Demographics of Spain

As of 1 January 2020, Spain had a total population of 47,431,256, which represents a 0.9% increase since 2019.[1] The CIA Factbook (2011) gives a racial description of "composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types" under "ethnic groups" instead of the usual breakdown of ethnic composition. This reflects the formation of the modern Kingdom of Spain by the accretion of several independent Iberian realms, like León, Castile, Navarre, the Crown of Aragon, and Granada, among others.

Population density by municipality in Spain, 2018

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1833	12,286,941	—
1846	12,162,872	−1.0%
1857	15,464,340	+27.1%
1877	16,622,175	+7.5%
1887	17,549,608	+5.6%
1900	18,616,630	+6.1%
1910	19,990,669	+7.4%
1920	21,388,551	+7.0%
1930	23,677,095	+10.7%
1940	26,014,278	+9.9%
1950	28,117,873	+8.1%
1960	30,582,936	+8.8%
1970	33,956,047	+11.0%
1981	37,683,363	+11.0%
1991	38,872,268	+3.2%
2001	40,847,371	+5.1%
2011	46,815,916	+14.6%
2020	47,431,256	+1.3%
Source: INE

Spain's population peaked in 2019, surpassing for the first time in history 47 million inhabitants. As of January 2020, there were already 47,431,256 people living in Spain.[2] Its population density, at 91.4 inhabitants per square kilometre (237/sq mi), is lower than that of most Western European countries. With the exception of the capital Madrid, the most densely populated areas lie around the coast.

The population of Spain doubled during the twentieth century, but the pattern of growth was extremely uneven due to large-scale internal migration from the rural interior to the industrial cities, a phenomenon which happened later than in other Western European countries. No fewer than eleven of Spain's fifty provinces saw an absolute decline in population over the century.

The last quarter of the century saw a dramatic fall in birth rates. Spain's fertility rate of 1.47 (the number of children the average woman will have during her lifetime) is lower than the EU average, but has climbed every year since the late 1990s. The birth rate has climbed in 10 years from 9.10 births per 1000 people per year in 1996 to 10.9 in 2006.

Immigration and Demographic Issues

Main article: Immigration to Spain

Immigration to Spain in 2002 by country.

Immigration to Spain in 2008 by country.

The population of Spain doubled during the twentieth century as a result of the spectacular demographic boom in the 1960s and early 1970s. After that time, the birth rate plunged through the 1980s and Spain's population became stalled, its demographics showing one of the lowest sub replacement fertility rates in the world, only above Greece, Portugal, Hungary, Ukraine, and Japan.

Many demographers have linked Spain's very low fertility rate to the country's lack of any real family planning policy. Spain spends the least on family support out of all western European countries—0.5% of GDP. A graphic illustration of the enormous social gulf in this field is the fact that a Spanish family would need to have 57 children to enjoy the same financial support as a family with 3 children in Luxembourg.

In terms of emigration vs. immigration, after centuries of net emigration, Spain, has recently experienced large-scale immigration for the first time in modern history. According to the Spanish government there were 5,730,667 foreign residents in Spain as of January 2011. Of these, more than 860,000 were Romanian, and half 760,000 were Moroccan while the number of Ecuadorians was around 390,000. Colombian population amounted to around 300,000. There are also a significant number of British (359,076 as of 2011, but more than one million are estimated to live permanently in Spain) and German (195,842) citizens, mainly in Alicante, Málaga provinces, Balearic Islands and Canary Islands. Chinese number over 166,000. Immigrants from several sub-Saharan African countries have also settled in Spain as contract workers, although they represent only 4.08% of all the foreign residents in the country.

During the early 2000s, the mean year-on-year demographic growth set a new record with its 2003 peak variation of 2.1%, doubling the previous record reached back in the 1960s when a mean year-on-year growth of 1% was experienced.[3] In 2005 alone, the immigrant population of Spain increased by 700,000 people.[4]

The arrival of migrating young adults was the main reason for the slight increase in Spain's fertility rate.[5] From 2002 through 2008 the Spanish population grew by 8%, of which 7% were foreign.[6]

Vital statistics

Notable events in modern Spanish demography:

