

Some Welsh language, Welsh is found in Newfoundland. In part, this is as a result of Welsh settlement since the 17th century. Also, there was an influx of about 1,000 Y Wladfa, Patagonian Welsh, who migrated to Canada from Argentina after the 1982 Falklands War. Welsh-Argentines are fluent in Spanish as well as English and Welsh.


Canadian Ukrainian

Canada is also home to Canadian Ukrainian, a distinct dialect of the Ukrainian language, spoken mostly in Western Canada by the descendants of first two waves of Ukrainian Canadians, Ukrainian settlement in Canada who developed in a degree of isolation from their cousins in what was then Austria-Hungary, the Russian Empire, Poland, and the Soviet Union.


Doukhobor Russian

Canada's Doukhobor community, especially in Grand Forks, British Columbia, Grand Forks and Castlegar, British Columbia, has kept its Doukhobor Russian, distinct dialect of Russian language, Russian. It has a lot in common with Southern Russian dialects, South Russian dialects, showing some common features with Ukrainian. This dialect's versions are becoming extinct in their home regions of Georgia (country), Georgia and Russia where the Doukhobors have split into smaller groups.


Deitsch

A variety of West Central German spoken by the Amish, Old Order Amish, Old Order Mennonites and other descendants of German Canadians, German immigrants in Canada, Pennsylvania Dutch or Pennsylvania Dutch language, Deitsch is closely related to the Palatine German language, Palatine dialects of the Upper Rhine Valley. Of the estimated 300,000 speakers, most are found across several US states, whilst there is a sizable community within Ontario.


Hutterisch

Centred in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, the Hutterite communities maintain a koiné language, distinct form of the German language descended from Bavarian language, Bavarian dialects spoken in Tyrol (by founder Jacob Hutter). The language shifted in the mid-18th century toward a more Duchy of Carinthia, Carinthian linguistic base upon the deportation of Transylvanian Landler, Landler from Austria to Transylvania. There is only about a 50% intelligibility between Pennsylvania Dutch speakers and Hutterite German, Hutterisch. Its speaker base belongs to the ''Schmiedleit'', ''Lehrerleit'', and ''Dariusleit'' groups with a few speakers among the older generations of ''Prairieleit'' (the descendants of those Hutterites who chose not to settle in colonies). Hutterite children who grow up in the colonies first learn and speak Hutterisch before learning English. Of the estimated 34,000 speakers in the world (as of 2003), 85% of them live in 370 communities in Canada. Canadian adults are generally literate in Early New High German (also called "Biblical German", the predecessor to Standard German used by Martin Luther) that they employ as the written form for Scriptures, however Hutterisch is, for the most part, an unwritten language.


Plautdietsch

Plautdietsch language, Plautdietsch is predominantly found in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario where Mennonite communities settled. The Mennonites, or Russian Mennonites as they are sometimes called, descend from Low Countries, Low country Anabaptists who fled from what is today the Netherlands and Belgium in the 16th century to escape persecution and Vistula delta Mennonites, resettled in the Vistula delta. Their language is a fusion of Dutch dialects, Dutch, West Frisian language, West Frisian and Dutch Low Saxon dialects which over time mixed with the East Low German dialects of Werdersch, Nehrungisch and Dialekt des Weichselgebietes, Weichselisch.


Official bilingualism


Language policy of the federal government

English and French have equal status in federal courts, the Parliament of Canada, as well as in all federal institutions. The public has the right, where there is sufficient demand, to receive federal government services in either English or French. Immigrants who are applying for Canadian nationality law, Canadian citizenship must normally be able to speak either English or French. The principles of bilingualism in Canada are protected in Section 16 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, sections 16 to Section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 23 of the ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' of 1982 which establishes that: * French and English are equal to each other as federal official languages; * Debate in Parliament may take place in either official language; * Federal laws shall be printed in both official languages, with equal authority; * Anyone may deal with any court established by Parliament, in either official language; * Everyone has the right to receive services from the federal government in his or her choice of official language; * Members of a minority language group of one of the official languages if learned and still understood (i.e., French speakers in a majority English-speaking province, or vice versa) or received primary school education in that language has the right to have their children receive a public education in their language, where numbers warrant. Canada's ''Official Languages Act,'' first adopted in 1969 and updated in 1988, gives English and French equal status throughout federal institutions.


