Definitions

Age Group
Geography - Census Consolidated Subdivision (CCS)
Geography - Census Division (CD)
Geography - Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) and Census Agglomeration (CA)
Geography - Census Subdivision (CSD)
Geography - Economic Regions (ER)
Geography - Metropolitan Influenced Zones (MIZ)
Geography - Provinces and Territories
Geography - Rural Area
Geography - Statistical Area Classification (SAC)
Geography - Urban Area
Geography - Urban Core, Urban Fringe and Rural Fringe
Labour Force Activity
Market Income

Age Group¹
Refers to the day, month and year of birth, collected for the purpose of determining the person's age as of the census reference date². Persons who were unable to give the exact date of birth were asked to give the best possible estimate.

Indicator formulation:
The age group represents population relations (or links), by sex and age within each five-year age group: 0-4 years, 5-9 years, 10-14 years, 15-19 years, 20-24 years, 25-29 years, 30-34 years, 35-39 years, 40-44 years, 45-49 years, 50-54 years, 55-59 years, 60-64 years, 65-69 years, 70-74 years, 75-79 years, 80-84 years, 85-89 years, 90-94 years, 95-99 years, and 100 and more.

Indicator interpretation:
The age group constitutes the population group to which the respondents belong in a given census year.

Geography - Census Consolidated Subdivision (CCS)
A census consolidated subdivision (CCS) is a grouping of adjacent census subdivisions. Generally the smaller, more urban census subdivisions (towns, villages, etc.) are combined with the surrounding, larger, more rural census subdivision, in order to create a geographic level between the census subdivision and the census division. CCSs are used primarily for disseminating Census of Agriculture data.

Indicator interpretation:
Census consolidated subdivisions are defined within census divisions (CDs) according to the following criteria:

1. A census subdivision (CSD) with a land area greater than 25 square kilometres can form a CCS of its own. Census subdivisions having a land area smaller than 25 square kilometres are usually grouped with a larger census subdivision.

2. A census subdivision with a land area greater than 25 square kilometres and surrounded on more than half its perimeter by another census subdivision is usually included as part of the CCS formed by the surrounding census subdivision.

3. A census subdivision with a population greater than 100,000 according to the last census usually forms a CCS on its own.

4. The census consolidated subdivision's name usually coincides with its largest census subdivision component in terms of land area.

The geographic code assigned to each census consolidated subdivision is the seven-digit Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) code of one of its component CSDs, usually the one with the largest land area (Figure 24 shows a hypothetical example). This assignment process also makes the CCS code unique across Canada. For example:

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Census Division (CD)
Census division (CD) is the general term for provincially legislated areas (such as county, municipalité régionale de comté and regional district) or their equivalents. Census divisions are intermediate geographic areas between the province level and the municipality (census subdivision).

Indicator formulation:
A CD is a group of neighbouring municipalities joined together for the purposes of regional planning and managing common services (such as police or ambulance services). These groupings are established under laws in effect in certain provinces and territories. For example, a census division might correspond to a county, a regional municipality or a regional district. In other provinces and territories where laws do not provide for such areas, Statistics Canada defines equivalent areas for statistical reporting purposes in cooperation with these provinces and territories.

Indicator interpretation:
Census divisions have been established in provincial law to facilitate regional planning, as well as the provision of services that can be more effectively delivered on a scale larger than a municipality. In Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, provincial/ territorial law does not provide for these administrative geographic areas. Therefore, Statistics Canada, in cooperation with these provinces and territories, has created equivalent areas called census divisions for the purpose of distributing and circulating statistical data, for example the population of a given division or subdivision rose by X percentage points from 1996 to 2001. In the Yukon Territory, the census division is equivalent to the entire territory.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) and Census Agglomeration (CA)
A census metropolitan area (CMA) or a census agglomeration (CA) is formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centred on a large urban area (known as the urban core). The census population count of the urban core is at least 10,000 to form a census agglomeration and at least 100,000 to form a census metropolitan area. To be included in the CMA or CA, other adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the central urban area, as measured by commuting flows.

If the population of the urban core of a CA declines below 10,000, the CA is retired. However, once an area becomes a CMA, it is retained as a CMA even if the population of its urban core declines below 100,000. The urban areas in the CMA or CA that are not contiguous to the urban core are called the urban fringe. Rural areas in the CMA or CA are called the rural fringe.

Indicator formulation:
CMAs and CAs are areas consisting of one or more adjacent municipalities situated around a major urban core. To form a census metropolitan area, the urban core must have a population of at least 100,000. To form a census agglomeration, the urban core must have a population of at least 10,000.

Indicator interpretation:
CMAs and CAs are statistically comparable because they are delineated in the same way across Canada. They differ from other areas such as trading or marketing areas, or regional planning areas designated by regional authorities for planning and other purposes.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Census Subdivision (CSD)
Census subdivision (CSD) is the general term for municipalities (as determined by provincial legislation) or areas treated as municipal equivalents for statistical purposes (for example, Indian reserves, Indian settlements and unorganized territories).

