This classification was replaced by a new departmental standard on May 22, 2007.
The symbols described in this document apply to all data published by Statistics Canada from all origins, including surveys, censuses and administrative sources, as well as straight tabulations and all estimations.
| Symbol | Description |
|---|---|
| . | not available for any reference period |
| .. | not available for a specific reference period |
| ... | not applicable |
| 0 | true zero or a value rounded to zero |
| 0s | value rounded to 0 (zero) where there is a meaningful distinction between true zero and the value that was rounded |
| p | preliminary |
| r | revised |
| x | suppressed to meet the confidentiality requirements of the Statistics Act |
| E | use with caution |
| F | too unreliable to be published |
| [blank] or A-D | acceptable or better |
 |
high-level correction |
| * | significantly different from reference category (p < 0.05) |
| <LOD | less than the limit of detection |
This symbol is used when the figure has never been published for any reference period. The symbol implies that the underlying time series does not exist, but theoretically could exist.
Example:
Consumer Price Index, food, Montreal
The only commodities data collected for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) at the city level include those related to shelter. Therefore, in this example, the data are not available for the city of Montreal because commodities data collected for the CPI do not include food at the municipal or city level.
This symbol is used when the time series exists but the figure is not published for a specific reference period.
Example:
| Date | Exchange rate in Canadian dollars |
|---|---|
| June 8, 2001 | 0.6617 |
| June 9, 2001 | .. |
| June 10, 2001 | .. |
| June 11, 2001 | 0.6531 |
| June 12, 2001 | 0.6611 |
Note: The figures for June 9 and 10 are missing because the data are not collected on the weekend. The symbol '..' indicates that the specific reference period is within the reference period of the time series. Leave the data cell empty if the series exists but the data point is outside the reference period of the time series.
This symbol is used when an entry for the table cell is not logically possible. For example, there could not be any data for 'legal drivers under 15 years of age' or 'women with prostate cancer.' In such cases, no time series will exist.
Example:
| Age group | Vehicle type | Population | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Truck | Bus | ||
| 0 to 15 years | ... | ... | 14,899 |
| 15 to 44 years | 8,456 | 401 | 15,678 |
| 45 to 64 years | 8,915 | 431 | 11,879 |
| 65 years and over | 1,599 | 34 | 7,321 |
| Total | 19,970 | 866 | 49,777 |
Note: This symbol is only used when the data point is not logically possible. This symbol is not meant to be used when the author deems the data point to be 'too unreliable to be published' (see the section on data quality symbols).
This symbol is used when a value has been rounded to 0 (zero) and in addition, there is a meaningful distinction between 'true zero' and the value that has been rounded to zero. This symbol is used as a superscript with a zero (i.e., '0s') with a footnote indicating 'data rounded to 0.' This symbol is to be used on an exceptional basis. The data tables support this symbol as a data point characteristic. The author divisions are responsible for determining when this symbol will be used.
This symbol is used when the figure is preliminary. A preliminary figure is subject to revision. The data tables support this symbol as a data point characteristic. The author divisions are responsible for determining when this symbol will be used.
This symbol is used when the figure is revised. The data tables support this symbol as a data point characteristic. The author divisions are responsible for determining when this symbol will be used.
This symbol is used only when a data point is suppressed to protect the confidentiality of respondents. The symbol cannot be used for any other purpose, nor may it be replaced by any other symbol.
This symbol is used when laboratory data obtained from the analysis of biospecimens and environmental samples are measured as greater than zero but below the concentration at which a specific quantity can be determined. This symbol is supported as a data point characteristic. It is only used in direct measure surveys.
Example:
| Group | Age | N | % <LOD | Geometric mean | 10th Percentile | 50th Percentile | 90th Percentile | 95th Percentile | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | Confidence interval | Estimate | Confidence interval | Estimate | Confidence interval | Estimate | Confidence interval | Estimate | Confidence interval | |||||||||
| From | To | From | To | From | To | From | To | From | To | |||||||||
| Total | 3 to 79 years | 5,642 | 34.47 | 17 | 15 | 20 | <LOD | <LOD | <LOD | 9.9 | 9.2 | 11.0 | 350 | 310 | 390 | 640 | 510 | 770 |
| Males | 3 to 79 years | 2,815 | 34.03 | 17 | 15 | 20 | <LOD | <LOD | <LOD | 8.7 | 7.1 | 10.0 | 310E | 190 | 440 | 470 | 340 | 610 |
| Females | 3 to 79 years | 2,827 | 34.91 | 17 | 15 | 20 | <LOD | <LOD | <LOD | 11.0 | 8.0 | 13.0 | 390 | 260 | 520 | 810 | 560 | 1,100 |
These are the recommended data quality symbols that should be used when data quality assessment information is available.
