Demographics of Gibraltar

This article is about the demographic features of the population of Gibraltar, including ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

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Ethnic origins

One of the main features of Gibraltar’s population is the diversity of their ethnic origins. The demographics of Gibraltar reflects Gibraltarians' racial and cultural fusion of the many European and non-European immigrants who came to the Rock over three hundred years. They are the descendants of economic migrants that came to Gibraltar after the majority of the Spanish population left in 1704.

Spanish

The majority of the Spanish population in Gibraltar (about 5000), with few exceptions, left Gibraltar when the Dutch and English took the village in 1704. The few Spaniards who remained in Gibraltar in August 1704 were augmented by others who arrived in the fleet with Prince George of Hesse-Darmstadt, possibly some two hundred in all, mostly Catalans.[1]

Menorcans began migrating to Gibraltar at the beginning of the common British rule in 1713, thanks to the links between both British possessions during the 18th century. Initially, Menorcans came to Gibraltar looking for work in several trades, especially when Gibraltar was rebuilt after the 1783 Grand Siege. Immigration continued even after Menorca (the original English name was "Minorca") was returned to Spain in 1802 by the Treaty of Amiens.[2][3]

Immigration from Spain (like the exiles from the Spanish Civil War) and intermarriage with Spaniards from the surrounding Spanish towns was a constant feature of Gibraltar's history until the then Spanish dictator, General Francisco Franco, closed the border with Gibraltar in 1969, cutting off many Gibraltarians from their relatives on the Spanish side of the frontier.

Together, Gibraltarians of Spanish origin are one of the bigger groups (more than 24% according to last names, even more taking into account the fact that many Spanish women married native Gibraltarians).[4]

British

Britons have come and settled or gone since the first days of the conquest. One group of Britons have had temporary residence in Gibraltar (to work in the administration and the garrison). This group, who represented a larger proportion in the beginning of the British period, are nowadays only about 3% of the total population (around 1,000 persons).

A larger group is formed by the Britons who moved to Gibraltar and settled down. Some of them, since the beginning, moved to Gibraltar to earn a living as traders and workers. Others moved to Gibraltar on a temporary assignment and then married with local women. Major construction projects, such as the dockyard in the late 1890s and early 20th century brought large numbers of workers from Great Britain.

13% of Gibraltarian residents are from the United Kingdom proper and the electoral roll shows that 27% of Gibraltar's population has British surnames.[5]

Genoese and other Italians

Genoese came during the 18th and 19th centuries, especially from the poorer parts of Liguria, some of them annually following fishing shoals, as repairmen for the British navy, or as successful traders and merchants;[6] many others came during the Napoleonic period to avoid obligatory conscription to the French Army.[7] Genoese formed the larger group of the new population in the 18th century and middle 19th century. Other Italians came from islands like Sardinia and Sicily. Nowadays, people with Genoese/Italian last names represent about 20% of the population.

Portuguese

Portuguese were one of the earliest groups to move to Gibraltar, especially from the Algarve region in the far south of Portugal. Most of them went to work as labourers and some as traders. Their number increased significantly during the 18th century, and again when many Spaniards left their jobs in Gibraltar after General Franco closed the border in 1969. About 10% of last names in Gibraltar have Portuguese origin.[8]

Moroccans

Moroccans have always had a significant presence in Gibraltar. However, the modern community has more recent origins. Moroccans began arriving in Gibraltar soon after the Spanish government imposed the first restrictions on Spanish workers in Gibraltar in 1964. By the end of 1968 there were at least 1,300 Moroccan workers resident in Gibraltar and this more than doubled following the final closure of the frontier with Spain in June 1969.[9] There is also a significant amount of Moroccan Jews in Gibraltar, representing Jews of both Sephardic origin and Arabic speaking Jews of Morocco (although almost no Gibraltarian Jews today speak Arabic as a first language). Most notably the Hassan family which runs Gibraltar's largest law firm Hassans International Law Firm[10] and the late Sir Joshua Hassan who served four terms as Chief Minister for a total of 17 years.[11]

Other groups

Other groups include:

  • Malta was in the same imperial route to the east as Gibraltar. Maltese people came to Gibraltar when jobs were scarce at home, or to escape the law in Malta.[12]
  • Jews, most of them of Sephardi origin, were able to re-establish their rites, forbidden in Catholic Spain, right after the British occupation in 1704. Also a significant number of Jews from London settled in Gibraltar, especially since the Great Siege.[13]
  • Indians, came as merchants after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1870; many others migrated as workers after the closure of the frontier with Spain in 1969 to replace Spanish ones.[14]
  • French, many of whom came after the French Revolution in 1789, set up trade and commerce.[7]

National censuses

2012 census

The composition of the population by nationality at the 2012 census was as follows:[15][16]

Nationality Number Percentage
Gibraltarian25,44479.03%
Other British4,24913.20%
Moroccan5221.62%
Spanish6752.10%
Other EU7852.44%
Other5191.61%
Total32,194100%

