Languages in Conflict: The Canadian Experience 9780773595330

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Languages in Confli The Canadian Experience Richard J. Joy With a preface by Frank G. Vallee

The Carleton Library NO.61 McCleUand and Stewart Limited

~dStewart Limited, 1972

The CanadianPublishers McClelland and Stewart Limited 25 Holliiger Road, Toronto Printed and bound in Canada by T. H.Best Printing Company Limited Languages in Conflict was lirst published by the author in 1967. Hard-cover copies can be obtained by sending a cheque for $6.00, payable to R. J. Joy, to the following address:

P.O. Box 2402, Station "D", Ottawa.

THE CARLETON LIBRARY Aseries of Canadian reprints apd new collections of source material relating to Canada, issued under the editorial supervision of the Institute of Canadian Studies of Carleton University, Ottawa. DlRECMR OF THE INSTFTUTE

Pauline JeweU OBNERAL EDITOR

D. M. L. Farr E X E c m EDITOR

James Marsh EDITORXU BOARD

Duncan M. Anderson (Geography) B. CarmanBickerton (History) Bruce A. McFarlane (Sociology) Thomas K Rymes ( h n o m i c s ) Derek Smith (Anthropology) Michael S. Whittington (Political Science)

Index of Statistical Tables appearing in the text Preface, by Frank G. Vallee Introduction, by the Author Chapter I: One Hundred Years A brief review of the language picture in Canada as it was in 1867 and as ii is today Chapter 11: Bilingual Country, Unilingual Citizens Why is French spoken by so few Canadians of other origins? Chapter 111: The Seven Regions of Canada Studying Canada by linguisiically-homogeneous regions, rather than by provinces Chapter IV: From Moncton to the Soo The areas outside Quebec in which French is strong are merely the geographical extensions of that province Chapter V : Elsewhere, Assimilation Assimilation has already aflected three-quarters o f the families o f French origin living in Western Camda, Southern Ontario and the Atlantic Region Chapter VI: The Younger Generation is Lost How numerous are the school-aged minorities, in Quebec as well as in other provinces? The accelerating trend towards assimilation among the younger generation Chapter VII: No Reinforcementsfrom Quebec Will migration between provinces keep alive the assimilation-weakened minorities? Chapter VIII: La Revanche des Berceaw The recent decline in Quebec's birth rare and its significance in the present study Chapter IX: Immigration -95% English-speaking The effects of immigration in strengthening, qualitatively as well as quantitaiively, the English-speaking population Chapter X: The Minority Newspapers A Barometer French-language newspapers outside Quebec. Englishlanguage papers within that province

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v

xi 1 3

9 17 23

31

37

45 51

57

65

Chapter XII: The Atlantic Region Three centuries of conflict behveen French and English languages Provinces Chapter XIII: The Acadians: End of a Dream The rise and fall of Acadian hopes in New Brunswick Chapter XIV: L'Etat de Qu6bec The growth of the French-speaking population of Quebec Province Chapter XV: ' Quebec's Forgotten Fifth The declining fortunes of the English-speaking population o f Quebec Chapter XVI: Whence the British are Gone Four areas of Quebec Province in which the English language was strong before Confederation Chapter XVII: Montreal: The Two Solitudes A study of the metropolitan area of Montreal Chapter XVIII: Canada's Capital A study o f the Ottawa-Hull area Chapter XIX: Ontario A study of the various parts of Ontario Chapter XX: The West The four Western Provinces Chapter XXI: Ma1tre.s Chez Nous Government measures to strengthen the French language within the Province of Quebec Conclusions Epilogue Appendix A: Definitions of Census Tenns Appendix B: Sources of Statistical Material Note on the Author

73 79

85 9

9 10 11 11

12 13

135 137 141 142 148

Page Table 1: Number of Persons claiming ability to speak French vs. Number of French ethnic origin, by Regions.ofthe country, 1961 Census

I1

Table 2: Percentages of Adult Males speaking English Only. English & French and French Only, in various Canadian Cities, 1961 Census

12

Table 3: Percentages of Canadian Population speaking English Only, English & French and French Only, at the last four censuses

13

Table 4:

Percentages of Adult Males speaking English Only, English &French and French Only, in urban areas of Quebec Province, at the last four censuses

13

Table 5: Percentages of males of French mother tongue claiming to be bilingual, by age groups and by city of residence, 1961 Census

14

Table 6:

Distribution of Ethnic Origins in the various Regions of Canada. 1961 Census

18

Table 7:

Number of Persons speaking French as mother tongue or as minor language, by Regions of the country, 1961 Census

23

Table 8: Percentage of all Canadians of French mother tongue, living in Quebec and in other parts of Canada, Censuses of 1911. 1941, 1951 and 1961

26

Table 9: Apparent Assimilation of persons of French origin, living in Quebec and in olher parts of Canada, 1961 Census

27

Table 10: Number of persons of French mother tongue vs. number of French origin, by groups of Census Divisions, 1961 Census Table 11: Apparent Assimilation of persons of French origin, vs. relative concentration of persons of French mother tongue, for specified areas of Ontario. 1961 Census Table 12: Apparent Assimilation of persons of French origin, by provinces and rural vs. urban. 1961 Census Table 13: Apparent Assimilation of persons of French origin, by provinm, Censuses of 1931-1961

32 3)/

34 35

Table 14: Number of persons of French mother tongue vs. number of French origin, in the four Western Roviuccs, by age groups, 1961 Census

pap 39

Table 15: Number of children (aged 0-9) of French mother tongue, by provinces, C e n s w of 1931-1961

39

Table 16: Number of children (aged 0-9) of French mother tongue and total, by regions of Ontario and New Bruoswick. 1961 ccnsus

40

Tabk 17: Numbcr of Childsen (aged C-9) of EngGab, of Ftench and of Other Mother Tongues. Quebec Provine, Censuscs of 1931-1961

41

Table 18: Percentages of Population of F m c b Mother Tongue speaking "French Only", by Ags Groups, for Rural and Urban A m , Onfario and New Brunswick, 1961 Census

43

Table 19: Number of Male persons of French Mother Tongue, by . spsdfied Groups of Birth Dates, Western Provinces, Ccns w of 1941 and of 1961

46

Table 20: Number of Male PmoDs of French Mother Tongue, by specifiedGroups of BirthDates, Ontario, Ceosuscs of 19411961

47

Table 21 : Immigration, Natu18I Increase and apparent net Domestic Migration, by sub-regions, Quebec Province and Northern New Brunswiok. 1951-1961

48

Table 22: Ratio of Children (0-14) to Women (20-44) . . among PODU- 52 lation of Btitish origin in OuLano vs. that among Pop&tion of French Origin in Qucbcc, by Rural and Urban. Censuses of 1931-1961 Table 23: Number of Children of English, of French and of Other Mother Tongues, Canada, Censuses of 1931-1961