• Late 19th century and early 20th century: Relative economic stagnation and mass emigration to American countries.
• 1918. Flu pandemic, over 200,000 dead in Spain.
• 1936. Start of the Spanish Civil War.
• 1939. End of the Civil War. Establishment of a Fascist dictatorship, Start of rationing policies. Deepening of economic depression, mass emigration to European and American countries due to economic and political motives (Republican exile).
• 1941. Approval of benefits for large families, with at least four children.[7]
• 1945. Establishment of tax deductions for parents.[8]
• 1952. End of rationing policies.
• 1975. End of the dictatorship, mass return of emigrated people.
• 1977. Legalization of contraception. Decline of birth rates.
• 1985. Legalization of abortion.
• 1988. As Spain became a developed country, the first events of illegal immigration from Africa occur.[9]
• 1991. Spain becomes a net receiver of immigrants, after decades of mass emigration.[10]
• 1994. Lowering of threshold of requirements to become a large family, only three children needed.[7]
• 2007. Approval of €2,500 benefit for births.
• 2010. Legalization of abortion on demand.
• 2011. Withdrawal of the €2,500 benefit for births.
• 2015. First negative natural change since the Civil War due to the aging of Spanish population.

Life expectancy from 1882 to 2015

Sources: Our World In Data and the United Nations.

1882-1950

Years	1882	1892	1900	1908	1909	1910	1911	1912	1913	1914	1915	1916	1917	1918	1919	1920[11]
Life expectancy in Spain	29.5	32.1	34.8	41.3	41.0	40.8	39.7	43.4	42.5	42.8	43.0	42.9	42.5	30.3	41.1	39.2

Years	1921	1922	1923	1924	1925	1926	1927	1928	1929	1930[11]
Life expectancy in Spain	42.0	44.1	44.7	46.2	46.9	47.7	48.4	48.6	49.3	49.3

Years	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939	1940[11]
Life expectancy in Spain	49.2	51.1	51.5	52.3	52.6	51.0	47.3	47.6	47.2	48.4

Years	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946	1947	1948	1949	1950[11]
Life expectancy in Spain	47.2	52.5	54.8	56.2	57.8	57.5	59.3	61.2	61.0	61.8

1950-2015

Period	Life expectancy in Years	Period	Life expectancy in Years
1950–1955	64.6	1985–1990	76.9
1955–1960	67.8	1990–1995	77.6
1960–1965	69.9	1995–2000	78.8
1965–1970	71.4	2000–2005	79.9
1970–1975	72.7	2005–2010	81.2
1975–1980	74.4	2010–2015	82.5
1980–1985	76.1

Source: UN World Population Prospects[12]

Total Fertility Rate from 1850 to 1899

The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources: Our World In Data and Gapminder Foundation.[13]

Galician writer Rosalía de Castro (1837–1885) with her nuclear family at 1884. An average late-19th-century Spanish family size.

Years	1850	1851	1852	1853	1854	1855	1856	1857	1858	1859	1860[13]
Total Fertility Rate in Spain	5.13	5.07	5.01	4.95	4.89	4.83	4.78	4.72	4.66	4.75	4.86

Years	1861	1862	1863	1864	1865	1866	1867	1868	1869	1870[13]
Total Fertility Rate in Spain	5.16	5.09	5	5.19	5.11	5.07	5.09	4.72	4.9	4.84

Years	1871	1872	1873	1874	1875	1876	1877	1878	1879	1880[13]
Total Fertility Rate in Spain	4.83	4.83	4.82	4.81	4.8	4.79	4.78	4.78	4.74	4.7

Years	1881	1882	1883	1884	1885	1886	1887	1888	1889	1890[13]
Total Fertility Rate in Spain	4.91	4.79	4.71	4.86	4.8	4.86	4.78	4.82	4.82	4.55

Years	1891	1892	1893	1894	1895	1896	1897	1898	1899[13]
Total Fertility Rate in Spain	4.67	4.71	4.71	4.6	4.63	4.75	4.51	4.41	4.53

Statistics since 1900

Spain total fertility rate by province (2014)

