Indigenous Peoples Thematic Series
Indigenous Language Families: Salish languages
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This report is a collaborative research project between Statistics Canada and the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages. It is intended to provide a general overview on the vitality, acquisition and use of Indigenous languages belonging to the Salish language family. For more information on the work of OCIL see Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages - Home.
End of text boxSalish languages
Salish languages can be heard in the coast and inland areas of British Columbia, along with the northwestern United States. Despite an overall speaker base that is only a little over 5,000 people, there is a tremendous diversity of Salish languages captured within the Census of Population. A dozen unique, Salish languages were reported by respondents on the 2021 census questionnaire.
Within this report the following Salish languages are presented:
- Halkomelem
- Lillooet
- Ntlakapamux (Thompson)
- Secwepemctsin (Shuswap)
- Squamish
- Straits
- Syilx (Okanagan)
- Salish languages, not included elsewhere (n.i.e.)
Summary language statistics are provided for these languages in table 2.
Knowledge and mother tongue
In 2021, there were 5,305 people who reported that they could speak a Salish language well enough to conduct a conversation. The number of those who reported that a Salish language was their mother tongue—that is, the language first learned as a child and still understood—was 1,720.
The largest group within the Salish language family was those who spoke Halkomelem, with 1,410 speakers and 415 people having Halkomelem as their mother tongue; this was followed by Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) (1,090 speakers and 420 mother tongue), and Syilx (Okanagan) (710 speakers and 240 mother tongue).
Age is a useful indicator of the degree to which languages are transmitted from one generation to the next. A language with a younger age profile typically means that younger people continue to learn and speak the language at a rate commensurate with older generations. The average age of Salish language speakers was 40 years, which was lower than the age of those who reported it as their mother tongue (50 years). On average, Salish language speakers were slightly older than all Indigenous language speakers, as the average age of all of those who could speak an Indigenous language was 37 years.
British Columbia is home to almost all Salish language speakers in Canada. Overall, 97.0% of those who could speak a Salish language well enough to conduct a conversation lived in British Columbia. This pattern was true for speakers of Halkomelem (99.3%), Lillooet (98.3%), Ntlakapamux (Thompson) (90.3%), Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) (96.3%), Squamish (98.6%), Straits (98.4%), Syilx (Okanagan) (97.9%), as well as Salish languages, not included elsewhere (91.5%).
Start of text boxKey concepts
Mother tongue – Refers to the first language learned in childhood that is still understood.
Knowledge – Refers to those who were able to speak a given language well enough to conduct a conversation.
Average age – Average age is a good indicator of the general health of a language. The average age of the mother tongue population is an indicator of the intergenerational transmission of an Indigenous language. A language with a young average age implies that children and young people are continuing to acquire an Indigenous language as their first language.
Indigenous language acquisition – This variable refers to how Indigenous language speakers learned the language they speak, whether as a mother tongue or as a second language.
Learned as a mother tongue – This group is comprised of those who reported an Indigenous mother tongue on the 2021 Census and who could still speak that same language well enough to conduct a conversation.
Learned as a second language – This group is comprised of those who could speak an Indigenous language, but who did not report that same language on the mother tongue question.
Second language index – The second language index is calculated by dividing the number of people who can speak an Indigenous language by the number who reported the same language as their mother tongue, expressed per 100 people. A value of 100 implies all speakers learned their language as a mother tongue, whereas more than 100 implies some speakers must have learned their language as a second language.
Silent speakers – This refers to people who have an Indigenous mother tongue, but—while they still understand it—can no longer speak the language well enough to conduct a conversation. In some circumstances, this may reflect those who have not continued to use their mother tongue over time or those who do not have a community of other speakers of the same language with whom to converse.
Home language – This refers to the extent to which respondents speak a given language at home.
Spoken most often at home – This refers to the language the person speaks most often at home at the time of data collection. A person can report more than one language as "spoken most often at home" if the languages are spoken equally often. In many circumstances, a language spoken most often at home could be thought to reflect the speaker’s “main” language.
Language(s) spoken regularly at home – This refers to the language(s), if any, that the person speaks at home on a regular basis at the time of data collection, other than the language(s) they speak most often at home.
