Study: The Sociodemographic Diversity of the Black Populations in Canada
Released: 2024-10-25
Black Peoples represent a growing proportion of the racialized populations in Canada and their sociodemographic profiles have evolved over the last 25 years. The diversity of these populations has been influenced by the pre-Confederation transatlantic settlement of Black peoples in Canada and migration flows to Canada from the Caribbean and Africa, starting in the 1960s. Black populations in Canada differ in terms of their histories, ethnocultural origins, places of birth, mother tongues, and religious affiliations.
A new analytical portrait released today examines the sociodemographic, linguistic, ethnocultural and religious composition of the Black populations in Canada and focuses on three diasporic communities: the Canadian-born, the African-born and the Caribbean-born.
Over 4 in 10 Black people were born in Canada
While just over 4 in 10 Black people (41.0%) were born in Canada, Black people represented the largest share (35.8%) of all racialized individuals in the third generation or more in Canada. Almost 6 in 10 Black people in Nova Scotia (59.5%) and nearly 1 in 4 Black people in New Brunswick (22.4%) were in the third generation or more in 2021, reflecting the legacies of historic Black communities.
Chart 1
Provincial and territorial distribution of the Black populations, by generation status, Canada, 2021
Increased migration by Black peoples throughout the 19th century to southwestern Ontario (e.g., Amherstburg, Chatham, Oro and North Buxton) and western Canada (e.g., Salt Spring Island, Eldon District, Amber Valley, Wildwood and Hogan's Alley) led to the establishment of historic Black communities beyond the Atlantic provinces, which has impacted the generational diversity among the Black populations in present-day Canada.
African-born Black populations have surpassed their Caribbean-born counterparts in size
The composition of the Black populations is also influenced by migration flows to Canada from the Caribbean and Africa, starting in the 1960s. The largest share of Black Caribbean immigrants (42.5%) migrated to Canada from 1960 to 1990, while over half (54.8%) of Black immigrants from Africa came to Canada more recently (from 2011 to 2021). In 2016, the African-born Black populations surpassed the Caribbean-born Black populations to become the second-largest group among the Black populations in Canada based on place of birth.
As of the 2021 Census of Population, the sociodemographic diversity of the Black populations in Canada has been largely driven by the African-born Black populations. Beyond the three groups explored in the study, Black people from other parts of the world and other diaspora communities also comprise the Black populations in Canada.
Overall, the Black populations have more than doubled in size since 1996, reaching 1.5 million people in 2021 and representing 4.3% of the total population and 16.1% of the total racialized populations in Canada. This group is projected to become the second-largest racialized group by 2041.
The Black populations report the most places of birth among all racialized groups in Canada
In 2021, Black people in Canada were born in approximately 182 different countries, accounting for over three-quarters of the estimated 230 places of birth reported by the total population in Canada. Jamaica and Haiti were the top countries of birth for the Caribbean-born Black populations, while Nigeria, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo were the most common for the African-born Black populations.
Black populations in Canada live mainly in urban areas
In 2021, 97.8% of Black people in Canada resided in urban areas. The three most populous census metropolitan areas with the largest Black populations were Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa–Gatineau. This was the same as in the 2016 Census.
Black communities in Canada were more geographically dispersed in 2021, with the proportion of the Black populations residing in Ontario and Quebec decreasing from 85.0% in 1996 to 77.0% in 2021. In contrast, the percentage of the Black populations residing in the Prairie provinces more than doubled, from 7.0% in 1996 to 16.0% in 2021. This was largely because the share of Black residents nearly tripled in Alberta during this period.
Just over 4 in 10 Black people in Canada are children and youth
Among the 3.3 million racialized children and youth in Canada, the Black populations were the second-largest group. Children and youth (aged 0 to 25 years) made up 41.9% of the Black populations in 2021. In total, 647,940 Black children and youth accounted for 19.4% of all racialized children and youth, and 6.4% of all children and youth in Canada. Nearly three-quarters (72.8%) of the total Black populations were younger than 45, compared with 54.9% of the total population in Canada.
Analysis by age underscores differences between the Canadian-born Black populations and the immigrant Black populations. In 2021, over three-quarters (76.6%) of Black children aged 14 years and younger were born in Canada, while almost 7 in 10 (68.5%) Black seniors aged 65 years and older in Canada were born in the Caribbean. Most Black people of core working age (25 to 54 years old) were born in Africa.
Chart 2
Distribution of the Black populations by age group and place of birth, Canada, 2021
In 2021, the median age of Black people born in Canada was 15.5 years, while the median age of Black people born outside Canada was 40.4 years. Among all age groups in the Black populations, seniors had the highest share of women (56.5%), a difference of 13 percentage points compared with men (43.5%) in the same age group.
Increasing gender parity is largely a result of recent immigration trends
From 1960 to 1990, women outnumbered men among Black Caribbean immigrants coming to Canada, while the Canadian-born Black populations were more gender-balanced. Since 1990, women have also outnumbered men among Black African immigrants coming to Canada, a group where men were previously a majority. These trends contributed to increased gender parity among the total Black populations (consisting of 51.3% women and 48.7% men) in 2021.
