Demographics of Bahrain

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Bahrain population pyramid in 2020

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

Demographics of Bahrain, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of permanent inhabitants in thousands.

Most of the population of Bahrain is concentrated in the two principal cities, Manama and Al Muharraq. According to the website of Ministry of Information Affairs, 74% of the population are Muslim, with Christians being the second largest religious group, forming 10.2% of the population, Jews making up 0.21%. The percentage of local Bahraini Christians, Jews, Hindus and Baha’is is collectively 0.2%.[1][2]

Ethnic groups[]

Ethnic groups in Bahrain (2020)[3]
Ethnic groups
Bahraini
 
 47.4%
Asian (mostly South Asia )
 
 43.4%
other Arabs
 
 5.8%
African
 
 1.4%
European
 
 0.8%
North Americans
 
 1.1%
Others
 
 0.1%
See also: Ethnic, cultural and religious groups of Bahrain

Regarding the ethnicity of Bahrainis, a Financial Times article published on 31 May 1983 found that "Bahrain is a polyglot state, both religiously and racially. Discounting temporary immigrants of the past ten years, there are at least eight or nine communities on the island". These may be classified as:

Community Description
Afro-Arabs Descendants of Africans, primarily from East Africa and of mostly Sunni faith
Ajam of Bahrain Persians of Shia faith, a minority are from the Baháʼí Faith.
Baharna Putative indigenous inhabitants of Bahrain. The overwhelming majority are Shia Arabs.
Banyan (Bania) Indians who traded with Bahrain and settled before the age of oil (formerly known as the Hunood or Banyan, Arabic: البونيان‎), of mostly Hindu faith
Bahraini Jews Jews have inhabited Bahrain for centuries. Most native Bahraini Jews are of Mesopotamian and Persian descent.
Hola Sunni Arabs from Persia
Tribal Urbanized Sunni Bahrainis of Bedouin ancestry, such as the Utoob, Dawasir etc.

Non-nationals make up more than half of the population of Bahrain, with immigrants making up about 52.6% of the overall population.[4] Of those, the vast majority come from South and Southeast Asia: according to various media reports and government statistics dated between 2005-2009 roughly 290,000 Indians,[5] 125,000 Bangladeshis,[6] 45,000 Pakistanis,[7] 45,000 Filipinos,[8] and 8,000 Indonesians.[9] 11,000 people from the United Kingdom live in Bahrain, 0.73% of its total population.[10]

[11] Bahraini Other Arabs African North American Asian European Others TOTAL
Population 712,362 86,823 21,502 16,415 650,996 11,750 1,787 1,501,635
Percentage 47.4% 5.8% 1.4% 1.1% 43.4% 0.8% 0.1% 100%

Population[]

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1950116,000—    
1960162,000+39.7%
1970212,000+30.9%
1980358,000+68.9%
1990493,000+37.7%
2000638,000+29.4%
20101,262,000+97.8%
20201,501,635+19.0%
Source:[12]

Population census[13][]

Population of Bahrain according to nationality 1941-2010
census year Bahraini non-Bahraini Total population
Number % Number % Number
1941 74,040 82.3 15,930 17.7 89,970
1950 91,179 83.2 18,471 16.8 109,650
1959 118,734 83.0 24,401 17.0 143,135
1965 143,814 78.9 38,389 21.1 182,203
1971 178,193 82.5 37,885 17.5 216,078
1981 238,420 68.0 112,378 32.0 350,798
1991 323,305 63.6 184,732 36.4 508,037
2001 405,667 62.4 244,937 37.6 650,604
2010 568,399 46.0 666,172 54.0 1,234,571
2020 712,362 47.4 789,273 52.6 1,501,635

Population estimates on July 1[14][]

Bahraini Non-Bahraini Total % Non-Bahraini
2001 409,619 251,698 661,317 38.1%
2002 427,246 283,307 710,554 39.9%
2003 445,634 318,888 764,519 41.7%
2004 464,808 358,936 823,744 43.6%
2005 484,810 404,013 888,824 45.5%
2006 505,673 454,752 960,425 47.3%
2007 527,433 511,864 1,039,297 49.3%
2008 541,587 561,909 1,103,496 50.9%
2009 558,011 620,404 1,178,415 52.6%
2010 570,687 657,856 1,228,543 53.5%
2011 584,688 610,332 1,195,020 51.1%
2012 599,629 609,335 1,208,964 50.4%
2013 614,830 638,361 1,253,191 50.9%
2014 630,744 683,818 1,314,562 52.0%
2015 647,835 722,487 1,370,322 52.7%
2016 664,707 759,019 1,423,726 53.3%
2017 677,506 823,610 1,501,116 54.9%
2018 689,417 813,377 1,502,794 54.1%

