Is Dorval doing something special to teach residents French and English?
Although the population of Dorval has increased by only 70 people since 2006, the number of residents who speak neither official language has dropped by more than a quarter. More than 70% of the population now speak both English and French.
This information can be gleaned from Statistics Canada’s breakdown of the language data from the 2011 census, which was released on Friday, October 26.
There are 4,120 people who have mother-tongues other than English or French in the borough, yet only 190 speak neither English nor French, a decrease of 25.5%.
The percentage of residents who speak both official languages has also increased, by 2.6%, even though only 185 Francophones and bilingual people who speak French moved into the territory since 2006.
More than 3,500 people speak only English in the borough, and 1,505 people speak only French, but both figures have dropped since the last census, by 4.2 and 1.3% respectively.
Overall, the number of Anglophones has dropped by 300 people, although the borough still has official bilingual status, with 55% of the district claiming English or bilingual with English as a mother-tongue.
Outline of Statistics Used:
Total Population of Dorval in 2006: 17,880
Total Population of Dorval in 2011: 17,950
Mother-tongue
French and bilingual with French: 5,640 (31%)—increased by 185 people since 2006
English and bilingual with English: 9,995 (55%)—decreased by 300 people since 2006
Other and multi-lingual: 4,120 (23%)—increased by 35 people since 2006
Knowledge of Language
English only: 3,680 (21%) –dropped by 4.2% since 2006
French only: 1,505 (.08%)—dropped by 1.3% since 2006
English and French: 12,580 (70%)—increased by 2.6% since 2006
Neither English nor French: 190 (.01%)—decreased by 25.5% since 2006
Note: A version of this article appeared on page 13 of the West Island edition of the Suburban on Wednesday, November 14, 2012.