In 2021, 3,725 Black people were transgender and 1,610 were non-binary. Of the transgender individuals, 1,815 were Black transgender men and 1,920 were Black transgender women, representing a similar ratio as seen among the cisgender Black populations. The Black transgender and non-binary populations represented 0.4% of the total Black populations in Canada in 2021, and 4.3% of the total transgender and non-binary populations in Canada. The total transgender and non-binary populations in Canada represented 0.3% of the total population in the country.
The Black populations report the largest number of mother tongues and ethnic or cultural origins among all racialized groups
The Black populations reported around 250 different mother tongues and approximately 371 different ethnic or cultural origins in 2021.
Among the Black populations, those born in Africa had the most diverse mother-tongue profile by place of birth, with 43.2% of these individuals reporting a non-official language as their mother tongue. Close to one-quarter (24.8%) of African-born Black people in Canada reported English as their only mother tongue in 2021, compared with 70.9% in the Canadian-born Black populations. English was the primary mother tongue reported by Black people in Canada who were born in the rest of the world (North America excluding Canada; South America; Europe; Asia; and Oceania and other regions) (64.7%) and by Caribbean-born Black populations in Canada (63.9%).
Chart 3
Distribution of the Black populations reporting English, French and non-official languages as single mother tongues and multiple mother tongues, by place of birth, Canada, 2021
Over 25.0% of Black people in Canada (396,960) reported more than one ethnic or cultural origin in 2021. Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian and Somali were frequently reported origins, reflecting some of the top places of birth (other than Canada) among the Black populations in Canada.
Chart 4
Ethnic or cultural origins (single and multiple responses) most often reported by the Black populations, Canada, 2021
Among the Black populations in Canada, 9,465 people reported having "North American Indigenous" ethnic or cultural origins in 2021, and just over 100,000 people could be identified as possibly descending from historic Black communities.
Just over 8 in 10 Black people in Canada report a religious affiliation
In 2021, the Black populations had the highest religious affiliation (81.8%)—particularly with Christianity—compared with other racialized groups (73.2%) and with the non-racialized populations (62.6%).
Among Black Peoples, African-born individuals reported the highest religious affiliation (93.8%) in 2021. Compared with 2011, religious affiliation has decreased across all the major religions reported by the Black populations in Canada, except for Islam. African-born individuals had the largest proportion (21.8%) and number (110,115) of Black Muslims in 2021. The largest proportion of Christians was among Black people born in the Caribbean (81.6%), while the largest number of Christians was among those born in Canada (390,215).
Looking ahead
This analytical portrait is the first of a series on racialized groups in Canada, developed to support the initiatives under Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy.
Did you know we have a mobile app?
Download our mobile app and get timely access to data at your fingertips! The StatsCAN app is available for free on the App Store and on Google Play.
Note to readers
The study outlined in this release was funded by the Department of Canadian Heritage, Government of Canada to support the initiatives under Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy (CARS). CARS seeks to address racism and discrimination faced by racialized groups and Indigenous Peoples. This analytical portrait aligns with the Disaggregated Data Action Plan, a whole-of-government approach led by Statistics Canada, to enhance data collection, analysis and dissemination pertaining to diverse populations in Canada.
Data sources
This analysis was conducted using data from the Census of Population (1996 to 2021), and the 2011 National Household Survey. Data on the population groups and other sociodemographic variables are collected through the long-form census questionnaire, and refer to persons in private households in occupied private dwellings. In 2021, a sample of 25% of Canadian households received a long-form questionnaire.
The Census of Population enumerates the entire Canadian population, which consists of Canadian citizens (by birth and naturalization), landed immigrants, and non-permanent residents and their families living with them in Canada. Non-permanent residents are people who hold a work or student permit or who have claimed refugee status (e.g., asylum seekers).
The census also counts Canadian citizens and landed immigrants who are temporarily outside the country on Census Day. This includes federal and provincial government employees working outside Canada, Canadian embassy staff posted to other countries, members of the Canadian Armed Forces stationed abroad, and all Canadian crew members of merchant vessels and their families. Because people outside the country are enumerated, the Census of Canada is considered a modified de jure census.
Foreign residents, such as representatives of a foreign government assigned to an embassy, high commission or other diplomatic mission in Canada, as well as residents of another country who are visiting Canada temporarily, are not covered by the census.
To ensure confidentiality, the values, including totals, are randomly rounded either up or down to a multiple of '5' or '10'. To understand these data, you must be aware that each individual value is rounded. As a result, when these data are summed or grouped, the total value may not match the individual values since totals and sub-totals are independently rounded. Similarly, percentages, which are calculated on rounded data, may not necessarily add up to 100%.
Methods
This release provides descriptive and comparative analysis of the linguistic, ethnocultural, religious and sociodemographic diversity of the Black populations in Canada.