1.5 - 1.7   1.4 - 1.5   1.3 - 1.4   < 1.3

[14][15][13]	Average population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)	Total fertility rates[fn 1][13]
1900	18,520,000	627,848	536,716	91,132	33.9	29.0	4.9	4.49
1901	18,610,000	650,649	517,575	133,074	35.0	27.8	7.1	4.71
1902	18,720,000	666,687	488,289	178,398	35.6	26.1	9.6	4.70
1903	18,810,000	685,265	470,387	214,878	36.4	25.0	11.4	4.68
1904	18,980,000	649,878	486,889	162,989	34.2	25.7	8.6	4.67
1905	19,110,000	670,651	491,369	179,282	35.1	25.7	9.4	4.66
1906	19,250,000	650,385	499,018	151,367	33.8	25.9	7.8	4.61
1907	19,380,000	646,371	472,007	174,364	33.3	24.4	9.0	4.57
1908	19,530,000	658,008	460,946	197,062	33.7	23.6	10.1	4.52
1909	19,670,000	650,498	466,648	183,850	33.1	23.7	9.3	4.48
1910	19,770,000	646,975	456,158	190,817	32.7	23.1	9.7	4.43
1911	19,950,000	628,443	466,525	161,918	31.5	23.4	8.1	4.39
1912	20,040,000	637,860	426,297	211,563	31.8	21.3	10.6	4.35
1913	20,170,000	617,850	449,349	168,501	30.6	22.3	8.4	4.30
1914	20,310,000	608,207	450,340	157,867	29.9	22.2	7.8	4.26
1915	20,430,000	631,462	452,479	178,983	30.9	22.1	8.8	4.22
1916	20,610,000	599,011	441,673	157,338	29.1	21.4	7.6	4.20
1917	20,740,000	602,139	465,722	136,417	29.0	22.5	6.6	4.19
1918	20,910,000	612,637	695,758	-83,121	29.3	33.3	-4.0	4.17
1919	21,000,000	585,963	482,752	103,211	27.9	23.0	4.9	4.16
1920	21,130,000	623,339	494,540	128,799	29.5	23.4	6.1	4.14
1921	21,270,000	648,892	455,469	193,423	30.5	21.4	9.1	4.08
1922	21,510,000	656,093	441,330	214,763	30.5	20.5	10.0	4.02
1923	21,740,000	662,576	449,683	212,893	30.5	20.7	9.8	4.02
1924	21,990,000	653,085	430,590	222,495	29.7	19.6	10.1	3.92
1925	22,160,000	644,741	432,400	212,341	29.1	19.5	9.6	3.82
1926	22,400,000	663,401	420,838	242,563	29.6	18.8	10.8	3.87
1927	22,610,000	636,028	419,816	216,212	28.1	18.6	9.6	3.70
1928	22,860,000	666,240	413,002	253,238	29.1	18.1	11.1	3.80
1929	23,120,000	653,668	407,486	246,182	28.3	17.6	10.7	3.69
1930	23,340,000	660,860	394,488	266,372	28.3	16.9	11.4	3.68
1931	23,510,000	649,276	408,977	240,299	27.6	17.4	10.2	3.58
1932	23,897,000	670,670	388,900	281,770	28.3	16.5	11.8	3.64
1933	24,122,000	667,866	394,750	273,116	27.9	16.5	11.4	3.59
1934	24,349,000	641,889	392,793	249,096	26.4	16.1	10.2	3.38
1935	24,578,000	636,725	388,757	247,968	25.9	15.8	10.1	3.31
1936	24,810,000	617,220	417,108	200,112	24.9	16.8	8.1	3.18
1937	25,043,000	568,977	475,310	93,667	22.7	19.0	3.7	2.89
1938	25,279,000	508,726	487,546	21,180	20.1	19.3	0.8	2.56
1939	25,517,000	422,345	472,611	-50,266	16.6	18.5	-2.0	2.12
1940	25,757,000	631,285	428,416	202,869	24.5	16.6	7.9	3.09
1941	25,999,000	511,157	487,748	23,409	19.7	18.8	0.9	2.47
1942	26,244,000	530,845	387,844	143,001	20.2	14.8	5.4	2.53
1943	26,491,000	606,971	352,587	254,384	22.9	13.3	9.6	2.88
1944	26,620,000	602,091	349,114	253,796	22.6	13.1	9.5	2.84
1945	26,770,000	621,558	330,581	290,977	23.2	12.3	10.9	2.91
1946	27,030,000	585,381	353,371	232,010	21.7	13.1	8.6	2.70
1947	27,150,000	588,732	330,341	258,391	21.7	12.2	9.5	2.67
1948	27,593,000	642,041	305,310	336,731	23.3	11.1	12.2	2.88
1949	27,811,000	601,759	321,541	280,218	21.6	11.6	10.1	2.68
1950	28,009,000	565,378	305,934	259,444	20.2	10.9	9.3	2.45
1951	28,236,000	567,474	327,236	240,238	20.1	11.6	8.5	2.47
1952	28,474,000	593,019	276,735	316,284	20.8	9.7	11.1	2.51
1953	28,713,000	589,188	278,522	310,666	20.5	9.7	10.8	2.55
1954	28,955,000	577,886	264,668	313,218	20.0	9.1	10.8	2.59
1955	29,199,000	598,970	274,188	324,782	20.5	9.4	11.1	2.62
1956	29,445,000	608,121	290,410	317,711	20.7	9.9	10.8	2.66
1957	29,693,000	646,784	293,502	353,282	21.8	9.9	11.9	2.69
