Norbert Robitaille

La fécondité des Inuit du Nouveau-Québec depuis 1931 : passage d'une fécondité naturelle à une fécondité contrôlée

Choiniere Robert y Robitaille Norbert. — La fecundidad de la poblacion inuit de nuevo Quebec a partir de 1931 : el paso de una fecundidad natural a una fecundidad controlada El estudio de la evolucion reciente de la fecundidad de la poblacion inuit de nuevo Quebec, illustra el paso de una fecundidad natural a una fecundidad controlada. Esta evolucion se adapta a la teoria de la transition demografica, con una segunda fase caracte- rizada por una disminucion de la fecundidad, provocada por diversos factores asociados al proceso de desarrollo. Sin embargo, el mejoramiento de la condiciones sanitarias y los cambios socio-economicos en la comunidad Inuit, contribuyeron, en una primera etapa, a aumentar su fecundidad. Este aumento fue seguido por una disminucion importante y la fecundidad paso de 8,1 hijos por mujer (indice sintetico de fecundidad) en 1861 a 4,3 en 1981. La fecundidad de los Inuit continua siendo elevada y es poco probable que alcance, a corto o mediano plazo, los niveles observados, en 1986, para el conjunto de la poblacion de Quebec, es decir : 1,4 hijos por mujer.

Fuzzy Definitions and Demographic Explosion of Aboriginal Populations in Canada from 1986 to 2006

In their common desire to conduct research and gather information on Aboriginal social issues, demographers and other specialists in populations, both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal, have often neglected two basic questions: Why is it so hard to define Aboriginal populations in Canada? How can the recent demographic explosion be explained? The answer to these questions is essential, since they play a significant role in the enumeration of Aboriginal populations (Which definition shall be used?), in the monitoring of their socio-economic characteristics (How shall recent trends be interpreted?) and in the development of policies and programs aimed at improving the living conditions of Aboriginal populations (Who are the recipients?). The purpose of this article is to examine these two fundamental questions using a demographic perspective.

Intergenerational Ethnic Mobility among Canadian Aboriginal Populations in 2001

This article deals with the contribution of intergenerational ethnic mobility to the demographic reproduction of the Aboriginal groups in Canada: the North American Indians, the Metis and the Inuit. To this effect, it attempts to see if children in husband/wife census families keep the identity of their parents. As expected, children from endogamous couples generally keep their parents’ identity. However, for most children from exogamous couples formed by an Aboriginal person and a non-Aboriginal person, the Aboriginal identity prevails over the non-Aboriginal identity. If Aboriginal identities were “not attractive” identities when declaring the ethnic affiliation of children in situations of exogamous unions, then the size of the Aboriginal population in Canada would be significantly smaller.

The fertility of the Inuit of Northern Québec: A half‐century of fluctuations

The fertility of the Inuit of Northern Quebec went through many changes during the last fifty years. We observe, at first, a decline during the thirties followed by a recovery, in the early forties, stopped momentarily between 1946 and 1956. The fertility reached a summit around 1961 to drop sharply afterwards. In spite of this important decrease, the fertility of the Inuit remains much higher than the generations replacement level. We will try to relate these fluctuations in the Northern Quebec Inuit fertility to the various events that influenced the recent history of this population such as starvations, epidemics, settling process, health improvements and socio‐economic changes.

The inuit population of Canada: Present situation, future trends

In the 1981 Census, 25,390 people reported themselves to be of Inuit origin. This communication investigates the demographic future of this group until 2001. After presenting the geographic distribution, the recent evolution and the age structure, hypotheses about fertility, mortality and migration are stated. Then, the main results of the projection are presented.