Demographics of Latvia

Population of Latvia (in millions) from 1950-2010.

This article is about the demographic features of the population of the historical territory of Latvia, including population density, ethnic background, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Background

Latvia was settled by the Baltic tribes some three millennia ago. The territories along the eastern Baltic first came under foreign domination at the beginning of the 13th century, with the formal establishment of Riga in 1201 under the German Teutonic Knights.

Latvia, in whole or in parts, remained under foreign rule for the next eight centuries, finding itself at the cross-roads of all the regional superpowers of their day, including Denmark (the Danes held on lands around the Gulf of Riga), Sweden, and Russia, with southern (Courland) Latvia being at one time a vassal to Poland-Lithuania as well as Latgale falling directly under Poland-Lithuania rule. Through all this time, Latvia remained largely under Baltic German hegemony, with Baltic Germans comprising the largest land-owners, a situation which did not change until Latvia's independence.

Historically, Latvia has had significant German, Russian, Jewish and Polish minorities. The majority (roughly two thirds) of Latvians, under Swedish influences, adopted Lutheranism, while the minority (the remaining third) of Latvians under Poland-Lithuania, Latgale in particular, retained their Catholicism. Aglona, in Latgale, has been the site of annual Catholic pilgrimage for centuries, even through to today.

Historical shifts

In 1897, the first official census in this area indicated that Latvians formed 68.3 % of the total population of 1.93 million; Russians accounted for 12%, Jews for 7.4 %, Germans for 6.2 %, and Poles for 3.4 %. The remainder were Lithuanians, Estonians, Gypsies, and various other nationalities.

The demographics shifted greatly in the 20th century due to the world wars, the repatriation of the Baltic Germans, the Holocaust, and occupation by the Soviet Union. Today, only the Russian minority, which has tripled in numbers since 1935, remains important. The share of ethnic Latvians grew from 77% (1,467,035) in 1935 to 80% (1,508,800), after human loss in WWII and human deportation and other repressive measures, fell strongly to 52% (1,387,757) in 1989.

In 2005, there were even fewer Latvians than in 1989, though their share of the population was larger - 1,357,099 (58.8% of the inhabitants). People who arrived in Latvia during the Soviet era, and their descendants born before 21 August 1991, have to pass a naturalisation process to receive Latvian citizenship. Children born to residents after the restoration of independence in 1991 automatically receive citizenship. However, if both parents are "stateless," then the parents must take the extra step of choosing Latvian citizenship for their child—who is automatically entitled, but for whom citizenship is not automatic (neither granted nor imposed).

Over 130,000 persons have been naturalized as Latvian citizens since 1995, but 351,435 persons (231,711 of them ethnic Russians), as of July 2009, live in Latvia with aliens' passports. Large numbers of Russians, as well as some Ukrainians and Belarussians remained in Latvia after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Latvians and Livonians, the indigenous peoples of Latvia, are now^[when?] 60% of the population. Livonians are the other indigenous ethnic group, with about 100 of them remaining. Some Latgalians consider themselves as a group separate from Latvians, but the predominant view is that Latgalians are a distinctive subgroup of Latvians.

According to rankings provided by the United states Census Bureau - International Data Base (IDB) - Country Rankings, Latvia is estimated to have a population of 1,544,000 in the year 2050.

Ethnic groups

Population of Latvia according to ethnic group 1925-2011

Ethnic group	census 1925 [1]		census 1935 [1]		census 1959 [2]		census 1970 [3]		census 1979 [4]		census 1989 [5]		census 2000 [6]		2011 [6][2]</ref>
	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
Latvians	1,354,126	73.4	1,472,612	75.5	1,297,881	62.0	1,341,805	56.8	1,344,105	53.7	1,387,757	52.0	1,370,703	57.7	1,327,129	59.5
Russians	193,648	10.5	206,499	10.6	556,448	26.6	704,599	29.8	821,464	32.8	905,515	34.0	703,243	29.6	610,297	27.4
Belarusians	38,010	2.1	26,867	1.4	61,587	2.9	94,898	4.0	111,505	4.5	119,702	4.5	97,150	4.1	78,556	3.5
Ukrainians	512	0.0	1,844	0.1	29,440	1.4	53,461	2.3	66,703	2.7	92,101	3.5	63,644	2.7	54,425	2.4
Poles	51,143	2.8	48,949	2.5	59,774	2.9	63,045	2.7	62,690	2.5	60,416	2.3	59,505	2.5	51,397	2.3
Lithuanians	23,192	1.3	22,913	1.2	32,383	1.6	40,589	1.7	37,818	1.5	34,630	1.3	33,430	1.4	29,376	1.3
Jews	95,675	5.2	93,479	4.8	36,592	1.8	36,680	1.6	28,331	1.1	22,897	0.9	10,385	0.4	9,529	0.4
Roma	2,870	0.2	3,839	0.2	4,301	0.2	5,427	0.2	6,134	0.3	7,044	0.3	8,205	0.3	8,536	0.4
Germans	70,964	3.8	62,144	3.2	1,609	0.1	5,413	0.2	3,299	0.1	3,783	0.1	3,465	0.1	4,548	0.2
Estonians	7,893	0.4	7,014	0.4	4,610	0.2	4,334	0.2	3,681	0.2	3,312	0.1	2,652	0.1	2,359	0.1
Livonians	1,268	0.1	944	0.0	185	0.0	48	0.0	107	0.0	135	0.0	180	0.0	—
Others	5,504	0.3	3,398	0.2	8,648	0.4	13,828	0.6	16,979	0.7	29,275	1.1	24,824	1.1	53,489	2.5
Total	1,844,805		1,950,502		2,093,458		2,364,127		2,502,816		2,666,567		2,377,383		2,236,910