53

Table 24: Number of Persons speaking English and speaking French among Foreign-born residents of Canadi, by Years of Entry into Canada, 1961 Census

58

Table 25: Number of Persons speaking English and speaking French among Foreign-born residents of Quebec, by Years of Entry into Canada, 1961 Census

58

Table 26: Percentage giving English as Mother Tongue, among Persons of Specified Ethnic Groups giving English or French as Mother Tongue, specified Metropolitan Areas, 1961 Census

, Table 27: Number of Persons of English, of Frencb and of Other Mother Tongues, born 1927-1931, enumerated in Canada at Census of 1941 vs. Census of 1961 Table 28: Number of Persons claiming ability to speak English and to speak French, born 1927-1931, enumerated in Canada at Census of I941 vs. Census of 1961 Table 29: Foreign-born Population vs. Total Population of Canada, Censusu, of 1871-1961 Table 30: Foreign-born Population by Province of Residcna and by Date of Entry into Canada, 1961 Ccnsus Table 31: Number of French-Canadians and of Children of FrsnchCanadians Living in the United States, Ccnsum of 19001950 Table 32: Population of French Origin in the Maritimea, by subregions, 1755 and I765 Table 33: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Population, Atlantic Region, by Provinces, 1961 Census Table 34: Number of Children (aged 0-9) of French Mother Tongue vs. Number of all Mother Tongues, Nova kotia and Prince Edward Island, Censuses of 1931-1961 Tablc35: Population of Frencb Mothcr Tongue, speciiicd subregions of Nova Scotia, Ccnsua of 1871 vs. Census of 1961 Table 36: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Population, Rioce Edward Island. Census of 1881-1961 Table 37: Population of New Brunswick, North vs. South, C e n s u ~ s of 1871-1961 Table 38: Percentage having completed specified number of Years of School. among those no longer at School, Population of French Origin vs. that of non-French Origins, New Brunswick, 1951 Ccnsus

vii

Table 39: Number of Pcraons of French and non-French Oridns. born 1927-1936, enumerated in New Bmnswick at Cekui of 1941 vs. Censuses of 1951 and 1961

82

Table 40: Humbcr of Persons borb outside Canada enumerated in Ontario and in Quebec. Censuses of 1851:1961.

8

Table 41: French-speaking and non-French Populations of Quebec Province, Censuses of 1837-1961

8

Table 41: Rate of Growth of the French-spcaking Population of Quebec Province, for specified periods hetween 1760 and

8

Table 43: French-speaking Population of Quebec Province. Ruml vs. Urban, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 44: Percentage Attending SEhool of Population aged 15-19, Quebec, New Bmnswick and Ontario, Censuses of 19311961 Table 45: Non-French Populations, Montreal vs. Other Parts of Quebec Province, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 46: Ethnic Oriains of the nowFrench Pooulation. as Pereentages of the?otal Population of ~ u e &province. Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 47: Numbcr of Persons of Specified Ethnic Origins in Urban Area6 of Quebec Province, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 48: Population of non-French Origins, specified sub-regions of Quebec Province outside Montreal, Census of 1871 vs. Census of 1961 Table 49: Population of French, of British and of Other Origins, Seven Inner Counties of the Eastern Townships, Cenm c s of 1871-1961 Table 50: Population of French, of British and of Other Origins; Argenteuil, Papinenu, Hull. Catineau and Pontiac Countics, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 51: Population of Fsnch, of Brilisb and of Other Origins, 101 Bona~nture~and Gasp5 Countia, Censuses of 1871-1961

viii

rage Table 52: ~ o p u ~ a t i bof n French, of British and of Other Origins, 102 Quebec City and County, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 53: Perantage of Population claiming ability to speak English 10.4 . and to speak French, specified subdivisions of Montreal Island, 1961 Census Table 54: Population of English, of French and of Other Mother 105 Tongues, Greater Montreal. Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 55: Population of Montreal vs. Population of QuebecProvince, 105 Persons of French Origin Only, Censuses of 1901-1961 Table 56: Place of Birth of Male Populations. Six English-predorni- 106 naot vs. Eight French-predominant Suburbs of Montreal, 1961 Census Table 57: Number of Adult Males speaking English and speaking 107 French. Montreal, 1961 Census Table 58: Number of Persons claiming ability to speak English and 112 to speak French, specified subdivisionk of the Ottawa/Hull area, 1961 Census Table 59: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Popula- 113 tion, City of 0ttawa;Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 60: Population of Frencb Mother Tongue vs. Population professing Catholic Religion, Censuses of 1911-1961

114

Table 61: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Popula- 115 tion, National Capital Area, Censuses of 1901-1961 T ~ b l e62: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Popula- 118 tion, Fssu; and Kent Counties. Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 63: Po~ulstionof French Mother Tonme. Northern and East- 119 e m Ontario vs. Southern and weitem Ontario, Censuses of 1871-1961 Table €4: Population of British, of French and of Other Origins in I20 Prescott, Russell, Glengarry and Stomont Counties. Censuses of 1871-1961 Table 65: Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Popula- 121 tion. Cochrane, Nipissing. Sudbury and Timiskaming Counties, Censuses of 1911-1961

Pas Table 66: Population of French Origin and Population of French 122 Mother Tongue vs. Total Population, Eleven Counties of Northern and Eanern Ontario, Censuses of 1941-1961 Table 67: Provinm of Birth of Persons liviog in the Western Prov- 124 ioas,Censusss of 1881-1921 Table 68: Popnlation of Frsncb Mother Tongue vs. Total Popula- 124 tion, Four Western Provinces. Censusss of 1901-1961 Table 69: Population of French Mother Tongue in Each of the West- 122 em Provinces. Censuses of 1901-1961

Preface to the Carleton Ubnuy Edition In the 1967-68 academic session I taught a course entitled "French Canadian Society." Understandably, attention was focussed on the Province of QuCbec, for which there exists an abundance of published material. Tacked on to the main matter of the course was a section summarizing the history and contemporary situations of communities outside the Province of QuCbec with substantial populations of French origin. I justi: Bed the token treatment of these populations in the course by pleading a serious lack of published materials. A few demo&aphicstudies, sponsored b; the Royal Commission on Biculturalism and Bilinaualism, had been made available, but not in published form. official Reports of the ~ o m m i s s i had o ~ begun to appear, but these were of limited historical and sociological value. The same limitations applied to the skimpy corpus of regional and community studies on French-origin people in Canada and the United States. A student asked why I did not make use of the book, Languages in Conflict. No professor likes to admit as I had to that he is ignorant of published work of direct relevance to his teaching and research. My initial embarrassment was allayed by the information that the hook in question had been published by the author, Richard Joy, a friend of the student's father. and that Mr. Jov had a few thousand copies in his basement. 1n his basementf Before even seein~the book I had beeun to discount it. This' self-serving discouGng was made eaiy for my conscience when I learned that the author was not a full-fledged member of the fraternity of social science scholars. He was, of all things, an engineer] I fantasied an eccentric, with a private axe to grind on Canadian issues. How could such a person know where to get relevant data, let alone how to interpret that data, so that the findings would be significant to social science and to national policy? At the student's urging, I removed my academic blinkers and read the book. My fantasy of the axe-grinding eccentric dissolved before the end of the Grst chapter, to be replaced by that of an artisan who had hvpotheses to test and knew how a work of historical demogto go about testing them. raphy, c h a n- ~ -n g-pockets of the arid wasteland of officialcensus figures into fertile fields for speculation. The arguments were put crisply and compellingly without verbal padding and