Continuity index – This index measures language retention by dividing the number of people who speak a given language most often at home by the total number who have that same language as their mother tongue, expressed per 100 people.
Language of work – This refers to the extent to which respondents speak a given language at work, for the population aged 15 years and over, who worked since 2020. As with home language, it can be expressed as either the language used most often at work, or a language that is spoken regularly.
For more information on concepts from the 2021 Census of Population, see Dictionary, Census of Population, 2021 (statcan.gc.ca)
Data table for Map 1
| Salish language | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| Halkomelem | 35 |
| Lillooet | 14 |
| Ntlakapamux (Thompson) | 12 |
| Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) | 23 |
| Squamish | 8 |
| Straits | 14 |
| Syilx (Okanagan) | 16 |
| Salish languages, n.i.e. | 8 |
Home use and second-language speakers
The extent to which people speak a language at home is an important indicator of language maintenance and its overall health. In 2021, 1,905 people spoke a Salish language at home. For the majority of this group (80.1%), a Salish language was spoken at home on a regular basis; while for the other 19.9% it was spoken most often at home. Chart 1 shows the share of a Salish language speakers who spoke an Indigenous language most often or regularly at home; it is organized by the average age of the mother tongue population in order to show variations on the relationship between the age of speakers and their likelihood of using the language at home.
Data table for Chart 1
| Spoken most often at home | Spoken regularly at home | |
|---|---|---|
| percent | ||
| Note: n.i.e. = not included elsewhere.
Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. |
||
| Squamish | 2.8 | 32.4 |
| Halkomelem | 7.4 | 36.9 |
| Syilx (Okanagan) | 4.2 | 30.3 |
| Straits | 12.3 | 16.9 |
| Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) | 10.6 | 37.2 |
| Lillooet | 8.4 | 19.3 |
| Ntlakapamux (Thompson) | 6.8 | 6.8 |
| Salish languages, n.i.e. | 6.9 | 20.8 |
The continuity index is a measure of language retention. It compares the number of people who speak a given language at home divided by the number who have that same language as a mother tongue, expressed per 100 people. A figure of more than 100 means that more people spoke the language at home than had it as a mother tongue, while a figure that is less than 100 means that fewer people speak it at home than had it as a mother tongue. For the Salish languages family, using only the language spoken most often at home, the continuity index was 22, in 2021.
Just over one quarter of Salish language speakers learned their language as their mother tongue. This was true of 26.0% of all people who could speak a Salish language well enough to conduct a conversation. The remaining 74.1% of speakers are classified as “second-language speakers” (see chart 2 for the share of second language speakers for specific languages); however, this designation should not be taken literally as this group could include those who learned a Salish language as a third or fourth language.
Data table for Chart 2
| Second language | |
|---|---|
| percent | |
| Note: n.i.e. = not included elsewhere.
Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. |
|
| Squamish | 88.6 |
| Halkomelem | 74.5 |
| Syilx (Okanagan) | 73.0 |
| Straits | 62.5 |
| Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) | 68.0 |
| Lillooet | 84.9 |
| Ntlakapamux (Thompson) | 63.1 |
| Salish languages, n.i.e. | 87.3 |
In general, those who learn their language as a mother tongue are more likely to use it at home than those who have acquired it as a second language. Table 3 shows the share of home use for those who learned a Salish language as a mother tongue and those who learned it as a second language. Among those who learned a Salish language as their mother tongue, 41.3% spoke the language at home (18.1% most often and 22.8% on a regular basis). Among second-language speakers, 34.5% spoke the language at home (3.7% most often and 30.8% on a regular basis). Home use among second-language speakers is an important indicator of revitalization, in relation to restoring the intergenerational transmission of Indigenous languages.
Silent speakers
The First Peoples’ Cultural Council (FPCC) defines silent speakers as “…people who have a good understanding of their language but do not speak it. There are many kinds of silent speakers, including people who spoke their language before attending residential school or people who grew up hearing their language and understand it, but do not speak it.”Note This indicator is useful in the work toward the reclamation and recovery of Indigenous languages.
