Aboriginal Peoples: Fact Sheet for Alberta

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Release date: March 14, 2016

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About the data sources

The 2011 National Household Survey (NHS) and the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey (APS) are the main data sources for this fact sheet. The 2011 NHS collected social and economic data about the Canadian population. The 2012 APS was a national survey of First Nations people living off reserve, Métis, and Inuit aged 6 and older. The data are for the Aboriginal identity population, which refers to people who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, that is, First Nations, Métis or Inuit, and/or those who reported being a Treaty Indian or a Registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada, and/or those who reported they were members of an Indian band or First Nation. It was possible to report both single and multiple responses to the Aboriginal identity questions on the NHS and the APS. The NHS data in this fact sheet are based on single responses only. The APS data represent a combination of the single and multiple Aboriginal identity populations. Nearly all off-reserve First Nations, Métis, and Inuit respondents reported a single identity.

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Nearly one in six Aboriginal people in Canada live in Alberta

Aboriginal population younger than non-Aboriginal

Half of Aboriginal children live with both parents

Table 1
Percentage distribution of children aged 14 and under by living arrangement, by selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Percentage distribution of children aged 14 and under by living arrangement Total Aboriginal identity population, First Nations single identity, Métis single identity, Inuit single identity, Non-Aboriginal identity population, Total, On reserve and Off reserve, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population First Nations single identity Métis single identity Inuit single identity Non-Aboriginal identity population
Total On reserve Off reserve
percent
Children of both parentsTable 1 Note 1 50.3 44.3 44.0 44.5 58.8 61.0 80.1
Stepchildren 8.6 8.9 9.0 8.9 8.4 7.0 5.4
Children of lone parent 32.0 34.8 36.7 33.5 28.0 28.0 13.7
Grandchildren in skip-generation family 3.1 4.0 5.4 2.9 1.8 0.0 0.3
Foster children 4.6 6.2 2.0 9.2 2.4 0.0 0.2
Children living with other relativesTable 1 Note 2 1.3 1.8 2.9 1.0 0.7 0.0 0.2

On-reserve First Nations people most likely to live in crowded homes and homes requiring major repairs

Table 2
Percentages living in crowded homes and homes in need of major repairs, by selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Percentages living in crowded homes and homes in need of major repairs Total Aboriginal identity population, First Nations single identity, Métis single identity, Inuit single identity, Non-Aboriginal identity population, Total, On reserve and Off reserve, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population First Nations single identity Métis single identity Inuit single identity Non-Aboriginal identity population
Total On reserve Off reserve
percent
CrowdingTable 2 Note 1 11.5 18.7 35.0 7.8 3.4 4.8 3.5
Home in need of majorTable 2 Note 2 repairs 21.2 29.8 53.6 14.0 11.7 8.3 6.1

Ability to speak an Aboriginal language highest among on-reserve First Nations people

Chart 1 Ability to converse in an Aboriginal language and Aboriginal language as mother tongue, by selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011

Description for Chart 1

The title of the graph is "Chart 1 Ability to converse in an Aboriginal language and Aboriginal language as mother tongue, by selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011."
This is a column clustered chart.
There are in total 6 categories in the horizontal axis. The vertical axis starts at 0 and ends at 50 with ticks every 10 points.
There are 2 series in this graph.
The vertical axis is "percent."
The horizontal axis is "Aboriginal identity groups."
The title of series 1 is "Ability to conduct a conversation in an Aboriginal language."
The minimum value is 3.5 and it corresponds to "Métis single identity."
The maximum value is 44.6 and it corresponds to "First Nations single identity (on reserve)."
The title of series 2 is "Aboriginal language as mother tongue."
The minimum value is 2.3 and it corresponds to "Métis single identity."
The maximum value is 36.8 and it corresponds to "First Nations single identity (on reserve)."

Data table for Chart 1
Table summary
This table displays the results of Chart 1 Ability to converse in an Aboriginal language and Aboriginal language as mother tongue. The information is grouped by (appearing as row headers), Ability to conduct a conversation in an Aboriginal language and Aboriginal language as mother tongue (appearing as column headers).
  Ability to conduct a conversation in an Aboriginal language Aboriginal language as mother tongue
Total Aboriginal identity population 15.1 11.7
First Nations single identity 25.4 20.0
First Nations single identity (on reserve) 44.6 36.8
First Nations single identity (off reserve) 12.6 8.8
Métis single identity 3.5 2.3
Inuit single identity 8.3 5.3

Nearly half have postsecondary qualifications

Table 3
Highest level of educational attainment of population aged 25 to 64, by selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Highest level of educational attainment of population aged 25 to 64 Total Aboriginal identity population, First Nations single identity, Métis single identity, Inuit single identity, Non-Aboriginal identity population, Total, On reserve and Off reserve, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population First Nations single identity Métis single identity Inuit single identity Non-Aboriginal identity population
Total On reserve Off reserve
percent
No certificate, diploma or degree 30.4 38.5 54.3 28.9 22.6 23.9 11.3
High school diploma or equivalent 23.0 21.3 15.7 24.7 24.5 24.5 23.9
Postsecondary certificate, diploma or degree 46.6 40.2 30.0 46.5 52.9 52.2 64.8
Apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma 14.4 12.2 10.1 13.5 16.7 18.5 12.1
College, CEGEP or other non-university certificate or diploma 20.6 18.0 13.9 20.4 23.3 20.7 21.4
University certificate or diploma below bachelor levelTable 3 Note 1 3.1 3.3 2.6 3.8 3.1 2.2 4.8
University certificate, diploma or degree at bachelor level or above 8.5 6.8 3.5 8.8 9.9 10.3 26.5

Employment rates and median total income increase with education

Table 4
Employment rate of population aged 25 to 64, by highest level of educational attainment, selected Aboriginal identity group and area of residence, Alberta, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Employment rate of population aged 25 to 64 Total Aboriginal identity population, First Nations single identity, Métis single identity, Inuit single identity, Non-Aboriginal identity population, Total, On reserve and Off reserve, calculated using employment rate (percent) units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population First Nations single identity Métis single identity Inuit single identity Non-Aboriginal identity population
Total On reserve Off reserve
employment rate (percent)
Total 66.3 58.1 43.5 67.0 74.0 81.0 81.2
No certificate, diploma or degree 46.7 40.5 30.9 51.5 56.9 68.2 70.4
High school diploma or equivalent 70.9 64.7 51.3 69.9 75.6 82.2 78.2
Postsecondary certificate, diploma or degree 76.7 71.4 62.0 75.2 80.5 84.4 84.2

Half rate their health as excellent or very good

Chart 2 Excellent or very good self-rated overall health of population aged 12 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity group and age group, Alberta, 2012.

Description for Chart 2

The title of the graph is "Chart 2 Excellent or very good self-rated overall health of population aged 12 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity groupChart 2 Note 1 and age group, Alberta, 2012."
This is a column clustered chart.
There are in total 4 categories in the horizontal axis. The vertical axis starts at 0 and ends at 80 with ticks every 10 points.
There are 4 series in this graph.
The vertical axis is "percent."
The horizontal axis is "Aboriginal identity groups."
The title of series 1 is "Total."
The minimum value is 49.0 and it corresponds to "Off-reserve First Nations people."
The maximum value is 62.5 and it corresponds to "Non-Aboriginal identity population."
The title of series 2 is "12 to 24 years."
The minimum value is 65.1 and it corresponds to "Off-reserve First Nations people."
The maximum value is 72.7 and it corresponds to "Non-Aboriginal identity population."
The title of series 3 is "25 to 44 years."
The minimum value is 50.9 and it corresponds to "Off-reserve First Nations people."
The maximum value is 65.3 and it corresponds to "Non-Aboriginal identity population."
The title of series 4 is "45 years and over."
The minimum value is 27.7 and it corresponds to "Off-reserve First Nations people."
The maximum value is 55.8 and it corresponds to "Non-Aboriginal identity population."

Data table for Chart 2
Table summary
This table displays the results of Excellent or very good self-rated overall health of population aged 12 and over. The information is grouped by % (appearing as row headers), Total, 12 to 24 years, 25 to 44 years and 45 years and over (appearing as column headers).
% Total 12 to 24 years 25 to 44 years 45 years and over
Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves) 53.3 67.5 55.2 36.9
Off-reserve First Nations people 49.0 65.1 50.9 27.7
Métis 56.2 69.1 58.9 41.6
Non-Aboriginal identity population 62.5 72.7 65.3 55.8
Table 5
Excellent or very good self-rated mental health of population aged 18 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity groupTable 5 Note 1 and age group, Alberta, 2012
Table summary
This table displays the results of Excellent or very good self-rated mental health of population aged 18 and over Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves), Off-reserve First Nations people, Métis and Non-Aboriginal identity population, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves) Off-reserve First Nations people Métis Non-Aboriginal identity population
percent
Total 62.2 59.1 64.2 71.2
18 to 24 59.0 56.3 61.8 75.3
25 to 44 62.3 58.6 65.0 70.7
45 and over 63.7 61.3 64.4 70.6

Off-reserve First Nations people and Métis more likely to smoke daily

Chart 3 Selected health behaviours of population aged 12 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity group, Alberta, 2012

Description for Chart 3

The title of the graph is "Chart 3 Selected health behaviours of population aged 12 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity group,Chart 3 Note 1 Alberta, 2012."
This is a column clustered chart.
There are in total 3 categories in the horizontal axis. The vertical axis starts at 0 and ends at 40 with ticks every 5 points.
There are 4 series in this graph.
The vertical axis is "percent."
The horizontal axis is "Health behaviours."
The title of series 1 is "Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves)."
The minimum value is 27.0 and it corresponds to "Non-drinking."
The maximum value is 32.9 and it corresponds to "Heavy drinkingChart 3 Note 2."
The title of series 2 is "Off-reserve First Nations people."
The minimum value is 29.9 and it corresponds to "Non-drinking."
The maximum value is 36.0 and it corresponds to "Heavy drinkingChart 3 Note 2."
The title of series 3 is "Métis."
The minimum value is 25.3 and it corresponds to "Non-drinking."
The maximum value is 31.0 and it corresponds to "Heavy drinkingChart 3 Note 2."
The title of series 4 is "Non-Aboriginal identity population."
The minimum value is 16.1 and it corresponds to "Daily smoking."
The maximum value is 24.3 and it corresponds to "Heavy drinkingChart 3 Note 2."

Data table for Chart 3
Table summary
This table displays the results of Chart 3 Selected health behaviours of population aged 12 and over. The information is grouped by (appearing as row headers), Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves), Off-reserve First Nations people, Métis and Non-Aboriginal identity population (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves) Off-reserve First Nations people Métis Non-Aboriginal identity population
Daily smoking 28.4 30.6 27.0 16.1
Heavy drinkingChart 3 Note 2 32.9 36.0 31.0 24.3
Non-drinking 27.0 29.9 25.3 24.2
Table 6
Selected health behaviours of population aged 12 and over, by selected Aboriginal identity groupTable 6 Note 1 and age group, Alberta, 2012
Table summary
This table displays the results of Selected health behaviours of population aged 12 and over Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves), Off-reserve First Nations people, Métis and Non-Aboriginal identity population, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
  Total Aboriginal identity population (excluding reserves) Off-reserve First Nations people Métis Non-Aboriginal identity population
percent
12 to 24
Daily smoking 18.3 21.7 16.6 10.16Note E: Use with caution
Heavy drinkingTable 6 Note 2 42.3 46.6 40.1 38.3
Non-drinking 36.9 41.4 34.4 35.8
25 to 44
Daily smoking 35.2 33.6 36.4 19.6
Heavy drinking 34.1 39.5 30.3 28.9
Non-drinking 15.5 18.5 13.2 18.0
45 and over
Daily smoking 30.6 36.7 27.3 15.8
Heavy drinking 22.8 18.8Note E: Use with caution 24.3 15.1
Non-drinking 30.7 33.8 28.8 24.3

This fact sheet was prepared by Paula Arriagada of the Social and Aboriginal Statistics Division of Statistics Canada.

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