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ere-was

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embellishment. The parsimony in the narrative, I learnkl later, was due partly to the constraints imposed upon pwple who publish their own work. Each word wsts a cent or two. L i e the sender of a night-letter telegram, Richard Joy had to restrain his narrative impulses. Since the private launching of Languages in Conflict about four years ago, several publications on French-English issues have appeared. To my mind, Richard Joy's book remains the best statement of the Bilingual Belt thesis, according to which a bilingual wne surrounding the Province of Quebec, roughly from Sault Ste. Marie. Ontario to Moncton, New B m w i c k , divides an increasingly French uniligual population from an increasingly English one. The implications of this thesis for Canadian confederation are easy to see. This classic statement of the Two Unilineualisms divided bv the Bilingual Belt is not the only noteworthffeature of ~ i c h a r h Jov's book. As far as I know. he was the first to use age-snecific d a b in assessing the rate of French language loss am&-canadims of French origin. By so doing he showed that the actual rate of assimilation is higher than the apparent rate derived from census data which does not take generation into account. Recognition does not flood from a l l sides to the person who publish& his own work and maintains his book siock in the basement. Such publications disseminate through personal networks and do not enter the p w l of widely-acknowledged social science findings. Because Richard Joy took his message to meetings of interested parties attended mostly by FrenchCanadians, his work drew attention in the French press.' However, except for limited exposure at Carleton and Sir Gwrge Williams Universities, where Professor Hubert Guindon helped propagate the book, hardly any English notice was evidkt. The Two Solitudes again1 Consider an example of another pair of solitudes - the Canadian-Ahencan. In May, 1971, while in Hawaii, I received from a prominent American publisher a copy of a scholarly work on French-English relations in Canada by the distinguished sociologist and demographer, Stanley Lieberson, of University of Washington, Seattle.2 This book has already "See, for example. Claude Ryan, "L'avenir du Canada serait-il d m la coexistence des unilia-?" Le Devoir, Montreal, 17 July, 1968; and Vincent Prince, "L'avenir du fran& au Canada et au Quebcc," Le Devoir, Montreal, 30 December, 1970.

one reached by the publications of the Royal Commission on Biculturalism and Bilingualism. In Lieberson's book there is no mention of Joy's Languages in Conflict. Lights ate said to be bidden under bushels. Mr. Joy's has been hidden in his basement. The Carleton Library Series should be applauded for opening the hatch and releasiog Richard Joy's significant work for perusal by a widespread public. Frank G. Vallee, St. Patrick's College, Carleton University, Ottawa, November, 1971.

Wanley Liebenon, Lnnguage and Ethnic Relations in ado, Wiley: New York, Toronto, 1970. 264 pp.

xiii

don-

Introduction This book presents the linguistic histor): of Canada, as revealed by the ctnsua records. The basic theme is the conflict between the French and English languages, a conflict which began over two centuric8 ago and which has had a profound cEeci on thepolitical and economic deyelopment of our country. Altbough statistics almost 70 tables arr the backbone of this work, the bare figures have been Beshed out by inclusion of explanatory material and historical notes, so that the text may be of value t o even those readers who are not familiar with the Canadian backmound. The first hallof the book diicusses the various factors i;lfluenoingthe language picNre and one chapter is devoted to each of such subjects as Mieration. Biih Rates. Assimilation. etc. In the sffond half, the chautcrs are-arranged along geographical link, each om presenting the linsstic history of a s m c region. Through the census finures, we can tbllow the outward movement of ~ r e n c h - ~ a k l i a nfrom s th& old parishes along the St. Lawrence, a movement facilitated by the concurrent departure of many prsoos of British orimna from those areas of Quebec Provinct and of Easlcrn Ontario which haibeen originally settled b i English-speaking families. During the third qua* of the 19th Century, the advance guards of this outward movement had established parishes even on the shores of the Pacific and there was a brief oeriod durine which the Frsnch language appeared to be saxring p e m n c n t footholds-in almost all parts of C-da. . From the figures of the census, however, it is evident that a long-term Vend had begun before the end of that centw, as the g m t southward exodus drained the vitality of Canada's ~rench-speakingpopulation and IeR the Prairies to be occupied by families of other odgius. Today, the English language has unquestioned dominance in the Western Provinces, in Southern Ontario and in the Atlantic Region. Both languages are in more-or-less common use within a "Bilingual Belt" along the Quebec border hut the interior of that province is solidly Frenchspeaking.

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Althouah thc future is un~redictablcthe historical t m ~ dhas been toward the of a ~ r e i c h~ a n a d awith increasingly-well-dcfincd boundaria, as the minority islands fade away on both sides of the linguistic frontier. The oonclusions presented in this book are the author's. For the benefit of readers who may wish to do further research, an appendix has been provided which shows the sources of the figures used in the various tables. Before passing on to the text, a personal note is in order. Although Endish is the author's mother tonme. the fore-runner of this book was a pa& presented in French during The1962 meeting of I'Associatioo eanadieone-francaise pow I'avancement des sciences. Conflict between the two languages does not urevent French- and Endish-sveakinn Canadians - . from workiog together and maintaining cordial prronal ;lationships; this book could never have bcsn completed without the assistance and encouragement of friends of both language groups.

emergence

Richard J. Joy

One Hundred Years une nunoreo years ago, Canada was just on the verge of nationhood, as the British colonies in North America prepared to merge into one Dominion that would stretch "from sea to %a and from the river to the end of the earth". In an area ns large as that of the United States were to be found.only three million oeoole.?he high of disoersion of the . nonulation and " deeree " . the relative isolation of the mral areas, in psrticuh, had meant that each little community could retain the language of its founders; English, French. German and daelic were all in c u k n i use and the new country was a linguistic checkerboard. During the past century, however, and despite the temporary import a n a of other tongues during priods of heavy immigration, two languages have asserted their preeminence. Today, although two-and-a-half million Canadians are of other mother tongues, only English and French can be seriouslv as "lanrmaees of Canada". . considered Until 1867. Ontario and Quebec (as t h y are now known) were one province and the growth of the relative numerical strength of the Britishoripin nonulation~wasan incrrasina w o w to the French-Canadians. Au confed;raion was accompanied b; a spiit between the prcdominanllyFrench Qucbee and the overwhelmingly-English Ontario, with each of the new provinces free to establish its own school laws. the majority of FrenchCanidians wen, thenaforth, assured of rcccivingan eduiatii in schools of their o m language supported by taxes levied by a legislature in which repmentatives of their own @oup would hold control. This bas been the &atest single factor actingto pmserve the French language in North America. The very fact that control of the provincial legislature (and, thereby, of the schooi laws) would rest with the French-speaking population of Quebec and with the English-speaking populations of the other provinces, automatidly created more-or-less unhappy situations with regard to the ~