1958	29,943,000	653,216	260,683	392,533	21.8	8.7	13.1	2.72
1959	30,195,000	654,474	269,591	384,883	21.7	8.9	12.7	2.74
1960	30,455,000	663,375	268,941	394,434	21.8	8.8	13.0	2.77
1961	30,744,000	654,616	263,441	391,175	21.3	8.6	12.7	2.79
1962	31,067,000	658,816	278,575	380,241	21.2	9.0	12.2	2.8
1963	31,393,000	671,520	282,460	389,060	21.4	9.0	12.4	2.88
1964	31,723,000	697,697	273,955	423,742	22.0	8.6	13.4	3.01
1965	32,056,000	676,361	274,271	402,090	21.1	8.6	12.5	2.94
1966	32,394,000	669,919	276,173	393,746	20.7	8.5	12.2	2.91
1967	32,734,000	680,125	280,494	399,631	20.8	8.6	12.2	2.85
1968	33,079,000	667,311	282,628	384,683	20.2	8.5	11.6	2.86
1969	33,427,000	666,568	303,402	363,166	19.9	9.1	10.9	2.87
1970	33,779,000	663,667	286,067	377,600	19.6	8.5	11.2	2.88
1971	34,216,000	672,092	308,516	363,576	19.7	9.0	10.6	2.88
1972	34,572,000	672,405	285,508	386,897	19.5	8.3	11.2	2.86
1973	34,921,000	672,963	301,803	371,160	19.3	8.7	10.7	2.84
1974	35,288,000	688,711	300,403	388,308	19.6	8.5	11.0	2.89
1975	35,688,000	669,378	298,192	371,186	18.8	8.4	10.5	2.75
1976	36,118,000	677,456	299,007	378,449	18.9	8.3	10.5	2.68
1977	36,564,000	656,357	294,324	362,033	18.1	8.1	10.0	2.59
1978	36,741,000	636,892	296,781	340,111	17.3	8.1	9.2	2.48
1979	37,289,000	601,992	291,213	310,779	16.2	7.8	8.4	2.36
1980	37,527,000	571,018	289,344	281,674	15.2	7.7	7.5	2.22
1981	37,741,000	533,008	293,386	239,622	14.1	7.8	6.3	2.09
1982	37,942,000	515,706	286,655	229,051	13.6	7.6	6.0	1.96
1983	38,122,000	485,352	302,569	182,783	12.7	7.9	4.8	1.84
1984	38,279,000	473,281	299,409	173,872	12.4	7.8	4.5	1.73
1985	38,419,000	456,298	312,532	143,766	11.9	8.1	3.7	1.64
1986	38,536,000	438,750	310,413	128,337	11.4	8.1	3.3	1.56
1987	38,631,000	426,782	310,073	116,709	11.0	8.0	3.0	1.50
1988	38,716,000	418,919	319,437	99,482	10.8	8.3	2.6	1.45
1989	38,792,000	408,434	324,796	83,638	10.5	8.4	2.2	1.40
1990	38,851,000	401,425	333,142	68,283	10.3	8.6	1.8	1.36
1991	38,940,000	395,989	337,691	58,298	10.2	8.7	1.5	1.33
1992	39,068,000	396,747	331,515	65,232	10.2	8.5	1.7	1.32
1993	39,190,000	385,786	339,661	46,125	9.8	8.7	1.2	1.26
1994	39,295,000	370,148	338,242	31,906	9.4	8.6	0.8	1.21
1995	39,387,000	363,469	346,227	17,242	9.2	8.8	0.4	1.18
1996	39,478,000	362,626	351,449	11,177	9.2	8.9	0.3	1.17
1997	39,582,000	369,035	349,521	19,514	9.3	8.8	0.5	1.19
1998	39,721,000	365,193	360,511	4,682	9.2	9.1	0.1	1.15
1999	39,927,000	380,130	371,102	9,028	9.5	9.3	0.2	1.20
2000	40,264,000	397,632	360,391	37,241	9.9	9.0	0.9	1.23
2001	40,476,000	406,380	360,131	46,249	10.0	8.8	1.1	1.24
2002	41,035,000	418,846	368,618	50,228	10.1	8.9	1.2	1.26
2003	41,827,000	441,881	384,828	57,053	10.5	9.2	1.4	1.31
2004	42,547,000	454,591	371,934	82,657	10.6	8.7	1.9	1.33
2005	43,296,000	466,371	387,355	79,016	10.7	8.9	1.8	1.35
2006	44,009,000	482,957	371,478	111,479	10.9	8.4	2.5	1.36
2007	44,784,000	492,527	385,361	107,166	10.9	8.5	2.4	1.40
2008	45,668,000	519,779	386,324	133,455	11.4	8.4	3.0	1.46
2009	46,239,000	494,997	384,933	110,064	10.7	8.3	2.4	1.39
2010	46,486,000	486,575	382,047	104,528	10.5	8.2	2.3	1.38
2011	46,667,000	471,999	387,911	84,088	10.2	8.3	1.9	1.34
2012	46,818,216	454,648	402,950	51,698	9.7	8.6	1.1	1.32
2013	46,727,890	425,715	390,419	35,296	9.1	8.3	0.8	1.27
2014	46,512,199	427,595	395,830	31,765	9.1	8.5	0.6	1.32
2015	46,449,565	420,290	422,568	-2,278	9.0	9.1	-0.1	1.33
2016	46,440,099	410,583	410,611	-28	8.8	8.8	0.0	1.34
2017	46,527,039	393,181	424,523	-31,342	8.4	9.1	-0.7	1.31
2018	46,658,447	372,777	427,721	-54,944	7.9	9.1	-1.2	1.26
2019†(p)[16]	46,937,060	359,770	417,625	-57,855	7.6	8.8	-1.2	1.23
2020†[17]	47,329,981

