Demographics of the Republic of Ireland

Demographics of Ireland

Population of the Republic of Ireland from 1841
Population 4,757,976 (2016 census)
Density 68 per km2
Growth rate 1.77%
Birth rate 16.1 births/1,000 population
Death rate 6.34 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy 80.19 years
 • male 78 years
 • female 82.6 years
Fertility rate 2.02 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate 3.85 deaths/1,000 live births
Net migration rate 0.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Age structure
0–14 years 21.3%
15–64 years 67.0%
65 and over 11.7%
Sex ratio
Total 0.99 male/female
At birth 1.057 male/female
Under 15 1.07 male/female
15–64 years 1.00 male/female
65 and over 0.81 male/female
Nationality
Nationality Irish
Major ethnic Irish 87.4%
Minor ethnic Other white 7.5%, Asian 1.3%, black 1.1%, mixed 1.1%, unspecified 1.6% (2006)
Language
Official English, Irish
Spoken Irish Sign Language, Shelta, Ulster Scots

The Republic of Ireland had a population of 4,757,976 at the 2016 census.[1]

Demographic history

A graph of the populations of the island of Ireland and Europe from 1750 to the present, showing Ireland's massive population spike in the early 19th century and subsequent collapse due to the 1845—49 famine.

The island of Ireland, throughout most of its history, had a small population, comparable to that of other regions of similar area in Europe. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Ireland experienced a major population boom as a result of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions. In the 50-year period 1790-1840, the population of the island doubled from 4 million to 8 million. At its peak, Ireland's population density was similar to that of England and continental Europe.

This changed dramatically with the Great Famine of the mid-19th century, which led to mass starvation and consequent mass emigration. In the area covering the present day Republic of Ireland, the population reached about 6.5 million in the mid 1840s. Ten years later it was down to 5 million. The population continued a slow decline well into the 20th century, with the Republic recording a low of 2.8 million in the 1961 census.[2]

During the 1960s, the population started to grow once more, although slowly as emigration was still common. In the 1990s the country entered a period of rapid growth as a result of the Celtic Tiger Irish economic boom. Immigration began to far outweigh emigration. Many former Irish emigrants returned home, and Ireland became an attractive destination for immigrants, mainly from Central Europe, but also from Africa, Asia and elsewhere. However, with the 2008 onset of the Irish economic and banking crisis, the country's economy suffered, and since then Ireland has once again been experiencing net emigration.

In November 2013 Eurostat reported that the Republic had the largest net emigration rate of any European Union country at 7.6 people emigrating per 1,000 population. However, it has the youngest population of any country in the European Union and its population size is predicted to grow for many decades into the future, bucking the trend of declining population predicted for most European countries. A report published in 2008 predicted that the population would reach 6.7 million by 2060.[3] The country has also has been experiencing a baby boom, with increasing birth rates and overall fertility rates.[4] Despite this the total fertility rate is still below replacement.[5] This increase is primarily fueled by non-Irish immigration - in 2009, a quarter of all children born in the state were born to mothers who had immigrated from other countries.[6]

Ethnic groups and immigration

Gaelic culture and language forms an important part of the Irish national identity.

The Irish Travellers are an indigenous minority ethnic group. Traveller representative organisations are currently seeking official recognition of Traveller ethnicity by the Irish State.

In 2008, Ireland had the highest birth rate (18.1 per 1,000), lowest death rate (6.1 per 1,000) and highest net-migration rate (14.1 per 1,000) in the entire European Union – and the largest population growth rate (4.4%) in the 27-member bloc as a result.[7]

Ireland is home to people from all over the globe, especially in Dublin. The most common foreign nationalities include Polish, British, Lithuanian, Latvian and Nigerian.

Traditionally Ireland has been a land of mass emigration and it has had to adapt to mass immigration. Some illegal immigrants are reported to use sham marriages as method to gain legal status.[8][9][10] The Irish government has sought to work with UK government to stem the flow of illegal immigrants.[11][12][13]

Vital statistics of Ireland[14]