Language policies of Canada's provinces and territories


Officially bilingual or multilingual: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and the three territories

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Canada's three territories have all given official status to more than one language. In the case of New Brunswick, this means perfect equality. In the other cases, the recognition sometimes amounts to a formal recognition of official languages, but limited services in official languages other than English. The official languages are: * New Brunswick: English and French. New Brunswick has been officially bilingual since the 1960s. The province's officially bilingual status has been entrenched in the ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' since 1982. * Nova Scotia: Mi'kmawi'simk is considered the province's official "first language." * Northwest Territories: Cree, Dënësųłıné, Dene Yatıé / Dene Zhatıé, English, French, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, Sahtúgot’įné Yatı̨́ / K’ashógot’įne Goxedǝ́ / Shíhgot’įne Yatı̨́, and Tłįchǫ. * Nunavut: English, Inuktut (Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun), and French. * Yukon: English and French.


Officially French-only: Quebec

Until 1969, Quebec was the only officially bilingual province in Canada and most public institutions functioned in both languages. English was also used in the legislature, government commissions and courts. With the adoption of the ''Charter of the French Language'' (also known as "Bill 101") by Quebec's National Assembly of Quebec, National Assembly in August 1977, however, French became Quebec's sole official language. However, the ''Charter of the French Language'' enumerates a defined set of language rights for the English language and for Aboriginal languages, and government services are available, to certain citizens and in certain regions, in English. As well, a series of court decisions have forced the Government of Quebec, Quebec government to increase its English-language services beyond those provided for under the original terms of the ''Charter of the French Language''. Regional institutions in the Nunavik region of Nord-du-Québec, northern Quebec offer services in Inuktitut and Cree.


''De facto'' English only, or limited French-language services: the other eight provinces

Most provinces have laws that make either English or both English and French the official language(s) of the legislature and the courts but may also have separate policies in regards to education and the bureaucracy. For example, in
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
, English and French are both official languages of debate in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Legislative Assembly, but laws may be drafted solely in English and there is no legal requirement that they be translated into French. French can be used in some lower courts and education is offered in both languages, but the bureaucracy functions almost solely in English. Therefore, although Alberta is not officially an English-only province, English has a higher ''de facto'' status than French. Ontario and Manitoba are similar but allow for more services in French at the local level.


Geographic distribution

The following table details the population of each province and territory, with summary national totals, by mother tongue as reported in the Canada 2016 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, ''Mother tongue by age (Total), 2016 counts for the population excluding institutional residents of Canada, provinces and territories, 2016 Census ''.


Knowledge of languages

The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses, and first appeared on the 1991 Canadian census. The following figures are from the 1991 Canadian census, 2001 Canadian census, 2011 Canadian census, and the 2021 Canadian census.


Knowledge of official languages


Speakers by mother tongue


Language used most often at work


Language used most often at home


See also

* Demographics of Canada * Immigration to Canada * Franco-Albertans * Franco-Columbian * Franco-Manitoban * Franco-Ontarian *
Fransaskois Fransaskois (; cf. Québécois), Franco-Saskatchewanais () or Franco-Saskatchewanians are French Canadians or Canadian francophones living in the province of Saskatchewan. According to the 2016 Canadian Census, approximately 17,735 residents o ...
* Franco-Ténois * Franco-Newfoundlander * Franco-Yukonnais * Quebec English * Quebec French * Newfoundland French * Italian language in Canada


Explanatory notes


References


Further reading

* * * *


External links


Ethnologue report for Canada


(Statistics Canada) * [http://geogratis.gc.ca/api/en/nrcan-rncan/ess-sst/e5b417f0-8893-11e0-9885-6cf049291510.html The Atlas of Canada – Mother tongue] English
The Atlas of Canada – Mother tongue
French


2006 Census: Aboriginal data


with 50 indigenous languages
Language Portal of Canada

Comparative Summary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Languages Of Canada Languages of Canada, Demographics of Canada