Demographics of Uzbekistan

Population of Uzbekistan (in millions): 1950 – 1 January 2008.

The Demographics of Uzbekistan is about the demographic features of the population of Uzbekistan, including population growth, population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. The nationality of any person from Uzbekistan is Uzbekistan, while the ethnic Uzbek majority call themselves Uzbeks.

Demographic trends

Boys pose for a picture at Registan. Over a quarter of Uzbekistan's population is under 14 years old.

Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country. Its 28.1 million people (July 2011 estimate)^[1] comprise nearly half the region's total population.

The population of Uzbekistan is very young: 34.1% of its people are younger than 14. According to official sources, Uzbeks comprise a majority (80%) of the total population. Other ethnic groups include Russians 5.5%, Tajiks 5%, Kazakhs 3%, Karakalpaks 2.5%, and Tatars 1.5% (1996 estimates).^[1] There is some controversy about the percentage of the Tajik population. Official data from Uzbekistan that put the number of Tajiks at 5% of the population do not include ethnic Tajiks who, for a variety of reasons, choose to identify themselves as Uzbeks in population census forms.^[2] Some Western scholars, citing anonymous "observers" or "Tajiks around the country", accordingly estimate the number of Tajiks in Uzbekistan at 20%^[3] or even as high as 25%-30%.^[4]

Uzbekistan has an ethnic Korean population that was forcibly relocated to the region from the Soviet Far East in 1937-1938. There are also small groups of Armenians in Uzbekistan, mostly in Tashkent and Samarkand. The nation is 88% Muslim (mostly Sunni, with a 5% Shi'a minority), 9% Eastern Orthodox and 3% other faiths (which include small communities of Korean Christians, other Christian denominations, Buddhists, Baha'is, and more).^[5] The Bukharan Jews have lived in Central Asia, mostly in Uzbekistan, for thousands of years. There were 94,900 Jews in Uzbekistan in 1989^[6] (about 0.5% of the population according to the 1989 census), but now, since the collapse of the USSR, most Central Asian Jews left the region for the United States or Israel. Fewer than 5,000 Jews remain in Uzbekistan.^[7]

Much of Uzbekistan's population was engaged in cotton farming in large-scale collective farms when the country was part of the Soviet Union. The population continues to be heavily rural and dependent on farming for its livelihood, although the farm structure in Uzbekistan has largely shifted from collective to individual since 1990.

Vital statistics

Births and deaths^{[8] [9]}

	Average population (x 1000)	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)
1980	15 952	540 047	118 886	421 161	33.9	7.5	26.4
1981	16 376	572 197	117 793	454 404	34.9	7.2	27.7
1982	16 813	589 283	124 137	465 146	35.0	7.4	27.7
1983	17 261	609 400	128 779	480 621	35.3	7.5	27.8
1984	17 716	641 398	132 042	509 356	36.2	7.5	28.8
1985	18 174	679 057	131 686	547 371	37.4	7.2	30.1
1986	18 634	708 658	132 213	576 445	38.0	7.1	30.9
1987	19 095	714 454	133 781	580 673	37.4	7.0	30.4
1988	19 561	694 144	134 688	559 456	35.5	6.9	28.6
1989	20 033	668 807	126 862	541 945	33.4	6.3	27.1
1990	20 515	691 636	124 553	567 083	33.7	6.1	27.6
1991	21 009	723 420	130 294	593 126	34.4	6.2	28.2
1992	21 509	680 459	140 092	540 367	31.6	6.5	25.1
1993	22 005	692 324	145 294	547 030	31.5	6.6	24.9
1994	22 478	657 725	148 423	509 302	29.3	6.6	22.7
1995	22 918	677 999	145 439	532 560	29.6	6.3	23.2
1996	23 319	634 842	144 829	490 013	27.2	6.2	21.0
1997	23 685	602 694	137 331	465 363	25.4	5.8	19.6
1998	24 030	553 745	140 526	413 219	23.0	5.8	17.2
1999	24 372	544 788	130 529	414 259	22.4	5.4	17.0
2000	24 724	527 580	135 598	391 982	21.3	5.5	15.9
2001	25 090	512 950	132 542	380 408	20.4	5.3	15.2
2002	25 467	532 511	137 028	395 483	20.9	5.4	15.5
2003	25 849	508 457	135 933	372 524	19.7	5.3	14.4
2004	26 226	540 381	130 357	410 024	20.6	5.0	15.6
2005	26 593	533 530	140 585	392 945	20.1	5.3	14.8
2006	26 947	555 946	139 622	416 324	20.6	5.2	15.4
2007	27 291	608 917	137 430	471 487	22.3	5.0	17.3
2008	27 217	646 096	138 792	507 304	23.7	5.1	18.6
2009	27 509	649 727	130 659	519 068	23.6	4.7	18.9
2010

