Demographics of Bhutan
All you want to know about Demographics of Bhutan
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Bhutan, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populous, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Bhutan's bimodal population estimates
The Royal Government of Bhutan lists their country's population as 752,700 (2003).[1] The CIA Factbook estimates the population at 2,327,849.[2] What accounts for this discrepancy?
One explanation given inside Bhutan is that the higher CIA numbers ultimately trace back to an inflated population number the Bhutanese government supplied to the United Nations in the early 1970s in order to gain entry into that body (the UN reportedly had a cutoff population of one million at that time -- see micronation for justifications in support of such a minimum). According to this theory the CIA population experts have retained this original inflated number year after year while adjusting it each year for normal population growth.
An alternative theory is that the western and central districts of the country wish to underestimate the populations of the southern and eastern districts in order to maintain their historical dominance over those districts. This is the claim made by some Bhutanese refugee groups. Certainly the government numbers do not include people in the refugee camps in Nepal and other persons forced out of Bhutan, which total approximately 125,000.
The Bhutanese numbers can be reconstructed from their 9th Five Year Plan documents[1], which lists the exact number of households in each gewog. If the Bhutanese refugee advocate groups are correct, a spot check of a southern gewog should show a massive under-reporting of population (although this would have to be done by a non-interested party to have credibility).
CIA World Factbook demographic statistics
The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook.
Population
- 6,987,84(July 2007 est.)
Age structure
- 0-14 years: 38.6% (male 465,340/female 433,184)
- 15-64 years: 57.4% (male 688,428/female 647,134)
- 65 years and over: 4% (male 47,123/female 46,640) (2007 est.)
Median age
- Total: 20.5 years
- Male: 20.4 years
- Female: 20.7 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate
- 2.282% (2006 est.)
Birth rate
- 18.68 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate
- 7.46 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate
- 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio
- At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
- Under 15 years: 1.074 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years: 1.064 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female
- Total population: 1.066 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate
- Total: 54.37 deaths/1,000 live births
- Male: 53.09 deaths/1,000 live births
- Female: 51.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
- Total population: 65.47 years
- Male: 65.38 years
- Female: 67.46 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate
- 2.54 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS
- Adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
- People living with HIV/AIDS: less than 100 (1999 est.)
- Deaths: NA
Nationality
- Noun: Bhutanese (singular and plural)
- Adjective: Bhutanese
Ethnic groups
- Northern Bhutanese 60%, ethnic Nepalese 25%, indigenous or migrant tribes 15%
Religions
Approximately two-thirds to three-quarters of the population practice Drukpa Kagyupa or Ningmapa Buddhism, both of which are disciplines of Mahayana Buddhism. Approximately one-quarter of the population is ethnic Nepalese and practice Hinduism. They live mainly in the south and follow the Shaivite, Vaishnavite, Shakta, Ghanapathi, Puranic, and Vedic schools. Christians both Roman Catholic and Protestant and nonreligious groups comprised less than 1 percent of the population. Bön, the country's animist and shamanistic belief system, revolves around the worship of nature and predates Buddhism. Very few citizens adhere exclusively to this religious group.
Languages
- Dzongkha (official), Bhotes speak various Tibetan dialects, Nepalese speak various Nepalese dialects
Literacy
- Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
- Total population: 47%
- Male: 60%
- Female: 34% (2003 est.)
References
- This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook (2007 edition) which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.
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