Population of Belarus by years. Population of Belarus. at incapacitated age, total
Ethno-linguistic composition of the population of Belarus
The modern ethno-linguistic structure of the population of Belarus was formed as a result of a long historical development, under the influence of geographical, historical, socio-economic, political and ethnic factors.
Throughout the history of the existence of the Belarusian ethnos, Belarusians populated their ethnic territory in a compact massif. Russians, Ukrainians, Poles, Latvians, Lithuanians, that is, representatives of those peoples who lived in the immediate vicinity of the Belarusians, have long lived alongside the indigenous nationality on the territory of Belarus.
Population censuses provide us with rich information about the ethnic composition of the population. According to the last census of 1999, representatives of more than 130 nations and nationalities lived on the territory of Belarus. The most numerous of them are Belarusians, Russians, Poles, Ukrainians and Jews (Figure 1, Table 1). However, the absolute majority of the country's population are representatives of the indigenous Belarusian nationality. Thus, in the country as a whole, more than four fifths of the total population (81.2%) are Belarusians. This is typical for both cities and rural areas in almost all regions.
Belarusians... In total, according to the 1999 census, 8158.9 thousand Belarusians lived on the territory of Belarus. This is 254.3 thousand people more than in the 1989 census. Basically, the growth in the number and share of Belarusians on the territory of the republic in the 90s occurred due to their active re-emigration from other republics of the former USSR back to Belarus. In 1989, there were 10,036.3 thousand people of Belarusian nationality on the territory of the former Soviet Union, of which 7904.4 thousand people (78.8%) lived on the territory of Belarus. The remaining 2,131.7 thousand people (21.2%) of Belarusian nationality lived outside the republic, mainly in Russia (12.0%), Ukraine (4.4%), Kazakhstan (1.8%), Latvia (1, 2%) and in all other republics taken together - 1.8%. At present, the share of Belarusians living in other CIS and Baltic countries has slightly decreased, since in the 90s, after the collapse of the USSR, there was a re-emigration of Belarusians to Belarus from almost all the former republics.
Figure 1. Dynamics of changes in the size of the main national groups of the population of Belarus (according to population censuses)
* Here and in the following figures, the data for these years are given for the actual population
The largest balance of migration was noted from Russia, the Baltic countries, Kazakhstan, that is, from those republics in which the largest number of Belarusians lived. The maximum inflow of population to Belarus from almost all states of the former USSR fell in 1992; in recent years (1994-1999), the intensity of the inflow of the population has dropped sharply. The re-emigration of Belarusians is caused by a number of reasons. The main ones are the collapse of the USSR and the processes associated with it, as well as the aggravation of competition in labor markets with the population of titular nationalities, the emergence of national conflicts in a number of republics of the former USSR. In just the years after the 1989 census, over 15% of all Belarusians who lived outside the Republic of Belarus on the territory of the former USSR returned to the republic. The intensity of the re-emigration of Belarusians is especially clearly visible when comparing the number of arriving migrants of Belarusian nationality from different states with the number of Belarusians living in these states according to the 1989 census. So, in the 90s, every third of the Belarusians who lived there in 1989 left the Transcaucasian states for Belarus, almost all of them left Armenia; over the years, more than 15% of Belarusians who lived in these states at the date of the 1989 census have left for Belarus from the Baltic countries, the countries of Central Asia, from Russia.
Belarusians prevail in the overwhelming majority of regions of the republic, only in the Lida and Shchuchinsky regions their share is less than half of the population - 46 and 41%, respectively, and in Voronovsky - only 11%. The largest share of Belarusians is noted in the Kopylsky, Lelchitsky and Ivanovsky regions - 95% each, and in the Stolin region - 96%.
Russians... Most of the non-indigenous people in the republic are Russians; according to the 1999 census, their number was 1,141.7 thousand people, which is 200.4 thousand less than in the 1989 census. The decrease in this number is mainly due to the outflow of the Russian population after the collapse of the USSR, the withdrawal of troops from the territory of the republic (where their share was significant), as well as the processes of assimilation. The largest percentage of Russians is found mainly in the northern and eastern regions of Belarus, as well as in areas with an increased share of the urban population. So, Russians make up 15% or more in such areas as Borisovsky, Kirovsky, Brest, Gomel, Grodno, Braslavsky, Vitebsky, Bobruisk, and this indicator reaches its maximum value in the Polotsk region - 20%. And in areas such as Voronovsky, Ivyevsky, Korelichsky, Gantsevichsky, Drogichensky, Ivanovsky, Lelchitsky and Stolin, Russians make up less than 4% of the total population.
Russian settlements on the territory of Belarus began to arise after the war between Russia and the Commonwealth (1654-1667). Then, in the 17th-18th centuries, groups of the Russian population settled on the territory of Belarus - Old Believers who sought refuge from religious persecution. They formed rural settlements in the Vitebsk, Vilensk, Minsk, Mogilev provinces.
At the end of the 18th and 19th centuries, Russian landowners, officials, workers, peasants who bought land from the landlords and the treasury actively moved to Belarusian lands.
During the period of the Soviet Union, the number and proportion of Russians increased steadily - from 8% in 1959 to 13% in 1989. This increase was mainly due to the migration inflow from various regions of the RSFSR. This process proceeded most intensively in the post-war period, since the restoration of destroyed factories, factories, administrative and residential premises required a significant amount of qualified labor resources. In addition, new industries were developed in the republic: chemical, oil refining, radio-electronic, automotive, tractor construction, precision instrument making, production of mineral fertilizers, engines, bearings, etc., which also required additional involvement of qualified specialists. Therefore, the majority of Russians settled in urban settlements.
Poles... The third largest national group in Belarus is the Poles. In total, according to the 1999 census, 395.7 thousand people of Polish nationality lived in the republic. This is 22 thousand people less than according to the 1989 census. The overwhelming majority of them are located in the regions of the Grodno region bordering on Poland. These are mainly people of local origin, whose ancestors also lived here. The share of Poles in the total population on the territory of the republic is constantly decreasing, mainly due to natural movement, assimilation processes and migration. The resettlement of Poles to the territory of Belarus took place during the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. These resettlements were more active in 1921-1939, when the western regions of Belarus were under Polish rule.
Poles are distributed on the territory of Belarus in a compact massif in the western and northwestern regions of the country, and mainly in rural areas. In Ivyevsky, Grodno, Braslavsky, Zelvensky, Volkovyssky, Lida districts, they account for more than a quarter of the population (from 25 to 40%), in Shchuchinsky - more than half (51%), and in Voronovsky - the overwhelming majority - 83%. Such a significant predominance of persons of non-indigenous nationality is an exceptional phenomenon for Belarus. However, according to many researchers, a significant part of those who consider themselves to be Poles are in fact "polonized" Belarusians. The fact is that these territories were part of the Commonwealth for a long time, and later were under the rule of Poland, which, naturally, could not but affect the ethnic identity of the Belarusians, who were forced to accept Catholicism and learn the Polish language.
Ukrainians... According to the 1999 census, 237,000 Ukrainians live in Belarus. And the number in comparison with 1989 has decreased by 5 thousand, although in previous years it has grown steadily.
Ukrainians live both in the rural areas of the regions adjacent to the Ukrainian border and in the cities of Belarus. Their settlements have long arisen in the southern regions of Belarus, in the Polesie zone.
The data of the last population census showed that the largest percentage of people of this nationality lives mainly in the southwestern and southeastern regions of Belarus. So, in Zhabinkovsky, Kobrin, Brest, Bragin, Kamenets and Malorita districts, Ukrainians make up more than 5%. In the central and northern territories, Ukrainians constitute an insignificant part of the total population. In 27 districts of the republic, their share is less than 1%. Among them: Oshmyarsky, Ivyevsky, Voronovsky, Korelichsky, Myadelsky, Kopylsky, Sharkovshchinsky, Ushachsky and others.
Jews... In addition to the representatives of these nationalities, the number of each of which exceeds 100 thousand people, representatives of smaller ethnic groups live in the republic. The largest of them are Jews. Jews remain the fifth largest national group in Belarus in terms of population, but the number of this nationality has significantly decreased over the years after the 1989 census (by 84.2 thousand people) and amounted to only 27.8 thousand people (0.3% of the total population). In 1989, it numbered 112 thousand people and accounted for 1.1% of the total population. According to the 1939 census, 375.1 thousand Jews lived in Eastern Belarus alone, 6.7% of the total population. They constituted the second largest national population group. The decline in the number and proportion of persons of Jewish nationality on the territory of the republic is caused by a number of reasons: increased migration after the elimination of the "Pale of Settlement" in the first years of Soviet power, losses during the Great Patriotic War in 1941-1944, the spread of mixed marriages, departure to large cities of Russia and Ukraine. Over the past 10 years, the size of this national group has significantly decreased due to intensive travel outside the CIS and Baltic countries. In 1989-1999, more than 130 thousand people received permission to travel outside the CIS and Baltic countries in Belarus. Among them, a significant proportion were persons of Jewish nationality, this proportion was especially high among those leaving in 1989-1995.