Total fertility rate (TFR)

The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) estimated as of 2011 is 1.89 children born/woman.^[1]

In 2002, the estimated TFR was 2.92; Uzbeks 2.99, Russians 1.35, Karakalpak 2.69, Tajik 3.19, Kazakh 2.95, Tatar 2.05, others 2.53; Tashkent City 1.96, Karakalpakstan 2.90, Fergana 2.73; Eastern region 2.71, East Central 2.96, Central 3.43, Western 3.05.^[10]

The high fertility rate during the Soviet Union and during its period of disintegration is partly due to the historical cultural preferences for large families, economic reliance upon agriculture, and the greater relative worth of Soviet child benefits in Uzbekistan.^[11] Abortion was the preferred method of birth control. Legalized in 1955, the number of abortions increased by 231% from 1956-1973.^[12] By 1991, the abortion ratio was 39 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age per year.^[13]

However, in the past few decades, fertility control methods have shifted considerably from abortion to modern contraceptive methods, especially IUDs. By the mid-1980s IUDS became the main method of contraception through government and organizational policies that aimed to introduce women to modern contraceptives. According to a UHES report from 2002, 73% of married Uzbek woman had used the IUD, 14% male condom, and 13% the pill.^[14]

The government supported the use of modern contraceptives to control fertility rates because of national economic difficulties that followed the disintegration of the Soviet Union. Thus the government has been influential in determining the popularity of the IUD. Despite family planning programs that educate women on different methods of contraception, the IUD has remained women’s first choice of contraception. Word of mouth and social relations also account for the strong preference for the IUD. Nevertheless, factors such as class and level of education have been shown to give women more freedom in their choice of contraception methods.

Ethnic groups

Ethnic composition according to the 1989 population census (latest available):^[15][16]
Uzbek 71%, Russian 8%, Tajik 5% (believed to be much higher^[2][3][4]), Kazakh 4%, Tatar 3%, Karakalpak 2%, other 7%.

Estimates of ethnic composition in 1996 from CIA World Factbook:^[1]
Uzbek 80%, Russian 5.5%, Tajik 5%, Kazakh 3%, Karakalpak 2.5%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.5% (1996 estimates).

The table shows the ethnic composition of Uzbekistan's population (in percent) according to four population censuses between 1926 and 1989 (no population census was carried out in 1999, and the next census is now being planned for 2010).^[17] The increase in the percentage of Tajik from 3.9% of the population in 1979 to 4.7% in 1989 may be attributed, at least in part, to the change in census instructions: in the 1989 census for the first the nationality could be reported not according to the passport, but freely self-declared on the basis of the respondent's ethnic self-identification.^[18]

