Demographics of Tunisia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tunisia population pyramid in 2020
Tunisia's population (1961–2011).

Tunisia's population was estimated to be around 11.6 million in mid-2019.[1] In the generally youthful African continent, Tunisia's population is among the most mature. This is because the government has supported a successful family planning program that has reduced the population growth rate to just over 1% per annum, contributing to Tunisia's economic and social stability.[2] The population of Tunisia is primarily of Berber ancestral origin (>60%).[3]

Around 98 percent of the population are Muslim.[4] There is a Jewish population on the southern island of Djerba and Tunis. There also exists a small autochthonous group of Christian adherents.[5]

Population History[]

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1960 4,220,701—    
1970 5,127,000+21.5%
1980 6,384,000+24.5%
1990 8,154,400+27.7%
2000 9,563,500+17.3%
2010 10,547,000+10.3%
2020 11,818,619+12.1%

Source: National Institute of Statistics[6] and United Nations Statistics Division[7]

Vital statistics[]

Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1,000) Crude death rate (per 1,000) Natural change (per 1,000) Population growth (annual %) Fertility rates
1948 3,425,100 111,084 49,917 61,167 32.4 14.6 17.8
1949 3,489,400 92,439 35,409 57,030 26.5 10.1 16.4
1950 3,530,000 106,235 33,648 72,587 30.1 9.5 20.6
1951 3,596,000 119,981 33,935 86,046 33.4 9.4 24.0
1952 3,662,000 105,469 30,676 74,793 28.8 8.4 20.4
1953 3,727,000 116,638 31,116 85,522 31.3 8.3 23.0 6.90
1954 3,793,000 119,774 31,249 88,525 31.6 8.2 23.4
1955 3,860,000 134,489 28,942 105,547 34.8 7.5 27.3
1956 3,929,000 140,505 33,367 107,138 35.8 8.5 27.3
1957 3,999,000 157,741 36,964 120,777 39.4 9.2 30.2
1958 4,072,000 181,144 37,018 144,126 44.5 9.1 35.4 7.00
1959 4,145,000 184,209 41,737 142,472 44.4 10.1 34.3
1960 4,220,701 182,221 42,064 140,157 43.2 10.0 33.2
1961 4,297,000 184,396 45,437 138,959 42.9 10.6 32.3
1962 4,376,000 181,861 49,200 132,661 41.6 11.2 30.4
1963 4,457,000 187,395 45,415 141,980 42.0 10.2 31.8 7.21
1964 4,541,000 206,046 43,656 162,390 45.4 9.6 35.8
1965 4,630,000 193,220 51,700 141,520 41.7 11.2 30.2
1966 4,716,000 206,717 48,307 158,410 43.8 10.2 33.6 7.22
1967 4,819,000 187,320 49,387 137,933 38.9 10.2 28.7
1968 4,920,000 188,190 46,712 141,478 38.3 9.5 28.8 6.86
1969 5,027,500 194,940 52,872 142,068 38.8 10.5 28.3
1970 5,126,500 186,360 45,560 140,800 36.4 8.9 27.5 6.09
1971 5,228,400 183,311 48,625 134,686 35.1 9.3 25.8 6.00
1972 5,331,800 199,121 39,488 159,633 37.3 7.4 29.9
1973 5,333,400 194,810 60,800 134,010 36.5 11.4 25.1 6.18
1974 5,463,700 194,600 54,700 139,900 35.6 10.0 25.6
1975 5,611,400 205,390 41,172 164,218 36.6 7.3 29.3
