History of immigration to Canada
Canadian citizenship |
|
|---|---|
| This article is part of a series | |
| Immigration | |
|
Immigration to Canada History of immigration to Canada Economic impact of immigration Canadian immigration and refugee law Immigration Act, 1976 Immigration and Refugee Protection Act Permanent residency Temporary residency Permanent Resident Card |
|
| Canadian nationality law | |
|
History of nationality law Citizenship Act 1946 Citizenship Test Oath of Citizenship |
|
| Agencies | |
| Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada | |
| Citizenship classes | |
|
Honorary citizenship Commonwealth citizen |
|
| Issues | |
|
Lost Canadians "Canadians of convenience" |
|
| Demographics of Canada | |
|
Canadians Population by year Ethnic origins |
|
The history of immigration to Canada extends back thousands of years. Anthropologists continue to argue over various possible models of migration to modern-day Canada, as well as their pre-contact populations. The Inuit are believed to have arrived entirely separately from other indigenous peoples around 1200 CE. Indigenous peoples contributed significantly to the culture and economy of the early European colonies and as such have played an important role in fostering a unique Canadian cultural identity.
Statistics Canada has tabulated the effect of immigration on population growth in Canada from 1851 to 2001. On average, censuses are taken every 10 years, which is how Canadian censuses were first incremented between 1871 and 1901. Beginning in 1901, the Dominion Government changed its policy so that census-taking occurred every 5 years subsequently. This was to document the effects of the advertising campaign initiated by Clifford Sifton.
In 2006, Canada received 236,756 immigrants. The top ten sending countries, by state of origin, were People's Republic of China (28,896); India (28,520); Philippines (19,718); Pakistan (9,808); United States (8,750); United Kingdom (7,324); Iran (7,195); South Korea (5,909); Colombia 5,382; and Sri Lanka (4,068). The top ten source countries were followed closely by France (4,026), and Morocco (4,025), with Romania, Russia, and Algeria each contributing over 3,500 immigrants.
In 1828, during the Great Migration of Canada, Britain passed the first legislative recognition that it was responsible for the safety and well-being of immigrants leaving the British Isles. It was called An Act to Regulate the Carrying of Passengers in Merchant Vessels. The Act limited the number of passengers who could be carried on a ship, regulated the amount of space allocated to them, and required that passengers be supplied with adequate sustenance on the voyage. The 1828 Act is now recognized as the foundation of British colonial emigration legislation.
...
Wikipedia