Age Structure, 2006

View this map

Abstract

In 2006, the median age of Canada’s population reached an all-time high of 39.5 years, up from 25.4 years in 1966 and 29.6 years in 1981. In general, Canada's population can be neatly demarcated geographically by its age structure. The population is generally younger as one moves progressively north of the United States - Canada border or moves west from Ontario (except in British Columbia).

Age structure of a population is determined mainly by its fertility level and, to some extent, by its mortality. In general, a population with a larger proportion of young people has higher fertility. In contrast, a population with a larger proportion of elderly has lower fertility and higher life expectancy although in certain instances in-migration of older people and out-migration of younger people do play important roles. Aging is one of the most important features of Canada’s demographic structure. The median age, which divides the population into two groups of equal size, has been rising steadily since 1966. In 2006, the median age of Canada’s population reached an all-time high of 39.5 years, up from 25.4 years in 1966 and 29.6 years in 1981. In general, Canada's population can be neatly demarcated geographically by its age structure. The population is generally younger as one moves progressively north of the United States - Canada border or moves west from Ontario (except British Columbia).

Youth Population (below age 15)

Canada is demographically an aging society, although still one of the youngest in the G8 . In 2006, 17.7% of the total population was below age 15. Since the post-World War II baby-boom (1946 to 1965), this proportion has been steadily declining, although the pace of decline has become somewhat slower in recent decades — a clear reflection of fertility trends. In 1961, 34% of Canada's population was below age 15. It dropped to 22.5% by 1981 and to 17.7% by 2006.

Overall, Canada's north, characterized by a relatively large Aboriginal population and high fertility, is younger than the national average. In 2006, one-third (33.9%) of the population of Nunavut and one-fourth of Northwest Territories' populations were below age 15. Yukon was somewhat different from the other territories in that it had a proportionately smaller Aboriginal population and its fertility rate was closer to the national average. The Prairie Provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta) were the second youngest, with close to one in five persons being under age 15. Ontario (18.2%) was next in order.

The Atlantic Provinces (16.1%), Quebec (16.6%), and British Columbia (16.5%) had the smallest proportions of young people. Between 1981 and 1996, Quebec had the smallest proportion of persons under 15 years, owing to its very low fertility. Starting in 2001, Newfoundland and Labrador became the province with the smallest proportion of those under 15 years due to its lower fertility rates.

In general, metropolitan Canada is younger. According to the 2006 Census, 16 of the 33 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) had a proportion of the population under 15 years that was above the national average of 17.7%. Nine of the CMAs were located in the heavily industrialized southern Ontario region: Barrie (20.8%), Oshawa (20.5%), Kitchener (19.1%), Windsor (19.0%), Brantford (18.7%), Guelph (18.6%), Toronto (18.6%), Hamilton (17.95) and London (17.7%). The five census metropolitan areas in the Prairies (Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, and Winnipeg) also had a higher proportion of the youth population than the national average.

Mid-size urban centres or census agglomerations (CAs) exhibit different age structures than CMAs with, on average, smaller proportions of younger age groups. Thompson, Manitoba was the youngest mid-size urban centre, with 26.5% of its population under age 15. This small northern town included a large Aboriginal community. Four of the six youngest mid-size urban centres in 2006 were in Alberta: Okotoks (25.4%), Cold Lake (24.1%), Brooks (21.9%) and Grande Prairie (21.9%). Lloydminster (21.5%) and Wood Buffalo (20.0%) were also on the list of the 25 mid-sized urban centres with the highest proportions of the population under age 15. Some of those urban centres are located in areas of rapid population growth, where oil sands development is a major industry, attracting many young workers.

Working-age Population (age 15 to 64)

The working-age population can be divided into two broad categories: the early-working age group (15-34) and the later working age group (35-64). The effect of fertility on the composition of these groups is obvious. The later working age group is largely composed of the baby-boomers (those born between 1946 and 1965), while the early working age group is composed of those born during the baby-bust period (1966-1974) and the children of baby-boomers. Thus, despite the fact that baby-boomers are now older, they still remain the largest group in the population. This is evident in the relatively large proportion (42.6%) of the population that belonged to the late working age group in 2006. The corresponding proportion was much smaller (31.3%) just 25 years ago in 1981. As a result of the entry into the working age group of the people born during the baby-bust period and the children of baby-boomers in 2006, only 26.0% of the population belonged to the 15 to 34 age group in 2006, compared with 36.5% in 1981.

In 2006, the 15-34 age group made up a relatively large share of the population in the Northwest Territories (31.8%), Nunavut (34.6%) and the provinces west of Ontario (except for British Columbia), whereas their share was lower to the east of Ontario. Generally, the converse was true in the case of the 35-64 age group, with a larger proportion to the east of Ontario than to the west of Ontario. Yukon, a territory with relatively low fertility compared to the other two territories, had a smaller proportion of the population in the 15-34 age group (26.2%) and a larger proportion in the 35-64 age group (47.5%), different from that of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.

As expected, urban and especially metropolitan Canada had a larger proportion of its population in the early working age group (15-34), but a smaller proportion in the late working age group (35-64), compared with that in rural and non-metropolitan areas. This difference is primarily due to internal migration of young adults, who often leave rural and non-metropolitan areas in their late teens and early twenties to pursue their education or leave to find a job in urban and metropolitan areas.

However, there are some major differences between various urban centres. In 2006, Kelowna, British Columbia, demographically the oldest CMA in Canada, had a much smaller proportion of the population in the early working age group (23.2%), compared with Calgary, Alberta (30.3%), which has a rapidly growing industrial centre. On the other hand, Kelowna and Calgary were not much different in terms of the proportion belonging to the older working age group (42.1% versus 41.9%). At the other end of the spectrum, there were demographically younger mid-size urban centres (CAs) which had a relatively small proportion of the population in the late working age group. Examples of such urban centres include Okotoks (40.2%), Cold Lake (40.2%), Brooks (38%) and Grand Prairie (36.4%) all in Alberta and Thompson (38.9%) in Manitoba.

The Elderly (Golden Years [65 to 79] and Oldest Old [80 and over])

Canada is an aging society. In 2006, 13.7% of the total population of Canada was 65 years and over. This proportion was 9.7% only twenty five years ago in 1981. During the same period, the proportion of the population that was very old increased at a more rapid pace. For example, between 1981 and 2006 the proportion of the population that was 80 years and over rose from 1.7% to 3.7%. The number of people in this age group topped the 1 million mark (at 1.2 million) for the first time in 2006. In 2006, the population of Saskatchewan was the oldest in the country with 15.4% of the population 65 years and over. It also had the largest proportion of the oldest old, where one out of every 20 Saskatchewan residents was 80 years of age and over. The national average was one in 27. Saskatchewan's situation is unique, in that it has both the largest proportion of seniors and one of the largest proportions of children among the provinces. This is attributable to several factors: higher fertility compared to any other Canadian province due to a large Aboriginal population; a life expectancy that was, until quite recently, one of the highest in the country; and substantial losses of young adults migrating to Alberta to find employment. In general, Atlantic Canada (Newfoundland, and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick) and British Columbia had an older age structure population (14-15% in the age group 65 and over) compared with the national average, once again a reflection of their lower fertility rates.

Overall, rural areas had a higher proportion of the population that were elderly, and that proportion is growing faster than in urban areas. In 2006, 15.5% of the population in non-metropolitan areas, but only 13.3% of the population in metropolitan areas were aged 65 and over. With 19% of its population, or nearly one person in five, aged 65 and older, Kelowna, British Columbia was the oldest CMA in Canada in 2006. Next in order were Peterborough, Ontario (18.2%), Victoria, British Columbia (17.8%), St. Catharines-Niagara, Ontario (17.7%) and Trois-Rivières, Quebec (17.0%). At the other end of the spectrum, were the rapidly growing CMAs, such as Calgary, (9.4%) and Edmonton (11.1%) in Alberta and Oshawa (11.2%) and Barrie (11.5%) in Ontario.

Mid-size urban centres or census agglomerations (CAs) were on average older than CMAs in 2006, as their proportion of people aged 65 years and over was 15.5%, compared with 12.9% for CMAs. Most of the aging mid-size urban centres were in British Columbia and Ontario. Two such urban centres Parksville, British Columbia and Elliot Lake, Ontario, were by far the oldest in Canada, where roughly one person in three was 65 years and older. These urban areas are known as resort /retirement centres that attract many elderly people. Most of the small towns and rural communities with the highest proportion of the elderly (retired) were also located in British Columbia and Alberta.

The Daily is Statistics Canada's official release bulletin. The Daily for July 17, 2007, marked the public release of this census variable. Highlight tables allowing users to perform simple rank and sort functions with the data at various levels of geography are available for this variable here: Age and Sex Highlight Tables, 2006 Census.

The text was adapted from Statistics Canada, Portrait of the Canadian Population in 2006 by Age and Sex, 2006 Census Catalogue number 97-551-XWE2006001 and Report on the Demographic Situation in Canada: 2005 and 2006, Catalogue number 91-209-X. Statistics Canada information is used with the permission of Statistics Canada. Information on the availability of the wide range of data from Statistics Canada can be obtained from the Statistics Canada's Regional Offices, its World Wide Web site at www.statcan.gc.ca, or its toll-free access number 1-800-263-1136.