1976 5,774,900 208,040 37,028 171,012 36.0 6.4 29.6
1977 5,928,300 220,546 36,272 184,274 37.2 6.1 31.1
1978 6,067,100 207,342 34,885 172,457 34.2 5.7 28.5 5.14
1979 6,219,800 218,161 37,201 180,960 35.1 6.0 29.1 4.92
1980 6,392,300 225,165 36,445 188,720 35.2 5.7 29.5 4.51
1981 6,565,500 226,425 36,989 189,436 34.5 5.6 28.9
1982 6,703,600 219,393 36,069 183,324 32.7 5.4 27.3
1983 6,839,500 216,365 35,054 181,311 31.6 5.1 26.5 4.88
1984 7,033,900 227,052 33,740 193,312 32.3 4.8 27.5 4.66
1985 7,261,100 227,188 35,963 191,225 31.3 5.0 26.3 4.42
1986 7,464,900 234,736 35,467 199,269 31.4 4.8 26.6 4.39
1987 7,639,000 224,169 35,632 188,537 29.3 4.7 24.6 4.07
1988 7,769,900 215,069 34,984 180,085 27.7 4.5 23.2 3.78
1989 7,909,600 199,459 34,921 164,538 25.2 4.4 20.8 3.36
1990 8,154,400 205,315 45,700 159,615 25.2 5.6 19.6 2.236 3.35
1991 8,318,200 207,455 46,500 160,955 24.9 5.6 19.3 2.224 3.28
1992 8,489,900 211,649 46,300 165,349 24.9 5.5 19.5 2.183 3.25
1993 8,657,400 207,786 49,400 158,386 24.0 5.7 18.3 2.092 3.09
1994 8,815,300 200,223 50,300 149,923 22.7 5.7 17.0 1.936 2.90
1995 8,957,500 186,416 52,000 134,416 20.8 5.8 15.0 1.741 2.67
1996 9,089,300 178,801 49,800 129,001 19.7 5.5 14.2 1.543 2.51
1997 9,214,900 173,757 51,700 122,057 18.9 5.6 13.2 1.369 2.38
1998 9,333,300 166,718 52,300 114,818 17.9 5.6 12.3 1.214 2.23
1999 9,455,900 160,169 54,400 105,769 16.9 5.7 11.2 1.085 2.09
2000 9,552,500 163,089 53,700 109,389 17.1 5.6 11.4 0.981 2.08
2001 9,650,600 163,300 53,200 110,100 16.9 5.6 11.4 0.877 2.05
2002 9,748,900 163,011 56,870 106,141 16.7 5.8 10.8 0.787 2.00
2003 9,839,841 168,022 59,781 108,241 17.1 6.1 11.0 0.747 2.06
2004 9,932,431 166,551 59,269 107,282 16.8 6.0 10.8 0.771 2.02
2005 10,029,100 170,999 58,673 112,326 17.1 5.9 11.2 0.84 2.04
2006 10,127,900 173,390 57,000 116,390 17.1 5.6 11.5 0.93 2.03
2007 10,225,200 177,503 56,741 120,762 17.4 5.5 11.8 1.01 2.04
2008 10,328,700 182,990 59,975 123,015 17.7 5.8 11.9 1.059 2.06
2009 10,458,095 184,282 59,499 124,783 17.7 5.7 12.0 1.063 2.05
2010 10,565,704 196,039 60,438 135,601 18.6 5.7 12.9 1.035 2.13
2011 10,674,420 201,120 63,258 137,862 18.8 5.9 12.9 0.998 2.15
2012 10,784,255 217,738 63,257 154,481 20.2 5.9 14.3 0.794 2.38
2013 10,895,219 222,962 61,730 161,232 20.5 5.7 14.8 0.972 2.40
2014 11,012,486 225,887 62,785 163,102 20.5 5.7 14.8 1.002 2.42
2015 11,162,666 222,530 65,743 156,787 19.9 5.9 14.0 1.05 2.37
2016 11,304,483 219,013 62,433 156,580 19.4 5.5 13.9 1.103 2.31
2017 11,434,994 208,081 68,540 139,541 18.2 6.0 12.2 1.139 2.21
2018 11,551,448 202,694 68,629 134,065 17.5 5.9 11.6 1.146 2.17
2019 11,658,341 195,822 71,811 124,011 16.8 6.1 10.7 1.12 2.11
2020 11,746,695 172,794 75,058 97,736 14.7 6.4 8.3 0.83 1.86
2021 11,811,335 (est.) 0.75 (est.)

