2016 Census: 150 years of urbanization in Canada
Catalogue number: Catalogue number: 11-629-x
Issue number: 2017003
2016 Census: 150 years of urbanization in Canada - Transcript
Description of visuals
(The Statistics Canada symbol and Canada wordmark appear on screen with the title: "2016 Census: 150 years of urbanization in Canada." The words: "This video presents the key results of the 2016 Census on population counts" appear on screen.)
The 2016 Census results show that more than 80% of Canadians live in census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations.
(The 2016 Census logo flips into view. Beneath it, a large city appears. The words "83% live in metropolitan areas and census agglomerations" appear on top of the city.)
Together, Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver are home to more than 12 million people—more than one in three Canadians.
(The camera moves up and the city flags for Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver are seen. The words "12 million people" are shown at the top of the screen.)
In 1871, a few years after Confederation, the vast majority of Canadians lived in rural areas. Metropolitan regions, as we know them today, did not exist at that time.
(A flag pole is shown hoisting up a confederation flag. The camera moves downwards to display a rural area.)
The largest urban centre in Canada was not Toronto, as it is today, but Montréal, with about 107,000 inhabitants. Québec city was ranked second, followed by Toronto; Halifax in Nova Scotia and Saint John, in New Brunswick.
(A graphic showing the largest urban centres in 1871 is drawn showing Montréal, Québec, Toronto, Halifax and Saint John in chronological order, Montréal being the largest of the cities.)
At the time, the largest urban centre in the west of the country was Victoria, where slightly more than 3,000 people lived.
(Generic buildings are shown and the words "Victoria" are written. Beneath Victoria, the words "Slightly more than 3,000 people lived" appear.)
Ottawa, the new capital of Canada, was home to about 22,000 inhabitants in 1871.
(The Ottawa Parliament flips into view with fireworks exploding overhead. Beneath the iconic building, the words "22,000 inhabitants" are shown. The year "1871" appears underneath the written words.)
Since then, cities across Canada have grown. In 1941, Montréal was the first metropolitan area in the country to reach one million inhabitants, but Toronto surpassed Montréal to become the largest by 1976, and has never looked back. The metropolitan areas in western Canada are growing the fastest.
(The camera pans across a map of Canada from West to East, with the words "Present day" overlaying the map. Buildings spruce up all across the map. The camera quickly zooms in on Montréal where buildings and people pop into view in sepia tone. The words "Montréal 1941" can be read at the bottom. On top of the buildings, the words "One million inhabitants" are seen. The camera moves quickly to the South of the map where buildings and the CN tower appear. The words "Largest Canadian city in 1976" are written beside them. The camera moves to the Western part of the map where several buildings grow.)
For example, the population of Calgary shot up from barely 4,000 inhabitants in 1901 to 1.4 million in 2016, making it the fourth-largest census metropolitan area in the country.
(A graphic appears displaying the population of Calgary from 1901 to 2016. Written on screen are the words "4,000 people in 1901." The camera moves up the chart to 2016, where we can read "1,400,000 people." The camera moves backwards showing the full chart.)
Canadians have come a long way since we began migrating from rural areas to the earliest urban centres. As Canada continues to grow, we can rely on the census to tell the story of the communities we call home.
(Tiny maple leaves fly from the sides to form a bigger leaf in the middle. Different-sized circles appear underneath the leaf. A house pops into view under the circles.)
Thank you for completing your census questionnaire and for watching this video. For more information, and to access results for your community from the 2016 Census, visit www.statcan.gc.ca/census.
(A laptop slides into view. The words "2016 Census" are displayed on its screen. A mouse clicks the submit button and the words "Thank you!" appear. The 2016 census logo appears on the laptop's screen followed by the website address www.statcan.gc.ca/census. The 2016 Census logo appears with the words "Your Census. Your Neighbourhood. Your Future." The Canada Wordmark then appears.)
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