Demographics of Kyrgyzstan

The Demographics of Kyrgyzstan is about the demographic features of the population of Kyrgyzstan, including population growth, population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. The name Kyrgyz, both for the people and the country, means "forty tribes", a reference to the epic hero Manas who unified forty tribes against the Oirats, as symbolized by the 40-ray sun on the flag of Kyrgyzstan.

Demographics of Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan population pyramid in 2020
Population6,636,800 (2021)[1]
Density27.4/km2 (71/sq mi)
Growth rate1.32/1,000 population (2010)
Birth rate24.0 births/1,000 population (2020)
Death rate6.0 deaths/1,000 population (2020)
Life expectancy71.9 years (2020)
 • male67.8 years (2020)
 • female76.0 years (2020)
Fertility rate3.04 children born/woman (2020)
Infant mortality rate14.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2020)
Age structure
0–14 years23.6%
15–64 years62.9%
65 and over6.2%
Sex ratio
At birth1.05 male(s)/female
Under 151.04 male(s)/female
15–64 years0.96 male(s)/female
65 and over0.64 male(s)/female
Nationality
NationalityKyrgyz
Major ethnicKyrgyz
Minor ethnicKazakh, Russian, Uzbek, Dungan, Uyghur
Language
OfficialKyrgyz, Russian
SpokenKyrgyz, Russian

Overview edit

Kyrgyzstan's population increased from 2.1 million to 4.8 million between the censuses of 1959 and 1999.[2] Official estimates set the population at 6,389,500 in 2019.[1] Of those, 34.4% are under the age of 15 and 6.2% are over the age of 65. The country is rural: only about one-third of Kyrgyzstan's population live in urban areas. The average population density is 27.4 inhabitants per square kilometre (71/sq mi).

The nation's largest ethnic group are the Kyrgyz, a Turkic people, which comprise 73.2% of the population (2018 census). Other ethnic groups include Russians (5.8%) concentrated in the north and Uzbeks (14.5%) living in the south. Small but noticeable minorities include Dungans (1.1%), Uyghurs (1.1%), Tajiks (0.9%), Kazakhs (0.7%) and Ukrainians (0.5%), and other smaller ethnic minorities (1.7%). Of the formerly sizable Volga German community, exiled here by Joseph Stalin from their earlier homes in the Volga German Republic, most have returned to Germany, and only a few small groups remain. A small percentage of the population are also Koreans, who are the descendants of the Koreans deported in 1937 from the Soviet Far East to Central Asia.

Kyrgyzstan has undergone a pronounced change in its ethnic composition since independence.[3][4] The percentage of ethnic Kyrgyz increased from around 50% in 1979 to nearly 73% in 2018, while the percentage of Slavic ethnic groups (Russians, Ukrainians) dropped from 35% to about 6%.[1][2]

The Kyrgyz have historically been semi-nomadic herders, living in round tents called yurts and tending sheep, horses and yaks. This nomadic tradition continues to function seasonally (see transhumance) as herding families return to the high mountain pasture (or jailoo) in the summer. The retention of this nomadic heritage and the freedoms that it implies continue to affect the political atmosphere in the country.

Population size and structure edit

 
Population density of Kyrgyzstan, 2015 [5]

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2020) (Data refer to annual average population.):[6]

Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 3 265 870 3 314 296 6 580 166 100
0–4 413 265 392 172 805 437 12.24
5–9 388 796 369 309 758 105 11.52
10–14 309 396 297 034 606 430 9.22
15–19 258 649 249 178 507 827 7.72
20–24 263 240 252 719 515 959 7.84
25–29 289 819 279 117 568 936 8.65
30–34 282 674 281 432 564 106 8.57
35–39 222 715 220 855 443 570 6.74
40–44 180 015 182 328 362 343 5.51
45–49 157 253 167 537 324 790 4.94
50–54 142 981 156 499 299 480 4.55
55–59 129 553 149 093 278 646 4.23
60–64 99 239 121 193 220 432 3.35
65-69 59 174 80 206 139 380 2.12
70-74 33 247 50 398 83 645 1.27
75-79 13 209 21 957 35 166 0.53
80-84 13 189 25 642 38 831 0.59
85-89 4 822 10 280 15 102 0.23
90-94 3 131 5 305 8 436 0.13
95-99 1 127 1 459 2 586 0.04
100+ 376 583 959 0.01
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 1 111 457 1 058 515 2 169 972 32.98
15–64 2 026 138 2 059 951 4 086 089 62.10
65+ 128 275 195 830 324 105 4.93