Ethnic Latvians and Russians

Smaller ethnic minorities

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics

The following data are estimates as of September 2009, obtained from the CIA World Factbook.

Age structure

0–14 years: 13.5% (male 152,706/female 145,756)
15–64 years: 69.5% (male 747,044/female 785,521)
65 years and over: 16,9% (male 121,570/female 252,111) (2011 est.)

Net migration rate

-2.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.054 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female
total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total 8.42 deaths/1,000 live births
Male 10.2 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 6.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 72.68 years
male: 67.56 years
female: 78.07 years (2011 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.32 children born/woman (2011 est.)

Nationality

noun: Latvian(s) (archaic: Lett(s))
adjective: Latvian (archaic: Lettish)

Religions

NB. In a 2005 survey, 24.1 % described themselves as Russian Orthodox, 20.7% Catholics, 20.0% Lutherans, 4.4% Old Believers, 10.6% non-denominational believers and 15.8% non-believers.^[7]

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.7%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.7% (2000 census)

Languages

Proportional distribution of native languages in Latvia, according to 2000 official census.

See also: Language policy in Latvia

• official: Latvian
• considered indigenous in some legislation: Livonian, Latgalian
• other languages registered as mother tongue by at least 500 speakers in 2000 census^[8] (in declining order): Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romani, Tatar, Yiddish and Hebrew, Estonian, German
• other languages widely spoken: English

In the 2000 census, 1,311,093 persons in Latvia reported Latvian as their mother tongue; 891,451 respondents listed Russian as their mother tongue,^[8] representing 37.5% of the total population, whereas Latvian was recorded as the mother tongue for 58.2%.^[9] Latvian was spoken as a second language by 20.8% of the population, and 43.7% spoke Russian as a second language.^[10] In total, 71% of ethnic Latvians said they could speak Russian, and 52% of Russians could speak Latvian.^[11]

