Highlights

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• Almost 350,000 people of Arab origin live in Canada, representing just over 1% of the total Canadian population.



• The majority of Canadians of Arab origin were born outside of Canada. As well, most foreign-born Arab Canadians immigrated to Canada in the last twenty years.



• Canadians of Arab origin make up 4% of the populations of Montreal and Ottawa.



• The Arab population living in Canada is relatively young; in 2001, 44% of all Canadians of Arab descent were under the age of 25, compared with 33% of the overall population. On the other hand, those in the Arab community are less than half as likely as all Canadians to be seniors aged 65 or over.



• Almost all Canadians of Arab descent can carry on a conversation in one or both official languages; in fact, only 4% cannot speak either English or French.



• The Arab community in Canada is evenly split between those who report they belong to a Christian religious grouping and those that report they are Muslim.



• People of Arab origin are somewhat more likely than those in the overall population to be married, while they are less likely to live in a common-law relationship. Canadians of Arab origin are also less likely to live alone.



• The Arab community in Canada is relatively well educated. In 2001, 30% of those of Arab origin had a university degree, compared with 15% of people in the overall population.



• People of Arab descent are less likely to be employed than their counterparts in the overall population. At the same time, labour force participants of Arab origin are considerably more likely than those in the overall population to be unemployed.



• The average income of Canadians of Arab origin is over $3,000 lower than the national average.



• Children of Arab origin are twice as likely as their counterparts in the overall population to live in low-income families.

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