† = as of 1 January 2019 and 2020.

Current vital statistics

[18]

• Births January–June 2018 = 181,366
• Births January–June 2019 = 170,074
• Deaths January–June 2018 = 227,786
• Deaths January–June 2019 = 215,478
• Natural increase January–June 2018 = -46,420
• Natural increase January–June 2019 = -45,404

In 2018 293,118 (79.4%) babies were born to mothers with Spanish nationality, 27,528 (7.4%) to mothers with an African nationality (including North Africa), 22,504 (6.1%) to mothers with a European nationality (both EU and non-EU countries of Europe), 19,309 (5.2%) to mothers with an American nationality (both North and South America) and 6,717 (1.8%) to mothers with an Asian nationality.

Other demographic statistics

Population pyramid of Spain in 1900

Demographic evolution of Spain 1950-2014

The following demographic statistics are from the World Population Review in 2019.[19]

• One birth every minute
• One death every minute
• Net gain of one person every 131 minutes
• One net migrant every 13 minutes

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.[20]

Population

46.723 million (Jan 2018 est.)[21]

Population pyramid of Spain in 2017

Birth and death rates and natural changes of Spain in 1950–2012.

Demographic evolution of Spain during the twentieth century

Age structure

0-14 years: 15.29% (male 3,879,229 /female 3,664,016)
15-24 years: 9.65% (male 2,458,486 /female 2,299,523)
25-54 years: 44.54% (male 11,208,598 /female 10,762,651)
55-64 years: 12.38% (male 2,980,206 /female 3,125,949)
65 years and over: 18.15% (male 3,833,601 /female 5,118,817) (2018 est.)

0-14 years: 15.3% (male 3,872,763/female 3,656,549)
15-24 years: 9.5% (male 2,424,352/female 2,267,429)
25-54 years: 44.9% (male 11,214,102/female 10,775,039)
54-64 years: 12.1% (male 2,899,088/female 3,044,111)
65 years and over: 17.9% (male 3,763,989/female 5,040,737) (2017 est.)

0-14 years: 14.4% (male 3,423,861/female 3,232,028)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 16,185,575/female 15,683,433)
65 years and over: 16.5% (male 3,238,301/female 4,394,624) (2008 est.)

