Population of Sri Lanka, 1961-2003 (FAO, 2005)
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Population | 20,359,439 (2012 census) |
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Density | 325/km2(2012 census) |
Growth rate | 0.913% (2012 est.) |
Birth rate | 17.04 births/1,000 population (2012 est.) |
Death rate | 5.96 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.) |
Life expectancy | 75.94 years (2012 est.) |
• male | 72.43 years (2012 est.) |
• female | 79.59 years (2012 est.) |
Fertility rate | 2.17 children born/woman (2012 est.) |
Infant mortality rate | 9.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.) |
0–14 years | 25.2% (2012 census) |
15–64 years | 66.9% (2012 census) |
65 and over | 7.9% (2012 census) |
Total | 0.96 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
At birth | 1.04 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
Under 15 | 1.04 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
15–64 years | 0.96 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
65 and over | 0.75 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
Nationality |
noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan |
Major ethnic | Sinhalese (74.9%) (2012 census) |
Minor ethnic |
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Official | Sinhalese, Tamil |
Spoken | English |
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Sri Lanka, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean also called Ceylon and many other names. It is about the size of Ireland. It is about 28 kilometres (18 mi.) off the south-eastern coast of India with a population of about 20 million. Density is highest in the south west where Colombo, the country's main port and industrial center, is located. The net population growth is about 0.7%. Sri Lanka is ethnically, linguistically, and religiously diverse.
According to the 2012 census the population of Sri Lanka was 20,359,439, giving a population density of 325/km2. The population had grown by 5,512,689 (37.1%) since the 1981 census (the last full census), equivalent to an annual growth rate of 1.1%. 3,704,470 (18.2%) lived in urban sectors - areas governed by municipal and urban councils.
5,131,666 (25.2%) of the population were aged 14 or under whilst 2,525,573 (12.4%) were aged 60 or over, leaving a working age (15-59) population of 12,702,700. The dependency ratio was 60.2%. The mean age was 32 years and the median age was 31 years. The sex ratio was 94 males per 100 females. The fertility rate for married females aged 15 or over was 2.65 live births. There were 5,264,282 households of which 3,986,236 (75.7%) were headed by males and 1,278,046 (24.3%) were headed by females.
Of the 15,227,773 aged 15 or over, 10,322,105 (67.8%) were married, 3,927,602 (25.8%) were never married, 792,947 (5.2%) were widowed and 185,119 (1.2%) were divorced or separated.
Of those aged 15 or over, 7,857,370 (51.6%) were economically active, 4,199,558 (27.6%) did housework, 1,431,105 (9.4%) were students, 914,934 (6.0%) were unable to work and 346,084 (2.3%) were pensioners. 521,938 (6.6%) of the economically active were unemployed. 604,540 Sri Lankans were living aboard for more than six months but were intending to return to Sri Lanka, mostly in the Gulf states (373,050 61.7%).