# Dutch Canadians

Dutch Canadians (Dutch: Nederlandse Canadezen) are Canadians with full or partial Dutch ancestry. According to the Canada 2006 Census, there were 1,035,965 Canadians of Dutch descent, including those of full or partial ancestry. This increased to 1,111,655 or about 4.2% of the entire population of Canada in 2016.

## History

The first Dutch people to come to Canada were Dutch Americans among the United Empire Loyalists. The largest wave was in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century when large numbers of Dutch helped settle the Canadian west. During this period significant numbers also settled in major cities like Toronto. While interrupted by the First World War this migration returned in the 1920s, but again halted during the Great Depression and Second World War.
After World War II, a large number of Dutch immigrants moved to Canada, including a number of war brides of the Canadian soldiers who liberated the Netherlands. There were officially 1,886 Dutch war brides to Canada, ranking second after British war brides. During the war, Canada had sheltered Crown Princess Juliana and her family. The annual Canadian Tulip Festival held in May commemorates her with a generous number of tulips coming from The Netherlands. Due to these close links Canada became a popular destination for Dutch immigrants. The Canadian government encouraged this, recruiting skilled workers. This post-war wave went mainly to urban centres such as Toronto, Ottawa, and Vancouver. With the economic recovery of the Netherlands in the post-war years immigration to Canada slowed.
While one of the largest minority groups in Canada, Dutch Canadians have tended to rapidly assimilate and there are relatively few Dutch Canadian organizations and media. One important institution is the Christian Reformed Church in North America, with most congregations found throughout Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario. The Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto, The King's University in Edmonton, and Redeemer University College in Ancaster, Ontario are associated with this Dutch Reformed/Calvinist denomination. Christian Schools International, the Christian Labour Association of Canada, and the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario are organizations with strong Dutch-Canadian roots. In his book To All Our Children: The Story of The Postwar Dutch Immigration to Canada, Albert VanderMey explains that in Edmonton, Dutch Canadian immigrants "also set up a credit union, a burial fund, three elementary Christian schools and one Christian high school, and a home for senior citizens."
Dutch Canadians, because of their shared cultural and religious heritage, tend to form tight-knit communities. This has led to an in-joke known as "Dutch bingo", where it is said that a Dutch Canadian is able to figure out his/her connection to another Dutch Canadian by asking questions about the other's last name, town of birth, church and the college they attended.

## Geographical distribution

Data from this section from Statistics Canada, 2021.

### Provinces & territories

| Province / Territory | Percent Dutch | Total Dutch |
| Alberta | 4.2% | 174,625 |
| British Columbia | 3.9% | 189,985 |
| Manitoba | 3.3% | 43,390 |
| New Brunswick | 1.8% | 13,310 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 0.4% | 1,830 |
| Northwest Territories | 2.3% | 940 |
| Nova Scotia | 2.9% | 27,375 |
| Nunavut | 0.5% | 185 |
| Ontario | 3.4% | 478,860 |
| Prince Edward Island | 3.0% | 4,465 |
| Quebec | 0.3% | 22,385 |
| Saskatchewan | 2.7% | 29,410 |
| Yukon | 4.6% | 1,825 |
| Canada — Total | 2.7% | 988,585 |

## Notable people
### Academia

* Parzival Copes, economist
* Sidney van den Bergh, astronomer
* Madeleine Bonsma-Fisher, physicist

### Arts and entertainment

* Earl W. Bascom, actor, painter, sculptor
* Neve Campbell, actress
* Nicole de Boer, actress
* Sarah de Leeuw, writer (Dutch descent)
* Kristen Hager, actress
* Ernest Hillen, journalist
* Kristin Kreuk, actress
* Cornelius Krieghoff, painter
* Sigmund Brouwer, author, public speaker, athlete. Both his mother and father immigrated to Alberta from Holland following World War II. He won the gold medal for racquetball (doubles) at the Canada Winter Games in 1983 at the age of 22.
* Robert Naylor, actor
* Michael Ondaatje, poet, novelist, editor and filmmaker
* Patricia Rozema, writer, director
* Sonja Smits, actress (Dutch descent)
* Cobie Smulders, actress
* Jessica Steen, actress
* Dorothy Stratten, model
* Aritha Van Herk, writer
* Laura Vandervoort, actress
* Jeon Somi, singer and songwriter
* Kevin Zegers, actor and model
* Martin Kouprie, chef, author, cheesemaker
* Issac Kragten (born 2002), actor