Population of Uzbekistan according to ethnic group 1926–1989

Ethnic group	census 19261		census 19392		census 19593		census 19704		census 19795		census 19896
	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
Uzbeks	3,467,226	73.0	4,804,096	65.1	5,038,273	62.2	7,733,541	64.7	10,569,007	68.7	14,142,475	71.4
Russians	245,807	5.2	727,331	11.6	1,090,728	13.5	1,495,556	12.5	1,665,658	10.8	1,653,478	8.4
Tajiks	350,670	7.4	317,560	5.1	311,375	3.8	457,356	3.8	594,627	3.9	933,560	4.7
Kazakhs	191,126	4.0	305,416	4.9	335,267	4.1	549,312	4.6	620,136	4.0	808,227	4.1
Tatars	28,335	0.6	147,157	2.3	397,981	4.9	442,331	3.7	531,205	3.5	467,829	2.4
Karakalpaks	142,688	3.0	181,420	2.9	168,274	2.1	230,273	1.9	297,788	1.9	411,878	2.1
Crimean Tatars					46,829	0.6	135,426	1.1	117,559	0.8	188,772	1.0
Koreans	30	0.0	72,944	1.2	138,453	1.7	151,058	1.3	163,062	1.1	183,140	0.9
Kyrgyz	79,610	1.7	89,044	1.4	92,725	1.1	110,864	1.0	142,182	0.7	174,907	0.8
Ukrainians	25,335	0.5	70,577	1.1	87,927	1.1	114,979	1.0	113,826	0.7	153,197	0.8
Turkmens	31,492	0.7	46,543	0.7	54,804	0.7	71,066	0.6	92,285	0.6	121,578	0.6
Turks	371	0.0	474	0.0	21,269	0.3	46,398	0.4	48,726	0.3	106,302	0.5
Jews	37,621	0.8	50,676	0.8	94,303	1.2	102,843	0.9	99,836	0.7	94,689	0.5
Armenians	14,862	0.3	20,394	0.3	27,370	0.3	34,470	0.3	42,374	0.3	50,537	0.3
Azeris	20,764	0.4	3,645	0.1	40,511	0.5	40,431	0.3	59,779	0.4	44,410	0.2
Uyghurs	36,349	0.8	50,638	0.8	19,377	0.2	24,039	0.2	29,104	0.2	35,762	0.2
Bashkirs	624	0.0	7,516	0.1	13,500	0.2	21,069	0.2	25,879	0.2	34,771	0.2
Others	77,889	1.6	98,838	1.6	126,738	1.6	198,570	1.7	176,274	1.1	204,565	1.0
Total	4,750,175		6,271,269		8,105,704		11,959,582		15,389,307		19,810,077
1 Excluding the Tadzjik ASSR, but including the Kara-Kalpak Autonomous Oblast (in 1926 part of the Kazakh ASSR); source: [2]. 2 Source: [3]. 3 Source: [4]. 4 Source: [5]. 5 Source: [6]. 6 Source: [7].

Languages

According to the CIA factbook, the current language distribution is: Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%.^[1]The Latin script replaced Cyrillic in the mid-1990s. Following independence, Uzbek was made the official state language. President Islam Karimov, the radical nationalist group Birlik (Unity), and the Uzbek Popular Front promoted this change. These parties believed that Uzbek would stimulate nationalism and the change itself was part of the process of de-Russification, which was meant to deprive Russian language and culture of any recognition. Birlik held campaigns in the late 1980s to achieve this goal, with one event in 1989 culminating in 12,000 people in Tashkent calling for official recognition of Uzbek as the state language.^[19] In 1995, the government adopted the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan on State Language, which mandates that Uzbek be used in all public spheres and official jobs. Scholars studying migration and ethnic minorities have since critiqued the law as a source of discrimination toward minorities who do not speak Uzbek. Nevertheless, Russian remains the de facto language when it comes to science, inter-ethnic communication, business, and advertising.^[20]

Sources suggest that the Persian-speaking Tajik population of Uzbekistan may be as large as 25%-30% of the total population,^[21] but these estimates are based on unverifiable reports of "Tajiks around the country". The Tajik language is the dominant language spoken in the cities of Bukhara and Samarqand. The delineation of territory in 1924 and the process of “Uzbekification” caused many Tajiks to identify as Uzbek. Thus there are many Tajiks who speak Tajik but they are considered Uzbek.^[22]

Religions

Main article: Islam in Uzbekistan

Mosque in Bukhara

Muslims constitute 90% of the population according to a 2009 US State Department release.^[23] Approximately 5% of the population are Russian Orthodox Christians.^[23]

There were 94,900 Jews in Uzbekistan in 1989^[6] (about 0.5% of the population according to the 1989 census), but fewer than 5,000 remained in 2007.^[7]

Due to high literacy rates and Soviet educational background, religious fundamentalism is not widespread in Uzbekistan; a study showed that only 35% of surveyed consider religion as "very important".^[24] See also: Islam in Uzbekistan

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics

For the latest statistics, see this country's entry in the CIA World Factbook

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook as of September 2009, unless otherwise indicated.