Life in Ireland

Culture
Economy                  
General
Society
Politics
Policies
Population on April 1 (x 1000) Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Total fertility rate
1923 3 014 62 417 42 217 19 473 20.5 14.0 6.5
1924 3 005 63 402 45 180 18 222 21.1 15.0 6.1
1925 2 985 62 069 43 650 18 419 20.8 14.6 6.2
1926 2 971 61 176 41 740 19 436 20.6 14.0 6.5
1927 2 957 60 054 43 677 16 377 20.3 14.8 5.5
1928 2 944 59 176 41 792 17 384 20.1 14.2 5.9
1929 2 937 58 280 42 991 15 289 19.8 14.6 5.2
1930 2 927 58 353 41 702 16 651 19.9 14.2 5.7 2.54
1931 2 933 57 086 42 947 14 139 19.5 14.6 4.8 2.49
1932 2 949 56 240 42 984 13 256 19.1 14.6 4.5 2.43
1933 2 962 57 364 40 539 16 825 19.4 13.7 5.7 2.47
1934 2 971 57 897 39 083 18 814 19.5 13.2 6.3 2.49
1935 2 971 58 266 41 543 16 723 19.6 14.0 5.6 2.50
1936 2 967 58 115 42 586 15 529 19.6 14.4 5.2 2.50
1937 2 948 56 488 45 086 11 402 19.2 15.3 3.9 2.45
1938 2 937 56 925 40 041 16 884 19.4 13.6 5.7 2.47
1939 2 934 56 070 41 717 14 353 19.1 14.2 4.9 2.43
1940 2 958 56 594 41 885 14 709 19.1 14.2 5.0 2.43
1941 2 993 56 780 43 797 12 983 19.0 14.6 4.3 2.42
1942 2 963 66 117 41 640 24 477 22.3 14.1 8.3 2.85
1943 2 946 64 375 43 494 20 881 21.9 14.8 7.1 2.80
1944 2 944 65 425 45 128 20 297 22.2 15.3 6.9 2.84
1945 2 952 66 861 42 762 24 099 22.6 14.5 8.2 2.90
1946 2 957 67 922 41 457 26 465 23.0 14.0 8.9 2.94
1947 2 974 68 978 44 061 24 917 23.2 14.8 8.4 2.98
1948 2 985 65 930 36 357 29 573 22.1 12.2 9.9 2.80
1949 2 981 64 153 38 062 26 091 21.5 12.8 8.8 2.75
1950 2 969 63 565 37 741 25 824 21.4 12.7 8.7 2.74
1951 2 961 62 878 42 382 20 496 21.2 14.3 6.9 2.69
1952 2 953 64 631 35 105 29 526 21.9 11.9 10.0 2.97
1953 2 949 62 558 34 591 27 967 21.2 11.7 9.5 2.95
1954 2 941 62 534 35 535 26 999 21.3 12.1 9.2 3.18
1955 2 921 61 622 36 761 24 861 21.1 12.6 8.5 3.28
1956 2 898 60 740 33 910 26 830 21.0 11.7 9.3 3.41
1957 2 885 61 242 34 311 26 931 21.2 11.9 9.3 3.52
1958 2 853 59 510 34 248 25 262 20.9 12.0 8.9 3.43
1959 2 846 60 188 34 243 25 945 21.1 12.0 9.1 3.63
1960 2 832 60 735 32 660 28 075 21.4 11.5 9.9 3.78
1961 2 818 59 825 34 763 25 062 21.2 12.3 8.9 3.78
1962 2 830 61 782 33 838 27 944 21.8 12.0 9.9 3.92
1963 2 850 63 246 33 795 29 451 22.2 11.9 10.3 4.01
1964 2 864 64 072 32 630 31 442 22.4 11.4 11.0 4.07
1965 2 876 63 525 33 022 30 503 22.1 11.5 10.6 4.04
1966 2 884 62 215 35 113 27 102 21.6 12.2 9.4 3.95
1967 2 900 61 307 31 400 29 907 21.1 10.8 10.3 3.84
