Contained within the 3rd Edition (1957) of the Atlas of Canada is a plate that shows the distribution of population in what is now Canada circa 1851, 1871, 1901, 1921 and 1941. The five maps display the boundaries of the various colonies, provinces and territories for each date. Also shown on these five maps are the locations of principal cities and settlements. These places are shown on all of the maps for reference purposes even though they may not have been in existence in the earlier years. Each map is accompanied by a pie chart providing the percentage distribution of Canadian population by province and territory corresponding to the date the map is based on. It should be noted that the pie chart entitled Percentage Distribution of Total Population, 1851, refers to the whole of what was then British North America. The name Canada in this chart refers to the province of Canada which entered confederation in 1867 as Ontario and Quebec. The other pie charts, however, show only percentage distribution of population in what was Canada at the date indicated. Three additional graphs are included on this plate and show changes in the distribution of the population of Canada from 1867 to 1951, changes in the percentage distribution of the population of Canada by provinces and territories from 1867 to 1951 and elements in the growth of the population of Canada for each ten-year period from 1891 to 1951.

It is presumed that the first humans migrated from Siberia to North America approximately twelve thousand years ago, where they then moved southwards to warmer lands. It was not until many centuries later that humans returned to the north and began to settle regions that are now part of Canada. Despite a few short-lived Viking settlements on Newfoundland around the turn of the first millennium CE, the Italian explorer Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot), became the first European to explore the coast of North America in the late 1400s. The French and British crowns both made claims to areas of Canada throughout the sixteenth century, but real colonization and settlement did not begin until the early seventeenth century. Over the next 150 years, France and Britain competed to take control of the booming fur and fishing trade, and to expand their overseas empires. In the Seven Year's War, Britain eventually defeated the French colonists in North America, through superior numbers and a stronger agriculture resources in the southern colonies, and the outcome of the war saw France cede practically all of it's colonies in North America to the British.

Increased migration and declining native populations

The early 1800s saw a large influx of migrants into Canada, with the Irish Potato Famine bringing the first wave of mass-migration to the country, with further migration coming from Scandinavia and Northern Europe. It is estimated that the region received just shy of one million migrants from the British Isles alone, between 1815 and 1850, which helped the population grow to 2.5 million in the mid-1800s and 5.5 million in 1900. It is also estimated that infectious diseases killed around 25 to 33 percent of all Europeans who migrated to Canada before 1891, and around a third of the Canadian population is estimated to have emigrated southwards to the United States in the 1871-1896 period. From the time of European colonization until the mid-nineteenth century, the native population of Canada dropped from roughly 500,000 (some estimates put it as high as two million) to just over 100,000; this was due to a mixture of disease, starvation and warfare, instigated by European migration to the region. The native population was generally segregated and oppressed until the second half of the 1900s; Native Canadians were given the vote in 1960, and, despite their complicated and difficult history, the Canadian government has made significant progress in trying to include indigenous cultures in the country's national identity in recent years. As of 2020, Indigenous Canadians make up more than five percent of the total Canadian population, and a higher birth rate means that this share of the population is expected to grow in the coming decades.

Independence and modern Canada

Canadian independence was finally acknowledged in 1931 by the Statute of Westminster, putting it on equal terms with the United Kingdom within the Commonwealth; virtually granting independence and sovereignty until the Canada Act of 1982 formalized it. Over the past century, Canada has had a relatively stable political system and economy (although it was hit particularly badly by the Wall Street Crash of 1929). Canada entered the First World War with Britain, and as an independent Allied Power in the Second World War; Canadian forces played pivotal roles in a number of campaigns, notably Canada's Hundred Days in WWI, and the country lost more than 100,000 men across both conflicts. The economy boomed in the aftermath of the Second World War, and a stream of socially democratic programs such as universal health care and the Canadian pension plan were introduced, which contributed to a rise in the standard of living. The post war period also saw various territories deciding to join Canada, with Newfoundland joining in 1949, and Nunavut in 1999. Today Canada is among the most highly ranked in countries in terms of civil liberties, quality of life and economic growth. It promotes and welcomes immigrants from all over the world and, as a result, it has one of the most ethnically diverse and multicultural populations of any country in the world. As of 2020, Canada's population stands at around 38 million people, and continues to grow due to high migration levels and life expectancy, and a steady birth rate.