Vital statistics edit

Births and deaths edit

Statistics are taken from the United Nations Demographic Yearbook, the National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Demographic Annual of the Kyrgyz Republic, and Demoskop Weekly.[7][8][9][10][11][12]

Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) TFR Life expectancy

(male)

Life expectancy (female) Life expectancy (total)
1950 1,740,000 56,471 14,845 41,626 32.5 8.5 24.0
1951 1,768,000 58,828 13,927 44,901 33.3 7.9 25.4
1952 1,788,000 57,632 13,868 43,764 32.2 7.8 24.4
1953 1,818,000 60,755 14,288 46,467 33.4 7.9 25.5
1954 1,859,000 63,803 13,684 50,119 34.3 7.4 26.9
1955 1,903,000 63,883 14,923 48,960 33.6 7.8 25.8
1956 1,941,000 65,667 11,918 53,749 33.8 6.1 27.7
1957 1,978,000 68,644 12,275 56,369 34.7 6.2 28.5
1958 2,030,000 70,521 12,324 58,197 34.7 6.1 28.6
1959 2,099,000 70,501 12,930 57,571 33.6 6.2 27.4
1960 2,172,000 80,209 13,259 66,950 36.9 6.1 30.8
1961 2,256,000 80,671 15,175 65,496 35.8 6.7 29.1
1962 2,333,000 79,010 15,141 63,869 33.9 6.5 27.4
1963 2,413,000 80,279 14,986 65,293 33.3 6.2 27.1
1964 2,495,000 79,342 15,834 63,508 31.8 6.3 25.5
1965 2,573,000 80,812 16,693 64,119 31.4 6.5 24.9
1966 2,655,000 81,771 17,888 63,883 30.8 6.7 24.1
1967 2,737,000 83,609 19,550 64,059 30.5 7.1 23.4
1968 2,818,000 86,741 19,840 66,901 30.8 7.0 23.8
1969 2,896,000 87,210 21,683 65,527 30.1 7.5 22.6
1970 2,964,000 90,442 21,828 68,614 30.5 7.4 23.1
1971 3,028,000 95,932 21,343 74,589 31.7 7.0 24.7
1972 3,094,000 94,923 23,157 71,766 30.7 7.5 23.2
1973 3,160,000 97,421 24,181 73,240 30.8 7.7 23.1
1974 3,230,000 99,433 23,747 75,686 30.8 7.4 23.4
1975 3,299,000 101,287 26,920 74,367 30.7 8.2 22.5
1976 3,365,000 106,606 27,864 78,742 31.7 8.3 23.4
1977 3,430,000 104,971 28,510 76,461 30.6 8.3 22.3
1978 3,495,000 106,176 28,385 77,791 30.4 8.1 22.3
1979 3,558,000 107,091 29,578 77,513 30.1 8.3 21.8
1980 3,628,000 107,278 30,460 76,818 29.6 8.4 21.2
1981 3,699,000 113,434 29,591 83,843 30.7 8.0 22.7
1982 3,775,000 117,235 29,194 88,041 31.1 7.7 23.4
1983 3,857,000 120,708 30,241 90,467 31.3 7.8 23.5
1984 3,937,000 126,075 32,603 93,472 32.0 8.3 23.7 4.16
1985 4,014,000 128,460 32,332 96,128 32.0 8.1 23.9 4.12
1986 4,093,000 133,728 29,083 104,645 32.7 7.1 25.6 4.21
1987 4,173,000 136,588 30,597 105,991 32.7 7.3 25.4 4.20
1988 4,250,000 133,710 31,879 101,831 31.5 7.5 24.0 4.00
1989 4,327,000 131,508 31,156 100,352 30.4 7.2 23.2 3.81