The first Jews appeared on Belarusian soil in the 8th century as a result of migratory settlements from the Middle East. And a little later, in the XI century, - and from the territory of Western Europe, from where they fled from religious persecution. Jewish immigration reached the most significant scale in the 16th century, when not only representatives of large financial capital, but also the middle and poor strata of the Jewish population began to move to the territory of modern Belarus. Thus, "the total number of the Jewish population on the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 60s of the XVI century reached 20 thousand people, and by 1628 - about 40 thousand. According to the estimates of the famous Belarusian historian Z.Yu. Jews made up from 2 to 10% of the population. "
The overwhelming majority of the Jews of Tsarist Russia lived on the territory of modern Belarus, Poland and Ukraine, since these territories were included in the zone of the so-called "Pale of Settlement". So, according to the census of 1897, in total there were 5189401 Jews in the Russian Empire, which was about 4% of the total population, and in Grodno province - 17.4%, Vilenskaya - 15.4, Vitebsk - 11.7, Minsk - 16. 0, Mogilev - 12.1%.
A significant part of the Jewish population lived in such settlements as Vitebsk, Brest, Grodno, Minsk, Pinsk, Slutsk, Mogilev, Gomel, etc.
As shown by the 1999 census, persons of Jewish nationality are dispersed throughout the territory, that is, without forming a compact array of residence. In 60 districts of the republic (that is, in almost exactly half) their share is less than one tenth of a percent of the total population. This indicator reaches the highest value in Orsha (0.4%), Mogilev (0.4%), Mozyr (0.4%), Bobruisk (0.6%), Gomel (0.7%), Vitebsk (0.7%) ) districts and in Minsk (0.6%).
Table 1. National composition of the population of Belarus
(census data)
|
Nationality |
Number, thousand people |
1999 in% to 1989 |
||||
|
All population |
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|
Belarusians |
||||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||||
|
Azerbaijanis |
||||||
|
Moldovans |
||||||
|
Others and not specified |
||||||
|
Share in total population, percent |
||||||
|
All population |
||||||
|
Belarusians |
||||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||||
|
Azerbaijanis |
||||||
|
Moldovans |
||||||
|
Others and not specified |
||||||
Other nationalities. The representatives of the smaller ethnic groups of the population living on the territory of Belarus, but numbering more than 10 thousand people each, include the Armenians and Tatars. The number of Armenians living on the territory of the republic is growing rapidly. Compared with the data of the 1959 census, it increased more than five times and amounted to 10.2 thousand people at the date of the 1999 census. The number of Armenians has been growing especially actively in the last decade, more than doubled. Tatars have been living on the territory of the republic for several generations. Their number, according to the 1999 census, was 10.1 thousand people against 12.6 thousand according to the 1989 census and 8.7 thousand according to the 1959 census. In addition to the named nationalities, gypsies, Lithuanians, Azerbaijanis, Germans, Moldovans, Georgians, Latvians live on the territory of Belarus. The rest of the peoples living on the date of the 1999 population census on the territory of Belarus are few in number (less than one thousand).
Language features of the population
Language assimilation... In Belarus, to a greater extent than in any other state of the post-Soviet space, linguistic assimilation and bilingualism of the population are expressed. Almost the entire population of Belarus freely understands two related languages, Belarusian and Russian.
Linguistic assimilation is expressed in the fact that groups of the population of one nationality, being in close social, economic, cultural and everyday contact with another nationality, master its language and, through the transitional stage of bilingualism, begin to consider this new language as their native language. For Belarusians, as well as for all national minorities living on the territory of Belarus, the transition to the Russian language is characteristic. It should be noted that this process is usually rather slow and requires a long period of time. But on the territory of Belarus there were and are factors that significantly accelerate this process: the proximity of the Russian and Belarusian languages, the common economic, social and political space in the former Soviet Union, close labor, business, scientific contacts, etc.
Throughout the post-war period, the proportion of those who called Russian their native language grew in the republic. If in 1959 only 6.8% of Belarusians called Russian their native language, in 1970 - 9.8, in 1979 - 16, then the 1989 population census showed that this figure rose to 19.7%, that is, every fifth Belarusian considered Russian to be his native language. The same trend was typical for other national groups. However, since the beginning of the 90s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the growth of national self-awareness, as well as the increase in the role of the Belarusian language in public life, the situation has changed.
In 1990, the Law on Language was adopted in Belarus. In accordance with this law, the Belarusian language received the status of the state language, which was reflected in the 1994 Constitution of the Republic of Belarus. This served to intensify the use and study of the Belarusian language in the republic, which should have a positive effect on the growth of the number of people in Belarus who are fluent in the Belarusian language.
A national referendum was held on May 14, 1995. It was attended by 64.8% of the country's citizens. 83.3% of the population that took part in the referendum voted for the introduction of the Russian language as the second state language, and, thus, the Russian language was given equal status with the Belarusian language.
In the 1999 census, the question of the prevalence of languages among the population was studied in a complex, that is, the population was asked to indicate not only their native language, but also the language in which the respondent speaks at home, and another language that he speaks fluently.
Native language. According to the 1999 census, among the total population of the country, 81.9% of the population named the language of their nationality as their native language, and 18.1% indicated the languages of other peoples (Table 2). In 1989 this figure was 78 and 22%, respectively. The Belarusian language, the language of the indigenous nationality of the Republic of Belarus, according to the 1999 census, was called native by 73.7% of the total population of the country. This is significantly more than 10 years ago. According to the 1989 census, only 65.6% of the total population considered Belarusian to be their native language.
Russian was called native by 21.9% of the country's population; according to the 1989 census, Russian was considered native by 31.9% of the population.
Table 2. Distribution of the population by nationality and native language, 1999
|
Number, thousand people |
Of the total number, in% |
They indicated as their native language |
|||
|
consider the native language of their nationality |
Belorussian |
Russian |
other |
||
|
All population |
|||||
|
Belarusians |
|||||
|
Ukrainians |
|||||
According to the 1999 census, 14.3% of Belarusians consider Russian as their native language. This is less than 20 years ago. This is largely due to the growth of national self-awareness, as well as to the fact that the 1999 Belarusian population census provided an opportunity to distinguish between the concepts of "native language" and "the language in which a person speaks at home."
It should be noted that the population census showed an increase in Belarusian and a decrease in the share of Russian as a "native" language not only among Belarusians, but also among the other four largest ethnic groups living in the republic.
Figure 2. Language assimilation in the Republic of Belarus
(according to the 1999 census)
Thus, among Ukrainians, the share of persons who named Belarusian as their native language during the population census increased from 5.9% in 1989 to 14.3% in 1999, among Poles - from 63.9 to 67.1%. Such a significant percentage of Poles who consider Belarusian as their native language is due to the fact that most of them live in rural areas, together with Belarusians, moreover, often people who consider themselves to be of Polish nationality are in fact indigenous Belarusians who have adopted the Catholic faith, which in most cases, it was regarded as a transition to Polish nationality. Even among Russians, this indicator (the share of people who consider Belarusian as their native language) increased from 2.2 to 9.1%. But it rose most sharply among Jews - from 2.1 to 17.1%, that is, eight times.
At the same time, despite a slight decline in Russian-speaking assimilation, the share of people who consider Russian their native language remains significant. The latest census showed that 90.7% of Russians, 77% of Jews, 42.8% of Ukrainians, 16.2% of Poles and 14.3% of Belarusians called Russian their native language.
The second side of linguistic assimilation is that national groups do not just switch to another language, but at the same time "forget" their native language. This trait is most typical for Poles, and especially for Jews. If in 1959 48.6% of Poles recognized Polish as their native language, then in 1999 only 16.5%. For Jews this figure is even lower, it dropped from 21.9% in 1959 to 5.4% in 1999. Russians and Belarusians are least susceptible to this process. So, in 1959, almost 100% of Russians recognized their language as their native language, in 1999 this figure was 90.7%. For Belarusians, this figure was 93.2 and 85.6%, respectively. A distinctive feature of Ukrainians living on the territory of Belarus is that from 1959 to 1999, a fairly constant proportion of people of this nationality, approximately 40-50%, call the Ukrainian language their mother tongue.
The language spoken at home. The population of Belarus is characterized by a high proportion of the population who speaks at home not in the language of their nationality, but in Russian. According to the 1999 census, only 45% of the population spoke the language of their ethnicity at home. The Belarusian language is usually spoken at home by 3,683 thousand people, or 36.7% of the population of the republic (see table 3).
Table 3. Population distribution by nationality and language spoken at home, 1999
|
Number, thousand people |
Of the total number, the language that is usually spoken at home was indicated, in% |
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|
Belorussian |
Russian |
other |
||
|
All population |
||||
|
Belarusians |
||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||
Of these, 3373 thousand people (92%) are Belarusians. However, among all Belarusians, their share is less than half, only 41.3%, while more than half of the Poles (57.6%) speak Belarusian at home.
Russian as the language usually spoken at home was named by 6308 thousand people, or 62.8% of the total population of the republic. 4783 of them are Belarusians. Among Belarusians, their share was 58.6%.
In cities, the share of Russian speakers at home is significantly higher than in rural areas (see Table 4).