Vital statistics[]

UN estimates [15][]

Period Live births per year Deaths per year Natural change per year CBR* CDR* NC* TFR* IMR*
1950-1955 6,000 3,000 3,000 45.0 21.6 23.4 6.97 183
1955-1960 7,000 3,000 4,000 45.7 17.7 27.9 6.97 156
1960-1965 8,000 2,000 6,000 45.7 12.6 33.2 7.18 112
1965-1970 8,000 2,000 7,000 41.6 8.7 32.9 6.97 74
1970-1975 8,000 2,000 7,000 35.2 6.5 28.6 5.95 49
1975-1980 10,000 2,000 9,000 33.0 4.8 28.1 5.23 33
1980-1985 13,000 2,000 11,000 32.9 4.1 28.8 4.63 22
1985-1990 14,000 2,000 13,000 31.3 3.6 27.7 4.08 16
1990-1995 14,000 2,000 12,000 26.3 3.3 23.1 3.35 14
1995-2000 14,000 2,000 12,000 23.1 3.2 19.9 2.89 11
2000-2005 14,000 2,000 12,000 21.1 3.0 18.1 2.62 9
2005-2010 21,000 3,000 18,000 20.7 2.8 18.0 2.63 7
* CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births; TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman)

Registered data[16][17][18][]

Birth registration of Bahrain is available from 1976, death registration started in 1990. Between 1976 and 2011 the number of baby births roughly doubled but the birth rate of babies decreased from 32 to 13 per 1,000. The death rate of Bahrain (1.9 per 1,000 human beings in 2011) is among the lowest in the world.

Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Total Fertility Rate per woman
1965 5,150
1966 4,860
1967 5,179
1968 5,274
1971 6,404
1972 7,274
1973 7,679
1974 7,612
1975 7,767
1976 282,000 8,984 31.8
1977 302,000 9,058 872 8,186 30.0 2.9 27.1
1978 322,000 9,398 1,002 8,396 29.2 3.1 26.1
1979 341,000 9,664 1,037 8,627 28.3 3.0 25.3
1980 358,000 10,140 1,085 9,055 28.3 3.0 25.3
1981 372,000 10,300 1,065 9,235 27.7 2.9 24.8
1982 384,000 11,037 1,119 9,918 28.8 2.9 25.9
1983 394,000 11,431 1,064 10,367 29.0 2.7 26.3
1984 405,000 11,519 1,303 10,216 28.5 3.2 25.3
1985 417,000 12,314 1,212 11,102 29.5 2.9 26.6
1986 431,000 12,893 1,423 11,470 29.9 3.3 26.6
1987 446,000 12,699 1,584 11,115 28.5 3.6 24.9
1988 462,000 12,555 1,523 11,032 27.2 3.3 23.9
1989 478,000 13,611 1,551 12,060 28.5 3.2 25.3
1990 493,000 13,370 1,552 11,818 27.1 3.1 24.0
1991 503,052 13,229 1,744 11,485 26.1 3.4 22.7
1992 516,458 13,874 1,760 12,114 26.7 3.4 23.3
1993 530,225 14,191 1,714 12,477 26.7 3.2 23.5
1994 544,366 13,766 1,695 12,071 25.2 3.1 22.1
1995 558,879 13,481 1,910 11,571 24.1 3.4 20.7
1996 573,792 13,123 1,780 11,343 22.8 3.1 19.7
1997 589,115 13,382 1,822 11,560 22.6 3.1 19.5
1998 604,842 13,381 1,997 11,384 21.9 3.3 18.6
1999 620,989 14,280 1,920 12,360 22.8 3.1 19.7 2.900
2000 637,582 13,947 2,045 11,902 21.9 3.2 18.7 2.800
2001 661,317 13,468 1,979 11,489 21.0 3.1 17.9 2.600
2002 710,554 13,576 2,035 11,541 21.1 3.2 17.9 2.400
2003 764,519 14,560 2,114 12,446 22.5 3.3 19.2 2.400
2004 823,744 14,968 2,215 12,753 22.3 3.3 19.0 2.300
2005 888,824 15,198 2,222 12,976 21.0 3.1 17.9 2.100
2006 960,425 15,053 2,317 12,736 18.6 2.9 15.7 2.000
2007 1,039,297 16,062 2,270 13,792 17.4 2.5 14.9 1.964
2008 1,103,496 17,022 2,390 14,632 16.2 2.3 13.9 1.968
2009 1,178,415 17,841 2,387 15,454 15.1 2.0 13.1 1.951
2010 1,228,543 18,150 2,401 15,749 14.8 2.0 12.8 1.877
2011 1,195,020 17,573 2,528 15,045 14.7 2.1 12.6 1.967
2012 1,208,964 19,119 2,613 16,506 15.8 2.2 13.6 2.134
2013 1,253,191 19,995 2,588 17,407 16.0 2.1 13.9 2.157
2014 1,314,562 20,931 2,805 18,126 15.9 2.1 13.8 2.108
2015 1,370,322 20,983 2,787 18,196 15.3 2.1 13.2 2.093
2016 1,423,726 20,714 2,858 17,856 14.5 2.0 12.5 1.984
2017 1,501,116 20,581 2,902 17,679 13.7 1.9 11.8 1.945
2018 1,503,091 19,740 3,052 16,668 13.1 2.0 11.1 1.838
2019 1,483,756 18,611 3,010 15,601 12.5 2.0 10.5 1.744

