Snapshots of official languages in Canada

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

• 26,796 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
• 10,458 students were in French immersion programs
• 372 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Avalon Peninsula (St. John’s): 54.0%
• West Coast–Northern Peninsula–Labrador (Port au Port Peninsula, Labrador): 34.4%
• Notre Dame–Central Bonavista Bay: 9.2%
• South Coast–Burin Peninsula: 2.2%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Newfoundland and Labrador: 20%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 54%
• Abroad: 26%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 11%
• Europe: 40%
• Africa: 39%
• Asia: 10%

Media

• Newspaper: Le Gaboteur
• Radio: Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• March:
  •  The Jeux d’hiver franco-labradoriens are held annually in Labrador City.
• May:
  •  Provincial Francophonie Day is held yearly on May 30.
• June-July:
  •  The Saint-Jean Baptiste Walk-a-thon has been held each year for the past half century in the Port au Port Peninsula.
• Fall:
  •  The Festival du vent in St. John’s celebrates Francophone culture and music.
• Yearly:
  •  Three annual folk festivals are held on the Port au Port Peninsula: Une Longue Veillée in Cape St. George, Une Journée dans l’Passé in Mainland and Un plaisir du vieux temps in Black Duck Brook.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Newfoundland and Labrador.
• 1400s and 1500s: After the temporary presence of the Vikings in the 11th century, the first European fishers and explorers arrive on the shores of Newfoundland, including the English (1497) and the French (1534).
• 1610: An English colony settles in Cuper’s Cove (now Cupids).
• 1660: A French colony settles in Plaisance (now Placentia).
• 1696–1697: The majority of English settlers are deported by French forces, but the settlements are rebuilt in the decades and centuries that follow, including with the arrival of Irish settlers, who bring with them their own language and dialect.
• 1600s–early 1900s: French and Acadian fishers settle mainly around St. Georges Bay and the southwest coast of the island.
• 1973: The Fédération des francophones de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador is created to represent the province’s Francophone community.
• 1984: The province’s first French language school opens in Mainland.
• 1986: The Franco-Newfoundland and Labrador flag is adopted and then raised for the first time at the House of Assembly on May 30, 1992.
• 1996: The Newfoundland and Labrador government grants the province’s French speakers the right to form their own school board, which they do a year later.
• 1999: The provincial government declares May 30 as Provincial Francophonie Day.
• 2015: The provincial government adopts its French Language Services Policy, which aims to provide a consistent and coordinated approach to deliver provincial government services in French.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

• 6,651 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
• 5,253 students were in French immersion programs
• 1,098 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 13}

Census Divisions:

• Prince County: 55.6%
• Queens County: 39.4%
• Kings County: 5.0%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In PEI: 56%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 34%
• Abroad: 11%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 13%
• Europe: 47%
• Africa: 25%
• Asia: 18%

Media

• Newspaper: La Voix acadienne
• Radio: Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• September:
  • The Evangeline Area Agricultural Exhibition and Acadian Festival celebrate the area’s Acadian culture and agricultural roots.
• September-October:
  • The friendly annual festival “Meat Pie” is held across PEI to find the best traditional Acadian meat pie and the best non-traditional meat pie.
• French-language book fairs are held alternately every year in Summerside or Charlottetown.
• For more events, check out acadiepei.com/experiences/festivals-events/

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

•  43,581 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
•  15,936 students were in French immersion programs
•  6,408 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Cape Breton: 14.4%
• North Shore: 5.8%
• Annapolis Valley: 7.5%
• Southern: 33.8%
• Halifax: 38.5%

Where were they born?6^{Source 9}/h6>

• In Nova Scotia: 56%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 36%
• Abroad: 8%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 15%
• Europe: 36%
• Africa: 32%
• Asia: 16%

Media

• Newspaper: Le Courrier de la Nouvelle-Écosse
• Radio: 4 French-language radio stations and Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• February-March:
  • The Mi-Carême (Mid-Lent) festival, whose French origins date back to the Middle Ages, is celebrated in the Chéticamp and St. Joseph du Moine region.
• July-August:
  • The world’s oldest Acadian festival is held each year in Clare, in the Baie Sainte-Marie region.
• August 15: National Acadian Day
• Fall:
  • Francofest is the largest annual Francophone event held in Halifax.
• For more events, check out acadien.novascotia.ca/en/celebrations

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Nova Scotia.
• 1605: The first French settlers establish Port-Royal, which will become the heart of the Acadian colony.
• 1713: The Nova Scotia peninsula is transferred to Great Britain. Over the next few decades, English speakers would begin to settle in the area (particularly Halifax in 1749), as would other language groups (in Lunenburg, for example, in 1753).
• 1755–1763: All of Acadia is ceded to the British, and the majority of the Acadian population is deported by British forces.
• Beginning in 1764: The deported Acadians are allowed to return and settle along the coast, particularly in Chéticamp, Isle Madame, St. Mary’s Bay and Par-en-Bas.
• 1890: The Collège Sainte-Anne, now the Université Sainte-Anne, is founded. This institution contributes to the development of the Acadian people of Nova Scotia.
• 1968: The Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse, an organization representing the province’s Acadian population, is founded.
• 1981: The province passes the Education Act, which grants the Acadian population the right to receive French first language education.
• 1996: Acadians are given control of their own education system with the creation of the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial, the province’s only French-language school board.
• 2004: Nova Scotia’s French-language Services Act is passed, followed by its French-language Services Regulations in 2006.
• 2012: The province’s Acadian and French-speaking community rallies following the abolition of protected electoral districts. The abolition would be ruled unconstitutional by the province’s Court of Appeal in 2017.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

• 22,389 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
• 25,161 students were in French immersion programs
• 29,136 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Campbellton–Miramichi: 40.0%
• Moncton–Richibucto: 37.5%
• Saint John–St. Stephen: 2.3%
• Fredericton–Oromocto: 4.2%
• Edmundston–Woodstock: 16.0%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In New Brunswick: 86%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 10%
• Abroad: 4%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 27%
• Europe: 28%
• Africa: 36%
• Asia: 9%

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 11:^{Source 7}

•  83,076 students were in education programs in the minority official language (English)

Where do people live who speak English as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine: 0.6%
• Bas-Saint-Laurent: 0.1%
• Capitale-Nationale: 1.4%
• Chaudière-Appalaches: 0.4%
• Estrie: 2.1%
• Centre-du-Québec: 0.3%
• Montérégie: 16.2%
• Montréal: 55.2%
• Laval: 8.3%
• Lanaudière: 1.4%
• Laurentides: 3.8%
• Outaouais: 6.6%
• Abitibi-Témiscamingue: 0.5%
• Mauricie: 0.3%
• Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean: 0.2%
• Côte-Nord: 0.4%
• Nord-du-Québec:2.2%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Quebec: 50%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 10%
• Abroad: 40%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}7

• Americas: 19%
• Europe: 25%
• Africa: 9%
• Asia: 47%

Media

• Newspaper: The Montréal Gazette and Sherbrooke’s The Record (dailies), as well as a variety of weekly publications and magazines, many of which are members of the Quebec Community Newspapers Association.
• Radio: 12 English-language radio stations and CBC Radio
• Television: CBC TV, CTV, Global and City (Montréal)

Celebrate!

• March:
  • St. Patrick’s Day celebrations take place in Montréal, Québec City, Richmond, Hudson and Châteauguay.
• April:
  • The Blue Metropolis International Literary Festival in Montréal brings people from different cultures and languages together to share the pleasures of reading and writing.
• September:
  • The Voice of English-speaking Québec holds its Fall Fest in Québec City each year to bring together families, community organizations and cultural groups.
• Annually:
  • The Townshippers’ Festivalis an annual celebration of the Eastern Townships’ English-speaking community and their friends and neighbours.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Quebec.
• 1608: The French presence in Quebec starts to take hold, with the founding of Québec City by Samuel de Champlain. Over the next century and a half, it will expand along the St. Lawrence River and beyond.
• 1763: After the conquest of New France, the Treaty of Paris cedes the French colony to the British. The number of English-speaking settlers increases first with the arrival of merchants and Loyalists, refugees from the American War of Independence, and then with the arrival of English, Scottish, Irish, Jewish and other immigrants during the late 18th and 19th centuries.
• 1841: The School Act allows the English-speaking Protestant minority to manage their schools.
• 1867: The British North America Act recognizes the right to use English and French in the Quebec Parliament and courts and protects minority education rights.
• 19th and 20th centuries: The English-speaking population diversifies further, with the arrival of African-American refugees fleeing slavery, their descendants, and immigrants speaking other languages from Europe and elsewhere in the world.
• 1970s: Tensions increase over the place of French in Quebec as the language crisis comes to a head.
• 1974: The Official Language Act (Bill 22) is enacted, making French the only official language of Quebec and restricting access to school in English.
• 1977: The Charter of the French Language (Bill 101) becomes provincial law, introducing new restrictions on English, including provisions on language of work and language of education for immigrants.
• 1970s and 1980s: More than 300,000 English-speaking Quebecers leave the province.
• 1982: The Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which includes protections for Anglophone and Francophone minority rights, is adopted.
• 1982: Alliance Québec, a group that advocates on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers, is created.
• 1986: Bill 142 guarantees access to health and social services in English.
• 1988: The Supreme Court recognizes the right to bilingual commercial signage in Quebec.
• 1995: The Quebec Community Groups Network is founded, bringing together several English-language regional and sectoral organizations.
• At the turn of the millennium, community organizations important to English-speaking Quebecers, such as the Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation (1999) and the Community Health and Social Services Network (2000), were created. Another such organization, the Regional Development Network, was founded in 2019.
• 2017: The Quebec government creates the Secretariat for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers to better ensure that their perspectives are taken into account when government decisions are being made.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

•  742,281 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
•  282,984 students were in French immersion programs
•  113,118 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Ottawa: 44.8%
• Kingston–Pembroke: 2.7%
• Muskoka–Kawarthas: 0.8%
• Toronto: 18.6%
• Kitchener–Waterloo–Barrie: 3.7%
• Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula: 4.5%
• London: 1.6%
• Windsor–Sarnia: 2.6%
• Stratford–Bruce Peninsula: 0.4%
• Northeast: 19.4%
• Northwest: 0.9%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Ontario: 56%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 23%
• Abroad: 20%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 16%
• Europe: 24%
• Africa: 44%
• Asia: 17%

Media

• Newspaper: Le Droit (daily) and 16 French-language newspapers published weekly or monthly
• Radio: 7 French-language radio stations and Radio- Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: 3 French-language television stations, Télévision française de l’Ontario (TFO), ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• Spring:
  • Théâtre Action holds a yearly theatre festival for young ­French-speaking Canadians.
• February-March:
  • Toronto’s Cinéfranco, founded in 1997, celebrates and promotes French-language films in Ontario.
  • La Nuit sur l’étang is a popular Francophone music festival that has been held in Sudbury since 1973.
• May:
  • The Franco-Ontarian Games are held in different parts of Ontario every year and are the largest gathering of young Franco-Ontarians in the province.
• June:
  • The Festival Franco-Ontarien is a major festival in Ottawa for Francophones and francophiles that celebrates Franco-Ontarian culture and community.
• September:
  • Franco-Ontarian Day is held on September 25.
• Various dates:
  • The St-Albert’s Festival de la Curd has been celebrating Francophone culture in Eastern Ontario since 1994.
• For more events, check out https://www.destinationontario.com/en-ca/articles/francophone-festivals-and-events

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Ontario.
• 1610: Étienne Brûlé, a member of French explorer Samuel de Champlain’s crew, is the first European to set foot in what is now Ontario to learn more about the different Indigenous cultures. A French presence begins to establish itself in the region, with forts and small communities along the St. Lawrence River.
• After the American War of Independence (1775–1783), Loyalist refugees began settle in what is now Ontario, resulting in the establishment of an English-speaking population in the province. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, other language groups settled in the future province of Ontario, contributing to the diversity of the English- and French-speaking communities.
• 19th and early 20th centuries: The French presence in Ontario increases steadily, mainly in the eastern and northeastern parts of the province, with the development of the forestry, mining and railway sectors.
• 1910: The Association canadienne-française d’éducation de l’Ontario (now the Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario) is created to defend the right to an education in French.
• 1912: The provincial government’s Regulation 17 sets out that English is to be the only language of instruction in public schools across Ontario. Thanks to the work of committed Francophones and Anglophones, this regulation was effectively repealed in 1927. In 2016, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne apologized on behalf of the Ontario government.
• 1975: The Franco-Ontarian flag is adopted.
• 1986: The Ontario government adopts the French Language Services Act, which gives French equal status with English in the provincial Parliament and courts, and guarantees the public’s right to receive government services in French. The Act was modernized in 2021 to improve access to front-line services in French.
• 1987: TVOntario launches La Chaîne française, now Télévision française de l’Ontario.
• 1997: The Franco-Ontarian community works to prevent the closure of the Montfort Hospital.
• 2007: The Office of the French-Language Services Commissioner is created.
• 2017: The Office of Francophone Affairs of Ontario becomes the Ministry of Francophone Affairs.
• 2017: Bill 177 recognizes the bilingual status of the City of Ottawa and marks the creation of the Université de l’Ontario français in Toronto, which would welcome its first cohort of students in 2021.
• 2019: The French-Language Services Commissioner becomes part of the Office of the Ombudsman of Ontario.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

•  48,603 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
•  27,234 students were in French immersion programs
•  5,952 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

There are 15 designated bilingual municipalities in the province.^{Source 12}

Economic Regions:

• Southeast: 22.7%
• South Central: 4.8%
• Southwest: 3.4%
• North Central: 4.0%
• Winnipeg: 58.9%
• Interlake: 3.3%
• Parklands: 1.6%
• North: 1.2%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Manitoba: 72%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 13%
• Abroad: 15%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 6%
• Europe: 25%
• Africa: 59%
• Asia: 10%

Media

• Newspaper: La Liberté
• Radio: CKXL Envol FM 91.1 (Winnipeg) and Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• February:
  • Saint-Boniface hosts the Festival du Voyageur, the largest winter festival in Western Canada, where visitors from around the globe come to bask in the “joie de vivre” of French Canadian culture and the history of Francophones, Métis and First Nations.
  • Louis Riel Day commemorates the life of the important Métis leader and is a public holiday in the province.
• June:
  • Every year on French Canada’s biggest holiday, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, Francophones gather in La Broquerie and in Saint-Boniface to celebrate their French culture with concerts, sports and recreational activities, a parade and much more.
• For more events, check out bonjourmanitoba.com/en/calendar/

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Manitoba.
• 17th century: British explorers and traders make their way to the shores of Hudson Bay, in present day Manitoba, marking the beginning of the English-speaking presence in the region. In 1670, the Hudson’s Bay Company is created.
• 1730s: Pierre Gaultier de La Vérendrye and his sons are the first Europeans to reach the Forks of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, in the heart of what is now Winnipeg.
• 19th century: The Métis, people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry, enjoy particular political influence in what is now Manitoba, especially through their involvement in the fur trade. Most Métis are French-speaking, but many speak English or even Gaelic.
• 1870: At the insistence of Louis Riel’s provisional government, composed of both English speakers and French speakers, guarantees are written into the provincial constitution to preserve the province’s linguistic duality when it joins the Canadian federation. These guarantees protect the bilingualism of the legislature and the courts, as well as denominational schools.
• 1890: Because Francophones have become a minority in the province as a result of waves of migration from Ontario, Great Britain and Eastern Europe after the 1870s, the provincial government abolishes the official status of French in the legislature and courts, and it prohibits teaching in French (and in any language other than English) in public schools.
• 1916: The Association d’éducation des Canadiens français du Manitoba is created. It is replaced in 1968 by the Société franco-manitobaine (renamed Société de la francophonie manitobaine in 2017) as the province’s main Francophone organization.
• 1979: The Supreme Court rules that the 1890 act is unconstitutional and restores bilingualism to the legislation and courts.
• 1981: The Manitoba government creates the Secrétariat des services en langue française.
• 1989: The province introduces its French Language Services Policy.
• 1993: After French has been gradually reintroduced into the school curriculum beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, Franco-Manitobans win a major victory with a Supreme Court ruling that confirms their right to have their own school board, which is finally created a year later.
• 2016: The provincial government adopts the Francophone Community Enhancement and Support Act, which contributes to the vitality of French-speaking communities.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

•  26,046 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
•  16,758 students were in French immersion programs
•  1,995 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

There are three main French-speaking regions in the province: along the North and South Saskatchewan rivers, in the southeast and in the southwest of the province.

Economic Regions:

• Regina–Moose Mountain: 27.7%
• Swift Current–Moose Jaw: 12.0%
• Saskatoon–Biggar: 31.9%
• Yorkton–Melville: 3.4%
• Prince Albert: 24.3%
• Northern: 0.8%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Saskatchewan: 53%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 29%
• Abroad: 18%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 7%
• Europe: 21%
• Africa: 60%
• Asia: 12%

Media

• Newspaper:  L’Eau Vive
• Radio: CFRG FM 93.1 (Gravelbourg) and Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• May:
  •  Cinergie, the International Francophone Film Festival, is held yearly in Saskatoon.
• July:
  •  The Fête Fransaskoise festival showcases Francophone art, culture and music.
• November:
  •  The Rendez-vous Fransaskois brings the community together to talk about and celebrate its vitality and development.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call Saskatchewan.
• 1753: Fort à la Corne, the westernmost French settlement at the time, is built on the banks of the Saskatchewan River.
• 1800s: French-speaking Catholic clergy arrive in Saskatchewan and establish a mission at Île-à-la-Crosse, a trading post where there is a large population of French-speaking Métis. The Métis, people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry, enjoy a particular influence in what is now Saskatchewan, especially through their involvement in the fur trade.
• 1877: The Parliament of Canada amends the North-West Territories Act to incorporate guarantees of legislative and judicial bilingualism. The North-West Territories of the time includes the future province of Saskatchewan. Many Englishspeaking settlers from Ontario and Great Britain settle in the area in the following decades.
• 1884: The local Métis, led by Louis Riel, launch a resistance movement against the Canadian government. The resistance is eventually defeated by the Canadian militia, and Riel is arrested and hanged in Regina.
• 1891–1892: Some members of the territorial council try unsuccessfully to abolish legislative and judicial bilingualism. Teaching in French is nevertheless prohibited.
• 1905: The Parliament of Canada passes twin acts that create the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The guarantees of bilingualism granted in 1877 remain in effect in Saskatchewan but are not applied.
• 1912: The Association franco-canadienne de la Saskatchewan, now the Assemblée communautaire fransaskoise, is founded.
• 1920s: French speakers from elsewhere in Canada and Europe come to settle in Saskatchewan. At the same time, many settlers speaking other languages also move to the province.
• 1968: The Education Act is amended to allow teaching in French.
• 1970s: The Fransaskois flag is adopted by Saskatchewan’s Francophone community.
• 1988: Saskatchewan adopts the Act Respecting the Use of the English and French Languages, which recognizes the right to use French in the legislature and in the courts.
• 1990: Saskatchewan’s Francophone Affairs Branch is created.
• 1990s: The province’s first French-language school boards are established.
• 2003: Saskatchewan adopts its French-language Services Policy.
• 2012: The provincial government declares 2012 as the Year of the Fransaskois.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

• 184,464 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
• 53,493 students were in French immersion programs
• 6,414 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 8}

Economic Regions:

• Lower Mainland–Southwest: 58.1%
• Vancouver Island and Coast: 20.5%
• Thompson–Okanagan: 12.4%
• Kootenay: 4.1%
• Cariboo: 2.3%
• Northeast: 0.8%
• North Coast: 1.2%
• Nechako: 0.6%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In British Columbia: 12%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 56%
• Abroad: 32%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 8%
• Europe: 51%
• Africa: 21%
• Asia: 19%

Media

• Newspaper: La Source is a bilingual newspaper that showcases the cultural diversity of the Vancouver region
• Radio: CILS FM 107.9 (Victoria) and Radio-Canada ICI Première and ICI Musique
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• February:
  • The FrancoFun winter festival in Prince George promotes the French language, culture and heritage.
• February-March:
  • The Festival du Bois in Maillardville honours French-Canadian traditions and culture. It is the largest Francophone festival on Canada’s West Coast.
  • The Maple Syrup Festival in Nanaimo is a bilingual event that celebrates eastern Canada’s sugar shack traditions and includes a variety of family-friendly entertainment.
  • March 20: B.C. Francophonie Day
• May:
  • Victoria’s Festival de la francophonie showcases local Francophone and francophile bands, Francophone artisans and community organizations.
• June:
  • The Festival d’été francophone in Vancouver celebrates French-Canadian music and culture.
• For more information about Francophone and bilingual events in B.C., check out the francoquiz app.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call British Columbia.
• End of the 18th century: Beginning in the 1770s, European ships started to explore the territory’s coast. In 1793, Scottish explorer Alexander Mackenzie and six French-Canadian voyageurs crossed the Rocky Mountains and became the first English and French speakers to visit the interior of what would become the future province.
• 1812: Over 300 French Canadians are engaged in the fur trade or farming in the territory.
• 1858: Before the gold rush, French was the most widely spoken European language in the west. In the following years, an increasing number of English-speaking people from Canada, Great Britain and the United States started settling in what is now British Columbia, as did other language communities, including those of Chinese origin.
• 1909: French-speaking families from Quebec settle on the banks of the Fraser River, east of Vancouver, in the place that will become Maillardville, now an important historical site for the province’s French-speaking community.
• 1945: The Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique is created to represent the interests of the Franco-Columbian community.
• From the second half of the 20th century, Francophones from other Canadian provinces and Europe, later joined by newcomers from elsewhere in the world, came and expanded British Columbia’s Francophone community.
• 1982: The Franco-Columbian flag is adopted.
• 1997: Through an amendment to the British Columbia School Act, the legislative assembly officially recognizes the educational rights of Francophones in the province, as already set out in the Constitution in 1982.
• 2020: A Supreme Court ruling requires the province to build more all-French schools and to correct the underfunding of the French-language education system.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

•  1,746 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
•  864 students were in French immersion programs
•  330 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 13}

Census Subdivision:

• Whitehorse: 69.0%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In Yukon: 13%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 68%
• Abroad: 20%

Where were French-speaking immigrants born?^{Source 9}

• Americas: 0%
• Europe: 84%
• Africa: 8%
• Asia: 8%

Media

• Newspaper: L’Aurore boréale
• Radio: CBC North and Radio-Canada ICI Première
• Television: ICI Radio-Canada Télé and Unis TV

Celebrate!

• May 15: Yukon Francophonie Day offers Yukoners an opportunity to learn more about the vibrant French language and culture in the territory and to appreciate and celebrate them.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples and their languages have been present in the land that we now call the Yukon.
• 1840: The first English and French speakers to reach the area arrive when Robert Campbell explores the backcountry for the Hudson’s Bay Company with the help of French-Canadian guides.
• 1874: François-Xavier Mercier, a French-speaking fur trader, builds the Fort Reliance trading post near the mouth of the Klondike River.
• Late 1800s: Francophones are already well-established in the area at the time of the Klondike Gold Rush, which brought thousands of English speakers from the United States and Canada.
• 1982: The Association franco-yukonnaise is created.
• 1984: The region’s first French-language school, École Émilie-Tremblay, opens. It is named after a Francophone woman from Quebec who was one of the first white women to make the long journey to Dawson, Yukon.
• 1986: The Franco-Yukonnais flag is adopted.
• 1988: Yukon’s Languages Act is adopted. Its purpose is to recognize the status of English and French as official languages and to emphasize the importance of Indigenous languages.
• 1996: A Francophone school board is officially opened. It is responsible for French first language education throughout the region.
• 2007: The Yukon government designates May 15 as Yukon Francophonie Day.
• Since the 21st century, the Yukon has become a destination for Francophones from Canada and abroad who are attracted by the Great North.

Education

For 2020–2021 in public schools from junior kindergarten to Grade 12:^{Source 7}

• 1,839 students were in regular French-as-a-second language programs or core French language programs
• 1,038 students were in French immersion programs
• 246 students were in education programs in the minority official language (French)

Where do people live who speak French as their first official language?^{Source 13}

Census Divisions:

• Region 1 (Inuvik): 3.5%
• Region 2: 2.5%
• Region 3: 0.0%
• Region 4: 2.5%
• Region 5 (Fort Smith, Hay River): 12.8%
• Region 6 (Yellowknife): 78.0%

Where were they born?^{Source 9}

• In the Northwest Territories: 20%
• Elsewhere in Canada: 67%
• Abroad: 13%

Media

• Newspaper:  L’Aquilon
• Radio: CIVR Radio Taïga FM 103.5 (Yellowknife)
• Television: Unis TV, Radio-Canada - ICI Grand Nord

Celebrate!

• Throughout the year, the Association franco-culturelle de Yellowknife and the Association franco-ténoise du Sud et de l’Ouest in Hay River organize many French-language activities and festivals.
• The Association franco-culturelle de Yellowknife also organizes a Francophone component to several large festivals, including Folk on the Rock (July), Old Town Rumble and Ride (August) and the Snowking’s Festival (Winter).
• June:
  • Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day (June 24) showcases the diversity of the French-speaking people of the Northwest Territories.

History

• From time immemorial, Indigenous peoples have been present in the land that we now call the Northwest Territories. Today, nine Indigenous languages are spoken in the territory.
• Late 1700s–1800s: English and French explorers begin arriving and establishing fur trade routes in what will be the Northwest Territories.
• 1892: English becomes the territory’s only official language by law, overriding an 1877 act that gave equal status to English and French.
• 1950s: The mining and petroleum boom in the Northwest Territories attracts many Francophones, especially from Quebec.
• 1978: The Association culturelle franco-ténoise, now the Fédération franco-ténoise, is founded.
• 1984: With the adoption of the territory’s first official languages act, French is re-established as one of the official languages of the Northwest Territories. Today, there are 11 official languages in this territory, including English, French and 9 Indigenous languages.
• 1990: The position of Languages Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, who oversees compliance with the territory’s Official Languages Act, is created.
• 1992: The Franco-Ténois flag is raised for the first time.
• 1997: The Conseil scolaire francophone, now the Commission scolaire francophone des Territoires du Nord-Ouest, the only school board in the territory to offer a French first language program, is created.
• 1999: The Northwest Territories divide into two territories, creating the new territory of Nunavut.
• Since the turn of the millennium, many Francophones from Canada and abroad, attracted by the experience of the Great North, have settled in the Northwest Territories and contributed to the vitality of the Franco-Ténoise community.