Table 4. Distribution of urban and rural population by nationality and language spoken at home
(1999, percent)
|
Nationalities |
Urban population |
Rural population |
||
|
Belorussian |
Russian |
Belorussian |
Russian |
|
|
All population |
||||
|
Belarusians |
||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||
As can be seen from the data in Table 4, for all large nationalities living in the cities of Belarus, the main spoken language is Russian.
This is due to the fact that the population in cities is more diverse in terms of ethnic composition than in rural areas, interethnic marriages are more common here, the level of education is much higher, which somewhat affects the strengthening of the role of the Russian language - the language of interethnic communication.
Figure 3. Percentage of persons of a given nationality who named their native language as their native language
Socio-economic differences. The 1999 census also revealed significant differences in levels of urbanization, education, unemployment, economic activity, occupation, and other economic characteristics among different ethnic groups.
The census reflected the following differentiation of the share of people living in cities among the largest ethnic groups living in the territory of the Republic of Belarus: Belarusians - 5498 thousand people, which is 67.4% of all people of this nationality; Russians - 972.7 thousand people (85.2%), Poles - 215.1 thousand (54.4%), Ukrainians - 184.8 thousand (78%), Jews - 27.2 thousand (97.8%) , other nationalities - 637 thousand people (75.9%) (table 5)
Table 5. Ratio of people living in cities and rural areas in five national groups of the Republic of Belarus
(according to the 1999 census)
|
Nationality |
All population |
Urban population |
Rural population |
|||
|
All population |
||||||
|
Belarusians |
||||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||||
Compared to the entire urban population of the republic, the proportion of Belarusians and Poles is somewhat less, and of Russians, Ukrainians, and especially Jews, more.
Ethno-linguistic differences between the urban and rural population are the result of the historical characteristics of the formation of the national composition of Belarus. So, according to the census of 1897, in Minsk more than half of the inhabitants were Jews - 51.2%, Russians were in second place in terms of population - 25.5, in third - Poles - 11.4, and Belarusians - only in fourth place. making up only 9% of the total population. Roughly the same ethnic composition was in other cities. So, 34,440 Jews lived in Vitebsk, or 52% of the total population of the city, in Brest - 30,260 (65%), in Grodno - 22684 (48%), Pinsk - 21065 (74%), Slutsk 10264 (77%), Mogilev - 21547 (50%), Gomel - 20385 (55%).
The rural population was represented mainly by indigenous people - Belarusians, as well as Poles.
The increased percentage of the Jewish population in cities and towns is explained by the policy of oppression carried out by the tsarist authorities. So, on May 3, 1882, the "Provisional Regulations" were published, according to which Jews were prohibited from settling in the countryside, leasing land and acquiring real estate outside cities, and engaging in agriculture and cattle breeding.
The level of education. Significant differences were noted between representatives of different nationalities and in terms of education. The census showed that for 1000 people of the corresponding nationality, for example, 120 Belarusians, 261 Russians, 89 Poles, 221 Ukrainians and 405 Jews have higher education (see Table 6).
Table 6. The level of education of individuals of certain nationalities of the Republic of Belarus (per 1000 people of the corresponding nationality have an education, according to the 1999 census)
|
Nationality |
Higher secondary and basic |
including |
Initial |
|
|
higher |
secondary and basic |
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|
Belarusians |
||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||
Age composition. Different national groups of the population differ quite significantly in terms of age and sex composition (Figure 4). The largest share of the able-bodied population in their structure belongs to Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians (66%, 63 and 56%, respectively), the smallest - Jews - 46%.
In turn, almost half of the Jews living in Belarus are of retirement age, while among Belarusians and Russians, the share of pensioners is only a fifth of their total number.
You should also pay attention to the aging process of the population. Of particular concern is the decrease in the proportion of children and youth in the general structure of the population, which limits the possibility of replenishing the labor force, since retirement is not fully compensated by young people entering working age.
Figure 4. The structure of the population of individual nationalities of the Republic of Belarus by economic groups
(according to the 1999 census)
A low proportion of children is typical for almost all of the most numerous ethnic groups living in Belarus. Thus, the age group under 10 years old for Russians, Poles and Ukrainians is 7.5%, 9.6 and 4.6%, respectively, and for Jews - only 2.6%. Only among Belarusians this age group exceeds 10% (Figure 5, Table 7).
Figure 5. The structure of the population of individual nationalities of the Republic of Belarus by age (according to the 1999 census)
Table 7. The structure of the population of individual nationalities of the Republic of Belarus by age (according to the 1999 census; in percent)
|
nationality |
Total |
including age, years |
||||||||
|
70 and older |
||||||||||
|
Belarusians |
||||||||||
|
Ukrainians |
||||||||||
Spheres of application of labor. The population census also showed that there are certain interethnic differences in the spheres of employment (see Table 8). They are associated not only with the specifics of the historical development of peoples, but also with some of their social characteristics (primarily with the level of education and urbanization). These phenomena, mainly, began to attract the attention of sociologists, demographers, and the public lately. The main reason for the increased attention to this problem is the current situation in the distribution of labor resources.
Table 8. Employed population of individual nationalities of the Republic of Belarus by occupation (in% of the total employed population of the corresponding nationality; according to the 1999 census)
|
Total |
Belarusians |
Russians |
Poles |
Ukrainians |
Jews |
|
|
All population |
||||||
|
of them: |
||||||
|
heads (representatives) of authorities and management at all levels, including heads of institutions, organizations and enterprises and their structural divisions |
||||||
|
specialists of the highest qualification level |
||||||
|
mid-level specialists |
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|
employees engaged in the preparation of information, paperwork, accounting and maintenance |
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|
workers in the service sector, housing and communal services, trade and related activities |
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|
skilled workers in agriculture, forestry, hunting, fish farming and fishing |
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|
skilled workers of large and small industrial enterprises, arts and crafts, construction, transport, communications, geology and exploration of mineral resources |
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|
operators, machine operators, plant and machine operators, product assemblers |
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|
unskilled workers |
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Thus, among the heads (representatives) of authorities and administration at all levels, including the heads of institutions, organizations and enterprises and their structural units (as a percentage of the total employed population of the corresponding nationality), Belarusians make up 9.9%, Poles - 8.5, Ukrainians - 13.0, Russians - 13.6, and Jews - 24.3%. Approximately the same picture is for highly qualified specialists, that is, a higher percentage of Jews, Russians and Ukrainians - 35.3, 23.3, 18.3%, respectively, and a lower percentage of Belarusians - 14.6%, as well as Poles - 13.0%. At the same time, the structure of employment of Belarusians and Poles is distinguished by a higher percentage of qualified workers employed in agriculture, forestry, hunting, fish farming and fishing - 5.3 and 7.0%, respectively. For Russians, Ukrainians and Jews, this figure is 2.8%, 5.2% and 0.2%.
Thus, a higher level of education and urbanization (as you know, it is in cities where the main administrative, industrial, cultural, scientific and other functions are concentrated) significantly contributes to the fact that in the structure of employment of Ukrainians, Russians, and especially Jews, the most the share of managers and specialists of the highest qualification level is high.
In turn, a significant part of Belarusians and Poles live in rural areas, which determines the increased share of their participation in agriculture and forestry.
Unemployment. Recently, there has been a significant increase in attention to such an indicator as the unemployment rate, which largely determines the state of the labor market and shows the state of the country's economy as a whole. According to the census, the unemployment rate in the republic in 1999 was 6.2% of the total economically active population (6.8% in urban areas and 4.6% in rural areas).
This indicator also differs markedly across national groups (see table 9).
Table 9. Population of selected nationalities by unemployment rate; according to the 1999 census (the share of unemployed in the economically active population of the corresponding nationality; percentage)
|
Nationality |
All population |
Urban population |
Rural population |
|
For Belarus as a whole |
|||
|
Belarusians |
|||
|
Ukrainians |
|||
The highest unemployment rate among Russians - 7.6% and Ukrainians - 6.4%; among Belarusians and Poles, it is 6.0 and 5.6%, respectively. The lowest unemployment rate among Jews is only 4.8%. If we compare this indicator with the level of urbanization in the context of national groups, we can see the following pattern: the higher the level of urbanization, the higher the unemployment rate.
The only exceptions are Jews, who, with the highest urbanization among the five largest national groups, have the lowest unemployment rate. To a large extent, this is the result of the increased migration activity of this ethnic group: dissatisfied with their social, material and other situation, they leave in the first place.
1 - Kasperovich G.I. Migration of the population to cities and ethnic processes. Minsk. Science and technology, 1985
2 - Ioffe E.G. pages of the history of the Jews of Belarus. Minsk, 1996
There are 9 499 804 people living in Belarus, but not everyone is a Belarusian.
The population of Belarus includes everyone who permanently resides on the territory of the country.
- Population - 9 499 804;
- Male population (48.5%) - 4,977,872;
- The female population (51.5%) - 5,295,665;
- Population growth this year - 160;
According to the forecasts of sociologists, this year the population will increase to 9,500,404 people.
True, the natural growth will keep the negative position. Its indicators will be 23 369 people. It is estimated that about 134,610 people will die.
The total number of babies born in 2017
Belarus Population
will be about 111,241 people. The number of immigrants (who came to the country for long-term residence) will exceed the number of emigrants (those who leave the country).
