Glossary

Aboriginal persons
Age
Baby-boom
Census agglomeration
Census coverage
Census metropolitan area
Cohort
Demographic dependency ratio
Early neonatal mortality
Europe 15
Generation
Infant mortality
Intensity
International migration
Interprovincial migration
Knowledge of official languages
Life expectancy
Mean age
Median age
Metropolitan influenced zone (MIZ)
Mother tongue
Natural increase
Neonatal mortality
Net migration
Population growth
Population pyramid
Post neonatal mortality
Rate
Replacement level
Survival ratio
Tempo
Total fertility rate
Total rate
Visible minority

Aboriginal persons

Person who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, i.e. North American Indian, Métis or Inuit, and/or who reported being a Treaty Indian or a Registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada and/or who was a member of an Indian Band or First Nation.

Age

Age at last birthday.

Baby-boom

The period following World War II, 1946 to 1965, marked by an important increase in fertility rates and in the absolute number of births.

Census agglomeration

Area formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centred on a large urban area (urban core). A census agglomeration must have an urban core with a population of at least 10,000, without being a census metropolitan area.

Census coverage

• Undercoverage: Number of persons not enumerated in a census (who were intended to have been enumerated).

• Net undercoverage: Difference between undercoverage and overcoverage.

• Overcoverage: Number of persons who should not have been counted in the census or who were counted more than once.

Census metropolitan area (CMA)

Area consisting of one or more neighbouring municipalities situated around a major urban core. A census metropolitan area must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more live in the urban core.

Cohort

Represents a group of persons who have experienced a specific demographic event during a given period which can be a year. For example, the married cohort of 1966 consists of the number of persons who married in 1966. Persons born within a specific year could be referred to as a generation.

Demographic dependency ratio

The ratio of the population outside the working-age population, i.e. persons under 15 or 65 years and over, to the working-age population (15 to 64 years).

Early neonatal mortality

Mortality in the first week after birth. It is a part of infant mortality.

Europe 15

Group composed of the population of the 15 European Union countries before its enlargement in 2004 : Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Austria, Germany, Luxemburg, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, United Kingdom and Ireland.

Generation

If not otherwise specified, refers here to all persons born in a given year, i.e. between January 1^st and December 31^st.

Infant mortality

Mortality of children less than a year old.

Intensity

Frequency of occurrence of an event among members of a given cohort.

International migration

Movement of population between Canada and a foreign country which involves a permanent change in residence.

• Immigrant: Person who has been permitted by immigration authorities to live in Canada permanently.
• Emigrant: Person who leaves Canada to settle in another country.

Interprovincial migration

Movement from one province to another involving a permanent change in residence. A person who takes up residence in another province is an out-migrant with reference to the province of origin and an in-migrant with reference to the province of destination.

Knowledge of official languages

Refers to the ability to conduct a conversation in English only, in French only, in both English and French, or in neither of the official languages of Canada.

Life expectancy

A statistical measure derived from the life table indicating the average number of years of life remaining for a person at a specific age x, if that person would experience during his life the age-specific mortality rates observed in a given year (e_o refers to life expectancy at birth).

Mean age

The mean age of a population is the average age of all its members.

Median age

The median age is an age “x”, such that exactly one half of the population is older than “x” and the other half is younger than “x”.

Metropolitan influenced zone

Region formed by municipalities that are not part of a census agglomeration or a census metropolitan area but are subject to their influence, as measured by the percentage of persons who commute to work between their municipality of residence and the urban core of a census metropolitan area or a census agglomeration. Metropolitan influenced zones may be strong, moderate, low or absent depending on the percentage of residents who commute to work in the urban core of a census metropolitan area or a census agglomeration.

Mother tongue

Refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood.

Natural increase

Excess of births over deaths.

Neonatal mortality

Mortality in the first month after birth. It is a part of infant mortality.

Net migration

Difference between immigration and emigration or in-migration and out-migration for a given area and period of time.

Population growth

A change, either positive or negative, in population size over a given period.

Population pyramid

Bar chart that shows the distribution of a population by age and sex.

Post neonatal mortality

Mortality between the ages of one month and one year. It is a part of infant mortality.

Rate

The frequency of demographic events (births, deaths, migration, etc.) in a population in a specified period, generally a year, taking the mean of the population for that period. Crude rates are rates computed for an entire population. Specific rates are rates computed for a particular subgroup – usually the population at risk of having the event occur. Thus, rates can be age-specific, sex-specific, etc. A rate is age-standardized (or age-adjusted) when it results from the sum of age-specific rates, weighted on the basis of a reference population. Standardized rates are mainly used to compare populations with different age structures. They show what the frequency of an event in each of the compared populations would be if those populations had an identical age structure.

Replacement level

Mean number of births per woman necessary to assure the long-term replacement of a population for a given mortality level, but not migration. Currently, the replacement level for Canadians is around 2.1 children per woman.

Survival ratio

Probability of a survivor of exact age x to survive at least to age x+a. It is the complement to 1 of the probability of dying.

Tempo

Distribution over time, within the cohort, of the demographic events corresponding to the investigated phenomenon.

Total fertility rate

The sum of age-specific fertility rates during a given year. It indicates the average number of children that a generation of women would have if, over the course of their reproductive life, they had fertility rates identical to those of the year considered.

Total rate

Sum of age-specific rates during a period. One of the most frequently used rates.

Visible minority

Refers to the visible minority group to which the respondent belongs. The Employment Equity Act defines visible minorities as “persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.”