Current natural growth[]

[8]

Period Live births Deaths Natural increase
January - April 2020 53,187 25,750 +27,437
January - April 2021 45,360 29,491 +15,869
Difference Decrease -7,827 (-14.72%) Negative increase +3,741 (+14.53%) Decrease -11,565

Structure of the population[]

Structure of the population (Census 23.IV.2014):[9]

Age Group Male Female Total Percent
Total 5 472 333 5 510 420 10 982 753 100
0–4 505 509 466 662 972 171 8.85
5–9 440 644 408 362 849 006 7.73
10–14 407 938 381 684 789 622 7.19
15–19 421 716 405 792 827 508 7.53
20–24 459 814 465 595 925 409 8.43
25–29 449 932 484 685 934 617 8.51
30–34 477 322 506 459 983 781 8.96
35–39 397 594 419 392 816 986 7.44
40–44 357 353 370 495 727 848 6.63
45–49 331 283 351 673 682 956 6.22
50–54 324 423 326 185 650 608 5.92
55–59 268 380 266 788 535 168 4.87
60–64 212 900 212 524 425 424 3.87
65–69 127 168 135 135 262 303 2.39
70–74 107 097 113 584 220 681 2.01
75–79 81 732 85 164 166 896 1.52
80+ 101 528 110 241 211 769 1.93
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 1 354 091 1 256 708 2 610 799 23.77
15–64 3 700 717 3 809 588 7 510 305 68.38
65+ 417 525 444 124 861 649 7.85

Population Ancestry[]

The population of Tunisia is primarily of Berber ancestral origin (>60%).[3] Whilst the Ottoman influence has been particularly significant in forming the Turco-Tunisian community, other peoples have also migrated to Tunisia during different periods of time, including Sub-Saharan Africans, Greeks, Romans, Phoenicians (Punics), Jews, and French settlers. The Tunisian, by 1870 the distinction between the Arabic-speaking mass and the Turkish elite had blurred.[10] There is also a small purely Berber (1% at most)[11] population located in the Dahar mountains and on the island of Djerba in the south-east and in the Khroumire mountainous region in the north-west.

From the late 19th century to after World War II, Tunisia was home to large populations of French and Italians (255,000 Europeans in 1956),[12] although nearly all of them, along with the Jewish population, left after Tunisia became independent. The history of the Jews in Tunisia goes back some 2,000 years. In 1948 the Jewish population was an estimated 105,000, but by 2013 only about 900 remained.[13]

The first people known to history in what is now Tunisia were the Berbers. Numerous civilizations and peoples have invaded, migrated to, or have been assimilated into the population over the millennia, with influences of population from Phoenicians/Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, Arabs, Spaniards, Ottoman Turks and Janissaries, and French. There was a continuing inflow of nomadic Arab tribes from Arabia.[14]

After the Reconquista and expulsion of non-Christians and Moriscos from Spain, many Spanish Muslims and Jews also arrived. According to Matthew Carr, "As many as eighty thousand Moriscos settled in Tunisia, most of them in and around the capital, Tunis, which still contains a quarter known as Zuqaq al-Andalus, or Andalusia Alley."[15]

Life expectancy[]

Period Life expectancy in
Years 		Period Life expectancy in
Years
1950–1955 38.8 1985–1990 67.1
1955–1960 40.7 1990–1995 70.3
1960–1965 43.7 1995–2000 72.4
1965–1970 48.3 2000–2005 73.7
1970–1975 54.1 2005–2010 74.6
1975–1980 59.4 2010–2015 75.0
1980–1985 64.3

Source: UN World Population Prospects[16]

Genetics[]

Further information: Genetic history of North Africa

Tunisians are predominantly genetically descended from native Amazigh groups, with some Phoenician/Punic and other Western European as well as Middle eastern input. Tunisians are also descended, to a lesser extent, from other North African and other European peoples. In sum, a little less than 20 percent of their overall genetic material (Y-chromosome analysis) comes from the present day Levant, Arabia, Europe or sub-Saharan Africa.[17][18]

"In fact, the Tunisian genetic distances to European samples are smaller than those to North African groups. (...) This could be explained by the history of the Tunisian population, reflecting the influence of the ancient Punic settlers of Carthage followed, among others, by Roman, Byzantine, Arab and French occupations, according to historical records. Notwithstanding, other explanations cannot be discarded, such as the relative heterogeneity within current Tunisian populations, and/or the limited sub-Saharan genetic influence in this region as compared with other North African areas, without excluding the possibility of the genetic drift, whose effect might be particularly amplified on the X chromosome.",[19][20] This suggests a fairly significant Middle Eastern and European input to Tunisian genetics compared to other neighbouring populations.