Age structure

0–14 years: 28.1% (male 3,970,386/female 3,787,371)
15–64 years: 67% (male 9,191,439/female 9,309,791)
65 years and over: 4.9% (male 576,191/female 770,829) (2009 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total: 23.43 deaths/1,000 live births
Male: 27.7 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 18.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 71.96 years
male: 68.95 years
female: 75.15 years (2009 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.3%
male: 99.6%
female: 99% (2003 est.)

Education

The educational system has achieved 99% literacy, and the mean amount of schooling for both men and women is 12 years. The government provides free and compulsory 12-year education.

Migration

As of 2011, Uzbekistan has a net migration rate of -2.74 migrant(s)/ 1000 population. ^[1]

The process of migration changed after the fall of the Soviet Union. During the Soviet Union, passports facilitated movement throughout the fifteen republics and movement throughout the republics was relatively less expensive than it is today. ^[25] An application for a labor abroad permit from a special department of the Uzbek Agency of External Labor Migration in Uzbekistan is required since 2003. The permit was originally not affordable to many Uzbeks and the process was critiqued for its bureaucracy. The same departments and agencies involved in creating this permit are consequently working to substantially reduce the costs as well as simplifying the procedure. On July 4, 2007, the Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov signed three agreements that would address labor activity and protection of the rights of the working migrants (this includes Russian citizens in Uzbekistan and Uzbek citizens in Russia) as well as cooperation in fighting undocumented immigration and the deportation of undocumented workers.^[26].

Uzbek Migration Economic difficulties have increased labor migration to Russia, Kazakhstan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey, the Republic of Korea, and Europe over the past decade.^[27] At least 10% of Uzbekistan’s labor force works abroad.^[28] Approximately 58% of the labor force that migrates, migrates to Russia.^[26] High unemployment rates and low wages are responsible for labor migration.

Migrants typically are people from the village, farmers, blue-collar workers, and students who are seeking work abroad. However, many migrants are not aware of the legal procedures required to leave the country, causing many to end up unregistered in Uzbekistan or the host country. Without proper registration, undocumented migrants are susceptible to underpayment, no social guarantees and bad treatment by employers. According to data from the Russian Federal Immigration Service, there were 102,658 officially registered labor migrants versus 1.5 million unregistered immigrants from Uzbekistan in Russia in 2006. The total remittances for both groups combined was approximately US $1.3 billion that same year, eight percent of Uzbekistan’s GDP.^[26]

Minorities A significant number of ethnic and national minorities left Uzbekistan after the country became independent, but actual numbers are unknown. The primary reasons for migration by minorities include: few economic opportunities, a low standard of living, and a poor prospect for educational opportunities for future generations. Although Uzbekistan’s language law has been cited as a source of discrimination toward those who do not speak Uzbek, this law has intertwined with social, economic, and political factors that have led to migration as a solution to a lack of opportunities in Uzbekistan.

Russians, who constituted a primarily urban population made up half of the population of Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, until the 1980s. Since then, the population has been gradually diminishing as many Russians have migrated to Russia. Nevertheless, Russian registration permits (propiska) constrain migration.^[29] The decision to migrate is complicated by the fact that many Russians or other minority groups who have a “homeland” may view Uzbekistan as the “motherland.” It is also complicated by the fact that these groups might not speak the national language of their “homeland” or may be registered under another nationality on their passports. Nonetheless, “native” embassies facilitate this migration. Approximately 200 visas are given out to Jews from the Israel embassy weekly.^[30]