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| E (superscript) | use with caution |
| F | too unreliable to be published |
| [Blank] or A to D | acceptable or better |
|
high-level correction |
When a figure is 'too unreliable to be published,' the data point is suppressed and the symbol 'F' appears in the data cell.
When the figure is not accompanied by a data quality symbol, it means that the quality of the data was assessed to be 'acceptable or better' according to the policies and standards of Statistics Canada. To denote specific levels of 'acceptable or better' quality, letter grades such as A to D should be used.
high-level correctionThis symbol is used when a high-level correction is made in a statistical product. A notice describes the correction and indicates when it occurred.
A high-level correction is defined as a correction that has a major impact on overall analysis, comparability or understanding of a statistical product. It affects the 'fitness for use' of the statistical product.
The correction symbol is added after the product title in The Daily release, a publication, data table, products published by the Census of Population or other statistical products with an overlay link displaying the correction note. The correction notice will also be included in the various download outputs.
* significantly different from reference category (p < 0.05)
Example: * significantly different from preceding period (p < 0.05)
This symbol is no longer in use and has been replaced by 0 (zero).
This symbol is no longer in use and has been replaced by 0 (zero). On an exceptional basis, '0s' (i.e., zero with a superscripted 's') may be used to indicate that the data have been rounded to 0 (zero).
Table symbols are organized into two categories: symbols that replace a data point value and symbols that accompany a data point value.
| Replace | Accompany |
|---|---|
| . | p |
| .. | r |
| -- | 0s |
| ... | E |
| x | |
| F | |
| <LOD |
The symbols that replace a data point value should be entered where the data point value would normally appear. Replacement symbols should be formatted with the same font characteristics (font, effects and alignment) as the data point value.
For online display such as HTML, accompanying symbols should appear in the same cell as the data value.
Example:
132.3r
For downloadable formats like CSV, accompanying symbols may appear in their own column next to the data column.
Example:
| Data column | Symbol |
|---|---|
| 132.3 | r |
Ethnicity is somewhat multidimensional as it includes aspects such as race, origin or ancestry, identity, language and religion. It may also include more subtle dimensions such as culture, the arts, customs and beliefs and even practices such as dress and food preparation. It is also dynamic and in a constant state of flux. It will change as a result of new immigration flows, blending and intermarriage, and new identities may be formed.
There are fundamentally three ways of measuring ethnicity: origin or ancestry, race and identity.
Origin or ancestry attempts to determine the roots or ethnic background of a person. The concept, however, is somewhat ambiguous since it does not usually specify an historical reference point. Given that new ethnic groups may arise over time, it may be difficult for a respondent to answer a question about origins. For example, if one of a respondent's great, great grandfathers was a Scottish fur trader who entered a marital union with a Cree woman then is the respondent Scottish or Cree? Or is the respondent Métis, a group which is recognized in the Canadian constitution as a distinct Aboriginal population? This also illustrates the legitimacy of the reporting of multiple origins. Inasmuch as any individual has two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents and so on it is realized that there is a potential for those ancestors to come from a multiplicity of ethnic groups. The tabulation of the resultant data, therefore, becomes complex. This is usually handled by showing the population that has a single origin and the population that has multiple origins. The display of the combinations, such as French and English, in multiple responses is generally restricted to the dominant or most populous groups in the society. The concept may also suffer from a genuine lack of knowledge on the part of respondents. They may not know their backgrounds. In addition, public opinion may influence reporting under some circumstances. For example, it has been suggested that German origins may have been under-reported in the Census of 1941 which was taken during World War II.
Conceptually, race may be somewhat less ambiguous than origin or ancestry, but it is not without difficulties in terms of measurement. The concept is based primarily upon genetically imparted physiognomical features among which skin colour is a dominant, but not the sole, attribute. Nevertheless, it is possible for a person to be of mixed races, some of which, such as the mestiso of Latin America, have become recognized as evolved races in their own right. Furthermore, terminology may be ambiguous. Scholars may prefer to use the term caucasian rather than white but the former may not be well understood by many respondents. Other terminology evolves over time such as the evolution in America of Afro-Americans from black and earlier from negro. There may also be terminology very much in usage in the common lexicon which is actually offensive to a group in question. For example, the reference to the Inuit as Eskimo.