National composition of Belarus
More than 80% of the population of Belarus are indigenous Belarusians. After World War II, a large influx of Russians was registered in the country.
The number of Russians in Belarus is 8.2%. In third place were the Poles - 3.1% of them live in our country. The fourth place is occupied by Ukrainians - 1.7%. The fifth place is occupied by Jews - 0.13%. Also, Tatars, Gypsies, Lithuanians and Latvians live in the country.
Religious composition
About 60% of the population of Belarus considers themselves to be believers.
Of these, 82.5% are Orthodox, 12% are Catholics, 4% are of Eastern religions (Islam, Hinduism and Bahá'ís), 2% are Protestants. Also, Old Believers still live on the territory of Belarus.
Life span
The latest demographic indicators have established the average life expectancy of a Belarusian at 71.2 years. If we talk separately about women and men, then the weaker sex, according to statistics, is home to more strong representatives of the sex.
Thus, a Belarusian woman lives on average 77.2 years, and a man 65.6 years.
Language features of the population
There are two state languages in Belarus: Belarusian and Russian. The majority of the population speaks Russian. According to sociological surveys, the population, which considers Russian as their native language, is gradually increasing.
So in 1959 the number of such people was 6.8%, and after thirty years in 1989 - 19.7%.
Population literacy
Almost 100% literacy of the population over 10 years old is provided in Belarus. About 18% of citizens have higher education, 26% have specialized secondary education.
Population migration
According to 2012 data
18,040 migrants arrived in Belarus. Among them are Russians - 8560 people, Ukrainians - 2258, Cossacks - 963, Turks - 800. Citizens of Belarus prefer to emigrate to work in Russia - more than 500 thousand have emigrated.
people, Poland - about 200 thousand people, as well as to other countries of the European Union.
Family
Most Belarusian families raise one child - 65.9%.
28.3% of families have two children, only 5.2% have three or more.
Everything about the inhabitants of Belarus: number, ethnic composition, life expectancy
The names of the inhabitants of Belarus
The country of Belarus has the full official name of the Republic of Belarus and the letter codes BY and BLR. Another name for the country is also often used - Belarus. Official names of citizens of Belarus:
The inhabitants of the masculine gender of the territory of Polesie are called: Poleshuk (Poleshuk). There is no name for the feminine gender, so they say: a resident of Polissya.
Declination by cases
The declension of the name of the country and the names of the inhabitants by cases.
Cities of Belarus
List of large and famous cities of Belarus in alphabetical order with the names of citizens.
If the city does not have the name of the inhabitants of the feminine gender, use the phrase "inhabitant of the city ...".
| Baranovichi | baranovichi | baranovichka | residents of Baranovichi |
| Bobruisk | Bobruisk | Bobruisk woman | Bobruisk residents |
| Borisov | Borisov citizen | Borisov | residents of Borisov |
| Brest | Brest dweller | brest woman | Brest dwellers |
| Vitebsk | Vitebsk | viteblyanka | Vitebsk |
| Gomel | Gomel | Gomel | Gomel residents |
| Grodno | Grodno | Grodno | Grodno residents |
| Zhlobin | Zhlobin citizen | zhlobinchanka | Zhlobin residents |
| Lida | Lydian | lidian | Lydians |
| Minsk | Minsker | Minsk woman | Minskers |
| Mogilev | Mogilev resident | Mogilev woman | residents of Mogilev |
| Pinsk | pinchanin | pinchanka | Pingchane |
| Polotsk | Polovtsian | Polovchanka | Polovtsy |
| Slutsk | sluchain | case | occasionally |
The Republic of Belarus ranks sixth in terms of population 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, especially by European standards, density - about 46 people live on one square kilometer of the area. The only city with a million population is the capital of Belarus Minsk, it is home to almost two million people. All other cities are much smaller.
Belarus is a multinational state with representatives of more than 130 nationalities living on its territory. 81% of the population considers themselves to be Belarusians. Russians are the second largest nation in Belarus. Both languages - Belarusian and Russian - are state languages.
The overwhelming 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, natural population growth is absent. So, in 1990, the population of the republic was 10 190 000 people. In 1996, the 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) persisted.
However, a certain slowdown in this trend is encouraging. So, if in the 90s 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 calculated in thousands. For example, in 2015 it was only one thousand people.
The fertility rate in Belarus is low and amounts to only 9.4 people per thousand of the population, or slightly less than one and a half births per woman. According to this indicator, Belarus is in 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.
The insignificant gain in population in the past 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. There is one child in the overwhelming majority of families (over 65 percent). Only five percent of families have many children.
The mortality rate is high in Belarus, as a whole in the country it is 12.6 people per thousand of the population, while it varies greatly across regions. The lowest mortality rate is recorded in the capital (9.7 people), the highest - in the Vitebsk and Minsk regions (over 16 people). In terms of mortality, Belarus ranks 24th in the world. However, one cannot fail to note the rather stable positive dynamics. This indicator, for example, in 2002 was 14.9, in 2012 - 13.4, the decline is gradual, but steady, which gives hope for further improvement of the situation in this area.
Also on the positive side, it should be noted and 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.
Annually in Belarus about 80 thousand marriages are concluded, while more than 32 thousand are divorced, thus, almost every third marriage breaks up.
Against the background of the global economic crisis, the standard of living of the population of Belarus is steadily decreasing. Thus, the average monthly salary in January-June 2016 amounted to almost 700 denominated Belarusian rubles (7 million non-denominated), which is approximately 350 US dollars in terms of conversion. This level of wages is only 96 percent of the level for the same period last year. 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 incomes, the standard of living of the population is also sharply deteriorating.
State support for the socially unprotected population is scanty. Thus, the size of the monthly social allowance for low-income families is approximately 15 US dollars, and one-time targeted assistance is 40 US dollars.
The situation is much better in the sphere of state support for mothers and children. So, at the birth of the first child, from August 1, 2016, a lump-sum benefit is paid in the amount of 1,755 Belarusian rubles, which is equivalent to approximately 880 US dollars. For the second and subsequent children, the state pays a lump sum of 2,457 rubles (1,234 dollars). A childcare allowance is paid to a woman up to three years old, and not up to one and a half, as in many CIS countries. For the first child, the benefit is 35 percent of the average quarterly salary (approximately $ 115), for the second and subsequent children, 40 percent of the average salary (approximately $ 130).
These facts indicate the desire of the state to change the demographic situation in the country for the better, to achieve population growth due to its natural increase. And in this area, one cannot fail to note some successes. Despite the negative values of growth so far, the rates of depopulation, as noted above, have 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 mothers and children, and the adoption of exceptional measures to stimulate the birth rate, there is confidence that all the demographic problems of Belarus that have accumulated in recent years will soon be resolved.
* The value is calculated by linear interpolation, taking into account the two most closely related values (Date-> Population) (unofficially).The article was prepared by the specialists of SoyuzPravoInform LLC.
** Migration gain is included in the calculation of fertility growth: Fertility = Population + Mortality.
*** We do not have data on the population before 1950. The figures shown are based on a rough estimate using the function: population in 1900 = 70% of the population in 1950.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2015). World Demographic Prospects: A 2015 Revision. These estimates and projections are based on the medium-term fertility option. Used with permission from the United Nations. Downloaded: 2015-11-15 (un.org)
City density map, generated by population.city using data provided to us by 1km.net website. Each circle represents a city of over 5000. Link
Population density map was created according to instructions from daysleeperrr on reddig. Link1. Data source: Gridded Population of the World (GPW), 3rd online edition in Socioeconomic Data and Applications (SEDAC) at Columbia University.
Shakhotko L.P.
(Published in the book: The main challenges to demographic security: similarities and differences in Moldova and Belarus / Editors in charge: G. Paladi, L. Shakhotko, O. Gagauz. -Kishinev: Shtiintsa 2010. p. 39-66)
Population dynamics
At the beginning of 2010, the population of the Republic of Belarus was 9480.2 thousand people. The urban population is 74.5% and the rural population is 25.5%. In terms of population, Belarus ranks fifth among the CIS countries after Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. It has 14 times less population than Russia, 5 times less than in Ukraine, but 1.3 times more than in all three Baltic countries combined, 2 times more than in Finland or Denmark. More people live in our republic than in Austria, Bulgaria, Sweden, Switzerland. The population in Belgium, Hungary, Greece, Portugal, Czech Republic, Yugoslavia and a number of other countries is approximately the same as in Belarus. Throughout all the post-war years, up to the beginning of the 1990s, the population of the Republic of Belarus was constantly growing. However, the intensity of this growth began to decline already in the early 1970s.
Reforming the country's economy in the 90s of the last century affected many aspects of the life of the population. The transition to a mixed economy, the development of the private sector, the emergence of informal activities, the removal of restrictions on re-employment, the emergence of unemployment, the formation of the housing market - all this significantly influenced the living conditions of the population and, accordingly, the dynamics of its size, composition, and population reproduction processes.
