How many cities are there in modern Belarus? What nationalities live here? What is the population of Belarus? These and some other demographic questions you will find answers in our article.
Belarus: population, number
The demographic situation in Belarus is generally the same as in other countries of the post-Soviet space. The same problems are observed here as in neighboring Russia or Ukraine.
To date, the population of Belarus is 9 million 480 thousand people. By the way, President of the country Alexander Lukashenko recently stated that at least twenty million people should live in the state. Nevertheless, real demographic forecasts are not yet as rosy as the leader of the Republic of Belarus wants them to be.
The population of the country, if considered in a historical aspect, grew until 1993. It was then that the number of inhabitants here reached a record high of 10.2 million people. After that, the population of Belarus began to decline rapidly. The main reason for the deterioration of the demographic situation in the country is the excess of deaths over births. True, in recent years, the statistics of natural growth has slightly improved. In addition, the overall decline in the number of population was slightly smoothed out due to an increase in immigration flows into the country.
More clearly, the dynamics of the population of Belarus is illustrated in the following graph. Shown here is the time period from 1993 to 2008.
Key demographics
In terms of demographics, the country of Belarus has little to boast of, the population of which continues to decline. The average life expectancy here is 72 years (with women living 11 years longer). This figure is higher than that of the neighbors - Russians and Ukrainians, but significantly lower than in developed European countries.
A rather acute demographic problem in Belarus is a serious gap in life expectancy between men and women. Indeed, according to UN standards, it should not exceed five years within one state. It should be noted that in rural areas this gap is even more noticeable - almost 14 years.
Boys are born in Belarus a little more (106 per hundred girls). Although this is a global trend. Families with one child predominate in the republic (there are about 66% of such families in the country). Families with three or more children for Belarus are not uncommon, but not often enough either. According to the most recent data, one out of two marriages in this country is dissolved.
The most problematic region of Belarus in terms of demographics is Vitebsk. Here, from year to year, the highest death rates are recorded, as well as record low birth rates.
Ethno-linguistic structure of the population
What nationalities live in the country called Belarus? Its population has always been ethnically diverse. Together with the indigenous nation, Ukrainians, Poles, Russians, Moldavians, Jews, Lithuanians, etc. have long lived here.
Today, at least 130 different nationalities live in Belarus. The top five ethnic groups of the country in terms of numbers are as follows:
- Belarusians (83.7%).
- Russians (8.2%).
- Poles (3.1%).
- Ukrainians (1.7%).
- Jews (0.14%).
In what regions of Belarus do representatives of these nationalities live?
Thus, the Russians are concentrated in the north-eastern part of the country; Poles - in the west; Ukrainians, predictably, - in the south. Jews traditionally live in big cities (there are especially many of them in Gomel, Brest, Minsk and Grodno).
According to the last census, which was conducted in the country in 2009, only 60% of its inhabitants called Belarusian their native language. Moreover, in everyday communication it is used by no more than 30% (and even then mainly in villages). Thus, Belarus is characterized by the problem of preserving its native language. After all, many linguists already classify it as endangered.
The largest cities in Belarus
The total population of Belarusian cities today is 7.2 million people. At the same time, as many experts note, urbanization processes will only intensify in the near future.
In Belarus, there are 14 cities with a population of over one hundred thousand people and only one million-plus city. Over 70% of the entire urban population of the country is concentrated here.
The largest cities in the country in terms of the number of inhabitants are Minsk (1.9 million inhabitants), Gomel (505 thousand), Vitebsk (372 thousand), Mogilev (370 thousand), Grodno (352 thousand) and Brest (325 thousand).
At the same time, the rural population in Belarus continues to decline. On average, this figure is up to 50 thousand people annually (in recent years).
The capital of the state, as well as its cultural, transport, scientific and educational center is the hero city of Minsk, which is located almost in the center of the country.
Conclusion
Belarus ranks 18th in Europe in terms of the number of its inhabitants. Today, almost 9.5 million people live in the country. The demographic problems of Belarus as a whole are typical for the post-Soviet space: these are low birth rates, high mortality rates, the extinction of the village, and also low average life expectancy (especially for men).
The Republic of Belarus in terms of population is in sixth place in the CIS and ranks 92nd in the global list.
According to the data of the National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus, the population as of July 1, 2016 amounted to 9498.4 thousand people. The vast majority of the population (almost 80 percent) lives in cities.
Belarus is a state with a low density, especially by European standards - about 46 people live on one square kilometer of area. The only city with a million inhabitants is the capital of Belarus, Minsk, which is home to almost two million people. All other cities are much smaller.
Belarus is a multinational state, representatives of more than 130 nationalities live on its territory. 81 percent of the population consider themselves Belarusians. Russians are the second largest nation in Belarus. Both languages - Belarusian and Russian - are state languages.
The vast majority of believers profess Orthodox Christianity, while the state is separated from the church and is secular.
According to official statistics, demography in Belarus is going through a protracted crisis. The birth rate is falling, there is no natural increase in the population. Thus, in 1990 the population of the republic was 10,190,000 people. In 1996, this figure was 10,177,000. Currently, it does not even reach 9 and a half million. All these years, the trend of depopulation (natural population decline) has persisted.
However, an encouraging circumstance is a slight slowdown in this trend. So, if in the 1990s and 2000s the size of the decline was several tens of thousands of people annually, then in recent years this negative phenomenon has somewhat stalled, the decline is already in the thousands. For example, in 2015 it amounted to only one thousand people.
