Spanish is the third fastest growing foreign language in Canada

For the past 5 years, Spanish was among the three fastest growing foreign languages ​​in Canada according to the 2021 census.

The Cervantes language is only behind Mandarin and Punjabi and is used by 600,795 people nationwide.

Between 2016 and 2021, the number of Spanish speakers increased by 20%, according to Statistics Canada, overtaking Arabic during the period analyzed.

However, generally speaking, Spanish ranks as the fifth most widely spoken language behind Punjabi, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Arabic.

Spanish strengthens in provinces and cities

In Ontario, approximately 242,855 people speak Spanish, or 1.7% of the population.

In Quebec, there are 196,070 Spanish speakers, that is, 2.3% of the population, which is the most widely spoken non-official language in the province.

The city with the most Spanish speakers is Montreal with 157,190 followed by Toronto with 150,685, Vancouver with 52,190, Calgary with 34,665 and Edmonton with 22,170.

Here you can see in detail where is spanish spoken in canadaaccording to the 2021 census.

Overall, the Statistics Canada report found that 4.6 million Canadians primarily speak a language other than English and French at home. Notably, 1 in 4 Canadians in 2021, or 9 million people, had a mother tongue other than English and French. This is a record since 1901, when Statistics Canada began including data on mother tongues.

The number of Canadians who speak Mandarin, Punjabi or Spanish at home has seen the biggest increases since the 2016 census, and these languages ​​remain among the top non-official languages ​​spoken in Canada.

Of course, English and French remain the most spoken languages ​​in Canada. More than 9 out of 10 Canadians regularly speak one of the two official languages ​​at home.

You may be interested: The pride of speaking Spanish in Toronto

Theodore Davis

"Entrepreneur. Amateur gamer. Zombie advocate. Infuriatingly humble communicator. Proud reader."

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