The 2016 census reveals the percentage of Quebec anglophones has increased since 2011 despite the province’s language laws.
Between 2011 and 2016 the percentage of Quebecers whose first official language spoken is English increased to 14.4 per cent from 13.5 per cent.
READ MORE: Anglos in Quebec: Disappearing from Thetford Mines?
The results are open to multiple interpretations because the data do not indicate if the rise was due to immigration, birthrates or other factors.
READ MORE: CAQ’s new social media campaign directed at Anglo-Quebecers
Jack Jedwab of the Association for Canadian Studies says the results represent a significant turnaround for a group that has traditionally lamented its constant decline.
WATCH BELOW: Anglos in Quebec
He says the census data should constitute an important symbolic change and challenge those who insist Quebec’s language laws are a demographic disaster for the province’s anglophone community.
READ MORE: More than one-third of young Canadian adults live with their parents: 2016 census
English as a mother tongue increased in Quebec from nine per cent in 2011 to 9.6 per cent in 2016, while English as a language spoken at home increased from 18.3 per cent in 2011 to 19.8 per cent in 2016.
Comments