Indicator formulation:
A CSD is an area that is a municipality or an area that is deemed to be equivalent to a municipality for statistical reporting purposes (e.g. as an Indian reserve or an unorganized territory). Municipal status is defined by laws in effect in each province and territory in Canada.

Indicator interpretation:
Census subdivisions (CSDs) are classified into 46 types according to official designations adopted by provincial or federal authorities. Two exceptions are "Subdivision of Unorganized" in Newfoundland and Labrador, and "Subdivision of County Municipality" in Nova Scotia, which are geographic areas created as equivalents for municipalities by Statistics Canada, in cooperation with those provinces, for the purpose of distributing and circulating statistical data, for example the population of a given division or subdivision rose by X percentage points from 1996 to 2001.

The census subdivision type accompanies the census subdivision name in order to distinguish CSDs from each other, for example, Granby, V (for the ville of Granby) and Granby, CT (for the municipalité de canton of Granby).

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Economic Regions (ER)
An economic region (ER) is a grouping of complete census divisions (with one exception in Ontario) created as a standard geographic unit for analysis of regional economic activity.

Indicator formulation:
ERs cover all of Canada’s land mass, although boundaries have changed over time. In 1996, the census adopted the Labour Force Survey's (LFS) ER’s as a replacement for the sub-provincial regions that had been used by the census from 1971 to 1991. However, there were some boundary differences between these two sets of geographic areas owing to different update cycles (every five years for the sub-provincial regions and every ten years for the LFS regions). In order to align these sources for 1996, the eleven LFS ER’s of Ontario were used in place of the five sub-provincial regions of the 1991 Census. The LFS ERs were made up of counties (complete census divisions), except for the County of Halton, of which part (the entire City of Burlington) was assigned to the ER of Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula, with the remainder of the county falling within the ER of Toronto.

Within the province of Quebec, ERs (the régions administratives) are designated by law. In all other provinces, ERs are created by agreement between Statistics Canada and the provinces concerned. Prince Edward Island and the three territories each consist of one ER.

Indicator interpretation:
Each ER is assigned a two-digit code that is not unique between provinces and territories. In order to identify each ER uniquely, the two-digit province/territory code must precede the ER code. For example:

Geography - Metropolitan Influenced Zones (MIZ)
Category assigned to a municipality not included in either a census metropolitan area (CMA) or a census agglomeration (CA). A municipality is assigned to one of four categories depending on the percentage of its residents who commute to work in the urban core of any census metropolitan area or census agglomeration.

Indicator formulation:
The census Metropolitan area and census agglomeration Influenced Zone (MIZ) is a concept that geographically differentiates the area of Canada outside census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs). Census subdivisions outside CMAs and CAs are assigned to one of four categories according to the degree of influence (strong, moderate, weak or no influence) that the CMAs and/or CAs have on them.

Indicator interpretation:
Census subdivisions (CSDs) are assigned to a MIZ category based on the percentage of their resident employed labour force that has a place of work in the urban core(s) of CMAs or CAs. CSDs with the same degree of influence tend to be clustered. They form zones around CMAs and CAs that progress through the categories from "strong" to "no" influence as distance from the CMAs and CAs increases.

The strong MIZ category includes CSDs with a commuting flow of 30% or more (at least 30% of the total employed labour force living in the CSD work in any CMA/CA urban core). The moderate MIZ category include CSDs with a commuting flow percentage between 5% and 30% (at least 5% but less than 30% of the total employed labour force living in the CSD work in any CMA/CA urban core). The weak MIZ category includes CSDs with a commuting flow percentage more than 0% but less than 5% (more than 0% but less 5% of the total employed labour force living in the CSD work in any CMA/CA urban core). The No MIZ category includes those CSDs with either fewer than 40 people in the resident labour force or no people commuting to work in CMA/CA urban cores. The No MIZ category also applies to all of Canada’s three territories.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Provinces and Territories
Province and territory refer to the major political units of Canada. From a statistical point of view, province and territory are basic geographic areas for which data are tabulated. Canada is divided into ten provinces and three territories.

Indicator formulation:
Provinces and Territories are portions of Canada's land area governed by a political authority. Canada's land area is divided into ten provinces and three territories.

Indicator interpretation:
Statistics Canada uses standard codes and abbreviations to represent provinces and territories. The two-digit code that uniquely identifies each province/territory is based on the Standard Geographical Classification (SGC). The code is assigned from east to west. The first digit represents the region of Canada in which the province/territory is located and the second digit denotes one of the ten provinces and three territories.

Geography - Rural Area
Rural areas include all territory lying outside urban areas and have been delineated using current census population data. Taken together, urban and rural areas cover all of Canada.

Indicator formulation:
Rural population includes all persons living in the rural fringes of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs), as well as persons living in rural areas outside CMAs and CAs.

