1 n.
a resident of Canada whose first language ('mother tongue') is neither French nor English.
Type: 3. Semantic Change — The term allophone likely gained prominence during Quebec's Quiet Revolution, a period in the 1960s where immigrants to the province were encouraged to attend French-speaking schools to promote francophone population growth and consequent preservation of the language. In 1977, when Bill 101 passed into legislation, allophone children were all legally obligated to take classes in French (Garth 2004: 120). Allophone is modeled after the terms for French and English speakers, francophone and anglophone, respectively.
See also COD-2, s.v. "allophone" (1), which is marked "Cdn", Gage-5, s.v. "allophone" (2), which is described as "especially in Québec", ITP Nelson, s.v. "allophone" (1), which is marked "Canadian", and OED-3, s.v. "allophone" (n2), which is marked as "Canad.", AHD-5, s.v. "Allophone", which is marked "Canadian".
See also: anglophone francophone
2 adj.
speaking a language other than English or French as a first language ('mother tongue').
Type: 3. Semantic Change — See meaning 1.
See also COD-2, s.v. "allophone" (1), which is marked "Cdn".