Demographics of Australia

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Demographics of Australia
Indicator Rank Measure
Population
Population 51st 22,451,006
Economy
GDP (PPP) per capita 16th $32,938
GNP 18th $35,900
Unemployment rate ↓ 57th 4.30%
CO2 emissions 12th 18t†
Electricity consumption 16th 200.70TWh
Economic freedom 9th 7.89
Politics
Human Development Index 2nd 0.970
st (equal)*
Political freedom 1 1
Corruption (A higher score means less (perceived) corruption.) ↓ 7th 8.7
Press freedom 16th 3.13
Society
Literacy Rate 21st 99%
Broadband uptake 17th 13.8%
Beer consumption 4th 109.9 L†
Health
Life Expectancy 5th 81.2
Birth rate 148th 13.8‡
Fertility rate 137th 1.969††
Infant mortality 202nd 4.57‡‡
Death rate 122nd 7.56‡
♂ 20.1†‡
Suicide Rate 33rd
♀ 5.3†‡
HIV/AIDS rate 108th 0.10%
Notes
↓ indicates rank is in reverse order
   (e.g. 1st is lowest)
†
per capita
‡
per 1000 people
††
per woman
‡‡
per 1000 live births
†‡
100,000 people per year
♂ indicates males, ♀ indicates females
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Australia, including
population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religions,
and other aspects of the population.

The demographics of Australia covers basic statistics, most populous cities, ethnicity and
religion. The population of Australia is estimated to be 22,451,006 as of 7 September 2010.[1]
Australia is the 51st most populous country in the world. Its population is concentrated mainly in
urban areas.

Australia's population has grown from an estimated population of about 350,000 at the time of
British settlement in 1788 due to numerous waves of immigration during the period since. Also
due to immigration, the European component of the population is declining as a percentage, as it
is in many other Western countries.

Although Australia has scarcely more than two persons per square kilometre of total land area,
this raw figure is highly misleading: most of the continent is desert or semi-desert and of limited
agricultural value. Consequently, Australia is one of the world's most urbanised countries with an
urban population of 89%.

The life expectancy of Australia in 1999-2001 was 79.7 years, among the highest in the world.

Indigenous population
See also: Indigenous Australians

The earliest accepted timeline for the first arrivals of indigenous Australians to the continent of
Australia places this human migration to at least 40,000 years ago most probably from the
islands of Indonesia and PNG.[2]

These first inhabitants of Australia were originally hunter-gatherer peoples, who over the course
of many succeeding generations diversified widely throughout the continent and its nearby
islands. Although their technical culture remained static—depending on wood, bone, and stone
tools and weapons—their spiritual and social life was highly complex. Most spoke several
languages, and confederacies sometimes linked widely scattered tribal groups. Aboriginal
population density ranged from one person per square mile along the coasts to one person per
35 square miles (91 km2) in the arid interior. Food procurement was usually a matter for the
nuclear family, requiring an estimated 3 days of work per week. There was little large game, and
outside of some communities in the more fertile south-east, they had no agriculture.

Australia may have been sighted by Portuguese sailors in 1601, and Dutch navigators landed on
the forbidding coast of modern Western Australia several times during the 17th century. Captain
James Cook claimed the east coast for Great Britain in 1770, the west coast was later settled by
Britain also. At that time, the indigenous population was estimated to have been between
315,000 and 750,000,[3] divided into as many as 500 tribes[citation needed] speaking many different
languages. In the 2006 Census, 407,700 respondents declared they were Aboriginal, 29,512
declared they were Torres Strait Islander, and a further 17,811 declared they were both
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.[4] After adjustments for undercount, the indigenous
population as of end June 2006 was estimated to be 517,200, representing about 2.5% of the
population.[3]

Since the end of World War II, efforts have been made both by the government and by the public
to be more responsive to Aboriginal rights and needs. Today, many tribal Aborigines lead a
settled traditional life in remote areas of northern, central, and western Australia. In the south,
where most Aborigines are of mixed descent, most live in the cities.

[edit] General Demographic statistics

Population pyramid[5]

Much of the data that follows has been derived from the CIA World Factbook and the Australian
Bureau of Statistics, through censuses.

[edit] Population
22,402,000 (7 September 2010)[6]

The following figures are ABS estimates for the resident population of Australia, based on the
2001 and 2006 Censuses and other data.

21,262,641 (July 2009 - CIA World Factbook)

country comparison to the world: 55

21,180,632 (end December 2007 - preliminary)

20,848,760 (end December 2006 - preliminary)

20,544,064 (end December 2005)

20,252,132 (end December 2004)

20,011,882 (end December 2003)

19,770,963 (end December 2002)

 19,533,972 (end December 2001)[7]

[edit] States and territories

See also: States and territories of Australia

Population (2006) Population  % of population in

State/territory Land area (km²)
density (/km²) capital

 Australian Capital
2,358 344,200 137.53 99.6%
Territory

 New South Wales 800,642 6,967,200 8.44 63%

 Victoria 227,416 5,297,600 23.87 71%

 Queensland 1,730,648 4,279,400 2.26 46%

 South Australia 983,482 1,601,800 1.56 73.5%

 Western Australia 2,529,875 2,163,200 0.79 73.4%

 Tasmania 68,401 498,200 7.08 41%

 Northern Territory 1,349,129 219,900 0.15 54%

[edit] Age structure

0-14 years: 18.9%

15-64 years: 67.9%

65 years and over: 13.5% (2009 estimate)[8]

[edit] Median age

Total: 37.3 years

Male: 36.6 years

Female: 38.1 years (2009 est.)