2001 census

The composition of the population by nationality at the 2001 census was as follows:[17]

Nationality Number Percentage
Gibraltarian 22,882 83.22%
Other British 2,627 9.55%
Moroccan 961 3.50%
Spanish 326 1.19%
Other EU 275 1.00%
Other 424 1.54%
Total 27,495 100%

Population overview
Civilian population in Gibraltar according to the censuses from 1725 to 2001

The population of Gibraltar was 29,752 in 2011.[18]

Vital statistics[19][20]
Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000)
1934 17,000 448 279 169 26.4 16.4 9.9
1935 18,000 457 338 119 25.4 18.8 6.6
1936 18,000 476 355 121 26.4 19.7 6.7
1937 19,000 491 366 125 25.8 19.3 6.6
1938 19,000 488 335 153 25.7 17.6 8.1
1939 19,000 508 345 163 26.7 18.2 8.6
19401 14,000 241 326 -85 17.2 23.3 -6.1
19411 10,000 4 94 -90 0.4 9.4 -9.0
19421 10,000 1 145 -144 0.1 14.5 -14.4
19431 10,000 3 130 -127 0.3 13.0 -12.7
19441 15,000 50 126 -76 3.3 8.4 -5.1
1945 20,000 614 192 422 30.7 9.6 21.1
1946 21,000 449 206 224 21.4 9.8 10.7
1947 22,000 471 184 246 21.4 8.4 11.2
1948 23,000 491 211 280 21.3 9.2 12.2
1949 23,000 525 215 310 22.8 9.3 13.5
1950 23,000 459 207 252 20.0 9.0 11.0
1951 23,000 544 285 259 23.7 12.4 11.3
1952 23,000 551 226 325 24.0 9.8 14.1
1953 23,000 525 228 297 22.8 9.9 12.9
1954 24,000 566 235 331 23.6 9.8 13.8
1955 24,000 561 224 337 23.4 9.3 14.0
1956 24,000 571 227 344 23.8 9.5 14.3
1957 24,000 550 250 300 22.9 10.4 12.5
1958 24,000 600 219 381 25.0 9.1 15.9
1959 24,000 550 231 319 22.9 9.6 13.3
1960 24,000 616 221 395 25.7 9.2 16.5
1961 23,900 560 241 319 23.4 10.1 13.3
1962 24,100 561 212 349 23.3 8.8 14.5
1963 24,300 642 182 460 26.4 7.5 18.9
1964 24,500 629 222 407 25.7 9.1 16.6
1965 25,300 679 243 436 26.8 9.6 17.2
1966 25,400 597 204 393 23.5 8.0 15.5
1967 25,700 535 244 291 20.8 9.5 11.3
1968 25,900 542 216 326 20.9 8.3 12.6
1969 26,200 557 246 311 21.3 9.4 11.9
1970 26,500 573 268 305 21.6 10.1 11.5
1971 28,000 594 238 356 21.2 8.5 12.7
1972 29,000 581 244 337 20.0 8.4 11.6
1973 29,600 536 244 292 18.1 8.2 9.9
1974 29,000 575 204 371 19.8 7.0 12.8
1975 29,700 525 231 294 17.7 7.8 9.9
1976 30,000 510 253 247 17.0 8.8 8.2
1977 30,100 506 248 258 16.8 8.2 8.6
1978 29,400 520 253 267 17.7 8.6 9.1
1979 29,700 472 257 215 15.9 8.7 7.2
1980 29,700 550 282 268 18.5 9.5 9.0
1981 29,700 511 231 280 17.2 7.8 9.4
1982 29,500 566 223 343 19.2 7.6 11.6
1983 29,100 510 252 258 17.5 8.7 8.9
1984 28,800 506 265 241 17.6 9.2 8.4
1985 28,600 498 276 222 17.4 9.7 7.8
1986 29,000 507 290 217 17.5 10.0 7.5
1987 29,500 531 217 314 18.0 7.4 10.6
1988 30,100 523 293 230 17.4 9.7 7.6
1989 30,700 530 219 311 17.3 7.1 10.1
1990 30,900 531 279 252 17.2 9.0 8.2
1991 30,000 567 255 312 18.9 8.5 10.4
1992 28,800 569 205 364 19.7 7.1 12.6
1993 28,100 518 275 243 18.5 9.8 8.7
1994 27,100 509 261 248 18.8 9.6 9.1
1995 27,200 435 205 230 16.0 7.5 8.5
1996 27,100 445 221 224 16.4 8.2 8.3
1997 27,200 427 263 164 15.7 9.7 6.0
1998 27,000 411 267 144 15.2 9.9 5.3
1999 27,200 381 277 104 14.0 10.2 3.8
2000 27,000 408 262 146 15.1 9.7 5.4
2001 28,200 374 249 125 13.2 8.8 4.4
2002 28,500 371 242 129 13.0 8.5 4.5
2003 28,600 372 234 138 13.0 8.2 4.8
2004 28,800 421 242 179 14.6 8.4 6.2
2005 28,800 418 249 169 14.5 8.7 5.9
2006 28,900 373 230 143 12.9 8.0 5.0
2007 29,300 400 202 198 13.7 6.9 6.8
2008 29,300 400 227 173 13.7 7.8 5.9
2009 29,400 417 234 183 14.2 8.0 6.2
2010 29,441 493 231 262 16.7 7.8 8.9
2011 29,752 442 241 201 14.9 8.1 6.8
2012 461 264 197 15.4 8.8 6.6
2013 426 230 196 13.0 7.0 6.0
2015 492 235 257 14.7 7.0 7.7
2016 424 249 175 12.5 7.3 5.2

1During World War II a large part of the civilian population (including most women) was evacuated.

