According to the 2011 National Household Survey, 360,045 couples, accounting for 4.6% of couples in Canada, were in a mixed union, that is, a married or common-law couple in which one spouse or partner is a member of a visible minority and the other is not, or a couple where the spouses or partners are members of different visible minority groups.
Mixed unions have become more common in recent years, accounting for 2.6% of all couples in 1991 and 3.1% in 2001. This increase may be due in part to the increase in the number of persons belonging to a visible minority group in Canada, which increases the chances that individuals will meet their future spouse or partner outside of their group.
In 2011, the proportion of couples that were mixed varied from one visible minority group to another. More than three-quarters (78.7%) of couples comprised of a Japanese spouse or partner were mixed unions, the largest proportion of all the visible minority groups. In comparison, just over 1 in 10 (13.0%) couples comprised of a South Asian spouse or partner were mixed unions.
Table 8
Number and percentage of mixed couples by visible minority group, Canada, 2011 Table summary
This table displays the results of Number and percentage of mixed couples by visible minority group. The information is grouped by Visible minority group (appearing as row headers), Total, Mixed union and Non-mixed union, calculated using number and percentage units of measure (appearing as column headers).
This category includes respondents who reported more than one visible minority group by checking off two or more mark-in circles, e.g., "Black" and "South Asian."
The abbreviation n.i.e. refers to not included elsewhere. This category includes respondents who reported a write-in response such as Guyanese, West Indian, Kurd, Tibetan, Polynesian, Pacific Islander etc.