Population growth rate

The trend of population growth in Australia (thousands of persons). The rate of population growth
changed significantly following the Australian gold rushes, the Great depression and World War II.

As of the end of June 2009 the population growth rate was 2.1%.[9] This rate was based on
estimates of:[10]

 one birth every 1 minute and 45 seconds,

 one death every 3 minutes and 40 seconds,
 a net gain of one international migrant every 1 minutes and 51 seconds leading to
 an overall total population increase of one person every 1 minutes and 11 seconds.

In 2009 the estimated rates were:

 Birth rate - 12.47 births/1,000 population (Rank 164)

 Mortality rate - 6.68 deaths/1,000 population (Rank 146)
 Net migration rate - 6.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population. (Rank 15)

At the time of Australian Federation in 1901, the rate of natural increase was 14.9 persons per
1,000 population. The rate increased to a peak of 17.4 per thousand population in the years 1912,
1913 and 1914. During the Great Depression, the rate declined to a low of 7.1 per thousand
population in 1934 and 1935. Immediately after World War II the rate increased sharply as a
result of the beginning of the Post-World War II baby boom and the immigration of many young
people who then had children in Australia, with a plateau of rates of over 13.0 persons per 1,000
population for every year from 1946 to 1962.

There has been a fall in the rate of natural increase since 1962 due to falling fertility. In 1971 the
rate of natural increase was 12.7 persons per 1,000 population; a decade later it had fallen to 8.5.
In 1996 the rate of natural increase fell below seven for the first time, with the downward trend
continuing in the late 1990s. Population projections by the Australian Bureau of Statistics
indicate that continued low fertility, combined with the increase in deaths from an ageing
population, will result in natural increase falling below zero sometime in the mid 2030s.
However in 2006 the fertility rate rose to 1.81, one of the highest rate in the OECD, arguably as a
result of some pro-fertility state and federal government campaigns, including the Federal
Government's baby bonus.

Since 1901, the crude death rate has fallen from about 12.2 deaths per 1,000 population to 6.4
deaths per 1,000 population in 2006.[8] (ppt)[clarification needed]

[edit] International comparison

For the year ended 30 June 2008, Australia's population growth rate was 1.7 percent per year,
almost 50 percent higher than the world average of 1.2 percent per year.[11]

0.1% Japan

0.3% Greece and Sweden

0.6% China, Thailand and France

0.8% Canada

0.9% United States

1.0% New Zealand

1.2% World Average

1.6% India

1.7% Australia

2.2% Papua New Guinea

[edit] Urbanisation
Urbanisation population: 89% of total population (2008)

Rate of urbanisation: 1.2% annual rate of change (2005-2010)

[edit] Sex ratio

At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

Under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female

 Total population: 1 male(s)/female (2009)

[edit] Infant mortality rate

Total: 4.75 deaths/1,000 live births

country comparison to the world: 196

Male: 5.08 deaths/1,000 live births

Female: 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)

[edit] Life expectancy at birth

Total: 81.63 years

country comparison to the world: 70

Male: 79.25 years

Female: 84.15 years

[edit] Total fertility rate

1.969 children born/woman (2008)[12]

For more detailed regionwise TFR details see Birth rate and fertility rate in Australia.

country comparison to the world: 159

HIV/AIDS
Adult prevalence rate: 0.2% (2007 est.)

People living with HIV/AIDS: 18,000 (2007 est.)

Deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)[13]

[edit] Country of birth

Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006.
Source:Australian Bureau of Statistics[14]

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in mid-2006 there were 4,956,863 residents
who were born outside Australia, representing 24% of the total population.

Ancestry of Australian population

For generations, the vast majority of both colonial-era settlers and post-Federation immigrants
came from the United Kingdom and Ireland, although the gold rushes also drew migrants from
other countries. Since the end of World War II, Australia's population more than doubled,
spurred by large-scale European immigration during the immediate post-war decades. At this
time, the White Australia Policy discouraged non-European immigration.

Abolition of the White Australia Policy in the mid-1970s led to a significant increase in non-
European immigration, mostly from Asia and the Middle East. About 90% of Australia's
population is of European descent. Over 8% of the population is of Asian descent
(predominantly Chinese, Vietnamese, Filipino and Indian).[15] The total indigenous population is
estimated to be about 520,000 individuals, including people of mixed descent.[3] The population
of Queensland also includes descendants of South Sea Islanders brought over for indentured
servitude in the 19th century.