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educational facilities available to the minority groups. Until m n t l y , howcvcr, konomic factors have been such that the discomfort suffered by the Enelish-smakinn minoritv in Ouebcc was relatively slight. Atthe time ofConfedcmtion; o v u one-tim of ~uebec'spopulation was of British origin, including half the citizens of Montreal, and this was b v far the most imnortant minoritv. in terns of numbers as well as af kealth and prestige,.to be found aiywhere within what is today Cauada. However, the French-spaking minorities elsewhere were hardly neglid b l c Down East, Acadians made un ovu 8 0/. of the nonulation of Nova b t i a and almost 10% of that o i Prina Edward islind, while recent arrivals from the Magdalen Islands had h f o r e s d the Freuch-spaking settlements along the West Coast of Newfoundlaod. Only in New Bmnswick could it be said that the French language had less relative imporfanee in the mid-19th Century than it has today. Iu Ontario, the descendants of those who had founded Detroit were shll strong in thc Esscx Peninsula while the Ottawa Valley boasted a Freuchspeaking bishop as evidma of the extent to which those of his language @out, had acquired a majoritv nosition among the Catholics of what was &me our national &vital. sumrioritv Which assured the nositiou of French-language instructih i n b e sihools df astern Ontario. . In the West, uncounted thousands of Indians and MCtis had learned the F m c h lanpua~eat missiouarv schools while bishoos from the Great Lakes to the s&

:**

Number of Pcrsons rpeakiag English and speaking French among Foreign-born ruiecnh of Canada, by Y a r s oTEe(ry iato Cam+, 1961 Csnnts

sinae ii

who entered &or tko wind* as cmparcd 1.9 31,580 French

Before 1946 19461%1

air 54.Wof Em$&

d e r teugw.

S9,mItslipnr.

77,W 55 %

1 1 5 ~

6%

FrenchEaglirh at t h

4YBM)

13.W

35 %

9X

61.W 25%

43,W 17 %

2,800

1% 29,WB

12%

.nother way of establishing the preferma for English among imm grants is to examine the census 68ureh for the motber tongues of those of &our ethnic origins. This method has sever@ weaknesses, o m being that the Census does not diaucntiate between, for example, the children of rscnt arrivals and those whoso families knve been in Canada far two centuries (e.g., ~ n t af the a I&h Cmtwry founders of Lunenburg). bw it does give us s rclatiw d c . The fobwing fable is f w f o u resentative metropolitan srter; other eities woukl follow ihe pattern noted in Toronto, with negligible assimilation toward the French language. Pcrceolage dving English as MotherTongus, among Persons of Specified Ethnic Groups givin~Endish or Frcrrh as Mother Tongus,

All e&hnicsexcept Mtish & French Incbding: Miaa German

Polish Ukraininn

26%"

76 %

90%

99 %

IS 29 31 42

32 77

87 94 95 96

99

$3 81

99 9)' 99

Tix prwding fabk indica&s that very few immigrants are bringing up their children in the Fnnch language. This is true even in Mootred, where almost all ethnic groups, with the notable exception of the I t a l i w \show a better than threeto-oer preferenca for FagXch. Several faksw o&ributcd to this prsfcmace. The foremost, arobablv. is that most irmnierants have come. not iust to CMcbc~P r o v i n ~ , jlut to ~ i r t America. h T e Lvr f d o m afiov&ew en ihis umtment, to caawe t h a thdr eBjMr6n will k able to speak to thsir cousins in Tnronto er Nt., York, English is c&sential. Preach, on tll.ocb.1 hand, conk uard in oaly onq cormr of the u m t i l l ~ ~and, t even tbcre, is not absolutely' .cccSsary.

Other masonu sfem frem the rssc.tiaLly c l o d nature of French Canada. The Froislaat i m m i p ~ 4from Switzerland or the Jew from Nmtk Africa bas. untid %w recently. k e n forced to smd his children to. English-language schools. d y Catholics bdng a d m i W to most of thc

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Fren~h~language schools of QU&. Thus, French Canada has f o r d into the other language group any of those immigrants who spoke French before coming to Canada nd has attracted to itself'only those fiw immigrants who were su~ceptidleto intermarriage (chiefly Italians in r b n t years. Irish in the 19th CenIury). Tables 24 to 26 have given a clear indication that immigrants show a preference for the English'language. In an attempt to quantify this preference, let us follow one :particular group, those born during the five years 1927 to 1931. ,The 1941 Census repoked 1,100,871 persons aged 1014 living in Canada. Twenty years later, the 1961 Census found 1,271,810 persons aged 30-34. Allowing for,mortality and for possible errors in enumeration, we can conclude that net immigration wntributcd somewhat over U)O,WO plsrsons to this p u p . Of these additions to' Canada's population, just over hall' were of English mother tongue while, as the following table shows, immigration of persons of French motherjtongue did not even balance the losses due to mortality and emigration.

I["

Table 27 Number of Persons of English, of French and of Other Mother Tongues, born 1927-1931, enumerated in Canada at Census of I941 vs. Census of 1961 Mother Tongue

French English Others

I

'

,

4

1941 C e n m

1961 Census

381.004

356,705

C+nge -24,299

568,622

672,170

+103.548

151,245

242,935

+91,690

Thanks to immimtion. those ol' Endish mother tonme slinhtlv Inaeased their relative stHngth among the population of thi; age Goup while tho= of French mother tongue dropped from 34.6% in 1941 to 28.1% in 1961. However. this is not the comnlctc stom.. since it d m not indicate tl;c preference for E d i s h among immigrants of mother tongues other than the two discussed. For a measure of this preference. let us look at some further figure for the same agsgroup.