1968 2 913 61 004 33 157 27 847 20.9 11.4 9.6 3.77
1969 2 926 62 912 33 734 29 178 21.5 11.5 10.0 3.83
1970 2 950 64 382 33 686 30 696 21.8 11.4 10.4 3.85
1971 2 978 67 551 31 890 35 661 22.7 10.7 12.0 3.97
1972 3 024 68 527 34 381 34 146 22.7 11.4 11.3 3.93
1973 3 073 68 713 34 192 34 521 22.4 11.1 11.2 3.78
1974 3 124 68 907 34 921 33 986 22.1 11.2 10.9 3.64
1975 3 177 67 178 33 173 34 005 21.1 10.4 10.7 3.43
1976 3 228 67 718 34 043 33 675 21.0 10.5 10.4 3.35
1977 3 272 68 892 33 632 35 260 21.1 10.3 10.8 3.31
1978 3 314 70 299 33 794 36 505 21.2 10.2 11.0 3.27
1979 3 368 72 539 33 771 38 768 21.5 10.0 11.5 3.26
1980 3 401 74 064 33 472 40 592 21.8 9.8 11.9 3.25
1981 3 443 72 158 32 929 39 229 21.0 9.6 11.4 3.10
1982 3 480 70 843 32 457 38 386 20.4 9.3 11.0 2.98
1983 3 504 67 117 32 076 35 041 19.2 9.2 10.0 2.76
1984 3 529 64 062 32 154 31 908 18.2 9.1 9.0 2.57
1985 3 540 62 388 33 213 29 175 17.6 9.4 8.2 2.48
1986 3 541 61 620 33 630 27 990 17.4 9.5 7.9 2.44
1987 3 547 58 433 31 413 27 020 16.5 8.9 7.6 2.31
1988 3 531 54 600 31 580 23 020 15.5 8.9 6.5 2.17
1989 3 510 52 018 32 111 19 907 14.8 9.1 5.7 2.08
1990 3 506 52 954 31 370 21 584 15.1 8.9 6.2 2.12
1991 3 526 52 718 31 305 21 413 15.0 8.9 6.1 2.09
1992 3 555 51 089 30 931 20 158 14.4 8.7 5.7 1.99
1993 3 574 49 304 32 148 17 156 13.8 9.0 4.8 1.91
1994 3 586 48 255 30 948 17 307 13.5 8.6 4.8 1.85
1995 3 601 48 530 31 494 17 036 13.5 8.7 4.7 1.86
1996 3 626 50 390 31 514 18 876 13.9 8.7 5.2 1.89
1997 3 664 52 311 31 605 20 706 14.3 8.6 5.7 1.93
1998 3 703 53 551 31 352 22 199 14.5 8.5 6.0 1.95
1999 3 742 53 354 31 683 21 671 14.3 8.5 5.8 1.90
2000 3 790 54 239 31 115 23 124 14.3 8.2 6.1 1.89
2001 3 847 57 854 30 212 27 642 15.0 7.9 7.2 1.96
2002 3 917 60 521 29 348 31 173 15.5 7.5 8.0 1.97
2003 3 980 61 529 29 074 32 455 15.5 7.3 8.2 1.99
2004 4 045 61 972 28 665 33 307 15.3 7.1 8.2 1.96
2005 4 134 61 372 28 260 33 112 14.8 6.8 8.0 1.88
2006 4 233 64 237 27 479 36 758 15.2 6.7 8.5 1.93
2007 4 339 71 389 28 050 42 570 16.4 6.4 10.0 2.04
2008 4 422 75 173 28 192 46 873 17.0 6.3 10.7 2.14
2009 4 459 75 554 28 898 45 380 16.9 6.3 10.6 2.10
2010 4 470 73 724 27 122 46 602 16.5 6.1 10.4 2.07
2011 4 588 74 650 28 995 45 655 16.2 6.2 10.0 2.04
2012 4 585 72 225 28 848 43 377 15.6 6.4 9.2 2.01
2013 4 593 68 930 30 018 38 912 15.0 6.5 8.5 1.96
2014 4 615 67 462 29 095 38 367 14.6 6.3 8.3 1.95
2015 4 635 65 909 29 952 35 957 14.2 6.4 7.8 1.91