An additional 380 people who reported that a Salish language was their mother tongue were no longer able to speak the language well enough to conduct a conversation; for the purposes of this study, these people are classified as “silent speakers”—those who can no longer conduct a conversation in their mother tongue, but still understand it, nonetheless. This group made up 22.1% of all of those with a Salish language as their mother tongue.
Language of work
The Census of Population also collects information on the languages that people use most often at work. Among all employed persons, aged 15 years and over, who could speak a Salish language, 7.7% reported that it was the language they used most often at work. Another 10.7% said that they spoke a Salish language at work on a regular basis.
Salish language-specific vitality summary
The following is a summary of the vitality of each of the languages discussed in this report, using the indicators of knowledge, mother tongue, the average ages of those with a mother tongue, second language speakers and silent speakers, the share of speakers who learned their language as a mother tongue and the proportion of those who speak their language most often or regularly at home. Together these are important indicators of language maintenance and revitalization.
Squamish had 355 speakers. There were 50 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 42 years, the average age of second language speakers was 35 years and the average age of silent speakers was 52 years. Just under one-in-ten (9.9%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 8.0% spoke it most often and 92.0% spoke it regularly.
Halkomelem had 1,410 speakers. There were 415 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 43 years, the average age of second language speakers was 32 years and the average age of silent speakers was 52 years. More than one quarter (25.9%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 16.9% spoke it most often and 83.9% spoke it regularly.
Syilx (Okanagan) had 710 speakers. There were 240 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 47 years, the average age of second language speakers was 36 years and the average age of silent speakers was 44 years. More than one quarter (27.5%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 12.0% spoke it most often and 86.0% spoke it regularly.
Straits had 325 speakers. There were 180 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 50 years, the average age of second language speakers was 44 years and the average age of silent speakers was 53 years. Less than two fifths (38.5%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 42.1% spoke it most often and 57.9% spoke it regularly.
Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) had 1,090 speakers. There were 420 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 51 years, the average age of second language speakers was 38 years and the average age of silent speakers was 40 years. Less than one third (31.7%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 22.1% spoke it most often and 77.9% spoke it regularly.
Lillooet had 595 speakers. There were 125 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 56 years, the average age of second language speakers was 42 years and the average age of silent speakers was 60 years. A minority (14.3%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 30.3% spoke it most often and 69.7% spoke it regularly.
Ntlakapamux (Thompson) had 515 speakers. There were 230 people who reported it as their mother tongue. While those with a mother tongue had an average age of 56 years, the average age of second language speakers was 38 years and the average age of silent speakers was 46 years. More than one third (36.9%) of its speakers acquired their language as a mother tongue. Among home users, 50.0% spoke it most often and 50.0% spoke it regularly.
Start of text boxAbout this report
This report is based on data from the 2021 Census of Population long-form questionnaire, which collected information for the population in private households. To ensure the confidentiality of responses collected for the census, a random rounding process is used to alter the values reported in individual cells. As a result, when these data are summed or grouped, the total value may not match the sum of the individual values since the total and subtotals are independently rounded. Similarly, percentage distributions, which are calculated on rounded data, may not necessarily add up to 100%.
Because of random rounding, counts and percentages may vary slightly between different census products such as the analytical documents, highlight tables and data tables. While the effect of random rounding is generally negligible it may have a greater effect on certain populations, such as languages with smaller numbers of speakers.
Furthermore, languages with low numbers of speakers are suppressed to protect the confidentiality of respondents to the census questionnaire. As a result, these languages are collectively disseminated through the label of languages “not included elsewhere (n.i.e.)”.
Self-reporting of language data
Like all items on the census questionnaire, the language questions on the 2021 Census of Population are based on self-reporting. Therefore, responses to indicators—such as the ability to speak a language well enough to conduct a conversation—may vary depending upon the respondent, even among those with similar linguistic backgrounds. The issue of self-reporting also intersects with the fact that some respondents report the language(s) they speak within broad categories, while others report more specifically.
For more information language concepts, see Languages Reference Guide, Census of Population, 2021 (statcan.gc.ca)
Incomplete enumeration
During the 2021 Census of Population, 63 census subdivisions defined as reserves and settlements were incompletely enumerated. For these reserves and settlements, enumeration either was not permitted or could not be completed for various reasons, such as evacuations because of forest fires or access restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Counts of speakers for some languages were more impacted by incompletely enumerated reserves and settlements than others. For example, the Tsuu T’ina language and Iroquoian languages, such as Mohawk and Cayuga, are undercounted as reserves and settlements associated with these languages did not participate in the census. Regionally, other languages may be more impacted than others.