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Table b Number of Persons c W g ability to spcak English and l o speak French born 1927-1931, enumerated in Canada at Census of 1941 w. Census of 1961 Lcrnguoger Spoken

French Only French & English English Only Neither

1941 Censw

1961 Census

Clronge

305.768 96,206 694,933 3,970

188,430 229,133 839,262 14,985

-117,338 +132.927 +144,329 +ll.OlS

Adding the "Fmch Only" to the "French & English" we find that those capable of spaking French totalled 418,000 in 19h. as against 402,Op in 1941. Deducting tho sumbsrs of those for whom French was the mother tonnue. we find that those claiming ability to speak French as a second or third-language had rixn from 21.000 in 1941 61,000 in 1961. As the l a t m figure reprtdcnted only 7 % of the non-French populatior of this age group, the twenty-year incrcase was hardly more than migh have W u p o t e d from the learning of French by Canadians of othe languages who had still Lwen attending school in 1941. These figures woull appear to confirm the conclusion drawn from Table 24, that the vaa majority of 1941-1961immigrants have not felt that a knowledge of French is necessary. The a s stoup selected for o w sNdy is the one which has been in the familv-fo-n-r a&ee .. " durina - the nast . decade and which is now bringing up tho citrzena of tomorrow. Thus, there is a mulilplying fanor whlch must be considered: for each immimant who assimilates to the English-speaking population, there will be Canadian-born children brought up with a preference for tho English language. The French-Canadian studyingthe demographic history of our countr never fails to remark on the importance of immigration in maintaining th minority position of his own group. Each time that tho French-speakin population began to gain ground through their higher birth rate, a frml wave of immigrants (not neassadly of English mother tongue, but assim ilating to the English-speaking group) would arriw to wipe out th temporary gnin. Table 29, on the following page, shows the numerical importance o immiaants. However, thew i m m i m t s added more than mere numbers 1, ~ngliihCanada; the knowledge and skills they brought with them furthe widened the disparity in avaage educational levels between Canada's cwl major language groups.

to

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61

Total popdatioa ~oreign-born Folcign.bornjTd

3,486 MJ 17%

5,371 700 13%

10,377 2,281 22%

18,238 Z,BM %6%

Tk &l*s olimmigratiol, arc. c l mursr, not Fdc q d y by aU p a n ofthe cowtly. In tbe bur Atlantic Provinces,there arc d y 67,008 foreignb m m a g a tatrl sopvlntiw ef alnoEt two fiou, SB t b i r &- is make up onethird ol th. t o t i pepnlatiea of h : sldropoh:sn area; as the majority of* arrived aftr the and ofthe Wu, they bavs uwpkaly cbsnccd the asd t i n & dark^ the st rwe d d .

of Qwdwc ~r&nee. The W-&R but d y 34.W d e d is stbcr ProviilFcs,Ssska4zb~ssin m u l o r , krw nsv-r &Sir &we-1930 popularity lid tLe M e PIwkws ham Iusg b.sl sa m a of art cmigrath.

Taw 30

-

Ath* Prminma Quak Ontario

Manitoba ssewewan Alberta Mtisb ColUmbia

It m i a h t s noted in .ass inn- that 76% of the me-war and 87% of post-war ibmigrsnts lhe in urban areas. 0;iy 10% o i tbc ptc-war and>% of tbc post-war immigrants were found on f m and the remainder are in rural areas but not on farms. Almost onquarter of the adults living in Canada in I961 had been born outside the wuntry. Their wming has added not only numbers but, also, valuable skills to the strength of the English-speaking population to which nearly all of them have assimilated. ~inverselv. .. the failure ot the French-speaking community to attract to itself any significant number of immigrants has weakened it both quantitatively and qnalitativdy.

The Minority Newspaphrs -A Barometer ? Perhaps it is due to the fact that a coin must be paid over, hut the average person exercises a deliberate act of choice each time that he picks up a newspaper, quite unlike the random manner in which the dial of a television set may be turned. The circulation of the minority newspapera should. therefore, be a barometer of the strength of their language group in b y area. When we see, for example, that the circulation of the Sherbrooke Record is barely holding the level reached fifteen years ago, while that of La Tribune de Shuhrooke has doubled during the same m o d , we may infer that the English language is losing ground in the Eastan Townships. Conversely, the fact that L'Evangeline has a circulation of only IO,WO, while the English-language newspapen of New Brunswick sell 90,W copies daily, would lead us to examine with comiderable scepticism any claim that the French lanena~eis aooroachin~the importana of English in that province. outsid; ~ r o G n c of t Quebec, there am only two daily newsp?pers published in French. Thae are located in the major urban centres of the . Acadians and the Franco-Ontarians, respectively, and each serves its ' own aonn. The last French-lanenane dailv in the United States ceased publi&tidn in 1962. L'Evangeline was founded in 1887, as a weekly newspaper published , in Wemouth. an Acadian town in the southwestern tip of Nova Scotia. Publication war moved to Moncton a few years later, but it was not unW 1930 that the Acadian resurgence had becnmc strong enough to justify a daily newspaper; due to the Depression, this lasted for only 13 months. . -1n 1942.a new archbishon was aooointed to Moncton and begsdan agpssive campaign in favor of the'kench language. As part of this, campaign, contributions were solicited in Quebcc and the Maritima t o pen& i n c r e a ~ i n ~ t hfrequency e of p"hlieation of L'Evangeline; by Se tember, 1949, this was again a daily newspaper. At present, the audited circulation is in the vicinity of 10.

fhe

- -

65

II whlch level the paver cannot break even, 'financially. However, campaigns which ar. given-ths active suppon of Quebce ~rcnch-languagenewsiapin and "patriotic" societies supply the funds required to keep the paper alive; in rsccnt years, these voluntary contributioas have been supplemented by grants, totalling over $112,000, from the Cultural Affairs Department of the Government of Quebec. The greatest problem to be overcome by L'Evangeline appears to be the indifference ofthe Acatlian masses. The potential readership is at least 260,000 (210,OW in New Brunswick, the others in Nova Swtia aud P.E.T.), which means that only one Acadian in 26 is buying the paper; with a potential readership of just under 400,000, the fiv; ~&ish-lan-page daily newspapers published in New Bru116~i~k have a total sircdalioo of some 90,000. It is difficult to forecast the future of L'Evanasline. Publishing costs have been rising, all over the continent, and there-is a limit to what can bc accomplished by goodwill and devotion alone. However, the paper's maoane&t and finances wem comdetdy reoraanized at the end of 1966 and continued existsnce, on a sudkidiid basis, appears to have b a n assured through association with La Soci6tC I'Assomption, the Acadians' fratend ins& comoanv which ouerates in New England as well as in of about 530 million. the Maritimes and which h k -ts Turning from the anaemic finadial condition ofthe Acadians' papr, it may. sum& . some readas to learn that the Francc-Ontarians' publishing company reported a net profit of aver 130,000 for the year ended ~ s c c m b & 31, 1966; gross revenue included 12225.000 from the newspaper itself and S1,746,OW from the commercial printing division.

Le Dfoit has three imp-t

advantages over L'Evangeline:

1) The French-speaking population of Ontario is double that of New Brunswick. 2) Its border location permits Le Droit to inclnde, among its potential readers, tbs 150,000 Frmch-speaking residents of Western Quebec.