1990 4,395,000 128,810 30,580 98,230 29.3 7.0 22.3 3.63 64.2 72.6 68.4
1991 4,464,000 129,536 30,859 98,677 29.0 6.9 22.1 3.58 64.6 72.7 68.7
1992 4,515,000 128,352 32,163 96,189 28.4 7.1 21.3 3.52 64.2 72.2 68.2
1993 4,515,000 116,795 34,513 82,282 25.9 7.6 18.3 3.15 62.9 71.7 67.3
1994 4,523,000 110,113 37,109 73,004 24.3 8.2 16.1 2.95 61.6 70.7 66.1
1995 4,560,000 117,340 36,915 80,425 25.7 8.1 17.6 3.12 61.4 70.4 65.9
1996 4,628,000 108,007 34,562 73,445 23.3 7.5 15.8 2.73 62.3 71.0 66.7
1997 4,696,000 102,050 34,540 67,510 21.7 7.4 14.3 2.59 62.6 71.4 67.0
1998 4,769,000 104,183 34,596 69,587 21.8 7.3 14.5 2.65 63.1 71.2 67.2
1999 4,837,000 104,068 32,850 71,218 21.5 6.8 14.7 2.63 65.0 72.6 68.8
2000 4,888,000 96,770 34,111 62,659 19.8 7.0 12.8 2.40 64.9 72.4 68.6
2001 4,927,000 98,138 32,677 65,461 19.9 6.6 13.3 2.39 65.0 72.6 68.8
2002 4,965,000 101,012 35,235 65,777 20.3 7.1 13.2 2.43 64.4 72.1 68.2
2003 5,011,000 105,490 35,941 69,549 21.1 7.2 13.9 2.49 64.5 72.2 68.3
2004 5,065,000 109,939 35,061 74,878 21.7 6.9 14.8 2.55 64.4 72.3 68.4
2005 5,116,000 109,839 36,992 72,847 21.5 7.2 14.3 2.50 64.2 71.9 68.0
2006 5,164,000 120,737 38,566 82,171 23.4 7.5 15.9 2.70 63.5 72.1 67.8
2007 5,207,000 123,251 38,180 85,071 23.7 7.3 16.4 2.71 63.7 72.3 68.0
2008 5,250,000 127,332 37,710 89,622 24.3 7.2 17.1 2.76 64.5 72.6 68.6
2009 5,383,000 135,494 35,898 99,596 25.2 6.7 18.5 2.88 65.2 73.2 69.2
2010 5,448,000 146,123 36,174 109,949 26.8 6.6 20.2 3.06 65.3 73.5 69.4
2011 5,552,000 149,612 35,941 113,671 27.0 6.5 20.5 3.09 65.7 73.7 69.7
2012 5,663,000 154,918 36,186 118,732 27.4 6.4 21.0 3.15 66.1 74.1 70.1
2013 5,777,000 155,520 34,880 120,640 26.9 6.0 20.9 3.11 66.3 74.3 70.3
2014 5,895,000 161,813 35,564 126,249 27.5 6.0 21.5 3.19 66.5 74.5 70.5
2015 6,019,000 163,452 34,808 128,644 27.2 5.8 21.4 3.19 66.7 74.8 70.8
2016 6,140,000 158,160 33,475 124,685 25.8 5.5 20.3 3.06 67.0 75.1 71.1
2017 6,257,000 153,620 33,166 120,454 24.6 5.3 19.3 2.95 67.2 75.4 71.3
2018 6,389,000 171,149 32,989 138,160 26.8 5.2 21.6 3.30 67.4 75.6 71.5
2019 6,524,000 173,484 33,295 140,189 26.6 5.1 21.5 3.33 67.6 75.8 71.7
2020 6,636,803 158,112 39,977 118,135 23.8 6.0 17.8 3.05 67.8 76.0 71.9
2021 6,747,323 150,164 38,875 111,289 22.3 5.8 16.5 2.89 67.9 76.1 72.0
2022 7,037,590 150,225 31,401 118,824 21.5 4.5 17.0 2.81 68.0 76.3 72.2
2023 145,977 31,500 114,477 20.6 4.4 16.2