For more information on incompletely enumerated reserves and settlements, see Appendix 1.5 – Incompletely enumerated reserves and settlements in the Guide to the Census of Population, 2021.
| Number | Percent | Average age | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|||
| Able to speak Indigenous language well enough to conduct a conversation | 5,305 | ... not applicable | 40 |
| Indigenous language as mother tongue | 1,720 | ... not applicable | 50 |
| Able to speak Indigenous language well enough to conduct a conversation | 5,305 | 100.0 | 40 |
| Learned Indigenous language as mother tongue and still speak the language | 1,380 | 26.0 | 49 |
| Learned Indigenous language as second language | 3,930 | 74.1 | 37 |
| Second language index | ... not applicable | 308 | ... not applicable |
| Indigenous language as mother tongue | 1,720 | 100.0 | 50 |
| Can still speak Indigenous mother tongue | 1,340 | 77.9 | 50 |
| Silent speakers (mother tongue but can no longer speak) | 380 | 22.1 | 50 |
| Speaks Indigenous language at home | 1,905 | 100.0 | 37 |
| Speaks Indigenous language most often at home | 380 | 19.9 | 48 |
| Speaks Indigenous language at home on a regular basis | 1,525 | 80.1 | 34 |
| Continuity index (includes only language spoken most often at home) | ... not applicable | 22 | ... not applicable |
| Employed speakers aged 15 years and over | 2,010 | 100.0 | 45 |
| Speaks Indigenous language most often at work | 155 | 7.7 | 50 |
| Speaks Indigenous language at work on a regular basis | 215 | 10.7 | 46 |
| Does not speak Indigenous language at work | 1,645 | 81.8 | 44 |
| Knowledge of Indigenous language | Indigenous mother tongue | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| number | average age | number | average age | |
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | ||||
| Salish languages | 5,305 | 40 | 1,720 | 50 |
| Halkomelem | 1,410 | 34 | 415 | 43 |
| Lillooet | 595 | 44 | 125 | 56 |
| Ntlakapamux (Thompson) | 515 | 46 | 230 | 56 |
| Secwepemctsin (Shuswap) | 1,090 | 43 | 420 | 51 |
| Squamish | 355 | 36 | 50 | 42 |
| Straits | 325 | 46 | 180 | 50 |
| Syilx (Okanagan) | 710 | 39 | 240 | 47 |
| Salish languages, n.i.e. | 360 | 43 | 80 | 58 |
| Number | Percent | Average age | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |||
| Learned Salish language as mother tongue | 1,380 | 100.0 | 49 |
| Speaks Salish language at home | 570 | 41.3 | 47 |
| Speaks Salish language most often at home | 250 | 18.1 | 50 |
| Speaks Salish language at home on a regular basis | 315 | 22.8 | 44 |
| Does not speak Salish language at home | 815 | 59.1 | 51 |
| Learned Salish language as second language | 3,930 | 100.0 | 37 |
| Speaks Salish language at home | 1,355 | 34.5 | 33 |
| Speaks Salish language most often at home | 145 | 3.7 | 42 |
| Speaks Salish language at home on a regular basis | 1,210 | 30.8 | 32 |
| Does not speak Salish language at home | 2,570 | 65.4 | 39 |
Data table for Map 2
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 30 |
| 101 - 205 | 5 |
Data table for Map 3
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 13 |
| 101 - 270 | 1 |
Data table for Map 4
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 11 |
| 101 - 140 | 1 |
Data table for Map 5
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 20 |
| 101 - 160 | 3 |
Data table for Map 6
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 6 |
| 101 - 140 | 2 |
Data table for Map 7
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 50 | 14 |
Data table for Map 8
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 100 | 14 |
| 101 - 200 | 2 |
Data table for Map 9
| Number of speakers | Number of Census subdivisions |
|---|---|
| Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 2021. | |
| 10 - 70 | 8 |
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