Indicator interpretation:
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 10,000 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.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Statistical Area Classification (SAC)
The Statistical Area Classification (SAC) groups census subdivisions according to whether they are a component of a census metropolitan area, a census agglomeration, a census metropolitan area and census agglomeration influenced zone (strong MIZ, moderate MIZ, weak MIZ or no MIZ), or the territories (Northwest Territories, Yukon Territory and Nunavut).

Indicator formulation:
In using the statistical area classification for census data tabulations, it is possible to sum census data automatically for census subdivisions (CSDs) as follows.
– all CSDs in census metropolitan areas (CMAs);
– all CSDs in census agglomerations (CAs);
– all CSDs in the provinces in the strong MIZ category;
– all CSDs in the provinces in the moderate MIZ category;
– all CSDs in the provinces in the weak MIZ category;
– all CSDs in the provinces in the no MIZ category;
– CSDs in the three territories (Northwest Territories, Yukon Territory and Nunavut), except those that are components of a CMA or CA located in these territories (currently the CAs of Whitehorse and Yellowknife).

Indicator interpretation:
Care should be exercised if applying the MIZ concept in the three territories. This is because many CSDs are very large and sparsely populated, which contributes to instability in the place of work–population relationship upon which the MIZ is constructed³. Here is the hierarchical relationship represented by the SAC:

Geography - Urban Area
An urban area has a minimum population of 10,000 persons⁴, based on the census 1996 and 2001 population count. All territory outside urban areas is classified as rural. Taken together, urban and rural areas cover all of Canada.

Indicator formulation:
The urban population includes all persons 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. The delineation of urban areas is done by using an automated process that makes it possible to use population counts and population density data from the 1996 and 2001 census.

Indicator interpretation:
The geographic units used for the delineation of urban areas for 1996 and 2001 are urban areas as defined for the 1996 Census, and blocks as defined for the 2001 Census.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Geography - Urban Core, Urban Fringe and Rural Fringe
Urban core, urban fringe and rural fringe distinguish among central and peripheral urban and rural areas within a census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA).

Indicator formulation:
Urban core is a large urban area around which a CMA or a CA is delineated. The urban core must have a population (based on the previous census) of at least 100,000 persons in the case of a CMA, or between 10,000 and 99,999 persons in the case of a CA.

The urban core of a CA that has been merged with an adjacent CMA or larger CA is called the secondary urban core.

Urban fringe includes all small urban areas (with less than 10,000 population) within a CMA or CA that are not contiguous with the urban core of the CMA or CA.

Rural fringe is all territory within a CMA or CA not classified as an urban core or an urban fringe.

While every CMA and CA has an urban core, it may or may not have a secondary urban core, an urban fringe or a rural fringe.

Source: Census of Population, Statistics Canada

Labour Force Activity
Refers to the labour market activity of the population 15 years of age and over in the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to Census Day (May 15, 2001). Respondents were classified as either employed, or unemployed, or as not in the labour force. The labour force includes the employed and the unemployed.

Indicator formulation:
Reported for the population 15 years of age and over, excluding institutional residents. The values for the Labour Force Activity variable are:

The major purpose of these variables was to derive the labour force activity of the respondent. Other than for specialized research in consultation with the census labour market analysts, the use of these variables on their own (except for Labour Market Activities: Hours Worked for Pay or in Self-employment and Labour Market Activities: When Last Worked for Pay or in Self-employment) is not recommended.

Source: Labour Force Survey estimates, Statistics Canada

Market Income⁷
Total income minus income from government programs, such as Old Age Security pension and Guaranteed Income Supplement, Canada or Quebec Pension Plan and Employment Insurance.

Indicator formulation:
Refers to the sum of employment income (wages and salaries, net farm income and net income from a non-farm unincorporated business and/or professional practice), investment income, retirement pensions, superannuation and annuities (including those from Registered Retirement Savings Plans [RRSPs] and Registered Retirement Income Funds [RRIFs]) and other money income. It is equivalent to total income minus all government transfers, and is also referred to as income before transfers and taxes.

Indicator interpretation:
Population 15 years of age and over, excluding institutional residents⁸. Income is expressed in positive or negative dollar value or nil.

(1) www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/Products/Reference/dict/pop003.htm

(2) The reference week refers to the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to Census Day (e.g., the 2001 Census Day was May 15th).

(3) A municipality is assigned to one of four categories depending on the percentage of its residents who commute to work in the urban core of any census metropolitan area or census agglomeration.

(4) The OECD definition of urban areas refers to a population density of at least 400 persons per square kilometer.

(5) Refers to persons 15 years of age and over who worked for pay or in self-employment since January 1, 2000.

(6) Refers to persons 15 years of age and over who last worked for pay or in self-employment since January 1, 2000 or never worked.

(7) www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/Products/Reference/dict/pop075.htm

(8) Person, other than a staff member and his or her family, who lives in an institution, such as a hospital, a senior citizens' home or a jail.