Identity has a certain appeal because it attempts to measure how people perceive themselves rather than their ancestors. Nevertheless, it retains certain dimensions of not only origin but race as well. In addition, it may include aspects of citizenship. A typical question might be, With which ethnic group do you identify? Some respondents may associate the question with citizenship and report Canadian. Others may associate it with origin and report Italian. Others might see it as involving both citizenship and origin and report Italian-Canadian. Others might see racial dimensions and report as black or black-Canadian. Furthermore, in some contexts, ethnicity might be implied but the reference is actually to language. For example, there are frequent references to French Canadians and English Canadians which are not on the basis of ethnicity per se but on the basis of the language spoken.
Given the difficulties in, not only developing appropriate concepts and constructs of ethnicity, but also in attempting to collect unambiguous data, it might be questioned whether the task should be undertaken. However, the international meeting on the Challenges of Measuring an Ethnic World (Ottawa, 1992), noted that, Ethnicity is a fundamental factor in human life: it is a phenomenon inherent in human experience. Thus, the inherent malleability of ethnicity is not a sufficient reason for statistical agencies to avoid collecting data on ethnicity. Data on ethnicity are also much in demand by a diverse range of data users.
This standard is no longer recommended for use and is not to be used.
Race is based primarily upon genetically imparted physiognomical features among which skin colour is a dominant, but not the sole, attribute. Nevertheless, it is possible for a person to be of mixed races, some of which, such as the mestiso of Latin America, have become recognized as evolved races in their own right. Furthermore, terminology may be ambiguous. Scholars may prefer to use the term caucasian rather than white but the former may not be well understood by many respondents. Other terminology evolves over time such as the evolution in America of Afro-Americans from black and earlier from negro. There may also be terminology very much in usage in the common lexicon which is actually offensive to a group in question. For example, the reference to the Inuit as Eskimo.
Classification(s)
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on April 18, 2011.
Immigration concerns the movement of nationals of any given country to another country for the purpose of settlement. It applies to a person who has been granted the right to permanently live in Canada by immigration authorities. It usually applies to persons born outside Canada but may also apply to a small number of persons born inside Canada to parents who are foreign nationals. Similarly, some small number of persons who are Canadian by birth have been born outside Canada to Canadian parents. Once a person has been accorded immigrant status it becomes a life-long attribute as long as the person lives in Canada. Therefore, immigrants are often further classified by period of immigration in order to distinguish between recent immigrants and earlier immigrants.
Age at immigration refers to the age at which a person first obtained landed immigrant status. A landed immigrant is a person who has been granted the right to live in Canada by immigration authorities.
Classification(s)
Year or period of immigration refers to a person who is a landed immigrant by the period of time in which he or she first obtained landed immigrant status. A landed immigrant is a person who has been granted the right to live in Canada by immigration authorities.
Note: since the Census is a major source of immigration data, ten or five year periods should be referenced to census years, that is years ending in one or six (as in 1996). Periods of immigration shown will, of course, change over time reflecting the most recent periods of observation.
Classification(s)
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on June 21, 2010.
Occupation refers to the kind of paid work performed. The kind of work is described in terms of tasks, duties and responsibilities, often including factors such as materials processed or used, the industrial processes used, the equipment used, and the products or services provided. Occupations are generally homogeneous with respect to skill type and/or skill level.
Occupations are organized in hierarchical classifications, whose classes are mutually exclusive and exhaustive of the universe of paid work.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 1991). For details, see Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 1991), Catalogue No. 12-585E/F.
The conceptual basis of the SOC 91 is homogeneity with respect to skill type. The SOC 91 has four levels in its structure, with each lower level increasing in homogeneity with respect to skill type. It uses a two-part coding system. The first part is a four-character, alpha-numeric code, as follows:
| Level | Digits in Code |
|---|---|
| Broad Occupational Category | 1 (alpha) |
| Major group | 2 (alpha-numeric) |
| Minor group | 3 (alpha-numeric) |
| Unit group | 4 (alpha-numeric) |
The second part, which applies to the minor group and unit group level, is a three or four digit numeric code that relates the SOC class to its corresponding class in the National Occupational Classification (see below).
National Occupational Classification (NOC 1991): The National Occupational Classification is used by Human Resources Development Canada. The NOC contains a variety of information not found in a statistical classification, such as employment requirements of an occupation and typical occupational progression.
The 1991 SOC and the NOC share a common hierarchical framework. Both are divided into ten broad occupational categories. These are further divided into major groups. The major groups are composed of minor groups. Finally, the minor groups are broken down into unit groups.
