Census terms

Census family

A Census family refers to a married couple (with or without children of either or both spouses), a couple living common-law (with or without children of either or both partners) or a lone parent of any marital status, with at least one child living in the same dwelling. A couple living common-law may be of opposite or same sex. “Children” in a census family include grandchildren living with their grandparent(s) but with no parents present.

Census farm

The definition of a census farm has not remained constant over the years. Changes in this definition since 1921 are summarized below. These changes do affect the comparability of the data among censuses.

In 1996 and 2001, a census farm was defined as an agricultural operation that produces at least one of the following products intended for sale: crops (hay, field crops, tree fruits or nuts, berries or grapes, vegetables, seed); livestock (cattle, pigs, sheep, horses, game animals, other livestock); poultry (hens, chickens, turkeys, chicks, game birds, other poultry); animal products (milk or cream, eggs, wool, furs, meat); or other agricultural products (Christmas trees, greenhouse or nursery products, mushrooms, sod, honey, maple syrup products).

In 1991 the definition of a farm was the same except that commercial poultry hatcheries and operations that produced only Christmas trees were not included.

For the 1981 and 1986 Censuses, a census farm was defined as a farm, ranch or other agricultural holding with sales of agricultural products of $250 or more during the previous 12 months. Agricultural holdings that anticipated sales of $250 or more in the census year were also included.

For the 1976 Census, a census farm was defined as a farm, ranch or other agricultural holding of one acre or over with sales of agricultural products of $1,200 or more during 1975. However, the basic unit for which a questionnaire was collected was termed an agricultural holding. This term was defined as a farm, ranch or other agricultural holding of one acre or over with sales of agricultural products of $50 or more during the 12-month period prior to the census. At head office, the questionnaires were divided into census farms and small agricultural holdings. Small agricultural holdings were those remaining after the census farms had been removed. For data comparability purposes, all published 1976 Census data in this publication have been tabulated according to the agriculture holding definition (i.e., with sales of agricultural products of $50 or more during the 12 months prior to the census) and not according to the census farm definition.

For the 1961, 1966 and 1971 Censuses, a census farm was defined as a farm, ranch or other agricultural holding of one acre or over with sales of agricultural products of $50 or more during the 12-month period prior to the census.

For the 1951 and 1956 Censuses, a census farm was defined as a holding on which agricultural operations were carried out and that was (a) three acres or more in size, or (b) from one to three acres in size with agricultural production in the year prior to the census valued at $250 or more.

The 1931 and 1941 Censuses defined a census farm as a holding of one acre or more that produced, in the year prior to the census, agricultural products valued at $50 or more, or that was under crops of any kind or used for pasturing in the census year.

The 1921 Census defined a census farm as a holding of one acre or over that produced, in 1920, crops of any kind valued at $50 or more.

Class of worker

This variable classifies persons who reported a job into the following categories:

(a) persons who worked mainly for wages, salaries, commissions, tips, piece-rates, or payments “in kind” (payments in goods or services rather than money);
(b) persons who worked mainly for themselves, with or without paid help, operating a business, farm or professional practice, alone or in partnership;
(c) persons who worked without pay in a family business, farm or professional practice owned or operated by a related household member; unpaid family work does not include unpaid housework, unpaid childcare, unpaid care to seniors and volunteer work.

The job reported was the one held in the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to enumeration (May 15, 2001) if the person was employed, or the job of longest duration since January 1, 2000, if the person was not employed during the reference week. Persons with two or more jobs in the reference week were asked to provide information for the job at which they worked the most hours.

Economic family

The term economic family refers to a group of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling and are related to each other by blood, marriage, common-law union or adoption. In order to be included in the Census of Agriculture tables, an economic family must be in a household in which at least one member is a farm operator.

Farm capital

Farm capital includes the value of all farmland, buildings, farm machinery and equipment (including passenger vehicles used in the farm business), and livestock and poultry. Respondents report the value of their land, buildings, farm machinery and equipment as of Census Day. Values for livestock and poultry inventories reported in the census are calculated using data on average farm prices for the various types of livestock and poultry. Farm capital does not include the value of crops in the field or in storage, or farm inputs on hand, such as fertilizer and seed.

Farm operators

In 2001, 1996 and 1991, “farm operators” was defined as those persons responsible for the day-to-day management decisions made in the operation of a census farm or agricultural operation. Up to three farm operators could be reported per farm. Prior to the 1991 Census of Agriculture, the farm operator referred to only one person responsible for the day-to-day decisions made in running an agricultural operation.

Farm population

The definition of the farm population has not remained constant over the years. Changes in this definition since 1931 are summarized below. These changes do affect the comparability of the data among censuses.

In 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996 and 2001, the farm population included all persons living in rural or urban areas who were members of the households of farm operators who had lived on their farms for any length of time during the 12-month period prior to the census. Prior to 1991, only one farm operator was reported per farm. Since 1991, up to three farm operators could be reported per farm. Because of this change, the 1991, 1996 and 2001 farm population counts included all members of the households of second and third operators who had lived on their farms for any length of time during the 12 months prior to the census. It should be noted, however, that most second and third operators of farms (usually a spouse or a child) resided in the same household as the first operator and would most likely have been included in the farm population under the previous method of reporting.

In 1951, 1956, 1961, 1966, 1971 and 1976, the farm population included all persons, regardless of their occupation, living in dwellings situated on farms located in rural or urban areas.

In 1931 and 1941, the farm population included all persons living on farms located in rural or urban areas. The respondent was required to report the total number of persons living on the farm.

Farm type

Farm typing is a procedure that classifies each census farm according to the predominant type of production. This is done by estimating the potential receipts from the inventories of crops and livestock reported on the questionnaire and determining the product or group of products that make up the majority of the estimated receipts. For example, a census farm with total potential receipts of 60% from hogs, 20% from beef cattle and 20% from wheat, would be classified as a hog farm. This farm type classification, also referred to as “historical,” is based on the Standard Industrial Classifications (SIC).

For 2001, a new farm type classification based on the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) has been added to the historical classification used in previous censuses.

NAICS was created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement. It is designed to provide common definitions of the industrial structure of the three countries (the United States, Canada and Mexico) and a common statistical framework to facilitate analysis of the three economies. NAICS Canada will replace both the 1980 Standard Industrial Classification and the 1980 Canadian Standard Industrial Classification for Companies and Enterprises. Concordances showing the relationship between NAICS Canada and the 1980 SIC can be found by clicking on NAICS - SIC concordance.

Highest level of schooling

Refers to the highest grade or year of elementary or secondary (high) school attended, or to the highest university degree completed or college or trade diploma or certificate completed.

Household

The term household refers to a person or a group of persons (other than foreign residents), who occupy the same dwelling and do not have a usual place of residence elsewhere in Canada. It may consist of a family group (census family) with or without other non-family persons; of two or more families sharing a dwelling; of a group of unrelated persons; or of one person living alone. Household members who are temporarily absent on Census Day (e.g., temporary residents elsewhere) are considered as part of their usual household. For census purposes, every person is a member of one and only one household. In order to be included in the tables, at least one member of the household must be a farm operator.

Labour force

The labour force includes all persons 15 years of age and over, excluding institutional residents, who were either employed or unemployed during the week prior to Census Day (May 15, 2001).

Employed persons are those persons, who, during the week prior to Census Day:

• did any work at all for pay or in self-employment or without pay in a family farm, business or professional practice; or
• were absent from their job or business, with or without pay, for the entire week because of a vacation, an illness, a labour dispute at their place of work or other reasons.

Unemployed persons are those persons, who, during the week prior to Census Day were without paid work or without pay in self-employment work and were available for work and either:

• had actively looked for work in the past four weeks; or
• were on temporary lay-off and expected to return to their job; or
• had definite arrangements to start a new job in four weeks or less.

  
  

Major source of income

The income component which constitutes the largest proportion of the total income of a person, a household or a family. The income sources were combined into three categories: net farm income; other employment income (made up of wages and salaries and non-farm self-employment); and other sources of incomes. The absolute values for these components are compared and the component with the largest absolute value was designated as the major source of income.

Mother tongue

Refers to the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual at the time of the census. If two languages were learned at the same time in early childhood, the language spoken most often at home before starting school was reported.

Net farm income

Refers to net income (gross farm receipts minus operating expenses) received during the calendar year 2000 from the operation of a farm, either on the respondent’s own account or in partnership. In the case of partnerships, only the respondent’s share of income was reported. Included with gross receipts are cash advances received in 2000, dividends from cooperatives, rebates and farm-support payments to farmers from federal, provincial and regional agricultural programs (e.g., milk subsidies and marketing board payments) and gross insurance proceeds such as payments from crop insurance or Net Income Stabilization Account (NISA). The value of income “in kind”, such as agricultural products produced and consumed on the farm, is excluded.

Non-farm population

Refers to all persons not included in the farm population.

Occupation

Refers to the kind of work persons were doing during the reference week, as determined by their kind of work and the description of the main activities in their job. If the person did not have a job during the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to enumeration (May 15, 2001), the data relate to the job of longest duration since January 1, 2000. Persons with two or more jobs were to report the information for the job at which they worked the most hours. The 2001 data on occupation are classified according to the 2001 National Occupational Classification for Statistics (NOC–S 2001). For comparisons with data from the 1991 and 1996 Censuses, the variable Occupation (Historical) should be used. The tables in this product deal specifically with the occupations of farm operators, grouped into either two or three broad categories.

Rural farm population

Refers to all persons living in rural areas who are members of the households of farm operators living on their census farms for any length of time during the 12-month period prior to the census.

Prior to 1991, only one farm operator was reported per census farm. Since 1991, up to three farm operators could be reported per census farm. Because of this change, the rural farm population count now includes all persons living in rural areas on a census farm and in the households of the first, second and third operators; before 1991, the rural farm population count included all persons living in rural areas on a census farm and in the household of the first operator. It should be noted that most of the second and third operators (usually a spouse or a child) of census farms reside in the same household as the first operator and would most likely have been included in the rural farm population under the previous method of reporting.

Prior to the 1981 Census, the rural farm population was defined as all persons living in rural areas in dwellings situated on census farms.

Rural population

Includes all population living in the rural fringes of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs), as well as population living in rural areas outside CMAs and CAs.

The rural area of Canada is the area that remains after the delineation of urban areas which, for the first time, have been delineated using current census population data. Taken together, urban and rural areas cover all of Canada.

Within rural areas, population densities and living conditions can vary greatly. Included in rural areas are: small towns, villages and other populated places with less than 1,000 population according to the current census; rural fringes of census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations that may contain estate lots, as well as agricultural, undeveloped and non-developable lands; agricultural lands; remote and wilderness areas.

Prior to the 2001 Census rural areas were the residual after the delineation of urban areas that was based on population data from the previous census.

Self-employed

Includes persons 15 years of age and over who worked since January 1, 2000, and for whom the job reported consisted mainly of operating a business, farm or professional practice, alone or in partnership. Some examples include: operating a farm, whether the land is rented or owned; working on a freelance or contract basis to do a job (e.g. architects, private duty nurses); operating a direct distributorship selling and delivering products such as cosmetics, newspapers, brushes and soap products; and fishing with own equipment or with equipment in which the person has a share.

Respondents were to specify if their business was incorporated or unincorporated, as well as if they had paid help or no paid help. It should be noted that new tax laws in 1980 permitted the respondent, for the first time, to deduct a spouse's wages as expenses. Consequently, self-employed persons who decided to pay wages to their spouse to take advantage of the new law changed status from "without paid help" to "with paid help" between 1971 and 1981. This change should be kept in mind when comparing data between the 1971 Census and subsequent censuses.

Sources of income

In order to facilitate the tabulation of income data by source, the components of income have been grouped into the following three main sources of income:

• Net farm income – The definition of this term is presented above as a separate entry.
• Other employment income – This source includes wages and salaries, as well as net non-farm income from an unincorporated business and/or professional practice.
• Other sources of income – This source includes: – government sources such as Canada Child Tax benefits, Old Age Security pension and Guaranteed Income Supplement, benefits from Canada or Quebec Pension Plan, benefits from Employment Insurance and other income from government sources; – investment income such as dividends, interest and other investment income; – other income such as retirement pensions, superannuation and annuities, and other money income.

Major source of income refers to the component that constitutes the largest proportion of an income recipient’s total income.

Total income

Refers to the total money income received from the following sources during the calendar year 2000 by persons 15 years of age and over:

• wages and salaries (total);
• net farm income;
• net non-farm income from an unincorporated business and/or professional practice;
• Canada Child Tax benefits;
• Old Age Security pension and Guaranteed Income Supplement;
• benefits from Canada or Quebec Pension Plan;
• benefits from Employment Insurance;
• other income from government sources;
• dividends, interest on bonds, deposits and savings certificates, and other investment income;
• retirement pensions, superannuation and annuities, including those from RRSPs and RRIFs;
• other money income.

The total income of a household is the sum of the incomes received during the calendar year 2000 by all members of the household. Households included in this product are those in which at least one member was a farm operator. Similarly the census family or economic family total income is the sum of the total incomes for all census family or economic family members.

Unpaid work

Hours spent doing unpaid housework
Number of hours that the person spent doing housework, maintaining the house or doing yard work without getting paid for doing so. For example, this includes time spent preparing meals, mowing the lawn, or cleaning the house, for oneself or for relatives, friends or neighbours. The time spent on this activity is divided into blocks of hours (none, less than 5 hours, 5 to 14 hours, 15 to 29 hours, 30 to 59 hours, and 60 hours or more). Only hours spent on the activity during the week before Census Day (May 6 to 12, 2001) are counted.

Hours spent looking after children, without pay
Number of hours that the person spent looking after children without getting paid for doing so. For example, this includes time spent taking care of one's own children or looking after the children of relatives, friends or neighbours. The time spent on this activity is divided into blocks of hours (none, less than 5 hours, 5 to 14 hours, 15 to 29 hours, 30 to 59 hours, and 60 hours or more). Only hours spent on the activity during the week before Census Day (May 6 to 12, 2001) are counted.

Hours spent providing unpaid care or assistance to seniors
Number of hours that the person spent providing care or assistance to elderly people without getting paid for doing so. This includes time spent giving personal care to an elderly relative, helping elderly neighbours with their shopping, and so on. The time spent on this activity is divided into blocks of hours (none, less than 5 hours, 5 to 9 hours, 10 to 19 hours, and 20 hours or more). Only hours spent on the activity during the week before Census Day (May 6 to 12, 2001) are counted.

Urban farm population

Refers to all persons living in urban areas who are members of the households of farm operators living on their census farms for any length of time during the 12-month period prior to the census.

Urban population

Urban population includes all population living in the urban cores, secondary urban cores and urban fringes of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs), as well as the population living in urban areas outside CMAs and CAs.

An urban area has a minimum population concentration of 1,000 persons and a population density of at least 400 persons per square kilometre, based on the current census population count. All territory outside urban areas is classified as rural.

Taken together, urban and rural areas cover all of Canada.