Median age

total: 43.1 years. Country comparison to the world: 21st

male: 41.9 years

female: 44.3 years (2018 est.)

total: 42.7 years

male: 41.5 years

female: 43.9 years (2017 est.)

Birth rate

9 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 205th

9.2 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

Death rate

9.2 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 59th

Total fertility rate

1.5 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 196th

Net migration rate

7.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 13th

7.8 current migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

Population growth rate

0.73% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 137th

0.78% (2017 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

30.7 years (2015 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 81.8 years. Country comparison to the world: 22nd

male: 78.8 years

female: 84.9 years (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate

3.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.). Country comparison to the world: 212th

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

total population: 82.4 years (Source: OECD 2013 "Health at a glance" report)
male: 78.8 years (Source: OECD 2013 "Health at a glance" report)
female: 85.2 years (Source: OECD 2013 "Health at a glance" report)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2016 est.)

total population: 98.3%

male: 98.8%

female: 97.7% (2016 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 18 years

male: 18 years

female: 18 years (2016)

Unemployment, youth ages 15–24

total: 38.6%. Country comparison to the world: 14th

male: 39.5%

female: 37.4% (2017 est.)

Nationality

See also : Nationalities and regions of Spain

noun: Spaniard(s)
adjective: Spanish

Metropolitan areas

The largest metropolitan areas in 2007 were:[22]

Main metropolitan areas in Spain (2018)

1. Madrid 6,489,162
2. Barcelona 5,375,774
3. Valencia 1,705,742
4. Seville 1,519,639
5. Bilbao 950,155
6. Málaga 897,563
7. Asturias (Gijón–Oviedo–Avilés) 857,079
8. Alicante–Elche 748,565
9. Zaragoza 731,803
10. Vigo - Pontevedra 662,412
11. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 616,903
12. Bahía de Cádiz (Cádiz–Jerez de la Frontera) 615,494
13. Santa Cruz de Tenerife 573,825
14. Murcia 563,272
15. Palma de Mallorca 474,035
16. Granada 472,638
17. San Sebastián 402,168
18. Tarragona 406,042
19. A Coruña 403,007
20. Valladolid 400,400
21. Santander–Torrelavega 391,480
22. Córdoba 323,600
23. Pamplona 309,631

Islands

Islander population:[23]

1. Tenerife 886,033
2. Majorca 846,210
3. Gran Canaria 829,597
4. Lanzarote 132,366
5. Ibiza 113,908
6. Fuerteventura 94,386
7. Menorca 86,697
8. La Palma 85,933
9. La Gomera 22,259
10. El Hierro 10,558
11. Formentera 7,957
12. Arousa 4,889
13. La Graciosa 658
14. Tabarca 105
15. Ons 61

Ethnic groups

Main articles: Spanish people and National and regional identity in Spain

Definition of ethnicity or nationality in Spain is fraught politically. The term "Spanish people" (pueblo español) is defined in the 1978 constitution as the political sovereign, i.e. the citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. The same constitution in its preamble speaks of "peoples and nationalities of Spain" (pueblos y nacionalidades de España) and their respective cultures, traditions, languages and institutions. The formerly nomadic Gitanos and Mercheros are distinctly marked by endogamy and discrimination but they are dispersed through the country.

The native Canarians are partly the descendants of the North African population of the Canary Islands prior to Spanish colonization in the 15th century although many Spaniards have varying levels of North African admixture as a result of the Islamic period. Also included are many Spaniard citizens who are descendants of people from Spain's former colonies, mostly from Equatorial Guinea, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Morocco and the Philippines. There is also a sizable number of Spaniards of Eastern European, Maghrebian, Sub Saharan-African, South Asian and Middle Eastern descent.[24]

Native-born Spanish citizens of all ethnic groups make up 85.7% of the total population, and 15.3% are immigrants or expats, both naturalized and foreign. Among the immigrants, around 45% of them come from Spain's former territories in America (primarily Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela and Colombia). The rest are predominantly North African, Eastern European and Western European. The majority of Western and Northern Europeans in Spain are retired expats living in coastal areas.