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.

Population age

0-14 years: 17.2% (male 2,460; female 2,343)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 9,470; female 9,070)
65 years and over: 16.5% (male 2,090; female 2,534) (2007 est.)[21]

Sex ratio

At birth: 1.06 males/female
0-14 years: 1.05 males/female
15-64 years: 1.044 males/female
65 years and over: 0.825 males/female
total population: 1.005 males/female (2007 est.)[21]

The median age is:
total: 40.3 years
male: 39.8 years
female: 40.7 years (2008 est.)[21]

Life expectancy

total population: 79.93 years
male: 77.05 years
female: 82.96 years (2007 est.)[21]

Fertility

1.95 children born/woman (2007 est.)[21]

Infant mortality

total:
4.98 deaths/1,000 live births male:
5.54 deaths/1,000 live births female:
4.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)[21]

Nationality

noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar

Religions

Roman Catholic 78.09%, Church of England 6.98%, Other Christian 3.21%, Muslim 4.01%, Jewish 2.12%, Hindu 1.79%, other or unspecified 0.94%, none 2.86% (2001 census)[17]

Languages

English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish. Most Gibraltarians converse in Llanito, an Andalusian Spanish based vernacular. It consists of an eclectic mix of Andalusian Spanish and British English as well as languages such as Maltese, Portuguese, Italian of the Genoese variety and Haketia. Among more educated Gibraltarians, it also typically involves code-switching to English. Arabic is spoken by the Moroccan community, just like Hindi and Sindhi is spoken by the Indian community of Gibraltar. Maltese is still spoken by some families of Maltese descent.

Literacy

definition: NA
total population: above 80%
male: NA%
female: NA%

Educational attainment in Gibraltar
RankReligionProportion (%) of pupils
achieving 5 or more
GCSE's (Grades A-C)
1Hindu79%
2Jewish76%
3All other religions68%
4National average66%
5Christian66%
6None64%
7Muslim44%
RankNational originPercentage of people of
working age with a degree
1Indian71%
2British26%
3Other EU24%
4All other national origins24%
5National average23%
6Gibraltarian23%
7Spanish16%
8Moroccan14%

Crime rate
Total crimes (per capita) by national origin
National origin Total crimes (per capita)
Moroccan 9.4 per 100 people
Gibraltarian 6.3 per 100 people
UK British 6.3 per 100 people
National average 6.3 per 100 people
Other EU 5.8 per 100 people
Other national origins 5.4 per 100 people
Indian 1.6 per 100 people

A total of 2,093 criminal offences were recorded in Gibraltar during 2005/2006. Indians had a significantly lower crime rate in 2005/2006 than all other national origins in Gibraltar at 1.69 crimes per 100 Indian people. The crimes per 100 population in Gibraltar now stands at 6.3. The crime rate for Gibraltarians and Moroccans has risen from 6.1 and 9.36 per 100 people in 2004/2005 to its current levels.

Notes
  1. Spaniards in Gibraltar Archived 2006-03-04 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Jackson, William (1990). The Rock of the Gibraltarians. A History of Gibraltar (second ed.). Grendon, Northamptonshire, UK: Gibraltar Books. p. 225. ISBN 0-948466-14-6.: "The open frontier helped to increase the Spanish share, and naval links with Minorca produced the small Minorcan contingent."
  3. Edward G. Archer (2006). Gibraltar, identity and empire. Routledge. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-415-34796-9.
  4. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 43. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  5. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 40. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  6. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 37. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  7. Levey, David: Language change and variation in Gibraltar, page 24. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
  8. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 41. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  9. "Sussex Migration Briefing - Steps to resolving the situation of Moroccans in Gibraltar" (PDF).
  10. Legal 500, 2009
  11. Nash, Elizabeth (2 July 1997). "Obituary: Sir Joshua Hassan". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 August 2010. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
  12. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 44. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  13. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 38. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  14. Archer, Edward G.: Gibraltar, identity and empire, page 45. Routledge Advances in European Politics.
  16. "Full Census Report 2012 - Government of Gibraltar". www.gibraltar.gov.gi. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  17. "Census of Gibraltar 2001" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-29. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
  18. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-09-28. Retrieved 2011-03-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  19. "United Nations Statistics Division - Demographic and Social Statistics". unstats.un.org.
  21. Intute World Guide - Gibraltar.
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References

See also
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