In the 2006 Australian Census residents were asked to describe their ancestry, in which up to two
could be nominated. Proportionate to the Australian resident population, the most commonly
nominated ancestries were:[15]

 Australian (37.13%)
 English (31.65%)
 Irish (9.08%)
 Scottish (7.56%)
 Italian (4.29%)
 German (4.09%)
 Chinese (3.37%)
 Greek (1.84%)
 Dutch (1.56%)
 Indian (1.18%)
 Lebanese (0.92%)
 Vietnamese (0.87%)
 Armenian (0.82%)
 New Zealander (0.81%)
 Filipino (0.81%)
 Maltese (0.77%)
 Croatian (0.59%)
 Australian Aboriginal (0.58%)
 Welsh (0.57%)
 French (0.5%)
 Serbian (0.48%)
  Maori (0.47%)
 Spanish (0.42%)
 Macedonian (0.42%)
 South African (0.4%)
 Sinhalese (0.37%)
 Hungarian (0.3%)
 Russian (0.3%)
 Turkish (0.3%)
 American (0.28%)

The 2006 Census 455,026 people (or 2.3% of the total Australian population) reported they were
of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin.[4]

[edit] Religion
Main article: Religion in Australia

Australia is a religiously diverse country and has no official religion.

Christianity is the predominant faith of Australia. According to the 2006 census, the largest
religious denomination is the Roman Catholic; 25.8% of the population claimed affiliation. The
next largest is the Anglican faith, at 18.7%. Members of other Christian denominations
accounted for 19.4% of the population.

Minority religions practiced in Australia include Buddhism (2.1% of the population), Islam
(1.7%), Hinduism (0.7%) and Judaism (0.4%). Two percent of the population stated a different
religion, which includes Sikhism and Indigenous beliefs, and 18.7% claimed no religion, while
11.2% did not respond.[16]

The Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001 Census Dictionary statement on religious affiliation
states the purpose for gathering such information:

Data on religious affiliation are used for such purposes as planning educational facilities, aged
persons' care and other social services provided by religion-based organisations; the location of
church buildings; the assigning of chaplains to hospitals, prisons, armed services and
universities; the allocation of time on public radio and other media; and sociological research.

As in many Western countries, the level of active participation in church worship is lower than
would be indicated by the proportion of the population identifying themselves as Christian;
weekly attendance at church services is about 1.5 million, or about 7.5% of the population.[17]

[edit] Languages

English is the de facto national language of Australia and is spoken by the vast majority of the
population.
The most commonly spoken languages other than English in Australia are Italian, Greek,
German, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Chinese languages, Indian languages, Arabic,
Macedonian and Croatian, as well as numerous Australian Aboriginal languages.[18] Australia's
hearing-impaired community uses Australian Deaf Sign Language.

Language Speakers

Only English 15,581,333

Italian 316,895

Greek 252,226

Cantonese 244,553

Arabic 243,662

Mandarin 220,600

Vietnamese 194,863

Spanish 98,001

Filipino + Tagalog 92,331

German 75,634

Hindi 70,011

Macedonian 67,835

Croatian 63,612

Australian Aboriginal Languages 55,705

Korean 54,623

Turkish 53,857

Polish 53,389

Serbian 52,534

French 43,216

Indonesian 42,036

Maltese 36,514

Russian 36,502
Dutch 36,183

Japanese 35,111

Tamil 32,700

Sinhalese 29,055

Samoan 28,525

Portuguese 25,779

Khmer 24,715

Assyrian 23,526

Punjabi 23,164

Persian 22,841

Hungarian 21,565

Bengali 20,223

Urdu 19,288

Afrikaans 16,806

Bosnian 15,743

[edit] Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Total population: 99%

Male: 99%

Female: 99% (2003 est.)

[edit] Education expenditure

4.5% of GDP (2005)

country comparison to the world: 55

[edit] Nationality
Main article: Australian nationality law

 noun: Australian(s)
 adjective: Australian
Historical population estimates

Note that population estimates in the table below do not include the Aboriginal population before
1961. Estimates of Aboriginal population prior to European settlement range from 300,000 to
one million, with archaeological finds indicating a sustainable population of around 750,000.[19]

Five Year
Year Population
 % change

1788 8590 -0

1798 4,5880 -0

1808 10,2630 -0

1818 25,8590 -0

1828 58,1970 -0

1838 151,8680 -0

1848 332,3280 -0

1858 1,050,8280 -0

1868 1,539,5520 -0

1878 2,092,1640 -0

1888 2,981,6770 -0

1898 3,664,7150 -0

1901 3,788,1230 -0

1906 4,059,0830 7.20

1911 4,489,5450 10.60

1916 4,943,1730 10.10

1921 5,455,1360 10.40

1926 6,056,3600 11.00

1931 6,526,4850 7.80

1936 6,778,3720 3.40

1941 7,109,8980 4.90

1946 7,465,1570 5.00

1951 8,421,7750 12.80

1956 9,425,5630 11.90

1961 10,548,2670 11.90

1966 11,599,4980 10.00

1971 13,067,2650 12.70

1976 14,033,0830 7.40

1981 14,923,2600 6.30

1986 16,018,3500 7.30

1991 17,284,0360 12.80

1996 18,310,7140 5.90

2001 19,413,2400 6.00

2006 20,848,7600 7.40