Structure of the population [19][]

Structure of the population (2020) :

Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 942,895 558,740 1,501,635 100
0-4 52,591 51,012 103,603 6.90
5-9 53,578 51,416 104,994 6.99
10-14 47,812 45,864 93,676 6.24
15-19 41,062 38,276 79,338 5.28
20-24 60,706 40,725 101,431 6.75
25-29 101,401 54,679 156,080 10.39
30-34 154,215 57,757 211,972 14.12
35-39 134,083 51,794 185,877 12.38
40-44 95,104 44,385 139,489 9.29
45-49 70,467 33,509 103,976 6.92
50-54 49,621 27,786 77,407 5.15
55-59 34,498 23,095 57,593 3.84
60-64 22,418 16,353 38,771 2.58
65-69 12,499 9,200 16,877 1.44
70-74 6,184 5,177 11,361 0.76
75-79 3,216 3,363 6,579 0.44
80-84 2,002 2,452 4,454 0.30
85+ 1,438 1,897 3,335 0.22
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0-14 153,981 148,292 302,273 20.13
15-64 763,575 388,359 1,151,934 76.71
65+ 25,339 22,089 47,428 3.16

Life expectancy[]

Period Life expectancy in
Years 		Period Life expectancy in
Years
1950–1955 43.0 1985–1990 71.8
1955–1960 48.5 1990–1995 72.9
1960–1965 55.3 1995–2000 73.9
1965–1970 61.1 2000–2005 74.9
1970–1975 65.4 2005–2010 75.7
1975–1980 68.3 2010–2015 76.4
1980–1985 70.5

Source: UN World Population Prospects[20]

Religion[]

See also: Freedom of religion in Bahrain and Islam in Bahrain
[21] Men Women Total Bahraini Non-Bahraini
Muslims 674,329 437,204 1,111,533 710,067 401,466
Others 268,566 121,536 390,102 2,295 387,807
Total 942,895 558,740 1,501,635 712,362 789,273
Muslim % 74.0% 99.7% 50.9%

Islam is the official religion forming 74% of the population.[22] Current census data does not differentiate between the other religions in Bahrain, but there are about 1,000[23] Christian citizens and about 40[24] Jewish citizens.

Bahraini citizens of Muslim faith belong to the Shi'a and Sunni branches of Islam. The last official census (1941) to include sectarian identification reported 52% (88,298 citizens) as Shia and 48% as Sunni of the Muslim population.[25] Unofficial sources, such as the Library of Congress Country Studies,[26] and The New York Times,[27] estimate sectarian identification to be approximately 45% Sunni and 55% Shia. An official Bahraini document revealed that 51% of the country's citizens are Sunnis, while the Shiite population has declined to 49% of the Muslim population.[28]

Foreigners, overwhelmingly from South Asia and other Arab countries, constituted 52.6% of the population in 2020.[29] Of these, 50.9% are Muslim and 49.1% are non-Muslim,[30] including Christians (primarily: Catholic, Protestant, Syriac Orthodox, and Mar Thoma from South India), Hindus, Baháʼís, Buddhists, and Sikhs.[31]

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics[]

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.[32]

Median age[]

Population pyramid of Bahrain in 2012.
Total: 32.9 years
Male: 34.4 years
Female: 30.3 years (2017 est.)

