Statistics
The aboriginal population in Alberta is growing significantly faster than the non-aboriginal population. Between 1996 and 2001, the aboriginal population in Alberta increased by 35,640 or 29.6% to 156,220.
In the 2001 Census, 713,000 people who were living in non-reserve areas identified as aboriginal. The census enumerated about 227,000 aboriginal children aged 14 and under who lived in non-reserve areas. Children in this age group represented 32% of the non-reserve aboriginal population in 2001, far higher than the corresponding share of 18% in the non-aboriginal population.
Alberta's aboriginal population is the third youngest compared to other provinces, behind Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
In 2001, the median age of the aboriginal population in Canada was 23.4 years, versus 35.4 years for the non-aboriginal population.
According to the 2001 Census, there are 156,220 aboriginal people in Alberta which accounts for 5% of Alberta's total population.
Almost half of the aboriginal population live in urban areas. One quarter lives in 10 of the nation's 27 census metropolitan areas. Edmonton had the second largest population of Aboriginal Peoples (almost 41,000, compared to 33,000 in 1996), and Calgary had the fourth largest aboriginal population (at 22,000, compared to 15,000 in 1996).
In Alberta there are 44 First Nations' in three treaty areas. There are 123 reserves and approximately 700,537 hectares of reserve land.
Treaty 6, which was signed at Carlton and Fort Pitt in 1876, covers central Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Treaty 7, which was signed at the Blackfoot Crossing of Bow River and Fort Macleod in 1877, covers southern Alberta.
Treaty 8, which was signed at Lesser Slave Lake in 1899 covers portions of Northern Alberta, BC, Saskatchewan and part of the NWT.
There are 8 Métis settlements in Alberta covering a total area of approximately 1.25 million acres (0.5 million ha). There are presently 5,500 Métis residing in the settlements.
