Many Macedonians emigrated to Canada as "pečalbari" (migrant workers) in the early 20th century.[10] Thousands of Macedonians emigrated to Canada after the failure of the Ilinden Uprising.[10]
The first Macedonian organizations were the Zhelevo Benevolence Brotherhood and the Oschima Benefit Society St. Nicholas, both established in 1907 in Toronto by emigrants from Zhelevo (Antartiko) and Oschnima (Trigonon) in Aegean Macedonia.[11][12] Other Macedonian organizations were soon established by emigrants from Zagorichani (Vassiliada), Oshtima (Trigonon), Smardesh (Krystallopigi), Gabresh (Gavros), Banitsa (Vevi), Buf (Akritas) and Tarsie (Trivuno), all villages in Aegean Macedonia.[12][10]
An internal 1910 census counted 1090 Macedonians in Toronto, who were principally from Florina (Lerin) and Kastoria (Kostur) then in Ottoman empire.[10] During the same year, they established the Sts. Cyril and Methody Macedono-Bulgarian Orthodox Church in Toronto.[10] and that church published The First Bulgarian-English Pocket Dictionary in 1913.[13]
By 1940 there were claims that over 1200 Macedonian families were in Canada. Post-World War II and Greek Civil War migration cause the numbers of Macedonians in Canada to swell.[citation needed]
Many early Macedonian immigrants found industrial work in Toronto, either as factory hands or labourers in abattoirs, or in iron and steel foundries. Many ended up running and owning restaurants, butchers and groceries. Macedonian entrepreneurs and their descendants eventually employed their numerical strength within the food service industry as a catapult into a variety of larger and more sophisticated ventures.[14]
Today, most Macedonian Canadians have moved out of cities and into the suburbs, and are employed in the professional, clerical, and service sector of the economy.
The 2001 census recorded 31,265 Macedonians,[14] while the 2006 census recorded 37,705 people of Macedonian ancestry. However, community spokespersons claim they number over 100,000. The Institute for Macedonians Abroad claims that there are 120,000 Macedonians in Canada.[15] The Macedonian government estimates that there are 150,000 Macedonians in Canada.
Aegean Macedonians
Many thousands of Aegean Macedonians emigrated to Canada in the 1890s.[citation needed] They settled primarily in Ontario, especially Toronto. Many early Aegean Macedonian immigrants found industrial work in Toronto. Later migrants found work as factory in abattoirs and foundries. Chatham and Windsor attracted many Macedonian immigrants who worked along the railroads. Many later settled in Detroit, Michigan.
They set up many organizations, such as the Lerin Region Macedonian Cultural Association of Canada. In 1979 The Association of Refugee Children from Aegean Macedonia (ARCAM) was set up in order to unite the former child refugees from all over the world. It was reported that chapters had been set up in Toronto, Melbourne, Perth, the Republic of North Macedonia, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Poland.[16]
Settlement patterns
Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper with UMO President Dragi Stojkovski, 2009[17]
Many Macedonians originally settled in industrial areas. Most Macedonians came to Canada via the process of chain migration.
Organizations
Many organizations have been set up by the Macedonians in Canada. Village associations from Banitsa, Osčima, Bouf and Želevo have been set up. A Macedonian Boys' club was founded in Toronto in 1915.[citation needed] Community picnics were also very common amongst Macedonian immigrants. Macedonian basketball and hockey teams were founded. Fundraisers for assistance for the Greek Civil War and the 1963 Skopje earthquake were held. Other establishments, such as the Canadian Macedonian Restaurant Co-op (1970), Canadian Macedonian Business and Professional Association, Canadian Macedonian Historical Society and Macedonian Canadian Medical Society (1992) have been founded in recent years, along with the Macedonian Film Festival (2006). Youth organizations such as Macedonian Association of Canadian Youth, Ryerson Association of Macedonian Students and the Association of Macedonian Students at the University of Toronto are also in operation.
Religion
Originally Macedonian churches were established under the Bulgarian Diocese of America, Canada and Australia. The church Saint's Cyril and Methodius was consecrated in Toronto in 1910. This was followed by the St. George Macedono-Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the Holy Trinity Macedono-Bulgarian Church. Post-war immigrants built churches under the jurisdiction of the Macedonian Orthodox Church.[citation needed] They were St Clement of Ohrid, St Demetrius of Salonica, St Ilija, St Nedela and St Naum of Ohrid. There are two Macedonian cathedrals in Canada – Toronto being the location of the largest Macedonian church community in Canada: St Clement of Ohrid in Toronto.[18]
Notable Macedonian Canadians
Academia
Chris Paliare – lawyer, named one of the 50 most influential in Toronto[19]
^ abMacedonian immigrants have also been subsumed under the heading of Bulgarian immigrants, especially as regards the first wave, because in that period the history and population of the two countries was not as distinct as it is today. Until World War II, most people who today identify themselves as Macedonian Canadians claimed a Bulgarian ethnic identity and were recorded as part of the Bulgarian ethnic group (Magocsi, p. 287). Hence the Bulgarian community in Canada is deeply linked to the Macedonian Canadians. The Bulgarian Diaspora in Canada: Stories of Immigration, Glavanakova, Alexandra; Andreev, Andrey, 2010, CEACS, Brno, Czech Republic; Migrating Memories: Central Europe in Canada, Volume 2 – Oral Histories. (ed.) Rodica Albu, 2010; ISBN978-86-7746-255-0.
^ abSouth Slavic immigration in America, Twayne Publishers. A division of G. K. Hall & Co., Boston, George Prpic, John Carroll University, 1976, Chapter 18, The Bulgarians and Macedonians. p. 212 ..."The smallest of the South Slavic ethnic groups in America are the Bulgarians. One branch of them are the Macedonians."...
^ abRaska, Jan (2014). "Contested Ethnic Identity: The Case of Macedonian Immigrants in Toronto, 1900-1996 by Chris Kostov (review)". Canadian Ethnic Studies. 46 (3): 140–142. doi:10.1353/ces.2014.0037. ISSN1913-8253.
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