Mexican Canadians

Mexican Canadians
Total population
By birth: 69,695
By ancestry: 26,360
Total: 96,055 (0.3%)[1]
Regions with significant populations
 Canada
Ontario Ontario 31,685 (0.25%)
Quebec Quebec 25,040 (0.32%)
British Columbia British Columbia 15,950 (0.37%)
Alberta Alberta 14,465 (0.41%)
Manitoba Manitoba 6,420 (0.55%)
Languages
English, French, Spanish, and a minority of indigenous Mexican languages.
Religion
Roman Catholicism, Protestantism and Indigenous beliefs.
Related ethnic groups
Mexican people, Mestizo, Spanish people, Latin, Native Americans.

Mexican Canadians (Spanish: Mexicano-canadiense, French: Mexicain canadien) are Canadian citizens of Mexican ancestry or a Mexican-born person who resides in Canada. According to the National Household Survey in 2011, 96,055 Canadians indicated that they were of full or partial Mexican ancestry (0.3% of the country's population).[1] Mexican people are the largest subgroup of Latin American Canadians.

The Mexican ancestry population in Canada is quite small despite Canada's proximity to Mexico and especially when compared to the United States where as of July 2013, there were 34,586,088 Mexican Americans comprising 10.94% of the population (see Mexican American).

Mexican Canadians trace their ancestry to Mexico, a country located in North America, bounded south from the United States; and many different European countries, especially Spain, which was its colonial ruler for over three centuries.

Demographics

The metropolitan areas with the largest populations of people with Mexican ancestry are: Greater Montreal (15,195; 0.9%), Greater Toronto Area (15,160; 0.3%), Vancouver (10,965; 0.5%), Calgary (4,865; 0.4%), Edmonton (3,630; 0.3%), Ottawa (3,165; 0.3%).[1]

Geographical extent

Most Mexican Canadian settlement concentrations are found in metropolitan areas across Canada, with the highest concentrations in Greater Toronto and Quebec and are also present in other provinces of Canada such as British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba.

There are some Canadians with roots in the United States of America of Mexican-Texan ancestry living in Alberta; thus the so-called Mexican ethnic presence dates back to the first oil industry booms in the 1930s.

While approximately 5,000 Mexicans enter Canada each year as temporary students or contract workers for agriculture, these are not counted as immigrants because of their explicitly temporary legal status. Unlike the United States’ Bracero program, the temporary-worker program in Canada has various mechanisms to discourage workers from overstaying their permits.[2] On the other hand, there is a moderate number of Mexican citizens who, after not being able to attain legal status in the U.S., settle in Canada to try (and in many cases succeed) to secure a much more favorable path to citizenship.

In the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Mexican labourers are employed in the wine and orchard industries there. There is a sizable community of Mexicans living in Kelowna.[3][4][5]

Statistics

Number of Mexican nationals granted permanent residence in Canada by year[6]
Year Number of Mexican nationals admitted Total number of permanent residents admitted Proportion of permanent residents admitted
2002 1,918 229,048 0.8%
2003 1,738 221,349 0.8%
2004 2,245 235,823 1%
2005 2,854 262,242 1.1%
2006 2,830 251,640 1.1%
2007 3,224 236,753 1.4%
2008 2,831 247,246 1.1%
2009 3,104 252,174 1.2%
2010 3,866 280,691 1.4%
2011 3,642 248,748 1.5%

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 , National Household Survey (NHS) Profile, 2011
  2. dead link
  3. Stueck, Wendy. Mexican labourers keep B.C. wine flowing, The Globe and Mail, October 14, 2011
  4. NHS Profile, Kelowna, CY, British Columbia, 2011, National Household Survey
  5. Oliver gets a taste of Mexico, Penticton Western News, April 28, 2011
  6. , Facts and figures 2011 — Immigration overview: Permanent and temporary residents — Permanent residents
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