3) The revenues ofthe newspaper are heavily supplemented by thow from a large jobprinting plant; this docs not rely merely on its captive market (the archdio~esc),but aggressively solicits outside business, in both langu5ges. Although financially successful, Le Droit has experienced several notable setbacks in its efforts to be not only a local newspaper for the residents of Huil/Ottawa but, also, a militant organ for French-speaking minorities elsewhere. In June, 1963, the Northern Edition had to be di5

continued; despite 15 years of promotional effort and the support of the bishops of Northern Ontario, circulation had never reached the bnake v a point (it is, perhaps, not entirely w i n d d a t s l that this is an m a in which assimilation is beginning to make heavy inroads among the younger generation). In 1965, total paid circulation of Lc Droit was just under 35.000copies daily; this was less than half the circulation of each of the two Englishlanguage dailies published in Ottawa but appears quite adequate to enswe that the FramOntarians will continue to have their newspaper for many vears to come.' Lc Droit's position, as the semi-official voice of the most important French-swaking mouyr outside Quebec, makes it doubly unfortunate that the editoiisl mi& of ihis oauer still retains the andonhobic snirit in which it was born, duringthe most bitter days ofthe 1913school dispute (when the French language was banned from the tax-suyryrorted scbools of Ontario). ~nterestin& enough. for a paper so closely idkcd with a religious order. the English-speaking bishops of Southern Ontario are not exempt from attack and a n oflen blamed for the high rate of assimilation that has w u m d in their d i w w s . Turning now to another minority, only 7W,000 residents of Quebec Province gave English as their mother tongue, in 1961; this was hardly more than the 690.000 French-soeakinn residents of Ontario and the Maritinus, hut the fbur ~nglish-language-dailiespublished in Quebec have a total circulation of almost 350,000. There is, consequently. no doubt as to the wntinuin~existence of the Montreal Gazette (135.000 circulation) or the ~ o n t r c a l k a (195,000). r although some rescrvaitiori may be held i s to the length of life lelffor the Quebec Chronicle-Telegraph (5,400) and the Sherbrookc Record (8.900). both of which serve areas in which the relative importance of the ~nglish.languagehas declined heavily in recent decades. Quebec, Ontario and New Bmnswick being the only provinces in whicb large linguistic minorities are to be found, they are, also, the only provinces in which dailv newsoawrs are nublished in the resoective minority languages. The krench-&aking m'inorities living outsihe the ~ o o - ~ i n c t o n limits are served only by weeklies, of which the circulation is seldom more than 2WO-3.000 conies. The moot impdnant French-language papex in the West is "La Libert6 et le Patriote", published at SL Booifam as the consolidation of two newspavers founded at the same time as Lc Droit; its dmulatiop of some 8,000 Eopies is sevem~times the average for papers ofthis nahucknd reflects the strength of the French-speaking population in tbis particular a m Further west, it is an interesting commentary on the ethno-linguistic makeup of the population of the Prairies that "La Surviwna"of Edmonton r

.

..

-.

67

has f e w than 2,540 subscribers while the "Ulrrainian News", published in the saw citv. can sell 9.000 m i e s weeklv. ' At the otl;;r end o l the cou&, the D ~ S of O Ysrmuth is w e d by "LC Petit C w W ; foaadrd is 1937, this bat 1circulatioo djwst ueder 2,000. Nova k t i a would, however, lm wit& t k friapas ofthe &a sDnwl by L'Evasgehe, so thc waklim arc not quib ax import& here as they would be in h Hemem Provitacs The ~ W of Caaada B is taken oaly every On yenrs them eaa b considoraBk cbrny wi4hin such a pcriod. K med wltB h e t i a n , the circulation 6gum for the m k x i t y newspapers auy. fmiA a w& interim pi&as to the prod thar Ia-8~ s o u p in cay s+wiPed arm.

The Fatal Hemorrhage From the very founding of the colony along the St. Lamenee, the promise of a better material life has sehed to-draw French-Canadians southward. In 1682, William Penn published a cirsular inviting Canadians to move down to Pennsylvania; dunhg the 19th Century his example was followed bv the entrcoknews of ~ e w Eneland. - . who saunht de&ndable . , hut labor ;or their new mills. . inexpen?;ive Although the great exodus of French-Canadians toward the Umied States war one of &e decisive factors contrihutinn to the suoremaw of the English language in Canada, the importance andextent of ihis movement are seldom fully appreciated. The figures, however, are to be found in the Census of the ~ n i i e dStates and in the immipration reDorts of that country. The 1900 Census classed 851,WO redients of ihe United States & being of French-Canadian origin (a figure which included only immigrants and the children of immigrants; subsequent generations are not identified). As the total number of persons shown by the 1901 Census of Canada as being of French origin was only 1,649.W. it is clear that the southward migration of the 1% Cmtury had affected well over one-third of the dexendants of the original F m c h colonists. At the beginning of this century, the wert of Canada was still relatively empty. Within what are now the thw Prairie Provinces, the 1901 Census found only 415.W rersons, of whom 23.030 were of F ~ n c origin. h w h a i wouid have bappened if evcnbalf of the southward migration of ~uebec'ssurplus population bad been d i v e d into the Canadian West, as Archbishop Tach6 and o t h m med so hard to effect? To what language from Eastern Eurooc have assimilated if thcv had would the come into provinces with French-speaking majorities and French-Laaguage schpol systems? Would we now have a French-speaking countty extending from the Bay of Fundy to the Peace River. surrounded by a Uniled Stalss that would include Bhtish Columbia. Southern Ontario and the Atlantic PrOvinccs?

-

newcomers

'

I

1

This is a fasdnating topic for speculation, but the fact remains that the French-Canadiins did NOT go west io any numbers, preferring work at svadv warn in New W a n d and will towns to the hardshim-of homesvadiog on the Prairies. & dcdrionr made by these hundreds of thousands of indinduals doomed the French tanguagc in Western Canada. Migration across the border w& c h i r ~ ynorthwsrd dwriug t k flnt three-quartcn of a m t u t y afm I'F60. By 1833, t k W h w s r d WOW had barely reached ow thousand p~sonaaanuatly asd 8be real Rood rhd not develop untid nftcr the cud ofthe U.S. Civil War.The geak war rrronled k 3880-1982, w h a tot.l of 3 2 4 m Caauliaar m e d the United Stern daring tko thw-year p h d , and V.S. C5nsus d lOPO reper(td 980,p m o s who kad beoa Lorn h Ca&. Of the Cmadian-bm livhg ia the U.S. in 1990, jwt under oapthird we& h w n aa being ef F ~ n c hwiM. At firs4 -e, this woukl eonwy the imnrersion th@ M a i d o n k net rtlec(ed the &al h t a ~ e in e Ceaada aim= tiose ~ V I W ha; h n of a b u the ssrar nix sr tho~a.-enmi& However, it s h d be eeasidmd t h i Fm~&-C.nadisr,o n d g ~ &wbtraet from the irrrplecrabk s&, while nntny ofthe ~ F n r c wb e merely t k ehildmn d momor-lao m n t inm@a& w h hsd use& &sa& an a siopovu point e n Lhs way fmm E l s o p to t k U d e d Smaes: h i s t w i d y , C a d hen m a i d 0niy abwi Mf ihr kniwas8s who hnve la&d at her

Numbfx of Frcach-d d CBiI$ren d F d - C ia the LFUni(sd WS, Camswe8 d 2900-1990 U.S. c e m

.

