Catalogue no. 92-151-G Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide Census year 2011 How to obtain more information For information about this product or the wide range of services and data available from Statistics Canada, visit our website at www.statcan.gc.ca, e-mail us at [email protected], or telephone us, Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at the following numbers: Statistics Canada’s National Contact Centre Toll-free telephone (Canada and United States): Inquiries line 1-800-263-1136 National telecommunications device for the hearing impaired 1-800-363-7629 Fax line 1-877-287-4369 Local or international calls: Inquiries line 1-613-951-8116 Fax line 1-613-951-0581 Depository Services Program Inquiries line 1-800-635-7943 Fax line 1-800-565-7757 To access this product This product, Catalogue no. 92-151-G, is available free in electronic format. To obtain a single issue, visit our website at www.statcan.gc.ca and browse by “Key resource” > “Publications”. Standards of service to the public Statistics Canada is committed to serving its clients in a prompt, reliable and courteous manner. To this end, Statistics Canada has developed standards of service that its employees observe. To obtain a copy of these service standards, please contact Statistics Canada toll-free at 1-800-263-1136. The service standards are also published on www.statcan.gc.ca under “About us” > “The agency” > “Providing services to Canadians”. Statistics Canada Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide Census year 2011 Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada © Minister of Industry, 2012 All rights reserved. Use of this publication is governed by the Statistics Canada Open Licence Agreement (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/reference/copyright-droit-auteur-eng.htm). February 2012 Catalogue no. 92-151-G ISBN 978-1-100-18873-7 Frequency: occasional Ottawa Cette publication est également disponible en français. Note of appreciation Canada owes the success of its statistical system to a long-standing partnership between Statistics Canada, the citizens of Canada, its businesses, governments and other institutions. Accurate and timely statistical information could not be produced without their continued cooperation and goodwill. Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide, Census year 2011 What's new? • Effective February 3, 2011, the term 'population centre' has replaced the term 'urban area.' Population centres are classified into one of three groups based on the size of their population. For more information, see the note entitled From urban areas to population centres (www.statcan.gc.ca/subjects-sujets/standard-norme/sgc-cgt/urban-urbain-eng.htm). • Three attributes have been added to the 2011 Census Geographic Attribute File: o CMAuid: Uniquely identifies a census metropolitan area or census agglomeration. o POPCTRRAuid: Population centre and rural area unique identifier. Uniquely identifies a population centre and rural area. o POPCTRRAclass: Population centre and rural area class. Distinguishes between small population centres, medium population centres, large urban population centres and rural areas. • For the 2011 Census, boundaries of designated places (DPLs) may cross census subdivision (CSD) boundaries. • The 2011 Census Geographic Attribute File is available for free download from the Statistics Canada website (www.statcan.gc.ca). • The 2011 Census Geographic Attribute File is now available in Excel format (.xlsx), in addition to ASCII format (.txt). Statistics Canada 4 Catalogue no. 92-151-G Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide, Census year 2011 Table of contents Page What's new? ............................................................................................................................. 4 1. About this guide ................................................................................................................... 6 2. Overview ............................................................................................................................... 7 How to cite this guide ............................................................................................................................... 7 How to cite this product ............................................................................................................................ 7 3. About this product ............................................................................................................... 8 Purpose of the product ............................................................................................................................. 8 Definitions and concepts .......................................................................................................................... 8 Content ..................................................................................................................................................... 8 Limitations .............................................................................................................................................. 11 Comparison to other products/versions ................................................................................................. 11 Using with other products ....................................................................................................................... 11 Reference date ....................................................................................................................................... 11 4. Technical specifications .................................................................................................... 12 Record layouts and data descriptions .................................................................................................... 12 File specifications ................................................................................................................................... 20 Software formats .................................................................................................................................... 20 System requirements ............................................................................................................................. 20 Installation instructions ........................................................................................................................... 20 File naming convention .......................................................................................................................... 20 5. Data quality ......................................................................................................................... 21 Lineage ................................................................................................................................................... 21 Positional accuracy ................................................................................................................................ 22 Attribute accuracy ................................................................................................................................... 23 Logical consistency ................................................................................................................................ 23 Consistency with other products ............................................................................................................ 24 Completeness ........................................................................................................................................ 24 Appendix A Glossary ............................................................................................................ 25 Appendix B Hierarchy of standard geographic units for dissemination, 2011 Census ... 31 Appendix C Geographic units by province and territory, 2011 Census ............................ 32 Appendix D Census subdivision types by province and territory, 2011 Census .............. 33 Statistics Canada 5 Catalogue no. 92-151-G Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide, Census year 2011 1. About this guide This reference guide is intended for users of the 2011 Geographic Attribute File. The guide provides an overview of the file, the general methodology used to create it, and important technical information for users. A record layout is provided in section 4, Technical specifications. Users of the 2011 Census Geographic Attribute File in an ASCII format (.txt) can refer to the record layout to identify the order and logical record length of each variable in the file. The variables appear in the same order within the Excel format file (.xlsx), though the variables are set into separate columns. Section 5, Data quality, provides information for users to evaluate the suitability of the data for a particular application. This data product is provided 'as-is,' and Statistics Canada makes no warranty, either express or implied, including but not limited to, warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will Statistics Canada be liable for any direct, special, indirect, consequential or other damages, however caused. Statistics Canada 6 Catalogue no. 92-151-G Geographic Attribute File, Reference Guide, Census year 2011 2. Overview The 2011 Census Geographic Attribute File contains information at the dissemination block level, based on 2011 Census standard geographic areas. The data available include population counts, dwelling counts, and land area.