See also

• Demography of Central Asia

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Uzbekistan in CIA World Factbook
2. ^ ^{a b} "Uzbekistan". Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 1999. U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 2000-02-23. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/1999/369.htm. Retrieved 2007-12-19. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Svante E. Cornell, "Uzbekistan: A Regional Player in Eurasian Geopolitics?", European Security, vol. 20, no. 2, Summer 2000.
4. ^ ^{a b} Richard Foltz, "The Tajiks of Uzbekistan", Central Asian Survey, 15(2), 213-216 (1996).
5. ^ International Religious Freedom Report for 2004, U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (released 2004-09-15)
6. ^ ^{a b} World Jewish Population 2001, American Jewish Yearbook, vol. 101 (2001), p. 561.
7. ^ ^{a b} World Jewish Population 2007, American Jewish Yearbook, vol. 107 (2007), p. 592.
8. ^ United nations. Demographic Yearbooks
9. ^ The State Statistics Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan
10. ^ A.I. Kamilov, J. Sullivan, and Z. D. Mutalova, Fertility, Chapter 4 in Uzbekistan Health Examination Survey 2002.
11. ^ Cynthia Buckley, “Challenges to Integrating Sexual Health Issues into Reproductive Health Programs in Uzbekistan,” Studies in Family Planning 37(3) (Sep. 2006), 157.
12. ^ Magali Barbieri, Elena Dolkigh, and Amon Ergashev. “Nuptiality, Fertility, Use of Contraception, and Family Planning in Uzbekistan,” Population Studies: A Journal of Demography (1996) 50: 1, 69-88.
13. ^ Cynthia Buckley, Jennifer Barrett, and Yakov P. Asminkin, “Reproductive and Sexual Health Among Young Adults in Uzbekistan” Studies In Family Planning (Mar. 2004), 4.
14. ^ Jennifer Barrett and Cynthia Buckley, “Constrained Contraceptive Choice: IUD Prevalence in Uzbekistan,” International Family Planning Perspectives (Jun. 2007), 52.
15. ^ Library of Congress, A Country Study: Uzbekistan. Ethnic composition
16. ^ A Country Study: Uzbekistan. Ethnic composition, Appendix Table 4.
17. ^ Results of population censuses in Uzbekistan in 1959, 1970, 1979, and 1989.
18. ^ Ethnic Atlas of Uzbekistan, Part 1: Ethnic minorities, Open Society Institute, p. 195 (Russian).
19. ^ Nancy Lubin. “Uzbekistan: The Challenges Ahead,” Middle East Journal vol. 43, Number 4, Autumn 1989, 619-634.
20. ^ Radnitz 2006, p. 658
21. ^ Richard Foltz, "The Tajiks of Uzbekistan", Central Asian Survey, 213-216 (1996).
22. ^ Fane 1998, p. 292-293
23. ^ ^{a b} [1]
24. ^ Pew Global Attitudes
25. ^ Scott Radnitz, “Weighing the Political and Economic Motivations for Migration in Post-Soviet Space: The Case of Uzbekistan,” Europe-Asia Studies (July 2006): 653-677.
26. ^ ^{a b c} Erkin Ahmadov, Fighting Illegal Labor Migration in Uzbekistan, Central Asia Caucasus-Institute Analyst, http://www.cacianalyst.org/newsite/?q=node/4681(Aug. 21, 2007)
27. ^ International Organization for Migration, Uzbekistan, http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/pid/510(Feb. 17, 2011).
28. ^ International Crisis Group, Uzbekistan: Stagnation and Uncertainty, Asia Briefing, 22 August 2007.
29. ^ Radnitz 2006, p. 659
30. ^ Daria Fane, “Ethnicity and Regionalism in Uzbekistan: Maintaining Stability Through Authoritarian Control,” in Leokadia Drobizheva, Rose Gottemoeller, Catherine McArdle Kelleher, and Lee Walker, ed., in Ethnic Conflict in the Post-Soviet World: Case Studies and Analysis (New York: M.E. Sharp, Inc., 1998), 271-302.