Contained within the 3rd Edition (1957) of the Atlas of Canada is a plate that shows the distribution of population in what is now Canada circa 1851, 1871, 1901, 1921 and 1941. The five maps display the boundaries of the various colonies, provinces and territories for each date. Also shown on these five maps are the locations of principal cities and settlements. These places are shown on all of the maps for reference purposes even though they may not have been in existence in the earlier years. Each map is accompanied by a pie chart providing the percentage distribution of Canadian population by province and territory corresponding to the date the map is based on. It should be noted that the pie chart entitled Percentage Distribution of Total Population, 1851, refers to the whole of what was then British North America. The name Canada in this chart refers to the province of Canada which entered confederation in 1867 as Ontario and Quebec. The other pie charts, however, show only percentage distribution of population in what was Canada at the date indicated. Three additional graphs are included on this plate and show changes in the distribution of the population of Canada from 1867 to 1951, changes in the percentage distribution of the population of Canada by provinces and territories from 1867 to 1951 and elements in the growth of the population of Canada for each ten-year period from 1891 to 1951.

La 3e édition de l’Atlas du Canada (1957) contient une planche composée de cartes et de représentations graphiques montrant la répartition de la population, dans le territoire qui constitue aujourd’hui le Canada, pour les années 1851, 1871, 1901, 1921 et 1941. Les cinq cartes indiquent les frontières des colonies et les limites des provinces et des territoires pour chacune des dates, ainsi que les principales villes et agglomérations. Ces lieux figurent sur toutes les cartes à des fins de référence, même si elles n’existaient pas dans les premières années susmentionnées. Chaque carte comprend un diagramme à secteurs fournissant la répartition en pourcentage de la population canadienne par province et par territoire correspondant à la date concernée. Il convient de noter que le diagramme à secteurs, intitulé Répartition en pourcentage de la population totale (1851), porte sur l’ensemble de ce qui était l’Amérique du Nord britannique. Dans ce diagramme, le terme Canada comprend les provinces qui ont joint la Confédération en 1867, comme l’Ontario et le Québec. Par contre, les autres diagrammes à secteurs ne montrent que la répartition en pourcentage de la population du Canada à la date concernée. Trois autres représentations graphiques complètent cette planche et présentent les changements dans la répartition en pourcentage de la population du Canada, de 1867 à 1951, les changements dans la répartition en pourcentage de la population du Canada par province et par territoire, de 1867 à 1951, et les facteurs de l’augmentation de la population du Canada par période de dix ans, de 1891 à 1951.

Data tables on the social and economic conditions in Pre-Confederation Canada from the first census in 1665 to Confederation in 1867. This dataset is one of three that cover the history of the censuses in Quebec. These tables cover New France for the years 1676-1754. For census data for the years 1825-1861, see the Lower Canada dataset; for census data for the years 1765-1790, see the Province of Quebec dataset. The tables were transcribed from the fourth volume of the 1871 Census of Canada: Reprint of the Censuses of Canada, 1665-1871, available online from Statistics Canada, Canadiana, Government of Canada Publications, and the Internet Archive. Note on terminology: Due to the nature of some of the data sources, terminology may include language that is problematic and/or offensive to researchers. Certain vocabulary used to refer to racial, ethnic, religious and cultural groups is specific to the time period when the data were collected. When exploring or using these data do so in the context of historical thinking concepts – analyzing not only the content but asking questions of who shaped the content and why.

Data tables on the social and economic conditions in Pre-Confederation Canada from the first census in 1665 to Confederation in 1867. The tables were transcribed from the fourth volume of the 1871 Census of Canada: Reprint of the Censuses of Canada, 1665-1871, available online from Statistics Canada, Canadiana, Government of Canada Publications, and the Internet Archive. Note on terminology: Due to the nature of some of the data sources, terminology may include language that is problematic and/or offensive to researchers. Certain vocabulary used to refer to racial, ethnic, religious and cultural groups is specific to the time period when the data were collected. When exploring or using these data do so in the context of historical thinking concepts – analyzing not only the content but asking questions of who shaped the content and why.

Life expectancy in Canada was just below forty in the year 1800, and over the course of the next 220 years, it is expected to have increased by more than double to 82.2 by the year 2020. Throughout this time, life expectancy in Canada progressed at a steady rate, with the most noticeable changes coming during the interwar period, where the rate of increase was affected by the Spanish Flu epidemic and both World Wars.