For the first time, the death rate exceeded the birth rate in 1993, and the country entered a qualitatively new stage in its development - depopulation. However, the population in the country began to decline in 1994, since in 1993 the natural decline was less than the migration increase. For more than 15 years in the Republic of Belarus, the annual number of deaths has exceeded the number of births and, despite the continued positive migration growth, the population in the country is constantly decreasing. As a result, in terms of population, Belarus is steadily shifting towards smaller states (Table 1, Fig. 1).
Table 1. Dynamics of the population of Belarus for 1950–2010, thousand people *
|
All population |
Urban population |
Rural population |
Total population growth / decline in the previous 10 years |
|
* Belstat data
Figure 1. Dynamics of the population of Belarus for 1950–2010.
The depopulation that we see in Belarus is not a unique phenomenon in the world. It is observed in many other European countries, not only post-Soviet ones. So, in France, depopulation was noted in the 1940s, in Germany it began in the 1970s. and continues to this day. Since the early 1980s. depopulation began in Hungary, and from the mid-1990s. in more than a dozen European countries: Belarus, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Romania, Slovenia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Sweden, Estonia. So, in 2003, due to natural movement, the population of Ukraine (-0.8%), Russia (-0.6%), Belarus (-0.6%), Bulgaria (-0.6%), Latvia ( –0.5%), Estonia (–0.4%) and Hungary (–0.4%).
However, the countries of Western and Southern Europe replenish the natural decline in population due to migration growth, and in general, the population of these states is increasing. Belarus, the only post-Soviet country, all 1990s. had a positive migration increase with all the CIS and Baltic states, but it was small and did not compensate for the loss due to natural movement. As a result, the country's population is decreasing (Fig. 2).
Figure 2. Dynamics of the general, natural and migratory population growth for 1990-2009.
The decline in the population of the republic due to negative natural growth until 1997 grew rapidly: from 11.2 thousand in 1993 and to 47.1 thousand in 1997. Then, with some fluctuations, the decline continued and reached 57.9 thousand. people in 2002 After 2002, the natural decline in population has been decreasing, and in 2009 it amounted to 25.8 thousand people.
Total for 1993-2009. in the republic, 2329.1 thousand people died, and only 1659.7 thousand were born, that is, the natural population decline over these years amounted to 669.3 thousand people. (Fig. 3).
Figure 3. Natural decrease (increase) in the population of Belarus in 1990-2009, thousand people.
The migration growth taken into account by statistics all these years was positive and amounted to more than +80 thousand people. As a result, the country's population decreased by almost 600 thousand people. This number is about 10 administrative regions of Belarus, or more than the number of Gomel, the second largest city in the country.
Negative migration growth was observed in some years and was fully associated with the outflow of the population outside the former USSR (Fig. 4).
Figure 4. General migration increase (decrease) of the population of Belarus in 1990-2009, thousand people.
As shown by the 2009 population census in Belarus, in recent years there has been not only a registered, but also an unregistered migration outflow in the republic. These are mainly people who left the republic for temporary work and stayed there for a long time without registering to leave Belarus for permanent residence.
With all the CIS and Baltic countries, Belarus all these years had a positive migration balance (Fig. 5).
Figure 5. Dynamics of the balance of migration of the population of Belarus by main flows in 1990-2009, thousand people.
Despite the fact that natural growth in the republic became negative only since 1993, negative trends in demographic development have been noted for a long time. The country has not reproduced its population for more than 25 years, since 1978, when the population reproduction rate in Belarus as a whole fell below the minimum required for simple reproduction. In urban areas, this happened even earlier. Until 1993, the population of the republic increased only due to the previously accumulated demographic potential, which by now has been completely exhausted.
Urban and rural population. At the beginning of 2010, 7058.1 thousand people (74.5%) lived in urban settlements, and 2422.1 thousand people (25.5%) in rural areas.
At the same time, the urban population in the republic throughout the post-war period continued to grow steadily. The decrease in the population of the country all these years went only at the expense of the rural population.
In the city of Minsk, according to the 2009 census, lived 1 million 828 thousand people, or more than a quarter (25.9%) of the total urban population, almost every fifth inhabitant of the Republic of Belarus is a Minsk citizen. The average population density in the republic is 47 people per 1 sq. km. This is much more than, for example, in Russia (8 people / sq. Km). However, this is much less than in Ukraine (82 people / sq. Km) or Germany (230 people / sq. Km).
In the first half of the 1990s. the growth of the urban population fell sharply due to the reduction in the migration inflow of the population from the cities, but already in the second half of the outflow from the villages to the cities increased again, especially in the last year. As a result, the overall population growth in cities has increased, and the overall decline in the rural population has increased.
The social and economic development of the country is significantly influenced by the composition of the population by sex and age.
Deformation of the sex and age structure
Modern age structure. The age structure of the country's population has been developing over a century under the influence of fertility, mortality and migration. At the same time, the age and sex structure of the population largely determines the dynamics of the main demographic processes. By now, a gender and age structure has developed in Belarus, which clearly shows the impact of the consequences of the war, fluctuations in the country's economic growth, the impact of demographic policy measures, changes in mortality and birth rates, and migration flows (Fig. 6).
The age and sex structure of the population largely determines the dynamics of the main demographic processes. For example, given the same fertility rate, the number of births will be higher where the population is younger. At the same mortality rate, the number of deaths will be higher where the population is older .
Let us consider this age and sex pyramid of the population in more detail from top to bottom. The top of the pyramid is displaced to the right; a significant preponderance of the female population over the male population over 70 is visible. This is the result of the higher mortality rate of the male population in peacetime, and in the age group over 80, the more intense death of men during the war of 1941-1945.
In addition, there is also a noticeable decline in the population at the ages over 75, associated with the low birth rate in 1913–1924. During these years, military actions were almost constantly taking place on the territory of modern Belarus. The First World War was replaced by the Revolution and the Civil War.
Figure 6. Age and sex pyramid of the population of Belarus
according to the 2009 census
There is a clear decline in the number of both men and women at the age of 65–70 years. This is the result of a sharp decline in children born during the war. Then there is a significant increase in the population, which lasted until the ages of 40 to 55, these are those born in the 1950s and early 1960s. This was affected by the increase in the number of children born in the post-war years due to the "compensation wave" (upon the return of the fighters, mainly men, from the army, births postponed due to the war were realized in families), as well as the normalization of peaceful life. Another decline in the population size is observed at the age of 25–40 years. This is mainly the result of a sharp decline in the number of women in active childbearing age. This age was entered by those who were born during the war years, when the birth rate was low (children were born to parents born during the war years).
The next increase in the population is observed at the age of 20-30. These are those born in the 1980s. There were two main reasons for this: 1) those born in the first post-war years entered the active childbearing age; 2) activation of demographic policy (in the early 1980s, a number of measures were taken to improve the situation of families with children). They are especially distinguished by a relatively high number both among men and among women aged 23-26 years, these are those born in 1983-1986.
It should be noted that the age and sex pyramid of the population of the Republic of Belarus as of the date of the 2009 census has a narrow space in the age range from 5 to 18 years. This is the result of the low birth rate in the 1990s. XX and early XXI century. The decline in the birth rate was influenced by the deterioration of the economic situation of the country, and, consequently, of its population, as well as the fact that at this time those born in the 1960s – 1970s began to enter childbearing age. (children born during the war years), the number of which is not large. In addition, in these years, the reproductive attitudes of young people, who, as a rule, do not strive to create a family and have children, changed dramatically.
The slight increase in the bottom four bars, reflecting the number of children under 4 years old, is the result of the increase in the number of births in 2006-2009. It is positive that the increase occurred not only due to an increase in the number of women in active childbearing age, but also due to an increase in the intensity of fertility.
Age structure of urban and rural population... The age structure of the urban and rural population as a whole corresponds to the structure of the entire population. The main protrusions and depressions in the age-sex pyramids are explained by the same reasons. However, there are also significant differences (Fig. 7).
Figure 7. Comparison of the sex and age structure of the urban and rural population of Belarus according to the 2009 census.
So, the pyramid of the rural population has a much more massive peak, especially from the female population. This is due to the fact that in rural areas the proportion of older people, especially women, is much higher. Young people actively traveled to the cities of the country in all the post-war years. Moreover, women predominated in the balance of migration between urban and rural areas. Therefore, in rural areas, at almost all working age, there are more men than women, while in urban areas the male population prevails only up to 27 years of age. Migration is also related to the fact that the protrusions in the age-sex pyramid in cities are more noticeable than in rural areas.
The average age of the country's population continues to grow. According to the census, in 1999 it was 37.1 years, and according to the 2009 census - 39.5 years. For men, it increased, respectively, from 34.5 to 36.8 years, for women - from 39.3 to 41.8 years. In cities, the population is much younger than in rural areas. The average age of urban dwellers is 38.2 years (35.6 years for men and 40.1 years for women), rural residents - 43.7 years (40.0 years for men and 46.9 years for women).
Aging... Throughout all the post-war years until the end of the twentieth century. the main trend in the evolution of the age structure of the population of Belarus was the aging of the population, i.e. an increase in the proportion of people in older ages (Table 2).