1MO 1910 I920 1930 1940 19.50

wm 95,000

B5BM 3%000 371,800

n3.m 23%,ObX)

*

4s,m 563.W 56¶,Lk3Q 135,000

B~IPDO

sac='

Evimg

Tohd SSlpoo

M.000 8W.W

1,106,000 9fg,800 7S,W

tab*. It was in I900 that tks &--ration reach-Camdwkliviag in Uu United States nschsd a maximom: a ucomiaq peak was rccor&A inl930. ihe 1931 C a m s &wed 55,&%3

&~&horiei..*o~borob

in the United States but who had moved up t o b a d a . Thus, the net loss to French Canada was far smaller in I930 than it had been thirty years earlier. even in terms of absolute numbers: as a oronortion of the total Frencl;-Canadiah population, the southward migration of this century has b n n far lsss imwrtant than that of the ~ 1 ~ 1 9 decades. 00 As noted p&iously, there is no 6gkavailable from the U.S. Census to show the origin of persons born in the United States of nativ&orn parents. However, a guess based on the figure of the above table would o l a a the omsent French-Canadian-orimn oo~ulationof the United States at somewl;erc in the vicinity of 2500,LXk p&ons, or more than double the number of those ot'french origin living in Canada outside Quebec Rovince. How does it h a ~ a nthat those who went southward s u m to have entered into the maiGream of the language group they found there,.while those who moved to other provinces of Canada have. to some extent at least. tended to remain aoart? o n e clue may be fiund in the census 6gures. Of those living in the United States at the time ofthe 1930 Census, over 80%were found in urban areas. The 1931 Census of Canada. however, rsoorted that less than 40% of those of French origin outside Quebec we; living in u r b n areas. The two groups, those who went westward and those who migrated to the United States. bave, therefore+ developd under wm~lctclydiRerent circumstances. The former have, t o a l a r k extent, remained close to the land and, by living in isolated communities, have been able to prracm their language through two or three generations; they w m greatly aided by the f a a that they bad c l e r ~of their own language group who militantly encouraged their resistance t o assimilation. Those who went south, however, entered into established towns where the" had dsilv contact in the streets and at the mill with their E n-d i s k spiaking fell&sitircns. For them, English was the language of advancemen1 and their children were quick to learn it. Their bishops, also, had an announced policy of encouraging the use of English in the churches and in the parochial schools. New England received the bulk of the French-Canadian immigration and Professor Theriault. of Dartmouth University. has made a detailed study of the French-origin group which constitutes half the population of Nashua, New Hampshire. He distinguishes three stages in the development of this group.' From 1870 to 1910. there was a wriod ofvigorous n o w h as newcomers l ~reich-Canadiioparishes were established poured in from ~ u e b e c Several and built their own schools, hospitals, orphanage and social dubs. French was the dominant language and English was spoken only as a m n d tongue, G l o w . F. Thrriaulr: Chsptv conuibulcd ur "CPrUdii Duarkm" (1960).

..

71

.

From 1910 to 1930, the m u d generation continued the work of their fathers but with considerably less spirit of being French-Cansdians and considerably more of King bilingual Americans. The parish priests, also, had ceased to aggressively promote the French language. Fro9 I930 onwards, assimilation quickened as the first and s a n d generations died off. The tbird and fourth generation Franco-Americans were aware of their origin but saw no purposs in retaining a language that has no official status and very little economic value in the country in which they are now permanently settled. The Church, too, had begun to actively discourage theuse of Frenchandnow appars to be only onestep away from complete abolition of French-language "national parishes" and their achools. Today, there is no language problem in New England. Assimilation has been almost wmpleie although, as R o f w o r Theriault emphasizes, this has not led to any siguikant loss of their Catholic religion by those who now speak only Engliih. It would be interesting to see a similar case-study published on the Fmch-origin residents of Northern New York State, an area where there has always been close contact with Quebec Province. In PlaUsburgh, for example.which is only twenty miles south of the border and well within the range of French-language radio stations at Montreal, the church built as "SaintPiem" in 1891 has now become "St Peter's"; sennous in French were discontinued as far hack as 1946, when the parish priest found, with regret, that none of the younger generation could understand the language of their grandfathers. Although there is a parochial school, the only language of instruction is English. The linguistic fate of the 2,500,000 Franco-Americans tends to undermine the argument of those who shll hopefully claim that French-speaking minorities will be able to sunive indeliuitcly in those parts of Canada lying outside the Soo-Moncton limits.

The Atlantic Region Although there had been Viking scttlemcnts in Newfoundland some six hundred years earlier, p m n m n t wcuption of what is now the Atlantic Rcmon of Canada data only from the bcdnninz of the 17th Ccntury, when demographic, technologicalcalandpolitica~factomW l y combined make wlonizatiog possible. The masts from Labrador down to New Endand had, of sours+ become very familiar to the seafaring natioos of w-&ern Europe Lhrough the voyages of their 5hing hoau: by the middle of the 16th Century, m r d s show that there m i a t bt bc many aa 4M)vsscls at a time on the Grand Banks. cominn " f r o i Endand. - .~rancc.Portunal " and Snain. Almost without exception, however, the captains of these boats were concerned only with the catching of fish for the European market; to them. the North ~m;rican wntinent was merely a convenient series qf beaches on which to dry their catch and colonizetion was to be discouraged, since it might lead to desertions among their crews. Thus, although the ships of Henry W sailed around Newfoundland in 1497 and Jacques Cartier explored the St. Lawrence some forty years later, the first permanent settlement dates only from 1605, when Champlain foundCd Port Royal, in wbat is now Nova Scotia; it is interesting to note, in view of the subwnent identification of "French" and "Catholic" in North America, that hsc earliest French settlers were often Huguenotg St. John's (Newfo~~~dland) was founded in 1613 and Boston in 1630; for the nextcentury, the history of the wlonis along the Atlantic wast wag to be one of almost wostant wnEict, with French land power pitted against British wntrol of the sea. French strength reached its peak during the last decade of the 17th C e n t w when. followinn the r e n u k of Phiw' attack on Ouebec. French-led ~ b e n a k sravaged the Maine'wast to far south a; ~euiebunlrand d'ltcrville wrought havoc on Newfonndland; for a brief period, the outnumbered defenders of New France hdd tb mndancy. 73

