New data highlights Steinbach diversity

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This article was published 03/08/2017 (2456 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Another round of 2016 national census findings give Steinbach residents a glimpse into their city’s diversifying linguistic and familial landscapes.

Released on Wednesday, the data summarize census responses on families, households, marital status, and language.

As in 2011, Steinbach’s average household size was 2.6, slightly above the 2016 national average of 2.4. In the city’s 6,025 private households, two-person living arrangements were the most common (2,120), followed by solo habitation (1,530). Between 2011 and 2016, Steinbach gained 305 single-detached houses, for a new total of 3,355, or 56 percent of the city’s total occupied private dwellings.

There were 515 lone-parent families in Steinbach in 2016, up from 420 in 2011. Women remain far more likely than men to be lone parents, helming 83 percent of this family type in the last two census periods. Large families continue to increase, as 585 census families have five or more members, up from 450 in 2011.

While 1,975 Steinbach couples had at least one child, they were nearly matched by couples with no children, who totalled 1,840. This ratio has remained relatively consistent since 2011.

Just over 7,200 people are married (up from 6,425 in 2011), while 585 live in a common-law relationship (an increase from 440 in 2011). Just over 3,000 Steinbach residents over age 14 have never married, while 305 were separated and 475 were divorced, up from 235 and 410, respectively, in 2011. Far more Steinbach women (660) than men (125) are widowed, a trend witnessed in 2011’s data as well.

Statistics Canada also offered up figures on the official and non-official languages spoken in Steinbach homes. When it comes to mother tongues—defined as the first childhood language still retained—34 percent of Steinbach respondents said theirs was a language other than French or English, down slightly from 36 percent in 2011.

German was by far the most common non-official mother tongue, selected by just over 3,500 respondents—an impressive increase from 1,210 in 2011. The city’s Filipino community, too, is growing, as 745 respondents said their mother tongue was Tagalog, more than double 2011’s total of 370. French was the first language for 290 people, up from 235 in 2011, while Russian was the mother tongue of 240 residents (more than doubling 2011’s 105). Ukrainian came first for 115 respondents, pushing it slightly ahead of Spanish (100).

German (955) and Tagalog (440) were the most common non-official languages actively spoken in Steinbach homes.

While 200 respondents spoke neither French nor English well enough to conduct a conversation, 685 were bilingual enough to converse in either official language.

Further data sets from the 2016 census will be released in September, October, and November.