Ethnicity, Language and Immigration Thematic Series
The French Language in Saskatchewan, 2001 to 2016: Facts and Figures

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The purpose of this document is to present an overview of the prevailing trends observed between 2001 and 2016^{Note 1} for the French language in Saskatchewan. To this end, the document provides census-based information on the population^{Note 2} who have French as their first official language spoken, mother tongue, language spoken at home or language used at work as well as on the population who reported speaking French well enough to conduct a conversation.

• In 2016, there were 14,440 persons who had French as a first official language spoken. Collectively, they represented 1.3% of Saskatchewan’s total population.
  • In the 2001 to 2016 period, the number of persons who had French as a first official language spoken decreased by 12.7% (-2,110 persons) while also decreasing in relative terms from 1.7% in 2001 down to 1.3% in 2016.

• As of 2016, 51,890 persons reported being able to conduct a conversation in French, either exclusively or with another language. They represented 4.8% of Saskatchewan’s total population.
  • In the 15 years since 2001, the number of persons who report being able to conduct a conversation in French has increased by 5.1%, that is, by an additional 2,530 persons.

• English-French bilingualism in Saskatchewan reached new heights as of 2016. In fact, that year, 51,360 persons reported being able to hold a conversation in both English and French, a figure which represents an English-French bilingualism rate of 4.7%.
  • In the 15 years since 2001, English-French bilingualism in the province increased by an additional 2,360 persons, up 4.8%. However, in relative terms, it decreased by 0.3 percentage points over the same period.

• In 2016, the number of persons in Saskatchewan who reported having French as their mother tongue^{Note 3}, whether exclusively or in combination with other languages, stood at 17,730 and represented 1.6% of Saskatchewan’s population.
  • In the 15 years since 2001, the number of persons who report having French as their mother tongue, either exclusively or along with other languages, has decreased by 9.2% which translates to 1,795 fewer persons.

• In 2016, there were 15,870 persons who reported speaking French at home at least regularly. They represented 1.5% of Saskatchewan’s population.
  • Between 2001 and 2016, the number of persons who reported speaking French at least regularly at home grew by 17.6% (+2,380 persons) while remaining nearly constant as a proportion of Saskatchewan’s total population (+0.1 percentage points).

• Among those who reported speaking French at least regularly at home in 2016, 5,840 reported speaking French most often^{Note 4} while 10,030 reported speaking French as their secondary language (in addition to their main language). Respectively, these populations represented 0.5% and 0.9% of Saskatchewan’s total population that year.
  • In the 2001 to 2016 period, the number of persons who reported speaking French most often at home^{Note 4} increased by 11.9% (+620 persons) solely due to the increase in the number of persons who reported speaking French equally often with another language (+1,050 persons).
  • Conversely, during the 15 year period, those who reported speaking exclusively French at home decreased by 8.4% (-155 persons) while those who reported speaking French most often with another language regularly decreased by 10.7% (-275 persons).
  • By contrast, the number of persons who reported speaking French at home as a secondary language (in addition to their main language) increased by 21.3% (+1,760 persons) between 2001 and 2016.

• In 2016, there were 6,630 workers who reported using French at work at least regularly and they represented 1.0% of the working population that year.

• Over the 15 year period, the number of workers who reported using French at work at least regularly increased from 6,530 in 2001 to 6,630 in 2016, that is, a 1.5% increase. By contrast, the working population increased by 15.0%.
  • Among those who used French at least regularly at work in 2016, 2,665 reported using French most often^{Note 5} whereas 3,965 reported using French as a secondary language in addition to their main language. In relative terms, they represented respectively 0.4% and 0.6% of Saskatchewan’s working population.
  • Between 2001 and 2016, the number of workers who reported using French most often at work^{Note 5} increased by 24.5%, that is, by an additional 525 workers. By contrast, those who reported using French as a secondary language in addition to their main language decreased by 9.7% (-425 workers).

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