Foreign population

As of 2018, the region had a foreign population of 4,734,691.[25] The largest groups of foreigners were those of Moroccan, Romanian, British, Chinese and Italian citizenship.[25] Meanwhile, Spain had a foreign-born population of 6,742,948, being those born in the Americas the largest group, and Europe being the second most common continent of origin after South America.[26]

Religions

Main article: Religion in Spain

Religion in Spain (2019 The World Factbook)[27]

  Catholic Christianity (68.9%)

  Atheist (11.3%)

  Indifferent/Non-believer (8.2%)

  Agnostic (7.6%)

  Other denominations and religions (2.8%)

  Did not answer (1.1%)

The Reconquista was the long process by which the Catholics reconquered Spain from Islamic rule by 1492. The Spanish Inquisition was established in 1478 to complete the religious orthodoxy of the Iberian Peninsula. In the centuries that followed, Spain saw itself as the bulwark of Catholicism and doctrinal purity, since them Catholicism has been the main religion in Spain.[28][29]

Spanish missionaries carried Catholicism to the Americas and the Philippines, establishing various missions in the newly colonized lands. The missions served as a base for both administering colonies as well as spreading Christianity.[30][31][32]

The Spanish Constitution of 1978 abolished Catholicism as the official state religion, but recognizing the role it plays in Spanish society.[33] From the end of the Francoist dictatorship to the present day, a secularization process has taken place that has meant a progressive decrease in religious practice, in the attendance at the different religious rites (baptisms, communions and Catholic marriages) and in the percentage of Spaniards who identify as Catholic,[34] Consequently, a majority of younger Spaniards today ignore Catholic doctrines on matters such as pre-marital sex, homosexuality and contraception.[35][36] Despite the drop, Catholic identity nevertheless remains an important part of Spain's culture.[34]

As of 2018, 68.5% of the population define themselves as Catholic, 26.4% as non-believers or atheists, and 2.6% other religions according to the official Spanish Center for Sociological Research.[37] Among believers, 59% assert they almost never go to any religious service, by contrast, 16.3% attend one or more religious service almost every week.[37][38]

A study made by the Union of Islamic Communities of Spain demonstrated that there were about 1,700,000 inhabitants of Muslim background living in Spain as of 2012, accounting for 3–4% of the total population of Spain. The vast majority was composed of immigrants and descendants originating from Morocco and other African countries. More than 514,000 (30%) of them had Spanish nationality.[39]

Languages

• Spanish 99% (88% mother tongue[40]) (official nationwide)
• Catalan 16%[41] (9% mother tongue[40]) (co-official in Catalonia, Balearic Islands, and Valencia — see Valencian)
• Galician 7% (5% mother tongue[40]) (co-official in Galicia)
• Basque 1.6% (1% mother tongue[40]) (co-official in Basque Country and designated areas in Navarre).
• Aranese (a variant of Gascon Occitan) is co-official in Val d'Aran, a small valley in the Pyrenees.

Others with no official status:

• Asturian-Leonese (in the former Kingdom of León and Asturias)
• Aragonese (in the province of Huesca, Aragon)
• Arabic (in the autonomous city of Ceuta)
• Berber (in the autonomous city of Melilla)

Literacy

Definition: people of age 15 and over can read and write. Amount of population ≥ 15 that can read and write: 97.7%.

Educational system

About 70% of Spain's student population attends public schools or universities. The remainder attend private schools or universities, many of which are operated by the Catholic Church.

Compulsory education begins with primary school or general basic education for ages 6–16. It is free in public schools and in many private schools, most of which receive government subsidies. Following graduation, students attend either a secondary school offering a general high school diploma or a school of professional study in all fields – law, sciences, humanities, and medicine – and the technical schools offer programs in engineering and architecture.

Notes

1. In fertility rates, 2.1 and above is a stable population and has been marked blue, 2 and below leads to an aging population and the result is that the population decreases.