The classes of the NOC are organized into 10 skill types. The major groups subdivide the skill types by skill level. Each class of the classification is assigned to one of four skill levels based on entry level education (including experience and inherent talent where applicable) required for an occupation. There may be as many as four possible skill levels for each skill type. The skill level major groups are the distinctive feature of the NOC structure and are presented as a matrix within its documentation.
The two occupational classifications share the same 514 unit groups (506 identical and 8 comparable), and 139 minor groups. The minor groups are then aggregated into different major groups. The SOC 1991 contains 47 major groups compared to 26 in the NOC. At the highest level of aggregation, both classifications share the same 10 broad occupational groups.
For more information on the differences and similarities between the SOC and the NOC, see Guide to the SOC 91 and the NOC, available from Standards Division.
International Standard Classification of Occupations 1988. This classification is referred to as ISC0 88. It is developed and maintained by the International Labour Organization.
Concordance and conversion: The 1991 SOC replaces the 1980 Standard Occupational Classification (1980 SOC). Concordances between the 1991 SOC, the 1980 SOC and other occupational classifications are available from Standards Division. These are classification concordances that show the relationship between each class of the object classification with one or more classes of the target classification. In the case of the 1980 and 1991 SOC, they cannot, however, be used to convert statistical estimates based on one classification to estimates based on the other. Such a conversion requires statistical techniques designed for the purpose and require that data files be coded to both classifications. Such conversion algorithms exist for the Labour Force Survey and the Census of Population.
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on November 16, 2009.
Health status, self-assessed refers to the perception of a person of his or her health status or condition compared to other persons in his or her age group.
Classification(s)
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on October 20, 2008.
Marital status applies to the conjugal arrangements of a person.
Legal marital status refers to the marital status of a person under the law or as registered by the state. All persons aged less than 15 are considered as never married (single).
Classification(s)
Common-law status refers to whether or not a person aged 15 and over is living with a person of the opposite sex as a partner in a common-law union. A common-law union is deemed to be in effect when a man and a woman (who are not legally married to each other) are living together as husband and wife. The definition does not set any criteria with respect to the duration of the relationship nor does it stipulate that children must be present.
Classification(s)
Conjugal status refers to whether or not a person aged 15 and over is living with a person of the opposite sex as husband, wife or common-law partner.
Classification(s)
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on October 22, 2007.
Living arrangements applies to the status a person has within the household, census family or economic family.
Census family status refers to a person who is co-resident in a household and whether or not he or she is a member of a census family, and if so, his or her role in the family. A Husband or wife is defined on the basis of living with a spouse while a lone parent is defined as living with his or her own child or own youth. In this context a child is defined as a person aged 0 to 14 co-residing with one or more parents or guardian. A youth is defined as a person aged 15 to 24 who is co-residing with one or more parents but not with his or her own spouse or child. Youth who are co-residing with one or more parents but who are also co-residing with their own spouse or child are considered as a husband, wife or lone parent in their own right.
By definition, all persons who are members of census families are also members of economic families. The total number of persons in economic families, therefore, is the count of persons in census families plus the count of non-census family persons who are members of economic families.
Detailed classification:
Collapsed classification:
Economic family status refers to a person who is co-resident in a household and whether or not he or she is a member of an economic family, and if so, his or her role in the family.
Detailed classification:
Collapsed classification:
Household status refers to whether a person is living in a collective or private household, is a member of an economic family (or not), is a member of a census family (or not) and, if a member of a census family, the role within the family.
Detailed classification:
Collapsed classification:
This standard was replaced by a new departmental standard on October 22, 2007.
Economic family structure refers to the classification of economic families according to the family situation of the reference person. That is, whether the reference person is a member of a couple family, a lone-parent family or whether the reference person is not a member of either.
A couple family is one in which either of the two spouses, of either a now-married or common-law couple, is the economic family reference person.
For the purposes of this definition, a lone-parent family is which one in either the male or female lone-parent is the economic family reference person.
An other economic family is one in which the economic family reference person is neither a member of a couple family nor a lone-parent family.
Detailed classification:
* Couple families without relatives present contain only one husband-wife family.
** Couple families with relatives present may contain more than one census family , of which the additional families may be either (or both) couple families or lone-parent families. They may or may not also contain related non-census family persons.
*** Lone-parent families without relatives present contain only one lone-parent family.
**** Lone-parent families with relatives present may contain more than one census-family, of which the additional families may be either (or both) couple families or lone-parent families. They may or may not also contain related non-census family persons.
Collapsed classification:
