Middle Eastern Canadians

Middle Eastern Canadians are Canadians with ancestry, origins, or citizenship from the Middle East, which includes Western Asia and North Africa.

Middle Eastern Canadians
Total population
1,366,190[1]
4.0% of the total Canadian population (2016)
Regions with significant populations
Southern Ontario, Southern Quebec, Southwestern BC, Central Alberta, Urban
Languages
Canadian English · Canadian French ·
Arabic · Farsi · Armenian · Turkish · Hebrew
Other Middle Eastern Languages
Religion
Islam · Christianity · Judaism
Related ethnic groups
Middle Eastern Americans · Arab Canadians · West Asian Canadians · Asian Canadians

Terminology

History

Individuals from the Middle East first arrived in Canada in 1882, when a group of Lebanese immigrants settled in Montreal.[2]

During the first world war, Middle Eastern Canadians of Turkish origin were placed in “enemy alien" internment camps.[3]

The middle eastern Canadian population grew rapidly during the latter half of the 20th century; the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran resulted in a spike of immigration to Canada from the West Asian country[4]

The Syrian refugee crisis during the 2010s fueled further growth in the middle eastern Canadian population.

Demography
Middle Eastern population by province or territory (2016)
Province / territory Population Percentage
Ontario[5] 610,005 4.6%
Quebec[6] 465,920 5.8%
Alberta[7] 120,590 3%
British Columbia[8] 109,400 2.4%
Nova Scotia[9] 19,235 2.1%
Manitoba[10] 15,540 1.3%
Saskatchewan[11] 11,605 1.1%
New Brunswick[12] 8,035 1.1%
Newfoundland and Labrador[13] 3,290 0.6%
Prince Edward Island[14] 1,830 1.3%
Northwest Territories[15] 390 0.9%
Yukon[16] 230 0.7%
Nunavut[17] 130 0.4%
Canada[1] 1,366,190 4%

Ethnic and national origins
Demography by region and ethnicity
2016[1]
Number%
– West Asian1,011,14574%
Lebanese219,55516.1%
Iranian210,40515.4%
– Arab, n.o.s1111,4008.2%
Afghan83,9956.1%
Syrian77,0455.6%
Iraqi70,9255.2%
Turkish63,9554.7%
Armenian63,8104.7%
Palestinian44,8203.3%
Israeli28,7352.1%
– West Central Asian and
Middle Eastern origins, n.i.e.2		28,7352.1%
– Kurd16,3151.2%
Jordanian14,2501%
– Assyrian13,8351%
– Other51,8503.8%
– North African355,04526%
Moroccan103,9407.6%
Egyptian99,1407.3%
Algerian67,3354.9%
– Berber37,0602.7%
Tunisian25,6451.9%
Sudanese19,9601.5%
– Other19,4801.4%
Total population1,366,190100%
1Includes responses of 'Arab,' not otherwise specified.
2Includes general responses indicating West Asian,
Central Asian and Middle Eastern origins as well as more specific
responses that have not been included elsewhere (e.g., 'Baloch,' 'Circassian').

Language

The vast majority of Middle Eastern Canadians speak West Asian and North African languages as a mother tongue or second language. The top five middle eastern languages spoken in Canada include Arabic, Farsi, Armenian, Turkish and Hebrew.

Religion

Islam, Christianity and Judaism are the dominant religions among the middle eastern Canadian population.

See also

References
  1. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Canada [Country] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  2. "History of Recent Arab Immigration to Canada".
  3. "First World War Timeline". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  4. "Iranians". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  5. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Ontario [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  6. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Quebec [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  7. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Alberta [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  8. "Census Profile, 2016 Census British Columbia [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  9. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Nova Scotia [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  10. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Manitoba [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  11. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Saskatchewan [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  12. "Census Profile, 2016 Census New Brunswick [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  13. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Newfoundland and Labrador [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  14. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Prince Edward Island [Province] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  15. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Northwest Territories [Territory] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  16. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Yukon [Territory] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  17. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Nunavut [Territory] and Canada [Country]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
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