Language

There is great linguistic diversity among newcomers to Canada, with the majority having a mother tongue other than one of Canada's official languages. According to the 2016 census, 72.5% of immigrants and refugees reported a mother tongue other than English and French, with 76.4% reporting knowing at least two languages.

Most newcomers have some knowledge of English or French; the latest census indicates that only 10.3% of recent immigrants and refugees have no knowledge of English or French (Statistics Canada, 2017f). Although newcomers may know some English or French, many have difficulty understanding complex medical issues or prefer to use their mother tongue when seeking treatment (Hansson et al., 2010; MHCC, 2016).

Nationwide, linguistic diversity is increasing as more Canadians report speaking a mother tongue other than English or French (Statistics Canada, 2017g). Over 200 mother tongue languages are spoken in Canada, and of those, 22 languages were spoken by populations of 100,000 or more in 2016 (Statistics Canada, 2017d).