Editing Cape Breton Island (section)

==Demographics==
[[File:Glace Bay Shul, August 2012.jpg|thumb|The former Congregation Sons of Israel synagogue, in Glace Bay. In 1902, the synagogue was Nova Scotia's first purpose-built synagogue. It permanently closed in July 2010. To the left is the also closed Talmud Torah community centre. This was the location of the Hebrew school and functions like Bar Mitzvah and wedding dinners.]]

The island's residents can be grouped into five main cultures: [[Scottish people|Scottish]], [[Mi'kmaq people|Mi'kmaq]], [[Acadian]], Irish, and English, with respective languages [[Scottish Gaelic]], [[Míkmaq language|Mi'kmaq]], [[Acadian French|French]], and English alongside several [[sign language]]s including [[Maritime Sign Language]].<ref name=MSL>{{cite thesis |last=Yoel |first=Judith |date=Jan 2009 |title=Canada's Maritime Sign Language |url=https://dam-oclc.bac-lac.gc.ca/download?is_thesis=1&oclc_number=1356860226&id=d02f6693-f649-47e7-a7c9-3b45a7f7b8f8&fileName=Yoel_Canadas_Maritime.pdf |degree=Doctor of Philosophy |chapter= |publisher=The University of Manitoba |docket= |oclc= |access-date=25 November 2023}}</ref> English is now the primary language, including a locally distinctive [[Cape Breton accent]], while Mi'kmaq, Scottish Gaelic and Acadian French are still spoken in some communities. Amongst sign languages, it is unknown to what extent [[Quebec Sign Language|LSQ]] is spoken amongst Acadians, but [[American Sign Language]] is certainly predominant across the island, as it has gained significant numbers of signers, especially with the steep declines in [[Maritime Sign Language]] use.<ref name=MSL />

Later migrations of [[Black Loyalist]]s, Italians, and Eastern Europeans mostly settled in the island's eastern part around the industrial Cape Breton region. Cape Breton Island's population has been in decline two decades with an increasing exodus in recent years due to economic conditions.

'''Population trend'''<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160819104757/http://www66.statcan.gc.ca/eng/acyb_c1943-44-eng.aspx?opt=%2Feng%2F1943-44%2F194301510081_p.%2081.pdf Censuses 1871-1941]</ref><ref>Statistics Canada: [[Canada 1996 Census|1996]], [[Canada 2001 Census|2001]], [[Canada 2006 Census|2006]] census</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="float:left; margin-right:1em"
|-
! Census
! Population
! Change (%)
|-
| 1951
|  157,696
|-
| 1956
|  162,859
| {{gain}}3.3%
|-
| 1961
|  169,865
| {{gain}}4.3%
|-
| 1966
|  166,943
| {{loss}}1.7%
|-
| 1971
|  170,007
| {{gain}}1.8%
|-
| 1976
|  170,866
| {{gain}}0.5%
|-
| 1981
|  170,628
| {{loss}}0.1%
|-
| 1986
|  166,116
| {{loss}}2.6%
|-
| 1991
|  161,686
| {{loss}}2.7%
|-
| 1996
|  158,271
| {{loss}}2.1%
|-
| 2001
|  147,454
| {{loss}}6.8%
|-
| 2006
|  142,298
| {{loss}}3.5%
|-
| 2011
|  135,974
| {{loss}}4.4%
|-
| 2016
|  132,010
| {{loss}}2.9%
|-
| 2021
|  132,019
| {{gain}}0.0%
|}
{{clear left}}

===Religious groups===
[[Canada 2001 Census|Statistics Canada]] in 2001 reported a "religion" total of 145,525 for Cape Breton, including 5,245 with "no religious affiliation."<ref>"[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil01/CP01/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CD&Code1=1217&Geo2=CD&Code2=1216&Data=Count&SearchText=Cape%20Breton%20County&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom= Table from Statistics Canada – Cape Breton & Richmond Counties]{{Dead link|date=November 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}"  ''(Nova Scotia Statistics Agency)''</ref><ref>''[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil01/CP01/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CD&Code1=1218&Geo2=CD&Code2=1215&Data=Count&SearchText=Cape%20Breton%20County&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom= Table from Statistics Canada'' Victoria & Inverness Counties''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519002556/http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil01/CP01/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CD&Code1=1218&Geo2=CD&Code2=1215&Data=Count&SearchText=Cape%20Breton%20County&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom= |date=19 May 2020 }}'' (Nova Scotia Statistics Agency)</ref> Major categories included:
*[[Roman Catholic]]: 96,260 (includes [[Eastern Catholic Churches|Eastern Catholic]], [[Polish National Catholic Church]], [[Old Catholic Church|Old Catholic]])
*[[Protestant]]: 42,390
*Christian, not included elsewhere: 580
*Orthodox: 395
*[[Jewish]]: 250
*[[Muslim]]: 145