Demographics of Belarus

Demographic data from the CIA World Factbook

Population

10,300,483 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 16% (male 839,292/female 804,738)

15-64 years: 69.5% (male 3,481,432/female 3,672,991)

65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,717/female 1,003,313) (2005 est.)

Median age

Total: 37.03 years

Male: 34.32 years

Female: 39.7 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate

-0.09% (2005 est.)

Birth rate

10.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate

14.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate

2.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio

At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

Under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female

Total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total: 13.37 deaths/1,000 live births

Male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Female: 12.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total population: 68.72 years

Male: 63.03 years

Female: 74.69 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS

Adult prevalence rate: 0.3% (2001 est.)

People living with HIV/AIDS: 15,000 (2001 est.)

Deaths: 1,000 (2001 est.)

Nationality

Noun: Belarusian(s)

Adjective: Belarusian

Ethnic groups

Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)

Prior to World War II, Jews were the second largest ethnic group in what is today Belarus, and comprised more than 50 percent of the population in cities and towns. By 1989, Jews accounted for only 1.1% of the population, mainly due to the Holocaust WWII and emigration from the Soviet Union to nations such as the United States and Israel.

Religions

In 1997, 80% of the religious population belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church, while other religions, such as Islam, Catholicism, Protestant Christianity, and Judaism, make up the other 20 percent. During the times of the Soviet Union the majority of population was atheistic, and this situation did not change significantly with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, although the number of people declaring themselves religious grows. Also, many atheists associate themselves with Eastern Orthodoxy referring to cultural associations, rather than religious ones.

Languages

Belarusian, Russian, other

Literacy

Definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Total population: 99.6%

Male: 99.8%

Female: 99.5% (2003 est.)