Census Divisions of Canada - Census Divisions

Census Divisions

See also: List of census divisions of Canada by population

Canada's second-level geographic units are called "census divisions". In terms of size, they generally lie between the top-level administrative divisions of the province and territory and third-level administrative divisions such as sections, townships and ranges. Census divisions are divided into census subdivisions (see section below).

Nature of Canada's census divisions by province or territory

Province/Territory	Nature of census divisions
Alberta Manitoba Saskatchewan	Census divisions consist of groups of municipalities such as cities, municipal districts, and rural municipalities. Each census division is numbered.
British Columbia	Census divisions correspond with regional districts or municipalities.
New Brunswick Nova Scotia Prince Edward Island	Census divisions correspond with counties.
Newfoundland and Labrador	Census divisions are delineated without reference to administrative or other forms of division and are numbered.
Northwest Territories	Census divisions do not correspond with the administrative regions of the Northwest Territories.
Nunavut	Census divisions correspond with the administrative regions of Nunavut.
Ontario	Census divisions consist of "upper-tier" municipalities (counties, districts, regional municipalities, single-tier cities).
Quebec	Census divisions mostly correspond to regional county municipalities or equivalent territories.
Yukon	A territory treated as a single census division.

In most cases, a census division corresponds to a single unit of the appropriate type listed above. However, in a few cases, Statistics Canada groups two or more units into a single statistical division:

• In Ontario, Haldimand County and Norfolk County are grouped as a single census division, as are Brant and Brantford.
• In Quebec, 93 of 98 census divisions correspond precisely to the territory of one regional county municipality (with the addition of Indian reserves, which do not legally belong to RCMs) or a "territory equivalent to an RCM" (which usually corresponds to a single independent city). However, there are five census divisions consisting of two or three RCMs or equivalent territories each. See List of census divisions of Quebec.

In almost all such cases, the division in question was formerly a single unit of the standard type, which was divided into multiple units by its province after the Canada 2001 Census.