Current natural growth[15]

Demographic statistics

The following demographic statistics are from Ireland's Central Statistics Office (CSO), Eurostat and the CIA World Factbook.

Population

A 2001 Population pyramid showing Ireland's age and gender structure.

Figures from the CSO.[16]

4,581,269 (2011)
4,585,400 (2012 preliminary estimate)
4,757,976 (2016 census)

Age structure

0–14 years: 21.3% (male: 501,189; female: 478,401) (2011)
15–64 years: 67.0% (male: 1,558,196; female: 1,545,073) (2011)
65 years and over: 11.7% (male: 243,314; female: 292,079) (2011)
Non-national groups with populations in Ireland of 10,000 or more in 2006. Non-European Union nationals are shown exploded.

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2008)

Infant mortality rate

total:

3.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2013)

Life expectancy at birth

Foreign residents of Ireland by country of birth, 2006.
total population: 80.19 years (2011)
male: 77.96 years (2011)
female: 82.55 years (2011)

Total fertility rate

2.1 children born/woman (2009)[17]

HIV/AIDS

– adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2001 est.) - people living with HIV/AIDS: 6,900 (2008 est.)

Nationality

noun: Irishman (men), Irishwoman (women), Irish (collective plural)
adjective: Irish

Nationalities in Ireland

Irish (including dual-Irish/other): 86.9%, UK: 2.5%, Other EU 27: 6.1%, Other Europe: 0.7%, Asia: 1.5%, Africa: 0.9%, USA: 0.2%, Other countries: 0.5%, Multiple nationality: 0.1%, Not stated: 1.2% (2011)

Below are the 20 largest immigrant groups in Ireland according to the 2011 census.

Country of Birth Immigrants in Ireland (2011 Census)
 Poland 122,585
 United Kingdom 112,259
 Lithuania 36,683
 Latvia 20,593
 Nigeria 17,642
 Romania 17,304
 India 16,986
 Philippines 12,791
 Germany 11,305
 United States 11,015
 China 10,896
 Slovakia 10,801
 France 9,749
 Brazil 8,704
 Hungary 8,034
 Italy 7,656
 Pakistan 6,847
 Spain 6,794
 Czech Republic 5,451
 South Africa 4,872

Ethnic groups

Irish, with Norse (Scandinavian), Norman, English, French, Scottish, and Welsh, Ulster-Scots and various immigrant populations – the largest immigrant groups, with over 10,000 people, are the British, Poles, Americans, Lithuanians, Latvians, Germans, Nigerians, Indians, Pakistanis and Chinese.[18]

Ethnic (or cultural) backgrounds: White Irish: 84.5%, White Irish Travellers (awaiting official recognition of minority ethnic group status by the Irish State): 0.7%, Other White: 9.1% (total White: 94.3%), Asian: 1.9%, Black: 1.4%, Other: 0.9%, Not Stated: 1.6% (2011)[19]

Religions

Roman Catholic 84.16%, No Religion 7.63%, Church of Ireland 2.81%, Islam 1.07%, Orthodox 0.99%, Presbyterian 0.54%, Methodist 0.15% (2011). In an Irish Times Behaviour Attitudes social poll published on 15 September 2010, 32% of those surveyed said they went to a religious service more than once a week.

Geographic Population Distribution

Urban population (areas with >1,500 people): 62.0% (2011)
Rural population: 38.0% (2011)

Languages

English is the most commonly used language, with 94%[20] of the population calling it their mother tongue. Irish is the first official language of the state, with 11%[20] calling it their mother tongue. Irish is the main language of the Gaeltacht regions, where 96,628 people live. Shelta and Ulster Scots are also spoken by small communities. The main sign language used is Irish Sign Language.

Languages in Ireland
Language Percent
Irish
  
 2%
English
  
 94%
Irish and English(bilingual)
  
 1%
others
  
 3%

Literacy

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

See also

Groups:

References

  1. ↑ Census 2016 Preliminary Report
  2. ↑ Census.ie - Population of Ireland 1841 - 2006
  3. ↑ RTÉ News - Irish population to hit 6.7m by 2060
  4. ↑ Irish Examiner - Baby boom as Irish births reach highest level since 1982
  5. ↑
  6. ↑ IrishJournal.ie
  7. ↑ Irish Independent - Baby boom puts us on top of birth rate league
  8. ↑ Cusack, Jim (11 May 2008). "€10,000 bogus marriage offer for Latvian girls". Independent. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  9. ↑ "Wanted: EU bride for marriage of convenience". Independent. 31 January 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  10. ↑ "Ireland/Latvia: The Golden Immigration Card". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  11. ↑ "UK-Ireland borders deal to target illegal immigrants". BBC. 20 December 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  12. ↑ "Visa plan targets illegal immigrants". Irish Times. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  13. ↑ "Latvia calls on Ireland to tackle sham marriages". BBC. 21 November 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  14. ↑ http://www.cso.ie/en/statistics/birthsdeathsandmarriages/numberofbirthsdeathsandmarriages/
  15. ↑ "Births, Deaths and Marriages". Central Statistics Office. Central Statistics Office of the Republic of Ireland. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  16. ↑ "Population and Migration Estimates" (PDF). Dublin: Central Statistics Office. 27 September 2012. p. 7. ISSN 1393-5593. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  17. ↑ Central Statistics Office Ireland - Report on Vital Statistics 2009
  18. ↑ CSO Ireland - Persons usually resident and present in the State on Census Night (2006), classified by place of birth and age group.
  19. ↑ CSO Ireland This is Ireland - Highlights from the 2011 census, Part 1
  20. 1 2 Eurobarometer - Europeans and their languages
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