Table of vital statistics

Source: Latvijas Statistika and UN Demographic Yearbooks

	Average population (x 1000)	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)
1946	1 636	30 544	32 266	-1 722	18.7	19.7	-1.1
1947	1 787	34 832	32 435	2 397	19.5	18.2	1.3
1948	1 872	35 402	26 500	8 902	18.9	14.2	4.8
1949	1 886	35 671	25 640	10 031	18.9	13.6	5.3
1950	1 887	33 137	24 250	8 887	17.6	12.9	4.7
1951	1 895	32 764	23 898	8 866	17.3	12.6	4.7
1952	1 906	32 278	22 680	9 598	16.9	11.9	5.0
1953	1 926	30 986	22 761	8 225	16.1	11.8	4.3
1954	1 953	33 202	22 500	10 702	17.0	11.5	5.5
1955	1 981	32 968	21 330	11 638	16.6	10.8	5.9
1956	2 018	32 590	20 339	12 251	16.1	10.1	6.1
1957	2 054	33 714	21 087	12 627	16.4	10.3	6.1
1958	2 073	35 068	20 910	14 158	16.9	10.1	6.8
1959	2 092	35 028	22 601	12 427	16.7	10.8	5.9
1960	2 121	35 468	21 314	14 154	16.7	10.0	6.7
1961	2 153	35 993	21 759	14 234	16.7	10.1	6.6
1962	2 182	35 061	23 592	11 469	16.1	10.8	5.3
1963	2 211	33 843	22 703	11 140	15.3	10.3	5.0
1964	2 241	33 053	21 165	11 888	14.7	9.4	5.3
1965	2 266	31 212	22 780	8 432	13.8	10.1	3.7
1966	2 283	31 974	23 350	8 624	14.0	10.2	3.8
1967	2 301	32 232	24 362	7 870	14.0	10.6	3.4
1968	2 324	32 693	25 104	7 589	14.1	10.8	3.3
1969	2 343	32 915	26 229	6 686	14.0	11.2	2.9
1970	2 359	34 333	26 546	7 787	14.6	11.3	3.3
1971	2 376	35 239	26 275	8 964	14.8	11.1	3.8
1972	2 396	35 007	27 296	7 711	14.6	11.4	3.2
1973	2 416	34 008	28 139	5 869	14.1	11.6	2.4
1974	2 437	34 920	28 143	6 777	14.3	11.5	2.8
1975	2 456	34 810	30 042	4 768	14.2	12.2	1.9
1976	2 470	34 644	30 373	4 271	14.0	12.3	1.7
1977	2 485	34 240	30 869	3 371	13.8	12.4	1.4
1978	2 498	34 258	31 261	2 997	13.7	12.5	1.2
1979	2 506	34 683	32 162	2 521	13.8	12.8	1.0
1980	2 512	35 534	32 100	3 434	14.1	12.8	1.4
1981	2 519	35 732	32 090	3 642	14.2	12.7	1.4
1982	2 531	37 477	31 234	6 243	14.8	12.3	2.5
1983	2 546	40 572	32 330	8 242	15.9	12.7	3.2
1984	2 562	40 847	33 406	7 441	15.9	13.0	2.9
1985	2 579	39 571	34 166	5 405	15.3	13.2	2.1
1986	2 600	41 960	31 328	10 632	16.1	12.0	4.1
1987	2 627	42 135	32 150	9 985	16.0	12.2	3.8
1988	2 653	41 275	32 421	8 854	15.6	12.2	3.3
1989	2 667	38 922	32 584	6 338	14.6	12.2	2.4
1990	2 663	37 918	34 812	3 106	14.2	13.1	1.2
1991	2 651	34 633	34 749	- 116	13.1	13.1	-0.0
1992	2 614	31 569	35 420	-3 851	12.1	13.6	-1.5
1993	2 563	26 759	39 197	-12 438	10.4	15.3	-4.9
1994	2 521	24 256	41 757	-17 501	9.6	16.6	-6.9
1995	2 485	21 595	38 931	-17 336	8.7	15.7	-7.0
1996	2 457	19 782	34 320	-14 538	8.1	14.0	-5.9
1997	2 433	18 830	33 533	-14 703	7.7	13.8	-6.0
1998	2 410	18 410	34 200	-15 790	7.6	14.2	-6.6
1999	2 390	19 396	32 844	-13 448	8.1	13.7	-5.6
2000	2 373	20 248	32 205	-11 957	8.5	13.6	-5.0
2001	2 355	19 664	32 991	-13 327	8.3	14.0	-5.7
2002	2 339	20 044	32 498	-12 454	8.6	13.9	-5.3
2003	2 325	21 006	32 437	-11 431	9.0	14.0	-4.9
2004	2 313	20 334	32 024	-11 690	8.8	13.8	-5.1
2005	2 301	21 497	32 777	-11 280	9.3	14.2	-4.9
2006	2 288	22 264	33 098	-10 834	9.7	14.5	-4.7
2007	2 276	23 273	33 042	-9 769	10.2	14.5	-4.3
2008	2 266	23 948	31 006	-7 058	10.6	13.7	-3.1
2009	2 255	21 677	29 897	-8 220	9.6	13.3	-3.6
2010 (p)	2 239	19 220	29 970	-10 750	8.6	13.4	-4.8

p=preliminary

See also

• Aging of Europe
• List of cities in the Baltic states by population

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Ethnicities in region of Latvia. Statistics". roots-saknes.lv. http://www.roots-saknes.lv/Ethnicities/ethnicities_statistics.htm. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
2. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1959 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР" (in Russian). demoscope.ru. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_59.php. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
3. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1970 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР" (in Russian). demoscope.ru. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_70.php. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
4. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1979 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР" (in Russian). demoscope.ru. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_79.php. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
5. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР" (in Russian). demoscope.ru. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
6. ^ ^{a b} [1]
7. ^ Samazinās to Latvijas iedzīvotāju īpatsvars, kuri sevi uzskata par luterāņiem(Latvian)
8. ^ ^{a b} Central Statistical Bureau Database for 2000 Census, table on mother tongues (Latvian)
9. ^ 2000 census results — choose "Results of Population Census Year 2000, in short" and "Iedzīvotāju dzimtā valoda un citu valodu prasme"(Latvian)
10. ^ LR CSP preses izlaidums: 2000. Gada Tautas Skaitīšana Latvijā; 07.11.2000.(Latvian)
11. ^ Dažādu tautu valodu prasme(Latvian)

External links

• Naturalization Board of the Republic of Latvia: Figures and facts
• Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs: Statistics