Editing French language in Canada (section)

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{{about|the historical and sociological aspects of the French language in Canada|the variety of the French language in Canada|Canadian French}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Use Canadian English|date = March 2019}}
[[File:Territories using French as a Primary and Secondary Language in Canada.svg|thumb|French language distribution in Canada.
{{legend|#000080|Regions where French is an official language (Quebec and New Brunswick)}}
{{legend|#b2b2f1|Regions where French is an official language only at the federal level (rest of Canada)}}]]
[[Canadian French|French]] is the mother tongue of approximately 10&nbsp;million Canadians (22 percent of the Canadian population, second to English at 56 percent) according to the 2021 Canadian Census.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=01&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=canada&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Language&TABID=1|title=Census Profile, 2021 Census – Canada [Country] and Canada [Country]|last=Canada|first=Government of Canada, Statistics|website=www12.statcan.gc.ca|language=en|access-date=2017-10-03}}</ref> Most Canadian native speakers of French live in [[Quebec]], the only province where French is the majority and the sole official language.<ref>[http://www.olf.gouv.qc.ca/english/charter/index.html OLF] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060822062739/http://www.olf.gouv.qc.ca/english/charter/index.html |date=22 August 2021 }}</ref> Of Quebec's people, 85 percent are native [[French language|francophone]]s and 95 percent speak French as their first or second language.<ref name=statcan2016qc>{{Cite web|url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=24&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=quebec&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Language&TABID=1|title=Census Profile, 2016 Census|date=2 August 2017|website=Statistics Canada|access-date=3 October 2017}}</ref>

About one million native francophones live in other provinces, forming a sizeable minority in [[New Brunswick]], which is officially bilingual; about a third of New Brunswick's people are francophones. There are also large French-speaking communities in [[Manitoba]] and [[Ontario]],<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-555/T402-eng.cfm?Lang=E&T=402&GH=4&SC=1&S=99&O=A|title=Population by language spoken most often at home and age groups, 2006 counts, for Canada, provinces and territories – 20% sample data|website=www12.statcan.gc.ca|language=en|access-date=2019-03-19}}</ref> and smaller communities (about 1 to 2 percent of the population) in [[Alberta]], [[Nova Scotia]], [[Prince Edward Island]], and [[Saskatchewan]].<ref name=":0" /> Many of these communities are supported by French-language institutions. In 2016, 29.8 percent of Canadians reported being able to conduct a conversation in French.

By the 1969 ''[[Official Languages Act (Canada)|Official Languages Act]]'', both English and French are recognized as official languages in Canada and granted equal status by the Canadian government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/O-3.01/page-1.html|title=Official Languages Act – 1985, c. 31 (4th Supp.)|work=Act current to July 11th, 2010|publisher=Department of Justice|access-date=15 August 2010|archive-date=5 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110105194649/http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/O-3.01/page-1.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> While French, with no specification as to dialect or variety, has the status of one of Canada's two official languages at the [[Government of Canada|federal government level]], English is the native language of most Canadians outside Quebec. The federal government provides services and operates in both languages.

The provincial governments of Ontario, New Brunswick, and Manitoba are required to provide services in French where provision is justified by the number of francophones. French is also an official language of all three Canadian territories: the [[Northwest Territories]], [[Nunavut]], and [[Yukon]]. Regardless of the local status of French or English, the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]] requires all provinces and territories to provide primary and secondary education to their official-language minorities.