Statistics Canada has just released data from the 2021 census on the languages spoken in the country. As demographers expected, the federal agency reports a decline in French in Quebec and the rest of Canada. But the extent of the slide surprises many. In fact, all the indicators are red or almost. That Montreal and its region are becoming anglicized is not just an impression, but an undeniable reality. And the trend even seems to be accelerating.
Across Canada, the decline of French continues inexorably. Between 2016 and 2021, the number of Canadians whose first official language spoken is French rose from 22.2% to 21.4%. In the long time of demographic changes, this is considerable.
The case of Ontario is eloquent: in five years, the percentage of the population for whom French is the first language spoken has contracted, from 4.1% to 3.8%. Even more troubling, the percentage of those who speak predominantly French at home has slipped from 2.1% in 2016 to 1.8% in 2021. Once a sizable minority, Franco-Ontarians are becoming a footnote at the bottom of the page.
In Quebec, the percentage of the population speaking French at home has gone from 79% to 77.5% in five years. This is partly explained by the arrival of immigrants whose mother tongue is neither French nor English and who continue to speak their language at home. That’s a partial explanation, though. Because while French is regressing, English is progressing despite the push of third languages.
Other indicators confirm that English is gaining ground. Thus, in the greater Montreal area, the number of English speakers who do not know French increased by 21% between 2016 and 2021; they represent 8.1% of the population, a sign that more and more Montrealers are choosing to live only in English. Meanwhile, the percentage of Francophones who know English has increased throughout Quebec.
Other data are interesting, but not particularly heartening.
In Quebec, immigrants with a mother tongue other than their mother tongue speak predominantly French at home, a little over 20% compared to 15.4% for English. In the rest of Canada, a negligible percentage of them opt for French. This is much better than in New Brunswick, where only 2.8% of immigrants opt for French compared to nearly 34% for English: Acadians are threatened.
However, even if, in Quebec, more allophone immigrants choose to speak French at home rather than English, it is English that is the most attractive language. The English-speaking minority, which forms less than 20% of the population, rallies more than 43% of immigrants who choose to speak one of the official languages at home. The decline of French is thus programmed.
Statistics Canada also confirms that Ottawa, which has the upper hand on non-permanent immigration — temporary workers and foreign students — contributes to anglicizing Quebec since the majority of them do not speak French.
Unfortunately, there is no miracle solution to the decline of French in the country. Ottawa pursues a post-national policy of bloated immigration which weakens French everywhere in Canada. The Quebec government must take control of its temporary immigration, which the Trudeau government refuses. However, this will not be enough, since it is also a question of increasing the power of attraction of French.
Quebec is part of Canada, where life is good in English and where French is losing the fight. And as Verlaine said so well, to quote Gainsbourg, long sobs can’t change anything.