सबसे ज़्यादा समलैंगिक शादियाँ ब्रिटिश कोलंबिया और ओन्टारियो में

When it comes to same-sex marriage, British Columbians are among the world's most tolerant and accepting people, results of a survey suggest.

B.C. and Ontario residents ranked the highest among Canadians in overall acceptance of gay marriage, each with 66 per cent approving same-sex marriage.

And Canadians rated as more tolerant than Britons and Americans, generally.

Angus Reid spokesman Mario Canseco said attitudes to gay marriage mirror those of the U.S. civil rights movement more than 40 years ago, with young people far more open to social change.

The survey, divided by age, gender and region, was conducted online in August among 1,006 Canadians, 1,002 Americans and 2,001 Britons.

The poll's findings suggests that younger people -- aged 18 to 34 -- in all three countries were more accepting of same-sex marriages than any other groups questioned.

In Canada, 73 per cent of young Canadians, aged 18 to 34, said same-sex couples should continue to be allowed to legally marry, with seven per cent opposed. Fifty-five per cent of Canadian respondents aged 55 and older -- the oldest group surveyed -- favoured continuing the legalization of same-sex marriage.

While 42 per cent of young Americans favoured allowing same-sex marriage, only 24 per cent of those in the oldest group surveyed favoured the idea. In the southern U.S. states, 26 per cent of respondents agreed with the phrase "same-sex couples should be allowed to legally marry," while 47 per cent stated couples of the same gender shouldn't get any legal recognition.

Canseco said the poll results were "strikingly similar" to attitudes in the U.S. in the 1960s, when African-Americans fought for equal footing in law and at the polls. While older U.S. citizens embraced the status quo during the civil rights movement, "younger Americans at the time were saying, 'this doesn't make sense,' " he said.

In Britain, acceptance of same-sex marriage was strongest in regions with large urban areas. Forty-three per cent of London respondents approved of gay marriages, while 46 per cent of respondents in Scotland stated gays should be allowed to marry.

In the U.S., the highest approval numbers, at 44 per cent in favour of gay unions, came from the northeast region, which includes urban centres such as Boston, New York and centres in New Jersey.