.~~~~~

-

However. Port Roval was cantured bv a British lincludinn - ~ - eNew England) updition in l j l 0 and, a s h e wars in ~ u r o & L dgone badly lor France,the Treaty of ULrreht (1713) reflsled the victories of Marlborounh by placing undu British control not only the entirety of Newfoundland bit, also, the territory rather loosely defined as "Acadia". F m c e was left with Cap Breton and Rince Edward Island and also retained a disputed possesion of what is now New Brunswick. There were prhaps 4,000 Acadiana in 1713, and Newfoundland's population of 3,500 included a few hundred 01French orimn, so the French had a slight numerical preponderance in the region as a whole. This advantage was increased when troops were sent from F r a n a to garrison the new fortress of Louisbourg. ~ founded ~ in ~1749. To offset French nowei in Cane Breton..Halifax was The original 2,544 immigrants brought by Governor Cornwallis were soon joined by fishermen and traders from New England and by settlers from Germany hut, at the outbreak of hostilities in 1%5. were stilinot numerous enough to deal with the potential threat of an uprising by the Acadians living around the Bay of Fundy. These latter wore, thuefore, loaded into transporls and removed from the combat zone, their farms k i n g made available to newcomers of British stock. After the fall of Louisbourg, in 1758, and the subsequent cession of the entire Atlantic renion to Britain bv the Treatv of Paris. most of the garrison and many oflhe civilian residents of cap Breton ind of Prince Edward Island returned to France. The French population ofthereeion was. thedore. very considerably reduced during the decade 175~1765: ~

~

~

~

Table 32 Population of French Origin & the Maritim=.hy sub-regions, 1755and 1765

Cap Breton Island Other Nova Scotia Prince Edward Island New Brunswick Total By 1765, the non-French population of Nova Scotia was about 10,000 while that of Newfoundland was just over 15.000. Those of French origin

-

l=.>

were, therefore, outnumbered five-to-two even before heavy immigration b e a n from New Endand alter the Revolutionarv War. The northern halt of New Brunswickis to be the subject of a separate chapter, since it was in this previously uninhabited area that most of the Acadians 6nallv relocated. In the south of New Brunswick and in the other three Atlantic Pronnces, the French language has never been 01 impomnce since 1765, a fact rccognned by even the Catholic Church in 1817 when Nova Scotia was made indecadent of the Diocese of Ouebsc and eiven its own bishop, of Irish origin. The present position of thi~rench-speaking population is shown by the following table. %

Table 33 Population of French Mother Tongue vs. Total Population, Atlantic Region, by Provinces, 1961 &ensus Tolal ~opulalioon

M.T. French

hlio

-

Newfoundland Prince Edward Island Nova Scotia Southern New Brunswick Atlantic Region

458.0 105,000 737,000 261.00

3.150 7,950 39,MX) 11.750

0.7% 7.6% 5.4% 4.5%

1,561,000

62,450

4.0%

Even the above figures inflate somewhat the true position of the French language in the Atlantic region, since many of those who are shown as being of French mother tongue now use English as the language of the home. Table 34 Number of Children (aged 0-9)of French Mother Tongue vs. Number of all Mother Tongues, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, Censuses of 1931-1961

All languages M. T. French FrcnchjTotal

129,000

133.00

175.000

210,

-,-

'

lanlca4 shows that the number of childrtn of French mother tongus has kcn steadily declining during the last UIlee dsa$es while children of English mother tongue were twice as numerom m 1961 as they had been in 1931. This is a sure sign that an ever-incm-ng number of adults of French origin, the family-6rming generation, llrc bdnging up their children in English; although many of thuc parents will, under Cen~usde~nitions, continue to be claaacd as "of French mother tongus", they cannot rcaUy bc wmidcrsd members of the F m c h - s p a h 8 community. At orsent. the future of the French l a n m g e in the Atlantic w i o n ?ppeamhardlypromising; Table 9 has shown that three-quarters of those of French ethnic origin have already been assi~nilatedand the few who still socak French an to be found chiefly in rural areas, where tbe mneral income and education level is not suih as to indicate that the minorities can compensate by quality what they lack in oumben. It is not surprising. therefore. that some of the Acadian erouos . who testified recently before the Royal Commission were using the term "extinction". Some comments on the ptatc of the French language in the various province follow:

Newfoundland Of we 3,150 persons of French mother tongue found in the province a t the time of the 1961 Census, almost 1,WO were on the mainland. As men outnumbered women by three-to-one among this group, they would appear to be chiefly transient labor from Quebec or New Brunswick, working on various projects in Labrador. Most of those on the idand were living - in a small area of the west coast, around StcphenviUe and St. Oeorges Bay. Some of these were fairly m n t arrivals from St. Piem and Miquelon but most were descendants from the Maadalen Islands of Acadiarls, induding.some who mimaled . . about 1850. The establishment of a U.S.A.F. base at Harmon was a fatal blow to the French language in this area. For the past twenty years, those employed at the base have had to work in English, while social contacts radiating from Harmon have comdetcly destrovrd the old isolation of the fishina villages which had preser;ed the older generation from anglicization. Elsewhere, there are only 614 persons who gave their mother tongue as French, induding 126 at St. John's, and the influence of the French language in Newfoundland would appear to be negligible.

Nova Seotia The French-speaking population of Nova SMtia reached a peak of bver 45.000 in the enrlv art of the uresent centurr but has suEered heaw losses through assimilitibn and is now back almost to its 1871 level. l'he distribution of this population is given by the following table. Table 35 Population of French Mother Tongue, specified sub-regions of NovaSEotia, Census of 1871 vs. Census of 1961 Actual number h each area

% of toralpop ularion of area

1871

1961

1871

1961

Yannouth & Dighy Richmond & lnverness 5 eastern counties Halifax Elsewhere

11,300 9.W 5,309

15.300 9,809 5,200

500

5.900

6,100

3.W

32% 26 5 2 3

35% 33 2 3 I

NOVA SCOTIA

32,800

39,600

a%%

5H%

At present, the most important concentration is thai found at the westernmost end of the orovinee: in recoenition of this. the Diocese of Yarmouth was split o i T f r k Halifax in 19G to give the Acadians of Nova Scotia a bishop of their own language. In Caw Breton, the last part of the ~ r o v i n ato Cali under British rule, those of French mother tongue are numerous in the rural counties of Richmond and Inverness hut are heavily outnumbered by the Englishspeaking population of the cities an the Island (Sydney, Glaee Bay, etc.) and their relative importance has decreased considerably as compared to that of a century ago. The increase in the French populatlan of Halifax is somewhat illusory. Although 5,857 persons reported that their mother tongue bad been Frencb, examination of the laoeunees sooken bv children indicates that iust over 90% of the younger French ethnics have adopted English as the language of the home. It would appear that any Acadian who moves to Halifax from a rural county is accepting almost automatic assimilation.

- - .

-

he Census shows that those who still Bpeak French me to be found only in rural arras where the general lrvcls of both income and education are below nvuape: in Dinbv. Richmond and l a v m s s Csuutics. the a m p in-c ol adult m i &*ss v than ~ s1.1~ in I%I,>S c0mparc4 to a urovincinl average of S3.203. Thm ia not, nesasarily, a cause and cffcc