# 1951 Canadian census

The 1951 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. The total population count was 14,009,429, representing a 21.8% increase over the 1941 census population count of 11,506,655. The 1951 census was the ninth comprehensive decennial census since Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1867.
The previous census was the Northwest Provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba 1946 census and the following census was the 1956 census – the first quinquennial, rather than decennial, nationwide census.
This was the first census to include Newfoundland, having joined Confederation only two years prior.
Canada's Statistics Act legislation does not permit the release of personal information until 92 years have elapsed. Detailed information from this census is not due for release until 2042.

## Population by province

| Province | 1951 census | 1941 census | Difference | % change |
| Newfoundland | 361,416 | Joined Confederation in 1949 | Joined Confederation in 1949 | Joined Confederation in 1949 |
| Prince Edward Island | 98,429 | 95,047 | 3,382 | 3.6% |
| Nova Scotia | 642,584 | 577,962 | 64,622 | 11.2% |
| New Brunswick | 515,697 | 457,401 | 58,296 | 12.7% |
| Quebec | 4,055,681 | 3,331,882 | 723,799 | 21.7% |
| Ontario | 4,597,542 | 3,787,655 | 809,887 | 21.4% |
| Manitoba | 776,541 | 729,744 | 46,797 | 6.4% |
| Saskatchewan | 831,728 | 895,992 | −64,264 | −7.2% |
| Alberta | 939,501 | 796,169 | 143,332 | 18.0% |
| British Columbia | 1,165,210 | 817,861 | 347,349 | 42.5% |
| Yukon Territory | 9,096 | 4,914 | 4,182 | 85.1% |
| Northwest Territories | 16,004 | 12,028 | 3,976 | 33.1% |
| Total | 14,009,429 | 11,506,655 | 2,502,774 | 21.8% |
Ontario added the largest number of new residents since the 1941 census, while British Columbia saw the highest growth rate among the provinces, becoming the first western province to reach one million inhabitants. Saskatchewan experienced a second consecutive decade of population decline, falling behind both Alberta and British Columbia in size.
Newfoundland, where the previous census was in 1945, recorded a 12.3% increase in population.

## Population by religion

| Denomination | Population | % of total |
| Roman Catholic | 6,069,496 | 43.3% |
| United Church | 2,867,271 | 20.5% |
| Anglican | 2,060,720 | 14.7% |
| Presbyterian | 781,747 | 5.6% |
| Baptist | 519,585 | 3.7% |
| Lutheran | 444,923 | 3.2% |
| Jewish | 204,836 | 1.5% |
| Ukrainian (Greek) Catholic | 190,831 | 1.4% |
| Greek Orthodox | 172,271 | 1.2% |
| Mennonite | 125,938 | 0.9% |
| Pentecostal | 95,131 | 0.7% |
| Salvation Army | 70,275 | 0.5% |
| Evangelical | 50,900 | 0.4% |
| Jehovah's Witnesses | 34,596 | 0.2% |
| Mormon | 32,888 | 0.2% |
| No religion | 59,679 | 0.4% |
| Other/not recorded | 260,625 | 1.9% |

## Population by Ethnicity

| Ethnicity | Population | % of total |
| French | 4,319,167 | 30.83% |
| English | 3,630,344 | 25.91% |
| Scottish | 1,547,470 | 11.05% |
| Irish | 1,439,635 | 10.28% |
| German | 619,995 | 4.43% |
| Ukrainian | 395,043 | 2.82% |
| Dutch | 264,267 | 1.89% |
| Polish | 219,846 | 1.57% |
| Jewish | 181,670 | 1.30% |
| Indigenous | 165,607 | 1.18% |
| Italian | 152,245 | 1.09% |
| Norwegian | 119,266 | 0.85% |
| Swedish | 97,780 | 0.70% |
| Other British Isles | 92,236 | 0.66% |
| Russian | 91,279 | 0.65% |
| Czech and Slovak | 63,959 | 0.46% |
| Hungarian | 60,460 | 0.43% |
| Finnish | 43,745 | 0.31% |
| Danish | 42,671 | 0.30% |
| Belgian | 35,148 | 0.25% |
| Chinese | 32,528 | 0.23% |
| Austrian | 32,231 | 0.23% |
| Romanian | 23,601 | 0.17% |
| Icelandic | 23,307 | 0.17% |
| Japanese | 21,663 | 0.15% |
| Yugoslav | 21,404 | 0.15% |
| African | 18,020 | 0.13% |
| Lithuanian | 16,224 | 0.12% |
| Greek | 13,966 | 0.10% |
| Syrian | 12,301 | 0.09% |
| Estonian | 9,818 | 0.07% |
| Latvian | 9,214 | 0.07% |
| South Asian | 2,148 | 0.02% |
| Other and Not Stated | 191,171 | 1.36% |