Table 2. Age structure of the population of Belarus, in%
|
Population aged |
|||||
|
younger than able-bodied |
able-bodied |
of them |
older than able-bodied |
||
|
youth aged 16-29 |
|||||
|
2009 at census date |
|||||
A sharp increase in the population in older ages requires a significant increase in spending on pensions, improving medical care, organizing special social assistance for the elderly, single people who have lost the ability to self-service, as well as solving other problems of older people. The number and proportion of the population over working age until the end of the twentieth century. constantly increased.
According to the UN methodology, a population in which the share of people aged 65 and over is more than 7% is considered old.
As of the date of the 2009 census, about 1.5 million people aged 65 and over (1350.5 thousand people) lived in the republic. Their share was 14.2%, which is more than two times more than that of the old population, according to the UN methodology. In 1989, the proportion of people of this age in the republic was significantly less, it amounted to 10.4%.
At the same time, it should be noted that at the beginning of the XXI century. the situation in Belarus has changed radically. The number of people of retirement age began to decrease, and their share has practically stabilized at a level of just over 21%. It began to increase again only in recent years and, according to the 2009 census, has already amounted to 22.5%
Decrease at the very beginning of the XXI century. the number of people at retirement age was due to the fact that this age group included those who were born during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Their number is significantly less than those born before the war and in the first post-war years (Fig. 6).
In total, over the years after the 1999 census, the population of retirement age decreased by 86.2 thousand people. However, the share of people of this age has decreased insignificantly over these years - from 21.5 to 21.3%. This is due to the fact that the total population of the country has decreased significantly (by 329.6 thousand people). It should be borne in mind that a decrease in the number of people of retirement age is a temporary trend due to the fact that people born during the war, whose number is small, are reaching this age.
As those who were born in the post-war 1950s, when the birth rate were relatively high, began to enter the retirement age, the size of this age group, and accordingly, its share in the total population, began to increase again since 2007. Currently, more than two million people (2139.3 thousand people) are in retirement age, this is every fifth inhabitant of the republic. In rural areas, every third resident is at retirement age.
Decrease in the number and proportion of children. Even more constant is the downward trend in the number and proportion of the population in the younger age groups. The number of children aged 0–15 years has decreased by 620.5 thousand people only in the years since the last census (Fig. 8).
Figure 8. Population dynamics by major economic age groups
Their share, respectively, decreased from 21.2% in 1999 to 15.9% in 2009. The number of children under the age of 10 decreased especially significantly, which is clearly seen in the age and gender pyramid of the population, the base of which has sharply narrowed. This is due to the sharp decline in the birth rate in the 1990s. The number of births per year has increased over the past three years, and how long this new trend lasts will determine the dynamics of the population under 16 years of age.
Dynamics of the working-age population . At the end of the XX - beginning of the XXI century, there was a clear and constant tendency to increase both the share and the number of the population of working age. Thus, the number of able-bodied people increased from 5685 thousand people according to the 1989 census to 5752 thousand according to the 1999 census and to 5853 thousand people according to the 2009 census, i.e. for 168 thousand people over the past 20 years (Fig. 8).
The share of the population of this age increased from 57.3% in 1999 to 62.4% by 2009 (Fig. 9).
Figure 9. Change in the structure of the population by age groups
The share of the population of working age grew exclusively due to a decrease in the share of the population in ages below the working age. The share of the population in the ages older than the able-bodied remained at the level of just over 21%, and in recent years it has begun to grow rapidly.
... It should be noted that, despite significant negative trends in the dynamics of the population size both in younger and older ages, the age structure that has developed to date contributes to the economic development of the country in the best way. The working-age population is increasing, which means that the demographic burden on the working-age population is decreasing. As of the date of the 2009 census, more than 5 million 853 thousand people were of working age, 61.6% of the country's population, this is a very high proportion. In the years after the 1999 census alone, the number of the working-age population increased by 100.7 thousand people, more than half due to young people aged 16-29. At the same time, the number of children under 16 years old decreased by 620.5 thousand people, and the number of people in retirement age decreased by 20.8 thousand people. These trends significantly change the structure of the burden on the working-age population.At present, the burden on the working-age population has begun to grow, but in 2007 and 2008 it was the lowest in the entire post-war history of the development of our republic. So, at the date of the 2009 census, there were 624 disabled people per 1000 people of the working age, while in 1970 there were 894 people, and in 1989 - 785.7 people. This applies not only to the burden of children, which decreases especially quickly. In recent years, the workload has also decreased by people over working age. Moreover, a steady decline has been going on for 10 years. So, in 1999, there were 375 people over the working age per 1000 people of the working age, and according to the 2009 census - 366 people of this age. This load was observed in the late 1980s. If we consider the demographic load by sex, it can be noted that among the female population it is one and a half to two times higher than among the male population. This is mainly due to the higher proportion of persons of retirement age among women.
According to the 1989 census, there were 786 people of nonworking age (437 children and 349 elderly) per 1000 people of working age, in 1999 this indicator was 746 (371 and 375), respectively, according to the 2009 census - 624 ( 258 and 366) (Table 3).
Table 3. Change in the burden on the working-age population according to the 1999 and 2009 population censuses in Belarus
|
Census years |
There are people per 1000 people of working age |
||||||||
|
at incapacitated age, total |
of them aged |
||||||||
|
younger than able-bodied |
older than able-bodied |
||||||||
|
Total |
town |
village |
Total |
town |
village |
Total |
town |
village |
|
In international practice, to assess the demographic load, it is customary to use the "ratio coefficient", which is calculated as the ratio of the number of people under 15 and over 65 years old to the number of people aged 15 to 64 years. This indicator in the republic has also decreased quite rapidly over the past ten years. In 1995, for 100 people. at the age of 15–64, there were 52.1 people. in ages younger and older than this age, in 2000 - 47.6 people, in 2005 - 43.1, and according to the 2009 census - 40.7 people.
In Northern and Western Europe, this indicator in 2004 was slightly higher and amounted to 51.5 people, in Russia it was lower and amounted to 40.8 people.
Dynamics of the number and proportion of women of childbearing age... It is very important, in our opinion, how the number of women and their share in the entire population of childbearing age (15–49 years old) and especially in the most active childbearing age (20–34 years old) changes, since it is on the number of these age groups of women that significantly depends the number of children born in the country (Table 4).
Table 4. Dynamics of the number of women of childbearing age. Belarus, (thousand people)
|
Census years |
All women |
Urban women |
Rural women |
|||
|
in child- |
including in active child |
in child- |
including in active childbearing age 20-34 years |
in child- |
including in active child |
|
|
% of the total female population |
||||||
Currently, there are 39.1 thousand more women in active childbearing age than in 1999. Moreover, after the 1999 census, the size of this age group was constantly increasing, until the beginning of 2009 and only then began to decrease (Fig. 10).
This is due to the fact that those who were born in the first half of the 1980s, when a surge in the birth rate was observed in the republic, entered active childbearing age. This trend lasted from 2001 to 2008, and then, starting in 2009, the number of women of active childbearing age began to decline, which means that the rate of decline will accelerate. This is the result of the fact that those born in the 90s, when there was a sharp decline in the birth rate, are beginning to enter this age group. The data on the graph show a very sharp decline in the size of this age group in 2009, in fact, this decline was somewhat smaller, due to the fact that, as the last census showed, the size of this age group at the beginning of 2009, according to current statistics, was somewhat overpriced.
The downward trend in the number of women of active childbearing age will continue for a fairly long time until those born after 2005 mature.
Figure 10. Dynamics of the number of women of active childbearing age
(20-34 years old)
If by this time the intensity of the birth rate does not significantly increase, this will cause another decrease in the total number of births.
Dynamics of the number of youth . In addition to the above age groups of the population, one of the most important is the youth, which is directly related to the socio-economic development of the country and determines its future. It should be noted that quite significant positive changes have appeared in the dynamics of the size of this age group. In the first decade of the 21st century, the number of young people increased significantly, and the share of this age group in the entire population increased (Table 5, Fig. 11).
Table 5. Dynamics of the number of young people aged 16-29 years and its share in the entire population
|
All population |
Urban population |
Rural population |
|||||||
|
both sexes |
husband- |
wives |
both sexes |
husband- |
wives |
both sexes |
husband- |
wives |
|
|
2009 census |
|||||||||
|
2009 census |
|||||||||
Figure 11. Dynamics of the number of youth in Belarus, 1999-2009
The increase in the number of young people is due to the fact that those born in the 1980s, when the birth rate was higher, entered this age. The prevalence of men among young people is due to the fact that there are always more boys among those born (on average, 106 boys are born per 100 girls annually). The high proportion of young people aged 16-29 among the working-age population indicates that this population has better prospects. Young people, as a rule, have higher education, better health and physical capabilities, more opportunities to learn new things, etc. In addition, in the modern age and gender structure of the population, there is a relatively high proportion of young men of draft age, which makes it possible to more successfully solve the problems of conscription.
However, it should be noted that by the end of the first decade, the growth trend in the number of this age group will be reversed. As those who were born in the 90s enter this age, the number of young people will begin to decline sharply, both in absolute and relative terms.
Population structure by sex. The development of society is greatly influenced by the structure of the population by sex. Thus, the imbalances in the structure of the population by sex impede the normal formation of families, negatively affect the reproduction of the population, and increase staff turnover. In the ten years since the previous census, there have been some changes in the ratio of men to women in the total population.