See also

• Health in Spain
• Spain
• List of Spaniards
• Nationalities in Spain
• Romani people in Spain
• Ranked list of Spanish autonomous communities

References

1. https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/es/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177012&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254734710990d%5B%5D
2. Instituto Nacional de Estadística (29 June 2020). "Estadística del Padrón Continuo". Spain.
3. Official report on Spanish recent Macroeconomics, including data and comments on immigration Archived 26 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
4. Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Evolution of the foreign population in Spain since 1998 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2007.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
5. Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Evolution of the global fertility rate between 1975 and 2005
6. ABC. "El 75% de los nuevos habitantes de España es extranjero, según un estudio - Nacional_Sociedad - Nacional - ABC.es". ABC.
7. La evolución de las familias numerosas (Spanish)
8. Fernández, Celia Valiente. "Forgetting the past: The familiar policy of Spain (1975-1996)" (PDF). Charles III University of Madrid.
9. The first 'patera' arrived to Canary Islands 20 years ago - Público newspaper (Spanish)
10. "Saldo migratorio en España desde 1940 / Net migration in Spain since 1940". 7 July 2014.
11. "Life expectancy". Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
12. "World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations". Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
13. Max Roser (2014), "Total Fertility Rate around the world over the last centuries", Our World In Data, Gapminder Foundation, archived from the original on 7 August 2018, retrieved 7 August 2018
14. "Fondo documental. Historia". www.ine.es.
15. "Instituto Nacional de Estadística Vital Statistics". Archived from the original on 12 March 2012. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
16. "Basic Demographic Indicators Year 2019. Provisional data" (PDF).
17. "Population Figures at 1 January 2020" (PDF).
18. "Estadísticas del Movimiento Natural de la Población (MNP) – Nacimientos, Defunciones y Matrimonios – Primer semestre de 2019. Datos provisionales" (PDF). Instituto Nacional de Estadística - INE. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
19. World Population Review: Spain Population 2018, 14 June 2018
20. "World Factbook EUROPE : SPAIN", The World Factbook, 12 July 2018
21. http://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177012&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254734710990
22. "AUDES project". Grupo Alarcos. Archived from the original on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2008.
23. La superficie de las islas vendrá dada en hectáreas salvo la de las mayores islas de los archipiélagos canario y balear, así como las Plazas de Soberanía.
24. "Ethnic Groups in Spain | Study.com". Study.com. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
25. "Población extranjera por Nacionalidad, comunidades, Sexo y Año". Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
26. "Población (españoles/extranjeros) por país de nacimiento y sexo". Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
27. "CIA – The World Factbook – Spain". Cia.gov. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
28. Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (2011). Encyclopedia of Global Religion. SAGE Publications. p. 1214.
29. • Payne, Stanley G. Spanish Catholicism: An Historical Overview (1984)
30. Laicidad and Religious Diversity in Latin America. Springer. 2016. p. 10. ISBN 9783319447452.
31. Cornelio, Jayeel Serrano (2016). Being Catholic in the Contemporary Philippines: Young People Reinterpreting Religion. Routledge. ISBN 9781317621966.
32. Tarver Ph.D., H. Micheal; Slape, Emily (2016). The Spanish Empire: A Historical Encyclopedia [2 volumes]: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 198. ISBN 9781610694223.
33. "Spanish Constitution". Sections 14, 16 & 27.3, Constitution of 29 December 1978 (PDF). Retrieved 5 March 2018. No religion shall have a state character. The public authorities shall take into account the religious beliefs of Spanish society and shall consequently maintain appropriate cooperation relations with the Catholic Church and other confessions.
34. A. Santos (2012). Social Movements and Sexual Citizenship in Southern Europe. Springer. ISBN 9781137296405.
35. Tarvainen, Sinikka (26 September 2004). "Reforms anger Spanish church". Dawn International. Retrieved 21 March 2008.
36. "Zapatero accused of rejecting religion". Worldwide Religious News. 15 October 2004. Archived from the original on 23 October 2008. Retrieved 21 March 2008.
37. Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (Centre for Sociological Research) (January 2018). "Barómetro de enero de 2018" (in Spanish). p. 19. Archived from os.cis.es/pdf/Es3187sd_A.pdf the original Check |url= value (help) (PDF) on 12 July 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
38. "Eurobarometer 69 - Values of Europeans. p.16" (PDF). Retrieved 24 March 2009.
39. "Explotación estadística del censo de ciudadanos musulmanes en España referido a fecha 31/12/2012" (PDF). Unión de Comunidades Islámicas de España: 6–9. 2012. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 March 2013.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
40. "Europeans and their languages" (PDF). ec.europa.eu. European Commission. February 2006.
41. "Spain".

External links

• Spanish Instituto Nacional de Estadística Statistical data about demography and population
• Build Spanish population graph 1960 - 2013 (World Bank data)
• Build Spanish population projection graph till 2100 (United Nation data)
• Build Spanish life expectancy at birth graph 1950 - 2013 (United Nation data)