Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean

Etymology

The name Saguenay is possibly derived from the Innu word "Saki-nip" which means "where water flows out".

Population

The population of the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region was 275,552 at the Canada 2021 Census, representing 3.2% of Quebec's population. It is concentrated primarily in three clusters: the city of Saguenay (pop. 144,723), the city of Alma (pop. 30,331) and the agglomeration of Roberval (pop. 9,840), Saint-Félicien (pop. 10,089) and Dolbeau-Mistassini (pop. 13,718). Saguenay, the region's largest city, is located slightly west of the fjord, mostly south of the river. It makes up 52.5% of the region's population.

Flag

The flag was incorporated in 1938 on the centenary of the first settlers' arrival in 1838 and was created by Mgr. Victor Tremblay, a local historian. The four colours represent the four elements of the richness of Saguenay: the grey cross represents aluminum, which is an important product of local industry; the red border represents the inhabitants' labour; green, at the top represents the forest; and yellow, at the bottom, represents agriculture.

Administrative divisions

Following the Saguenay municipal reorganization in 2002, the region now counts 49 municipalities (including unorganized territories).

Regional county municipalities

• Le Fjord-du-Saguenay Regional County Municipality (pop. 21,600)
• Lac-Saint-Jean-Est Regional County Municipality (pop. 52,741)
• Le Domaine-du-Roy Regional County Municipality (pop. 31,285)
• Maria-Chapdelaine Regional County Municipality (pop. 24,793)

Equivalent territory

• Saguenay (pop. 144,746)

Native reserve

• Mashteuiatsh within Le Domaine-du-Roy, (pop. 2,213 Montagnais)

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 95,542.70 km2, it had a population density of in 2021.

The median age is 47.2, as opposed to 41.6 for all of Canada. French was the mother tongue of 98.0% of residents in 2021. The next most common mother tongues were English at 0.6%, followed by Spanish at 0.4% and the related languages of Atikamekw and Innu at 0.3% total. 0.4% reported both English and French as their first language. Additionally there were 0.1% who reported both French and a non-official language as their mother tongue.

As of 2021, Indigenous peoples comprised 5.1% of the population and visible minorities contributed 1.5%. The largest visible minority groups in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean are Black (0.7%), Arab (0.2%), and Latin American (0.2%). The region is home to 555 recent immigrants (i.e. those arriving between 2016 and 2021). 190 of them come from France, and 180 come from various African countries, with Cameroon leading at 75 recent immigrants.

In 2021, 73.4% of the population identified as Catholic, while 19.2% said they had no religious affiliation. Muslims were the largest religious minority, making up 0.3% of the population.

Counting both single and multiple responses, the most commonly identified ethnocultural ancestries were:

(Percentages may total more than 100% due to rounding and multiple responses).

Major communities

• Albanel
• Alma
• Dolbeau-Mistassini
• Hébertville
• Métabetchouan-Lac-à-la-Croix
• Normandin
• Roberval
• Saguenay
• Saint-Ambroise
• Saint-David-de-Falardeau
• Saint-Félicien
• Saint-Gédéon
• Saint-Honoré
• Saint-Prime

School districts

Each school service centre (French: centre de services scolaire) give services to five school distincts of 20 in the region:

• Centre de services scolaire de la Jonquière
• Centre de services scolaire du Lac-Saint-Jean
• Centre de services scolaire du Pays-des-Bleuets (Maria-Chapdelaine, Le Domaine-du-Roy, Mashteuiatsh and Saint-Ludger-de-Milot)
• Centre de services scolaire des Rives-du-Saguenay (Le Fjord-du-Saguenay Regional County Municipality (except Larouche, Saint-Ambroise, Bégin), Sagard and Saguenay (except Jonquière)

The whole region is part of the anglophone district Central Quebec School Board.

Notes

References

References

1. "Census Profile, 2021 Census: Saguenay--Lac-Saint-Jean [Economic region], Quebec". Statistics Canada.
2. "Les Outils: Liste des Gentilés". Gouvernement du Quebec - Commission de Toponymie.
3. George. (2015-06-07). "Régions administratives du Québec".
4. "La rivière et chemin du Royaume et terre du Saguenay".
5. "Histoire du Saguenay depuis les origines jusqu'à 1870". University of Calgary, Université Laval.
6. Luc-Vartan Baronian and Nelson Belley: [https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ca-qc-sa.html Royaume du Saguenay (Quebec - Canada): Flag use in the Saguenay.] 27 January 1997 and 12 January 1998. Retrieved on 16 July 2018.
7. (October 25, 2022). "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), Quebec". [[Statistics Canada]].
8. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada. (2013-05-08). "2011 National Household Survey Profile - Census subdivision".
9. [http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-591/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=2493042&Geo2=PR&Code2=24&Data=Count&SearchText=Alma&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom=], Community Profiles from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada - Census Subdivision
10. [http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-594/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=2493042&Geo2=PR&Code2=24&Data=Count&SearchText=Alma&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom=], Aboriginal Population Profile from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada - Census Subdivision
11. {{SCref. 2475