### Business

* William Cornelius Van Horne, president of CPR

### Farming

* Wiebo Ludwig

### Politics and civil service

* Michael Chong, Conservative MP, Wellington-Halton Hills
* Roméo Dallaire, former Force Commander of UNAMIR peacekeeping force during the Rwandan genocide, former Liberal Senator, humanitarian
* Stephen de Boer, Canada's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland
* Harry de Jong, Abbotsford, British Columbia Social Credit MLA from 1986 to 1994
* Mike de Jong, Abbotsford, British Columbia Liberal MLA since 1994
* Simon De Jong, former federal Saskatchewan NDP MP
* Jacob De Witt, Member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada, Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
* Rick Dykstra, Conservative MP St. Catharines from 2006 to 2015 and Parliamentary Secretary
* Fred Eisenberger, former Ward Alderman and Mayor of Hamilton, Ontario
* John Gerretsen, former mayor of Kingston, Ontario, former Ontario MPP and provincial cabinet minister
* Samuel Holland, Royal Engineer and first Surveyor General of British North America
* Eiling Kramer, longest-serving member in the history of Saskatchewan's Legislative Assembly
* David Mathews, American Loyalist and former mayor of New York City during the American Revolution who settled in Nova Scotia and became a leading administrator.
* John Oostrom, first Dutch-born MP, Progressive Conservative for Willowdale
* Case Ootes, former city councillor in Toronto; served as deputy mayor under Mayor Mel Lastman and represents one of the two Toronto—Danforth wards
* Maximilien Polak, Quebec Liberal MNA for Saint-Anne from 1981 to 1989
* Egerton Ryerson, Methodist minister, public education advocate, Chief Superintendent of Education for Upper Canada
* Peter Stoffer, NDP MP Sackville-Eastern Shore from 1997 to 2015
* Leah Taylor Roy, Liberal MP Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill since 2019
* Jacob Van Buskirk, Representative for Shelburne County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1805 to 1818
* John van Dongen, Abbotsford, British Columbia Liberal MLA from 1995 to 2013
* Anthony Van Egmond, Member of the Reform Movement in Upper Canada, a leader of the rebels in the Upper Canada Rebellion
* Dave Van Kesteren, Conservative MP, Chatham-Kent-Leamington
* Bill Vander Zalm, 28th Premier of British Columbia
* Adam Swart Vedder, Westminster-Chilliwhack, British Columbia MLA from 1897 to 1898
* Elizabeth Witmer, former Progressive Conservative MPP, Ontario cabinet minister and Chair of Workplace Safety & Insurance Board of Ontario

### Sports

* Earl W. Bascom, rodeo pioneer, first rodeo champion inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, "father of modern rodeo"
* Kyle Bekker, soccer player
* Ted-Jan Bloemen, Olympic speed skater, born in the Netherlands with a Canadian-born father
* Jeff Beukeboom, retired NHL ice hockey player
* Jay Bouwmeester, former NHL ice hockey player
* Troy Brouwer, former NHL ice hockey player
* Petra Burka, Olympic figure skater, Dutch born
* Jason de Vos, retired professional soccer player
* Greg de Vries, former NHL ice hockey player
* Karl Dykhuis, ice hockey player; first cousin of Mark Brodwin, astrophysicist
* Dan Hamhuis, former NHL ice hockey player
* Harry Geris, wrestler
* Bill Hogaboam, retired NHL player for the Minnesota North Stars and Detroit Red Wings
* Ferdi Kadıoğlu, soccer player
* Slater Koekkoek, NHL player for the Edmonton Oilers
* Trevor Linden, retired ice hockey player and former General Manager in the NHL for the Vancouver Canucks
* Dwight Lodeweges, footballer, manager
* George Momberg, professional wrestler known by stage name "Killer Karl Krupp"
* Matt Murray, NHL goaltender for the Toronto Maple Leafs
* Jake Muzzin, defenseman for the Toronto Maple Leafs
* Joe Nieuwendyk, former ice hockey player in the NHL, Hockey Hall of Fame member and former General Manager of the Dallas Stars
* Beorn Nijenhuis, speed skater, who represents the Netherlands at the 2006 Winter Olympics
* Pete Peeters, former NHL ice hockey player
* Paul Postma, ice hockey player
* Daniel Sprong, ice hockey player in the NHL for the Seattle Kraken
* Eric Staal, ice hockey player in the NHL for the Florida Panthers
* Jared Staal, ice hockey player formerly in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Charlotte Checkers
* Jordan Staal, ice hockey player in the NHL for the Carolina Hurricanes
* Marc Staal, ice hockey player in the NHL for the Florida Panthers
* Evert van Benthem, speed skater, won the Elfstedentocht in 1985 and 1986
* Wayne Van Dorp, former ice hockey player in the NHL
* Debbie Van Kiekebelt, track and field athlete
* Adam van Koeverden, Olympic gold medallist in K-1 500 m; his last name relates him to the Dutch city of Coevorden
* Lauren van Oosten, swimmer
* John van 't Schip, footballer, manager currently serving Greece national football team
* Ryan VandenBussche, former ice hockey player in the NHL
* Kelly VanderBeek, alpine skier
* David Van der Gulik, former ice hockey player in the NHL
* Mike Vanderjagt, most accurate kicker in NFL history; played for the Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys
* Jim Vandermeer, ice hockey player in the NHL
* Pete Vandermeer, former ice hockey player
* Pat Verbeek, former ice hockey player in the NHL
* Tonya Verbeek, Sport wrestler, three time Olympic medallist
* Kris Versteeg, retired NHL ice hockey player for the Chicago Blackhawks
* Steve Yzerman, retired NHL player for the Detroit Red Wings
* Marcel De Jong