The birth rate in Belarus is low at only 9.4 per thousand population, or slightly less than one and a half births per woman. According to this indicator, Belarus is one of the last places in the world ranking (176 out of 195 possible). This indicator is not enough for a positive natural reproduction of the population.
Insignificant profit in the population in the last four years has been provided solely by migration.
The gender ratio is uneven. There are six hundred thousand more women in Belarus than men, while women live almost ten years longer, while a five-year period is considered a natural difference. For such a small state, this figure is very significant.
The 2009 census showed that Belarusian families prefer having few children. One child is present in the vast majority of families (more than 65 percent). Only five percent of families have many children.
The mortality rate is high in Belarus, in the country as a whole it is 12.6 people per thousand of the population, while it varies greatly by region. The lowest death rate is recorded in the capital (9.7 people), the highest - in the Vitebsk and Minsk regions (more than 16 people). In terms of mortality, Belarus ranks 24th in the world. However, one cannot fail to note a fairly stable positive trend. This indicator, for example, in 2002 was 14.9, in 2012 - 13.4, the decline is gradual, but stable, which gives hope for further improvement in the situation in this area.
Also of the positive aspects, it should be noted the increase in life expectancy over the past twenty years. So, if in 1995 it was only 68.6 years, in 2005 - 68.8 years, then in 2015 the duration increased significantly and amounted to 73.9 years.
Every year about 80,000 marriages are concluded in Belarus, while more than 32,000 are dissolved, thus, almost every third marriage breaks up.
Against the backdrop of the global economic crisis, the standard of living of the population of Belarus is systematically decreasing. Thus, the average monthly salary for January-June 2016 amounted to almost 700 denominated Belarusian rubles (7 million non-denominated), which is approximately 350 US dollars. This level of wages is only 96 percent of the level for the same period last year. The real incomes of the population are also declining, the purchasing power of the national currency is also falling. Against the background of a general decline in income, the standard of living of the population is also deteriorating sharply.
State support for the socially unprotected population is scanty. Thus, the amount of monthly social allowance for low-income families is approximately 15 US dollars, one-time targeted assistance - 40 US dollars.
The situation is much better in the area of state support for motherhood and childhood. Thus, at the birth of the first child from August 1, 2016, a lump-sum benefit in the amount of 1,755 Belarusian rubles is paid, which is equivalent to about 880 US dollars. For the second and subsequent children, the state pays a lump sum of 2,457 rubles ($1,234). Child care allowance is paid to a woman up to three years, and not up to one and a half, as in many CIS countries. For the first child, the allowance is 35 percent of the average quarterly wage (approximately $115), for the second and subsequent children it is 40 percent of the average wage (approximately $130).
These facts testify to the desire of the state to change for the better the demographic situation in the country, to achieve population growth due to its natural increase. And in this area it is impossible not to note some successes. Despite the negative values of growth so far, the rate of depopulation, as noted above, has decreased in recent years, Belarus is approaching a positive value of natural growth.
In the presence of such a demographic policy, serious state support for motherhood and childhood, and the adoption of exceptional measures to stimulate the birth rate, there is confidence that all the demographic problems that have accumulated in Belarus in recent years will be resolved soon.
The article was prepared by specialists of SoyuzPravoInform LLC.
The population of Belarus today, according to the statistics committee, is almost nine and a half million people. Among the CIS countries, this is the fifth place after the Russian Federation, Ukraine, as well as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Nevertheless, the population of Belarus exceeds the number of citizens of all (1.3 times), as well as or Denmark (twice). This figure is lower than in Sweden, Austria and Bulgaria. The number of inhabitants of Belarus is approximately equal to the number of citizens in Greece, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Belgium, Yugoslavia and a number of other states.
The period, lasting from the post-war years up to the nineties of the last century, was characterized by a trend towards a constant increase in the population of the country, as a result of which the population of Belarus increased markedly. However, in the last decades of the twentieth century, the rate of increase in the population of the country began to decline markedly.
The economic reforms of the era of perestroika affected many aspects of people's lives. The transition to market relations, the emergence of informal activities, the flourishing of private business, the growth of unemployment - all these factors played a significant role in changing the living conditions of citizens. This also affected the dynamics of the number, composition, and the process of reproduction of people living in the country.
Since 1993, Belarus, whose population began to decline, entered the stage of depopulation. The decrease in the number of citizens occurred due to the excess of the death rate over the birth rate. The result of this process is the country's constant movement towards acquiring the status of a smaller state (in terms of population).
The population of Belarus has a multinational composition. Representatives of one hundred and thirty nationalities live in the state. The main number of citizens are Belarusians. Their share in the total population is eighty-one percent.
The largest percentage of Belarusians live in Minsk and at present their number in the country as a whole is constantly increasing.
The percentage composition of other nationalities has been constantly changing throughout the historical period. It was directly dependent on external and internal factors (migrations, wars, and so on). However, invariably representatives of the second largest group of the population were Russian people. of this nation is equal to eleven percent. Many of the landlords, peasants and officials began to live in Belarus after its annexation to the Russian Empire. During the existence of Soviet power, this ethnic group surpassed the Polish and Jewish in its numbers, which corresponded to the geopolitics of the USSR. At present, the residence of representatives is mainly cities.
The population of Belarus in its northwestern regions is represented by a large proportion of Poles. It makes up almost four percent of the total population of this region. An insignificant level of migration of citizens of Polish nationality was observed in the Middle Ages. To date, most of the representatives of this live in the Grodno region. They do not have any significant differences from the Belarusians in terms of everyday and cultural features.