Violations of the structure of the population of Belarus by sex, formed during the Great Patriotic War, have largely smoothed out by now and only make themselves felt at the age of over 80. At the moment, the disparities in the structure of the population by sex are mainly associated with differences in the birth and death rates of men and women, as well as with the structure of migration flows. According to the 1959 census, there were 1249 women per 1000 men, and according to the 1989 census, there were 1138 women, respectively. According to the 1999 census, there were 1129 women per 1000 men, and according to the 2009 census, 1150 women. The tendency to equalize the structure of the population by sex stopped and by the mid-1990s. changed to the opposite. This is due to the fact that the higher growth rate of mortality among men, especially in the working age, worsened the structure of the population by sex.
At present, there are 663.7 thousand more women in the republic than men, i.e. 53.5% of the total population are women and 46.5% are men.
The sex structure differs significantly by age, which can be seen in the age and sex pyramid of the country's population. At younger ages up to 30 years, there are more men than women. Then the ratio is reversed. With increasing age, the preponderance of women gradually increases. By the age of 65, the number of men is one and a half times less than that of women, by the age of 75 - twice.
The structure of the population by sex in urban areas differs significantly from that in rural areas. Thus, in urban areas the number of men under 26 exceeds the number of women at this age, and in rural areas the number of men exceeds the number of women at all ages up to 55 years. This is largely due to the higher proportion of young women in the net migration of the rural population to the cities throughout the post-war years. By the age of 64, the ratio of men to women in urban and rural areas becomes approximately the same. At older ages, the number of women significantly exceeds the number of men, and the disproportion increases with age. This is the result of two reasons: firstly, the remote consequences of the 1941-1945 war, when significantly more men died than women, and, secondly, the higher mortality rate for men in all ages compared to the mortality rate for women in peacetime. In general, there are 1160 women per 1000 men in cities, and 1123 women in rural areas.
It should be noted that the gender structure of the population as a whole across the country is favorable to the demographic development of Belarus. In practice, there is a balance in the sex ratio at the most active marriage and childbearing ages.
The favorable age and sex structure of recent years has had a positive impact on demographic processes in 2003–2009. The number of marriages has slightly increased, the number of deaths has decreased, and the number of births has increased.
Despite the obvious negative trends in the dynamics of fertility and mortality in the 1990s. and the beginning of the first decade of the XXI century, as well as long-term depopulation, which has been going on for more than 15 years, the economy of the republic until recently did not feel their negative consequences, since the number and proportion of the population of working age were constantly growing in the country.
National composition of the population . In the 90s, migration flows in the Republic of Belarus were highly differentiated by ethnic composition: persons of Jewish nationality traveled outside the former USSR more actively than representatives of other nationalities, Belarusians returned to Belarus from other CIS countries and the Baltic states. More actively than in previous years, people of different nationalities came to the republic from the hot spots of the CIS countries. As a result, after the 1989 census, significant changes took place in the ethnic composition of the population of the Republic of Belarus. Over the next decade, the population as a whole declined even faster. However, the ethnic composition of migration flows was less differentiated along ethnic lines. The population of almost all nationalities has decreased.
According to the 2009 census, representatives of more than 130 nations and nationalities lived in Belarus. However, the majority are representatives of the indigenous Belarusian nationality, both in the republic as a whole, and in cities and rural areas of all its regions (Table 6, Fig. 12).
It should be noted that, despite the fact that the total population of Belarus since 1994. is constantly decreasing, the absolute number of persons of Belarusian nationality in the 90s even increased by 3.2%. However, then, in the first decade of the 21st century, their number decreased by 2.5%.
In general, for the period from 1989 to 2009. the population of the Belarusian nationality increased, although only by 0.7% (52.7 thousand people). The share of Belarusians in the entire population was constantly increasing: from 77.9% in 1989 to 81.2% in 1999 and to 83.7% in 2009.
Table 6. Change in the national composition of the population for 1989-2009. (census data)
|
Nationality |
Population, thousand people |
Share in total population,% |
1999 in% to 1989 |
2009 in% to 1999 |
2009 in% to 1989 |
||||
|
1989 year |
1999 year |
2009 r. |
2009 r. |
||||||
|
All population |
|||||||||
|
Belarusians |
|||||||||
|
Ukrainians |
|||||||||
|
Azerbaijanis |
|||||||||
|
Moldovans |
|||||||||
|
Dr. and not a decree. |
|||||||||
Figure 12. National composition of the population of Belarus according to the 2009 census
This happened due to the active repatriation of Belarusians from other republics of the former USSR back to Belarus. In 1989, there were 10,036.3 thousand people of Belarusian nationality on the territory of the former Soviet Union, of which 7904.4 thousand people lived on the territory of Belarus. (78.8%), the rest 2,131.7 thousand (21.2%) lived outside the republic, mainly in Russia (12.0%), Ukraine (4.4%), Kazakhstan (1.8%) , Latvia (1.2%), and in all other republics taken together - 1.8%. At present, the share of Belarusians living in other CIS and Baltic countries has slightly decreased, since in the 90s, after the collapse of the USSR, there was a repatriation of Belarusians to Belarus from almost all the former republics. The largest migration balance was noted from Russia, the Baltic countries, Kazakhstan, i.e. from those republics in which the largest number of Belarusians lived. The maximum inflow of population to Belarus from almost all states of the former USSR fell in 1992; in subsequent years, the intensity of the inflow of the population dropped sharply.
The re-emigration of Belarusians is caused by a number of reasons. The main ones are the collapse of the USSR and the processes associated with it, as well as the aggravation of competition in labor markets with the population of titular nationalities, the emergence of national conflicts in a number of republics of the former USSR. In just the years after the 1989 census, more than 15% of all Belarusians who lived outside the Republic of Belarus on the territory of the former USSR returned to the republic.
The intensity of the re-emigration of Belarusians is especially clearly visible when comparing the number of arriving migrants of Belarusian nationality from different states with the number of Belarusians living in these states according to the 1989 census. - Belarusians, practically all of them from Armenia; more than 15% of Belarusians who lived there at the date of the 1989 census left for Belarus over the years from the Baltic countries, from the countries of Central Asia, from Russia. After the 1999 census, the re-emigration of Belarusians practically stopped.
Of the non-indigenous people in the republic, most of all are Russians, according to the 2009 census, their number was 785.1 thousand people. In 1999, their number was higher and amounted to 1141.7 thousand people, and in 1989 - 1342.1 thousand people. That is, their number has been steadily decreasing since 1989. In 2009, in Belarus, 200.4 thousand people less considered themselves to be of Russian nationality than according to the 1989 census. It should be noted that the number and share of the Russian population in Belarus and Belarusians in Russia in
60s, 70s and 80s grew quite rapidly. This was due to the active exchange of qualified personnel between the republics in the post-war years in order to accelerate the development of productive forces and the development of new industries, new territories. Russians in Belarus mainly live in cities and in the eastern border rural areas of the republic. The decrease in the number of Russians in the 90s is mainly due to the migration outflow of the Russian population due to the collapse of the USSR, as well as to the fact that part of the population, especially persons born in mixed marriages, during the census more actively considered themselves to be the indigenous Belarusian nationality.
Poles are the third largest ethnic group in Belarus. In total, according to the 2009 census, there were 294.5 thousand people living in the republic. The overwhelming majority of them are located in the regions of the Grodno region bordering on Poland. These are mainly people of local origin, whose ancestors also lived here. The number of persons who identify themselves as Polish is constantly decreasing on the territory of the republic. According to the 1999 census, 395.7 thousand people of Polish nationality lived in the country, and in 1989, 417.7 thousand people. Accordingly, the share of Poles in the total population is decreasing. According to the 1989 census, their share was 4.1%, and according to the 2009 census - 3.1%. This happened mainly due to their moving to relatives in Poland.
158.7 thousand Ukrainians live in Belarus. Their number has decreased by 132.3 thousand in comparison with 1989, although in previous years it has grown steadily. The share of Ukrainians in the population of Belarus decreased from 2.9% to 1.7%. Ukrainians live both in rural areas, in areas adjacent to the border, and in cities of Belarus.
In addition to the representatives of these nationalities, the number of each of which exceeds 100 thousand people. and makes up more than 1% of the total population, representatives of smaller ethnic groups live in Belarus. The largest of them are Jews. Jews remain the fifth largest national group in Belarus in terms of population, but its number has significantly decreased over the years after the 1989 census (by 99.1 thousand people) and amounted to only 12.9 thousand people (0.1% of the total population). In 1989, it numbered 112.0 thousand people and accounted for 1.1% of the total population. According to the 1939 population census, 375.1 thousand Jews lived in Eastern Belarus alone, 6.7% of the total population. They constituted the second largest national group. The decline in the number and proportion of persons of Jewish nationality on the territory of the republic is caused by a number of reasons: increased migration after the liquidation of the “Pale of Settlement” in the first years of Soviet power, losses during the Great Patriotic War in 1941-1945, the spread of mixed marriages, departure to large cities of Russia and Ukraine. In the 90s, the size of this national group significantly decreased due to intensive travel outside the CIS and Baltic countries. For 1989-1999 in Belarus, more than 130 thousand people have received permission to travel outside the CIS and Baltic countries. Among them, a significant proportion were persons of Jewish nationality, this proportion was especially high among those leaving in 1989-1995. In recent years, the decrease in this ethnic group has been significantly influenced by the natural decline in the population, since young people have left the republic to a greater extent, and mainly persons of older generations have remained. Already according to the 1999 census, more than half of all persons of Jewish nationality living on the territory of Belarus were of retirement age.
