How big of a census nerd are you? Try our quiz

Answer: A: Yup! One in four Canadian households will be asked to complete the long-form questionnaire, while three in four households will have to fill out the short version, either online or in paper. Both are mandatory. Under the Statistics Act, failing to respond or giving false answers could result in a $500 fine, or up to three months in jail, or both – though so far, no one has served jail time.

Answer: D: All of the above, and more! Those in both the public and private sector – from urban planners to academics, community groups, marketers, public health units and city economists – use census for planning, budgeting and research purposes.

Answer: B. Nope! This year's census will not ask about religion, a question that is included every 10 years (as has been the case since 1871) and was asked in 2011 (which prompted, by the way, about 9,000 people to list their religion as Jedi).

Answer: B! 18 months. The first data – on population and dwelling counts – will be published within a year, slated for February, 2017. The agency says that for the first time, all census data will be released within 18 months of collection, a speedier turnaround time than in prior years.

Answer: C. The voluntary survey garnered a response rate of 69 per cent, which led to data-quality concerns and the suppression of community-level data in some parts of the country.

Answer: C! Yup – 2016 census-related hiring is likely to bump up this spring's employment numbers. Statscan is hiring 35,000 for census jobs across Canada, and another 1,400 for its data operations centre.

Answer: C! 14 million households are expected to be reached across all territories and provinces.

Answer: No! The process differs for some remote and northern communities, where early enumeration is conducted by personal interview. Census reps visited households in remote areas of the territories as well as communities in northern Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec and Labrador. The census questions were translated into 11 aboriginal languages, including Dené and Inuktitut.

Answer: A. The very first census effort was led by Intendant Jean Talon in 1666. This consisted of counting the colony's 3,215 inhabitants and recording their age, sex, marital status and occupation. "In light of the need for information to help plan and develop the Colony of New France, Talon did much of the data collection personally, visiting settlers throughout the colony," Statscan's website notes.