Latin American Canadians

Latin American Canadians(French:Canadiens d'Amérique latine;Portuguese:Canadenses da América Latina;Spanish:Canadienses de América Latina), sometimes also referred to asSpanish Canadians, areCanadianswho are descendants of people from countries ofLatin America. The majority of Latin American Canadians aremultilingual, primarily speakingSpanish,Portuguese,FrenchandEnglish. Most are fluent in one or both of Canada's two official languages,EnglishandFrench. Spanish and Portuguese areRomance languagesand share similarities inmorphologyandsyntaxwith French.
Latin American Canadians have made distinguished contributions to Canada in all major fields, includingpolitics, themilitary,diplomacy,music,philosophy,sports,businessandeconomy, andscience.
The largest Latin American groups represented in Canada areMexican Canadians, Colombian Canadians and Salvadoran Canadians. The Latino population is mostly concentrated in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Ontario holds the largest Latin American population withTorontohaving the largest concentration (including the suburbs ofMississaugaandBrampton), as well as other cities such asLondon,Leamington,OttawaandKitchener-Waterloo. Quebec has the second-largest Latin American population withMontrealhaving the largest concentration.
Latin American Canadians make up one of the major groups designated as avisible minorityaccording toStatistics Canada.
Over 1 million (3% of Canadians) are of Latin American or Hispanic descent, according to 2023 Statistics Canada data estimates.
The majority of Latin American Canadians are recent immigrants who arrived in the late 20th century fromMexico,Colombia,El Salvador,Puerto Rico,Peruwith smaller communities fromChile,Venezuela,Brazil,Cuba,Guatemala, and elsewhere, with nearly all Latin American countries represented.Reasons for immigrating include Canada's better economic opportunities and politics or civil war andpolitical repressionin their native countries, as in the case ofCubansfleeing from theFidel Castrorevolution,Chileansescaping fromAugusto Pinochet's rule,Salvadoransfleeing from theSalvadoran Civil War,Peruviansescaping from theInternal conflict in Peru,Dominicansopposed to the regimes ofRafael TrujilloandJoaquin Balaguer,Mexicansescaping from theMexican Drug War,Colombiansfrom the violence in their country andVenezuelansopposed to the rule of theSocialist Unity Party.
As of the2021 Canadian Census, the largest Latin American communities are in thecensus metropolitan areasofToronto(396,459; 3.5%),Montreal(287,856; 3.2%),Vancouver(151,500; 2.0%),Calgary(134,395; 2.3%),Edmonton(121,960; 1.6%),Ottawa(90,620; 1.4%),andHamilton(30,605; 1.9%).The fastest growing are in the provinces ofAlberta,Manitoba, andNova Scotia.
Source:Canada 2021 CensusNational average: 1.6%
In 2002, 82% of those who reported Latin American origin said they had a strong sense of belonging to Canada. At the same time, 57% said that they had a strong sense of belonging to their ethnic or cultural group.
People with Latin American origins are also active in Canadian society. For example, 66% of Canadians of Latin American origin who were eligible to vote did so in the 2000 federal election.