Urbanization[]

Urban population: 89.6% of total population (2021)
Rate of urbanization: 1.99% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Sex ratio[]

At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.31 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.87 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1.67 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female
Total population: 1.53 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality[]

14 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.).
county comparison to the world: 137

Health expenditure[]

4.1% of total GDP (2018)

HIV/AIDS[]

Adult prevalence rate: 0.01% (2017 est.)
People with HIV/AIDS: Fewer than 500 (2017 est.)
Deaths: Fewer than 100 (2017 est.)

Languages[]

Arabic
English
Persian
Kurdish
Malayalam
Urdu
Balochi
Hindi
Sinhalese
Tamil
Punjabi
Bengali
Armenian
Philippines

Literacy and education[]

Bahrain has traditionally boasted an advanced educational system. Schooling and related costs are entirely paid for by the government, and, although not compulsory, primary and secondary attendance rates are high. Bahrain also encourages institutions of higher learning, drawing on expatriate talent and the increasing pool of Bahrainis returning from abroad with advanced degrees. University of Bahrain was established in 1986 for standard undergraduate and graduate study, and the College of Health Sciences—operating under the direction of the Ministry of Health—trains physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and paramedics.

Overall literacy is 97.5% (99.9% for men and 94.9% for women) (2018 estimate).

Education expenditure[]

2.3% of total GDP (2012)
country comparison to the world: 156

See also[]

References[]

Notes[]

  1. ^ "Population and Demographics – Ministry of Information Affairs | Kingdom of Bahrain". Archived from the original on 2020-11-10. Retrieved 2020-11-06.
  2. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  3. ^ "Middle East ::BAHRAIN". CIA The World Factbook.
  4. ^ The World Factbook
  5. ^ "Indian Community". Indian Embassy. 2007. Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  6. ^ "New Bahrain rule may end labour exploitation", The Daily Star, 2009-05-09, retrieved 2009-05-14
  7. ^ Year Book, Overseas Pakistani Foundation, 2004–2005, retrieved 2009-05-12
  8. ^ "Bahrain looking to hire more Filipino workers", Manila Times, 5 Feb 2009, retrieved 6 March 2012[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Indonesians encouraged", Gulf Daily News, 2007-08-07, retrieved 2009-05-12
  10. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6161705.stm
  11. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  12. ^ "World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision". Archived from the original on 2011-05-07. Retrieved 2012-03-22.
  13. ^ [1]
  14. ^ Sources: Bahrain Central Informatics Organization, population estimate July 1 of each year Archived 2008-10-30 at the Wayback Machine, and for 2008, 2009 Archived 2011-10-05 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ "World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision". Archived from the original on 2011-05-06. Retrieved 2013-05-11.
  16. ^ [2] United nations. Demographic Yearbooks
  17. ^ [3] Archived 2013-05-03 at the Wayback Machine Ministry of Health Statistics
  18. ^ http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/vitstats/serATab3.pdf
  19. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  20. ^ "World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations". Archived from the original on 2016-09-19. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  21. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  22. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  23. ^ "The Catholic Church in Bahrain". Catholic Church in Bahrain. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  24. ^ "Low profile but welcome: a Jewish outpost in the Gulf". Independent. 2 Nov 2007. Archived from the original on 24 December 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  25. ^ Qubain, Fahim Issa (1955) “Social Classes and Tensions in Bahrain.” The Middle East Journal 9, no. 3: 269–280, p. 270
  26. ^ Bahrain Country Study Library of Congress
  27. ^ 1981 Plot in Bahrain linked to Iranians New York Times, 25 July 1982, retrieved 20 June 2018
  28. ^ Al Jazeera: وثيقة بحرينية: الشيعة أقل من النصف, 1973, retrieved 14 February 2021
  29. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  30. ^ https://www.data.gov.bh/en/ResourceCenter/DownloadFile?id=3582
  31. ^ "International Religious Freedom Report". US State Dept. 2011-09-13. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  32. ^ Bahrain at the World Factbook

Sources[]

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the CIA World Factbook document: "2006 edition".

  • 2003 U.S. Department of State website
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