Latest data edit

[13]

Period Live births Deaths Natural increase
January 2023 11,177 2,817 +8,360
January 2024 11,677 3,275 +8,402
Difference   +500 (+4.47%)   +458 (+16.26%)   +42

Total fertility rate edit

During the Sovjet era fertility in Kyrgyzstan was high (TFR 4 or higher). After the independence there was a fast decrease to 2.4 in the beginning of the 21st century, but the TFR increased to 3 or higher as of 2010. Since 2020, there is a decrease to 2.8 in 2022.

The differences in the number of children by nationality are significant:[3][4] Uzbeks (3.0 children), Tajiks (3.0 children), Turks (2.9), Kyrgyz (2.9), Dungans (2.8) Russians (1.7), Koreans (1.7), Germans (1.8), Ukrainians (2.1), Tatars (2.1), Kazakhs (2.3) and Uyghurs (2.5).[2] The TFR for Russians, Ukrainians, Germans, and Koreans in Kyrgyzstan are considerably higher than in their home countries.[citation needed]

Life expectancy edit

 
Life expectancy in Kyrgyzstan since 1950
 
Life expectancy in Kyrgyzstan since 1960 by gender

Ethnic groups edit

According to the 2022 census,[14] the ethnic composition of the population was as follows: Kyrgyz 77.6%, Uzbeks 14.2%, Russians 4.1%, Dungans 1.0%, Uyghurs 0.5%, other 2.7%, including Tajiks 0.9%, Kazakhs 0.4% and Turks 0,3%. Most Russians, Ukrainians, Tatars, Germans, and Koreans lived in northeast, especially around the city of Karakol. Most of the Dungans and Uyghurs are found along the Chinese border. Most of the Tajiks and Uzbeks live in and around Fergana valley.

The emigration of non-Turkic people to Russia, Ukraine, and Germany is now negligible, in part because most of them left prior to 1999.[citation needed] For example, the number of Germans has fallen by over 90% between the 1989 and 2009 censuses.

The table shows the ethnic composition of Kyrgyzstan's population according to all population censuses between 1926 and 2022. Due to emigration (and low fertility rates), there has been a sharp decline in the European ethnic groups (Russians, Ukrainians, Germans) and also Tatars since independence (as captured in the 1989, 1999, 2009 and 2022 censuses).

Population of Kyrgyzstan according to ethnic group 1926–2022
Ethnic
group
census 1926[15] census 1939[16] census 1959[17] census 1970[18] census 1979[19] census 1989[20] census 1999[1] census 2009[21] census 2022[22]
Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number %
Kyrgyz 661,171 66.6 754,323 51.7 836,831 40.5 1,284,773 43.8 1,687,382 47.9 2,229,663 52.4 3,128,147 64.9 3,804,788 71.0 5,379,020 77.6
Uzbeks 110,463 11.1 151,551 10.4 218,640 10.6 332,638 11.3 426,194 12.1 550,096 12.9 664,950 13.8 768,405 14.3 986,881 14.2
Russians 116,436 11.7 302,916 20.8 623,562 30.2 855,935 29.2 911,703 25.9 916,558 21.5 603,201 12.5 419,583 7.8 282,652 4.1
Dungans 6,004 0.6 5,921 0.4 11,088 0.5 19,837 0.7 26,661 0.8 36,928 0.9 51,766 1.1 58,409 1.1 66,525 1.0
Tajiks 2,667 0.3 10,670 0.7 15,221 0.7 21,927 0.7 23,209 0.7 33,518 0.8 42,636 0.9 46,105 0.9 59,895 0.9
Uyghurs 7,540 0.8 9,412 0.6 13,757 0.7 24,872 0.8 29,817 0.8 36,779 0.9 46,944 1.0 48,543 0.9 31,559 0.5
Kazakhs 1,766 0.2 23,925 1.6 20,067 1.0 21,998 0.8 27,442 0.8 37,318 0.9 42,657 0.9 33,198 0.6 28,244 0.4
Turks 44 0.0 33 0.0 542 0.0 3,076 0.1 5,160 0.1 21,294 0.5 33,327 0.7 39,133 0.7 22,074 0.3
Azeris 3,631 0.4 7,724 0.5 10,428 0.5 12,536 0.4 17,207 0.5 15,775 0.4 14,014 0.3 17,267 0.3 17,359 0.3
Tatars 4,902 0.5 20,017 1.4 56,209 2.7 68,827 2.3 71,744 2.0 70,068 1.6 45,438 0.9 31,424 0.6 11,219 0.2
Kurds - - 1,490 0.1 4,783 0.2 7,974 0.3 9,544 0.3 14,262 0.3 11,620 0.2 13,171 0.3 10,733 0.2
Koreans 9 0.0 508 0.0 3,622 0.2 9,404 0.3 14,481 0.4 18,355 0.4 19,784 0.4 17,299 0.3 5,900 0.1
Ukrainians 64,128 6.5 137,299 9.4 137,031 6.6 120,081 4.1 109,324 3.1 108,027 2.5 50,442 1.0 21,924 0.4 3,875 0.1
Germans 4,291 0.4 11,741 0.8 39,915 1.9 89,834 3.1 101,057 2.9 101,309 2.4 21,471 0.4 9,487 0.2 2,831 0.0
Chechens 1 0.0 7 0.0 25,208 1.2 3,391 0.1 2,654 0.1 2,873 0.1 2,612 0.1 1,875 0.0 1,105 0.0
Belarusians 333 0.0 1,520 0.1 4,613 0.2 6,868 0.2 7,676 0.2 9,187 0.2 3,208 0.1 1,394 0.0 391 0.0
Jews 318 0.0 1,895 0.1 8,607 0.4 7,677 0.3 6,836 0.2 6,005 0.1 1,571 0.0 604 0.0 125 0.0
Others 9,300 0.9 17,261 1.2 35,713 1.7 41,157 1.4 44,741 1.3 49,740 1.2 50,770 1.1 43,300 0.8 25,643 0.4
Total 993,004 1,458,213 2,065,837 2,932,805 3,522,832 4,257,755 4,822,938 5,362,793 6,936,156