Definitions
Black populations: Since 1996, Statistics Canada has used the population group question in the census to measure the racialized populations through the visible minority concept in accordance with the Employment Equity Act. This paper uses the category of "Black" in the visible minority variable to establish the counts of the Black populations in Canada and to conduct analysis. The "Black" category includes people who reported "Black" and "Black" and "White". For more information about the derivation of the "Black" and other racialized populations categories, please consult the Visible Minority and Population Group Reference Guide, Census of Population, 2021.
Canadian-born Black populations: This category refers to Black people born in Canada. They are also Canadian citizens by birth.
Cisgender: This term refers to people whose gender corresponds with their sex assigned at birth.
Diaspora: In this release, diaspora refers to populations who share a cultural and regional origin that have been exiled, displaced or scattered across regions that are not their geographic place of origin (traditional homeland). Diasporas come about through immigration and forced movements of people.
Ethnic or cultural origin: A person's ethnic or cultural origin refers to the ethnic or cultural origins of a person's ancestors. Ancestors may have Indigenous origins, origins that refer to different countries or other origins that may not refer to different countries. Often referred to as a person's ancestral "roots", ethnic or cultural origins should not be confused with citizenship, nationality, language or place of birth.
Generation status: A person's generation status refers to whether the person or the person's parents were born in Canada.
- The term "first generation" includes people who were born outside Canada. These are mostly people who are now, or once were, immigrants to Canada.
- The term "second generation" includes people who were born in Canada and had at least one parent born outside Canada. For the most part, these are the children of immigrants.
- The term "third generation or more" includes people who were born in Canada and whose parents were also born in Canada.
Gender: Gender refers to an individual's personal and social identity as a man, woman or non-binary person (a person who is not exclusively a man or a woman) and includes the following concepts:
- gender identity, which refers to the gender that a person feels internally and individually
- gender expression, which refers to the way a person presents their gender, regardless of their gender identity, through body language, aesthetic choices or accessories (e.g., clothes, hairstyle and makeup) that may have traditionally been associated with a specific gender.
A person's gender may differ from their sex at birth, and from what is indicated on their current identification or legal documents such as their birth certificate, passport or driver's licence. A person's gender may change over time. Some people may not identify with a specific gender.
The sex variable in census years before 2021 and the two-category gender variable in the 2021 Census are combined in this analysis to make historical comparisons. Although sex and gender refer to two different concepts, the introduction of gender in 2021 is not expected to have a significant impact on data analysis and historical comparability, given the small size of the transgender and non-binary populations. For additional information on changes of concepts over time, please consult the Age, Sex at Birth and Gender Reference Guide, Census of Population, 2021.
Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses. In these cases, individuals in the category "non-binary persons" are distributed into the other two gender categories. Unless otherwise indicated, the category "men" includes men, boys and some non-binary people, while the category "women" includes women, girls and some non-binary people.
Immigrant: An immigrant is a person who is, or has been, a landed immigrant or permanent resident. Such a person has been granted the right to live in Canada permanently by immigration authorities. Immigrants who have obtained Canadian citizenship by naturalization are included in this group.
Immigrant status: A person's immigrant status refers to whether the person is a non-immigrant, an immigrant or a non-permanent resident.
Non-binary: This term refers to a person who is not exclusively a man or a woman, for example, who is agender, fluid, queer or Two-Spirit.
Place of birth: Place of birth refers to the name of the geographic location where the person was born. The geographic location is specified according to geographic boundaries current at the time of data collection, not the geographic boundaries at the time of birth.
In the 2021 Census of Population, the geographic location refers to the name of the province, territory or country in which the person was born. It refers to a province or territory if the person was born in Canada. It refers to a country or area of interest if the person was born outside Canada.
Racialized populations: The concept of racialized populations is measured with the "visible minority" variable. This information has been collected by Statistics Canada since the 1996 Census of Population to implement the Employment Equity Act. The term "visible minority" refers to whether a person belongs to one of the visible minority groups defined by the Employment Equity Act. The act defines visible minorities as "persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour." The visible minority variable categories that constitute racialized populations are: "South Asian", "Chinese", "Black", "Filipino", "Latin American", "Arab", "Southeast Asian", "West Asian", "Korean", "Japanese", "Multiple visible minorities", and "Visible minority, not included elsewhere". The non-racialized populations are measured with the category "not a visible minority" of the same variable. In this analysis, the racialized populations exclude Indigenous respondents.
Religion: Religion refers to a person's self-identified connection to or affiliation with any religious denomination, group, body, or other religiously defined community or system of belief. Religion is not limited to formal membership in a religious organization or group.
For infants or children, religion refers to the specific religious group or denomination, if any, in which they are being raised.
Transgender: This term refers to a person whose gender does not correspond to their sex assigned at birth. It includes transgender (trans) men and women. Non-binary people are excluded.
Urban area: An urban area refers to a census subdivision that is a component of a census metropolitan area or a census agglomeration.
Products
The analytical paper "The Diversity of the Black Populations in Canada, 2021: A Sociodemographic Portrait" which is part of the Ethnicity, Language and Immigration Thematic Series (89-657-X), is now available.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
- Date modified: