Demographics of New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and the only bilingual province in the country. The provincial Department of Finance estimates that the province's population in 2006 was 729,997 of which the majority is English-speaking but with a substantial French-speaking minority of mostly Acadian origin.^[1]

Population Density of New Brunswick in 2016

First Nations in New Brunswick include the Mi'kmaq and Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet). The first European settlers, the Acadians are descendants of French settlers and also some of the Indigenous peoples of Acadia, a French colony in modern-day Nova Scotia. The Acadians were expelled by the British in 1755 for refusing to take an oath of allegiance to King George II which drove several thousand Acadian residents into exile in North America, the UK and France during the French and Indian War. (Those American Acadians who wound up in Louisiana, and other parts of the American South, are referred to as Cajuns, although some Cajuns are not of Acadian origin.) In time, some Acadians returned to the Maritime provinces of Canada, mainly to New Brunswick,^[2] due to the British prohibiting them from resettling their lands and villages in what became Nova Scotia.

Many of the English-Canadian population of New Brunswick are descended from Loyalists who fled the American Revolution. This is commemorated in the province's motto, Spem reduxit ("hope was restored"). There is also a significant population with Irish ancestry, especially in Saint John and the Miramichi Valley. People of Scottish descent are scattered throughout the province, with high concentrations in the Miramichi and in Campbellton. A small population of Danish origin may be found in New Denmark in the northwest of the province.

Population history

Year	Population	Five Year  % change	Ten Year  % change	Rank Among Provinces
1824	74,176	n/a	n/a	n/a
1834	119,457	n/a	61.0	n/a
1841	156,162	n/a	n/a	n/a
1851	193,800	n/a	24.1	n/a
1861	252,047	n/a	30.0	n/a
1871	285,594	n/a	13.3	4
1881	321,233	n/a	12.5	4
1891	321,263	n/a	0.0	4
1901	331,120	n/a	3.1	4
1911	351,889	n/a	6.3	8
1921	387,876	n/a	10.2	8
1931	408,219	n/a	5.2	8
1941	457,401	n/a	12.0	8
1951	515,697	n/a	12.7	8
1956	554,616	7.5	n/a	8
1961	597,936	7.8	15.9	8
1966	616,788	3.2	11.2	8
1971	634,560	2.9	6.9	8
1976	677,250	6.7	9.8	8
1981	696,403	2.8	9.7	8
1986	709,445	1.9	4.8	8
1991	723,900	2.0	3.9	8
1996	738,133	2.0	4.0	8
2001	729,498	-1.2	0.8	8
2006	729,997	0.1	-1.1	8
2011	751,171	2.9	3.0	8
2016	747,101	-0.5	2.3	8
2021	775,610	3.8	3.2	8

Source:^[3] Statistics Canada^[4][5]

Population geography

City Metropolitan Areas

City[6]	2021	2016	2011	2006	Land area (km2)	Density (/km2)
Greater Moncton	157,717	144,810	138,644	126,424	2,562.47	61.5
Greater Saint John	130,613	126,202	127,761	122,389	3,505.66	37.3
Greater Fredericton	108,610	102,690	94,268	85,688	6,014.66	18.1
Greater Bathurst	31,387	31,110	33,484	34,106	2,100.05	14.9
Greater Miramichi	27,593	27,518	28,115	28,773	7,564.06	3.6
Greater Edmundston	21,144	21,955	21,903	22,471	1,582.36	14.0
Greater Campbellton	13,330	14,679	17,842	17,878	1,525.45	8.7

Cities and towns

Town	Population (2011)	Population ranking	Land area (km2)	Area ranking	Density (/km2)	Density ranking
Bathurst	12,275	9	91.86	6	133.6	24
Beresford	4,351	20	19.20	17	226.6	18
Bouctouche	2,423	26	18.34	19	132.1	25
Campbellton	7,385	12	18.66	18	395.7	9
Caraquet	4,169	23	68.26	8	61.1	35
Dalhousie	3,512	24	14.51	23	242.1	17
Dieppe	23,310	4	54.11	11	430.8	6
Edmundston	16,032	8	107.00	5	149.8	23
Florenceville-Bristol	1,639	29	15.61	22	105.0	29
Fredericton	56,224	3	131.67	4	427.0	7
Grand Bay–Westfield	5,117	17	59.86	9	85.5	33
Grand Falls	5,706	14	18.05	20	315.9	13
Hampton	4,292	22	21.00	16	204.3	21
Hartland	947	35	9.63	30	98.4	31
Lamèque	1,432	31	12.45	28	115.1	27
Miramichi	17,811	7	179.93	2	99.0	30
McAdam	1,404	32	14.47	24	97.02	32
Moncton	69,074	2	141.17	3	489.3	2
Nackawic	1,049	34	8.40	32	124.9	26
Oromocto	8,932	11	22.37	15	399.2	8
Quispamsis	17,886	6	57.06	10	313.5	14
Richibucto	1,286	33	11.83	27	108.7	28
Riverview	19,128	5	33.88	13	564.6	1
Rothesay	11,947	10	34.77	12	343.6	12
Sackville	5,558	15	74.32	7	74.8	34
Saint Andrews	1,889	28	8.35	33	226.2	19
Saint John	70,063	1	315.82	1	221.8	20
Saint-Léonard	1,343	32	5.20	34	258.3	16
Saint-Quentin	2,095	27	4.30	35	486.7	3
Shediac	6,053	13	12.50	26	484.4	4
Shippagan	2,603	25	9.94	29	261.9	15
St. George	1,543	30	16.13	21	95.6	32
St. Stephen	4,817	19	13.45	24	358.0	11
Sussex	4,312	21	9.03	31	477.4	5
Tracadie–Sheila	4,933	18	24.65	14	200.1	22
Woodstock	5,254	16	13.41	25	391.7	10

Ethnic origin

The information in the following table contains data from the 2021 Candidan census conducted by Statistics Canada.^[7]

Of the 233,000 New Brunswickers whose mother tongue is French, the great majority are Acadians.^[8] Most have indicated their ethnic origin as French and not as Acadian, so that the number of Acadians shown is much smaller.

Ethnic origin	2021 population	Percent
Canadian	174,910	23.0%
Irish	155,915	20.5%
English	137,145	18.1%
Scottish	134,350	17.7%
French, n.o.s.(not otherwise specified)	118,205	15.3%
Acadian	108,375	14.3%
German	33,200	4.4%
New Brunswicker	22,365	2.9%
French Canadian	18,650	2.5%
British, n.o.s.	16,630	2.2%
Dutch	13,310	1.8%
First Nations	13,550	1.8%
Mi'kmaq, n.o.s.	12,655	1.7%
European, n.o.s.	11,565	1.5%
Welsh	11,500	1.5%
Métis	9,445	1.2%
Italian	8,255	1.1%
American	7,185	0.9%
North American Indigenous	5,675	0.7%
Québécois	5,415	0.7%
Indian	5,655	0.7%
Filipino	4,960	0.6%
Chinese	4,600	0.6%
Ukrainian	4,600	0.6%
Danish	4,170	0.5%

Visible minorities and Indigenous peoples

Visible minority and Indigenous population (2021 Canadian census)[9]
Population group		Population	%
European[a]		681,695	89.8%
Visible minority group	South Asian	8,630	1.1%
	Chinese	4,085	0.5%
	Black	12,155	1.6%
	Filipino	5,190	0.7%
	Arab	5,060	0.7%
	Latin American	2,450	0.3%
	Southeast Asian	1,890	0.2%
	West Asian	915	0.1%
	Korean	1,655	0.2%
	Japanese	250	0.0%
	Visible minority, n.i.e.	550	0.1%
	Multiple visible minorities	1,375	0.2%
Total visible minority population		44,205	5.8%
Indigenous group	First Nations (North American Indian)	20,960	2.8%
	Métis	10,170	1.3%
	Inuk (Inuit)	685	0.1%
	Multiple Indigenous responses	485	0.1%
	Indigenous responses n.i.e.	995	0.1%
Total Indigenous population		33,295	4.4%
Total population		759,195	100.0%

Languages

The province's distribution of English and French is highly regional

Compared to other provinces, New Brunswick has a relatively even split of English and French-speakers.

As a comparison, the minority language communities of Ontario and Quebec (Franco-Ontarians and English-speaking Quebecers respectively) make up less than 10% of those provinces' populations.^[10] With both official language communities so strongly represented, New Brunswick is home to English and French-language hospitals, media, schools and universities. The province also has a high proportion of people that speak both languages, with 246,000 people, or 33.2% of the population speaking English and French (though Francophones make up two-thirds of those who are bilingual).^[11]

Language policy is a perennial issue in New Brunswick politics and society. Recurring debates have arisen in regards to duality (the system of parallel English and French-speaking public services), interpretation of the provincial bilingualism policy and specifics of implementation. The extent of the provincial policy on bilingualism means that a new row is never far off in the New Brunswick news cycle.^[12][13] Francophones advocate for full funding of French-language public services and fair representation in public sector employment, while Anglophones fear that the system of duality is financially inefficient, its extent is not worthwhile and that the provincial government's targets for bilingualism in public employment are hurting their chances to work for the government, as Anglophones are less likely than Francophones to be proficient enough in both official languages to use them in employment.

The province's bilingual status is enshrined in federal and provincial law. The Canadian Constitution makes specific mention of New Brunswick's bilingual status and defines the spirit of implementation as one based on community and individual rights (in contrast with the constitutional protections for the other provinces that is limited to individuals). The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms has a number of New Brunswick specific articles and makes specific mention of New Brunswick in each section relating to language. Of particular interest is Article 16.1, which declares that New Brunswick's Anglophone and Francophone communities have equal rights and privileges, including community-specific cultural and educational institutions, Article 18.1, declaring bilingual publication of the Canadian Parliament's works and laws and Article 18.2, specifying that the New Brunswick Legislature will publish its works in English and French. Article 16.1's distinction of linguistic community is important in that it recognizes not only the rights of individuals to use their language, but also demands that the two official language communities have their specific institutions upheld.

In 2012, New Brunswick Francophones scored lower on the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies than their Anglophone counterparts.^[14]

Knowledge of languages

Knowledge of official languages of Canada in New Brunswick (2016)[15]
Language			Percent
English only			57.15%
French only			8.58%
English and French			33.95%
Neither English nor French			0.32%

The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses. The following figures are from the 2021 Canadian Census, and lists languages that were selected by at least 0.5 percent of respondents.

Knowledge of languages in New Brunswick

Language	2021[16]
	Pop.	%
English	698,025	91.94%
French	317,825	41.86%
Spanish	7,580	1%
Arabic	6,090	0.8%
Tagalog	4,225	0.56%

Mother tongue

New Brunswick's official languages are shown in bold. Figures shown are for the number of single-language responses and the percentage of total single-language responses. During the 19th century Gaelic was also spoken in Campbellton and Dalhousie. The language died out as a natively-spoken language in the early 20th century.

The 2011 Canadian census showed a population of 751,171. Of the 731,855 single responses to the census question concerning mother tongue, the most commonly reported languages were:^[17]

Ranking	Language	Population	Percentage
1.	English	479,930	65.58%
2.	French	233,530	31.90%
3.	Mi'kmaq	2,115	0.29%
4.	Korean	1,810	0.25%
5.	German	1,805	0.25%
6.	Arabic	1,325	0.18%
7.	Spanish	1,135	0.16%
8.	Dutch	925	0.13%
9.	Tagalog	585	0.08%
10.	Persian	450	0.06%
11.	Italian	440	0.06%
12.	Romanian	420	0.06%
13.	Mandarin	405	0.06%
14.	Russian	355	0.05%
15.	Vietnamese	285	0.04%
16.	Polish	255	0.03%
17.	Hindi	250	0.03%
18.	Cantonese	225	0.03%
19.	Portuguese	220	0.03%
20.	Urdu	205	0.03%
21.	Bengali	180	0.02%
22.	Hungarian	155	0.02%
23.	Danish	145	0.02%
24.	Greek	140	0.02%
25.	Swahili	140	0.02%
26.	Serbian	120	0.02%

Note: "n.i.e.": not included elsewhere

There were also 45 single-language responses for Gujarati; 135 for Niger-Congo languages n.i.e.; 70 for Creole; 95 for Non-verbal languages (Sign languages); 115 for Japanese; 30 for Indo-Iranian languages n.i.e.; 5 for Somali; 20 for Sinhala (Sinhalese); and 40 for Malayalam. New Brunswick's official languages are shown in bold. (Figures shown are for the number of single language responses and the percentage of total single-language responses.)^[17]

Religion

Religious groups in New Brunswick (1981−2021)

Religious group	2021[18]		2011[19]		2001[20]		1991[21]		1981[22]
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Christianity	512,645	67.52%	616,910	83.84%	657,865	91.41%	674,780	94.18%	667,610	96.84%
Irreligion	225,125	29.65%	111,435	15.14%	57,665	8.01%	38,740	5.41%	19,685	2.86%
Islam	9,190	1.21%	2,640	0.36%	1,270	0.18%	255	0.04%	315	0.05%
Hinduism	3,340	0.44%	820	0.11%	470	0.07%	610	0.09%	475	0.07%
Sikhism	1,780	0.23%	20	0%	90	0.01%	45	0.01%	50	0.01%
Buddhism	1,120	0.15%	975	0.13%	550	0.08%	365	0.05%	240	0.03%
Indigenous spirituality	1,005	0.13%	525	0.07%	—	—	—	—	—	—
Judaism	1,000	0.13%	620	0.08%	670	0.09%	880	0.12%	845	0.12%
Other	3,990	0.53%	1,895	0.26%	1,120	0.16%	830	0.12%	160	0.02%
Total responses	759,195	97.88%	735,835	97.96%	719,710	98.66%	716,495	98.98%	689,370	98.99%
Total population	775,610	100%	751,171	100%	729,498	100%	723,900	100%	696,403	100%

Migration

Immigration

New Brunswick immigration^{[23]: 464–465 [24]: 425 [25]: 239 [26]: 108}

Year	Immigrant percentage	Immigrant population	Total population
1851	20.9%	40,432	193,800
1861	20.9%	52,602	252,047
1881	9.7%	31,068	321,233
1891	6.8%	22,006	321,263
1901	5.4%	17,942	331,120
1911	5.2%	18,313	351,889
1921	5.5%	21,458	387,876
1931	6%	24,401	408,219
1941	4.5%	20,592	457,401
1951	3.9%	19,875	515,697
1961	3.9%	23,283	597,936
1971	3.7%	23,735	634,560

The 2021 census reported that immigrants (individuals born outside Canada) comprise 44,125 persons or 5.8 percent of the total population of New Brunswick.^[27]

Immigrants in New Brunswick by country of birth

Country of birth	2021[28][27]		2016[29]		2011[30][31]		2006[32][33]		2001[34][35]
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
United States	6,480	14.7%	7,615	22.5%	8,225	28.9%	8,655	32.8%	7,960	35.4%
United Kingdom	4,915	11.1%	4,605	13.6%	5,260	18.5%	5,210	19.7%	5,300	23.6%
Philippines	3,780	8.6%	1,340	4%	705	2.5%	350	1.3%	210	0.9%
India	2,265	5.1%	820	2.4%	800	2.8%	595	2.3%	390	1.7%
China	2,125	4.8%	2,215	6.6%	1,050	3.7%	925	3.5%	490	2.2%
Syria	1,890	4.3%	1,225	3.6%	20	0.1%	20	0.1%	35	0.2%
Germany	1,395	3.2%	1,620	4.8%	1,650	5.8%	1,770	6.7%	1,570	7%
South Korea	1,180	2.7%	1,495	4.4%	1,620	5.7%	370	1.4%	25	0.1%
France	1,070	2.4%	760	2.2%	410	1.4%	320	1.2%	225	1%
Nigeria	980	2.2%	115	0.3%	40	0.1%	30	0.1%	50	0.2%
Total immigrants	44,125	5.8%	33,810	4.6%	28,465	3.9%	26,400	3.7%	22,470	3.1%
Total responses	759,195	97.9%	730,710	97.8%	735,835	98%	719,650	98.6%	719,710	98.7%
Total population	775,610	100%	747,101	100%	751,171	100%	729,997	100%	729,498	100%

Recent immigration

The 2021 Canadian census counted a total of 16,040 people who immigrated to New Brunswick between 2016 and 2021.^[27]

Recent immigrants to New Brunswick by country of birth (2016 to 2021)[27]
Country of birth	Population	% recent immigrants
Philippines	2,325	14.5%
Syria	1,700	10.6%
India	1,365	8.5%
China	975	6.1%
Nigeria	905	5.6%
United States	605	3.8%
Ukraine	475	3%
Egypt	445	2.8%
France	390	2.4%
Democratic Republic of the Congo	370	2.3%
Total	16,040	100%

Interprovincial migration

Net cumulative interprovincial migration per Province from 1997 to 2017, as a share of population of each Provinces

Main article: Interprovincial migration in Canada

New Brunswick has typically experienced less emigration than its size and economic situation would suggest, probably because of the low rate of emigration of its francophone population.^{[citation needed]}

Interprovincial migration in New Brunswick

	In-migrants	Out-migrants	Net migration
2008–09	11,268	11,505	−237
2009–10	10,883	10,312	571
2010–11	10,167	10,325	−158
2011–12	10,044	11,850	−1,806
2012–13	8,517	11,807	−3,290
2013–14	9,055	12,572	−3,517
2014–15	9,184	11,974	−2,790
2015–16	10,248	11,361	−1,113
2016–17	10,136	9,702	434
2017–18	10,709	10,228	481
2018–19	11,945	11,339	606

Source: Statistics Canada

See also

BC

AB

SK

MB

ON

QC

NB

PE

NS

NL

YT

NT

NU

Demographics of Canada's provinces and territories

• Demographics of Canada
• Population of Canada by province and territory

Notes

1. Statistic includes all persons that did not make up part of a visible minority or an indigenous identity.