The representatives of the smaller ethnic groups of the population living on the territory of Belarus, but numbering more than 5 thousand people each, include Armenians and Tatars, Gypsies, Azerbaijanis and Lithuanians.
The number of Armenians living on the territory of the republic increased rapidly in the second half of the 20th century. Compared to the data of the 1959 census, as of the 1999 census, it increased more than 5 times and amounted to 10.2 thousand people. The number of Armenians grew especially actively in the 90s (more than 2 times). In the last decade, the number and proportion of Armenians in Belarus has slightly decreased. According to the 2009 census, 8.5 thousand people of Armenian nationality lived in the country. This is 0.09% of the total population of the country.
Tatars have been living on the territory of the republic for several generations. Their number is constantly decreasing. According to the 2009 census, it was 7.3 thousand people, against 10.1 thousand people. in 1999 and 12.6 thousand in 1989
Roma also traditionally live in the country. Lithuanians live mainly along the border with Lithuania. In the 90s, the number of Azerbaijanis increased significantly, but after the 1999 census. it decreased again. Some of the Azerbaijanis returned back to Azerbaijan.
In addition to the persons of these nationalities, Germans, Moldovans, Georgians, Latvians, Chuvashs, Mordovians, Uzbeks, Kazakhs live on the territory of Belarus.
The rest of the peoples living on the date of the 2009 population census on the territory of Belarus are small (less than 1 thousand).
The spread of languages among the population of Belarus. In 1990, the Law on Language was adopted in Belarus. In accordance with this law, the Belarusian language received the status of the state language, which was reflected in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus (1994). This led to the intensification of the use and study of the Belarusian language in the republic, which should have a positive effect on the growth of the number of people in the country who are fluent in the Belarusian language.
A national referendum was held on May 14, 1995. It was attended by 64.8% of the country's citizens. 83.3% of the population that took part in the referendum voted for the introduction of the Russian language as the second state language, and thus the Russian language was given equal status with the Belarusian language. Almost the entire population of Belarus understands both of these related languages.
In the 1999 and 2009 censuses. the question of the prevalence of languages among the population was studied in a complex, i.e. the population was asked to indicate not only their native language, but also the language in which the respondent speaks at home, and another language that he speaks fluently.
According to the 2009 census, the Belarusian language, the language of the indigenous nationality of the Republic of Belarus, was named native by 53.2%, which is more than half of all residents of the country. More than two-fifths of Belarusians (41.5%) said Russian as their native language.
Among the entire population of the country, 59.9% named the language of their nationality as their native language and 35.9% indicated the languages of other peoples, mainly Belarusian and Russian, the rest did not answer this question (Table 7, Table 8).
Table 7. Distribution of the population of Belarus by nationality and native language
According to the 2009 census
|
Population, thousand people |
Of the total number, in% |
||||
|
consider the native language of their nationality |
in addition, as a mother tongue a language other than one's nationality |
||||
|
Belorussian |
Russian |
other languages |
|||
|
All population |
|||||
|
Belarusians |
|||||
|
Ukrainians |
|||||
Table 8. Distribution of the population of the Republic of Belarus by knowledge of the Belarusian and Russian languages (people)
|
thousand people |
% to the total population |
|||||
|
All populations |
urban population |
rural population |
All populations |
urban population |
rural population |
|
|
All population |
||||||
|
Of the total population named as a mother tongue |
||||||
|
Belorussian |
||||||
|
the language commonly spoken at home |
||||||
|
Belorussian |
||||||
|
another language |
||||||
|
Belorussian |
||||||
30.0% of the country's population speaks the language of their nationality at home. The most common language people speak at home is Russian. 6673 thousand inhabitants of the country (70.2% of the total population) speak Russian at home. 96.5% of Russians, 95.9% of Jews, 88.4% of Ukrainians, 69.8% of Belarusians, 50.9% of Poles speak Russian at home.
The Belarusian language is usually spoken at home by 2,227.2 thousand people, or 23.4% of the republic's population. Only 26.1% of Belarusians speak Belarusian at home, while 40.8% of Poles living in Belarus speak it. There are not so many Ukrainians, Russians and Jews who speak Belarusian at home, they make up 6.1%, 2.1% and 2.0%, respectively.
The 2009 census data make it possible to assess the prevalence of knowledge of a foreign language in the republic. Thus, 4.7% of the population noted that they are fluent in English, 1.4% in German, 0.7% in Polish, 0.4% in French, 0.2% in Italian and Spanish, 0 , 1% - in Afghan. However, it should be noted that more than half of the population (58.8%) answered that they do not speak fluently any other language other than the one they speak at home.
Educational level of the population. The level of education is one of the most important indicators of the qualitative development of the population. It is one of three components used by the UN to calculate the Human Development Index. The level of education is characterized by several indicators. One of them is the literacy of the population. Population census data make it possible to consider Belarus as a republic of virtually complete literacy of the population. Such a high literacy rate was the result of purposeful policy in the country in the pre-war and post-war years. In 1920, on the territory of the republic, more than half of the population (52.6%) aged 9-49 years were illiterate, in 1939 this figure dropped to 19.2%, and in 1970 - to 0.8%. Most recent censuses 1989, 1999 and 2009 showed that this indicator is stably below 0.4%, and it can be considered that it has reached the lower border. Illiterate people are mainly people who have not been able to attend school due to physical disabilities or chronic diseases.
The second component of educational attainment in the Human Development Index is the length of study in years. Naturally, the higher the education, the, as a rule, the person spent more years studying. Census data on the level of education of the population in the republic are shown in Table 9.
Table 9. Distribution of the population of Belarus by education level, 2009
|
Total, thousand people |
Including |
Per 1000 people |
||||
|
husband- |
wives |
whole population |
husband- |
wives |
||
|
from it with a level of education: |
||||||
|
secondary special |
||||||
|
vocational |
||||||
|
overall average |
||||||
|
common basic |
||||||
|
common initial |
||||||
Thus, more than half of the total population of the Republic of Belarus aged 10 years and older have vocational education (54.0%), another 35.5% have general secondary or basic education and 11.1% general primary.
In general, the level of education of women in the country is slightly higher than that of men. So, per 1000 people aged 10 and over, there are 179 people with higher education in total, among women at this age 190 people have higher education, among men 166 people (Fig. 13).
Among people of younger ages, the level of education is even higher (Table 10). Those who are 25-29 years old have the highest level of education. So, at this age, 311 people per 1000 people at this age had higher education. In addition, another 305 people of this age had secondary specialized education.
At older ages, the picture looks different. So, at the age of 65-69, only 159 people had higher education. and specialized secondary education - 198 people. out of 1000. At the age of 70 and older - 108 and 127 people per 1000, respectively.
Figure 13. Age and sex structure of the population of Belarus by level of education.
According to the 2009 census
For many decades, the education of the population in the republic has been constantly changing towards an increase in the proportion of people with a higher level of education. According to the 1989 census, 843.2 thousand of the republic's population aged 15 and over had completed higher education; according to the 1999 census, their number increased to 1133.5 thousand (85%). According to the 2009 census - up to 1530.6 thousand people.
Table 10. Educational level of the population of the Republic of Belarus by age
According to the 2009 census
|
Total, thousand people |
Have education per 1000 people |
||||||
|
high- |
secondary special |
Profes- |
general average |
common base |
general initial |
||
|
Population aged 10 and over |
|||||||
|
70 years and older |
|||||||
The share of people with higher education among the population aged 15 and over in the country has increased over twenty years from 10.8% in 1989, to 14.0% in 1999 and to 18.9% in 2009. The share of people with secondary vocational (secondary specialized) education increased from 17% to 22% and to 27.0%, respectively (Fig. 14).
Figure 14. Change in the level of education of the population of Belarus according to population censuses (per 1000 residents aged 15 and over have an education)
The crisis phenomena in the economy of the republic have an ambiguous effect on the growth of the level of education. The broken dependence of material well-being on the level of education led to the fact that at the beginning of the 90s the value of education in the hierarchy of values of young people somewhat receded into the background, giving way to material values. However, it should be noted that since the mid-90s, there has been a clear trend towards an increase in the value of education among today's youth. In general, the accessibility of education for the population of the republic in the 90s has slightly increased, which should be assessed positively.
In the Republic of Belarus from October 14 to October 24, 2009, the next population census was carried out as of October 14, 2009. See the results: http://belstat.gov.by/homep/ru/perepic/2009/itogi1.php
Social status and standard of living of the population of the Republic of Belarus. Statistical collection. National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus. - Minsk, 2010, p. 38 Population. Statistical collection. - Minsk, 2009
Bulletin. Republic of Belarus. The total population, its composition by age, sex, marital status, educational level, ethnicity, language and sources of livelihood. - Minsk, 2010