Languages edit

(2021 est.)[citation needed]

Religion edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Население [Population]". Национальный статистический комитет Кыргызской Республики [National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic].}
  2. ^ a b c Population census for Kyrgyzstan, 1999 (in Russian)
  3. ^ a b Spoorenberg, Thomas (2013). "Fertility changes in Central Asia since 1980". Asian Population Studies. 9 (1): 50–77. doi:10.1080/17441730.2012.752238. S2CID 154532617.
  4. ^ a b Spoorenberg, Thomas (2015). "Explaining recent fertility increase in Central Asia". Asian Population Studies. 11 (2): 115–133. doi:10.1080/17441730.2015.1027275. S2CID 153924060.
  5. ^ "Ethnic composition of the population in Kyrgyzstan 2015" (PDF) (in Russian). National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  6. ^ "UNSD — Demographic and Social Statistics".
  7. ^ "Demographic Yearbook (DYB) Regular Issues 2000 - 2010". United Nations Statistical Division. 2001. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  8. ^ Население [Population]. National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan (in Russian). Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  9. ^ Численность населения областей, районов, городов и поселков городского типа Кыргызской Республики в 2015г. [Population of Regions, Districts, cities and towns of the Kyrgyz Republic in 2015] (PDF) (in Russian). National Committee for Statistics of the Kyrgyz Republic. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 September 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  10. ^ ДЕМОГРАФИЧЕСКИЙ ЕЖЕГОДНИК КЫРГЫЗСКОЙ РЕСПУБЛИКИ 2009-2013 гг. [Demographic Annual of the Kyrgyz Republic for 2009-2013] (PDF) (in Russian). National Committee for Statistics of the Kyrgyz Republic. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  11. ^ Естественное движение населения республик СССР, 1935 [Natural population growth of the Republics of the USSR, 1935] (in Russian). Demoscope.ru. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  12. ^ 5.01.00.16 Справочные данные по населению [Table 5.01.00.16 Population reference data] (XLS). National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan (in Russian). 2015. Retrieved 31 January 2016."Table 5.01.00.05 Number of live births" (XLS). National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. 2015. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  13. ^ "Population - Official Statistics".
  14. ^ "Kyrgyzstan census 2022" (PDF).
  15. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1926 года. Национальный состав населения по регионам РСФСР [All-Union census in 1926. National composition of the population by regions of the RSFSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Archived from the original on 21 March 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  16. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1939 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР [All-Union census 1939. National composition of the population by republics of the USSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  17. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1959 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР [All-Union census 1959. National composition of the population by republics of the USSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Archived from the original on 16 March 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  18. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1970 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР [All-Union census 1970. National composition of the population by republics of the USSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Archived from the original on 3 December 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  19. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1979 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР [All-Union census 1979. National composition of the population by republics of the USSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Archived from the original on 24 March 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  20. ^ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года. Национальный состав населения по республикам СССР [All-Union census 1989. National composition of the population by republics of the USSR]. Demoskop Weekly (in Russian) (673–674). Archived from the original on 16 March 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  21. ^ 2009 - Национальный состав населения (на начало года) [2009 - Ethnic composition the population (at the beginning of the year)] (PDF). Bureau of Statistics of Kyrgyzstan (in Russian). 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 September 2011.
  22. ^ "Kyrgyzstan BRIEF STATISTICAL HANDBOOK 2022" (PDF).