However, later research has suggested instead that Tunisians exhibit a mostly indigenous North African ancestral component similar to other Northwest African populations; characterized by a high amount of native Northwest African genes, but with higher Middle Eastern input than in Algeria or Morocco.[21]

Y-Chromosome[]

Listed here are the human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroups in Tunisia.[22]

Haplogroup n B E1a E1b1a E1b1b1 E1b1b1a3 E1b1b1a4 E1b1b1b E1b1b1c F G I J1 J2 K P,R R1a1 R1b1a R1b1b T
Marker M33 M2 M35 V22 V65 M81 M34 M89 M201 V88 M269 M70
Tunisia 601 0.17 0.5 0.67 1.66 3 3.16 62.73 1.16 2.66 0.17 0.17 16.64 2.83 0.33 0.33 0.5 1.83 0.33 1.16

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics[]

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

Nationality

noun:Tunisian(s)
adjective:Tunisian

Vital Statistics[]

Fertility rates

2.03 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

50.7% (2018 est.)

Population growth rate

0.75% (2021 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 25.28% (male 1,529,834/female 1,433,357)
15-24 years: 12.9% (male 766,331/female 745,888)
25-54 years: 42.85% (male 2,445,751/female 2,576,335)
55-64 years: 10.12% (male 587,481/female 598,140)
65 years and over: 8.86% (male 491,602/female 546,458) (2020 est.)

Net migration rate

-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
-1.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.)
-1.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Urbanization

Urban population: 69.9% of total population (2021)
Rate of urbanization: 1.34% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Sex ratio

At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total: 12.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
Male: 13.67 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 10.57 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth

Total population: 76.57 years (2021 est.)
Male: 74.88 years
Female: 78.36 years

Ethnic groups[]

Languages[]

Literacy[]

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.8%
male: 89.6%
female: 74.2% (2015 est.)

The literacy rate among the Tunisian population increased greatly after its independence from France. According to the 1996 census data,[25] the literacy rate of the last generation of Tunisian men educated under the French rule (those born 1945–49) was less than 65%. For the first generation educated after independence (born 1950–1954), literacy in Arabic among males had increased to nearly 80%. (Sixty-two percent were also literate in French and 15 percent literate in English). Among the youngest generation included in the census (those born 1980–1984), 96.6% were literate in Arabic.

Among Tunisian women, the increase in literacy was even greater. The literacy rate among the last generation of women educated under the French was less than 30%. In the first generation educated after independence, this increased to just over 40%. For the youngest generation of women cited (born 1980–1984), literacy in Arabic had increased to slightly over 90%; over 70% of women were also literate in French.[26]

References[]

  1. ^ "Tunisia". United States Department of State. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  2. ^ "Tunisia (03/09/12)". US Department of State. 9 March 2012. Archived from the original on 13 October 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Tej K. Bhatia; William C. Ritchie (2006). The Handbook of Bilingualism. John Wiley & Sons. p. 860. ISBN 978-0631227359. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  4. ^ "CIA – The World Factbook—Tunisia". Retrieved 2007-01-13.
  5. ^ a b International Religious Freedom Report 2007: Tunisia. United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (September 14, 2007). This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. ^ National Institute of Statistics – Tunisia
  7. ^ "United Nations Statistics Division – Demographic and Social Statistics". United Nations Statistics Division. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  8. ^ "Statistics Monthly Bulletin, August 2021". Statistiques Tunisie. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  9. ^ Division, United Nations Statistics. "UNSD—Demographic and Social Statistics". unstats.un.org. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  10. ^ Green, Arnold H. (1978), The Tunisian Ulama 1873–1915: Social Structure and Response to Ideological Currents, BRILL, p. 69, ISBN 978-90-04-05687-9
  11. ^ "Q&A: The Berbers". BBC News. 12 March 2004. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  12. ^ Angus Maddison (20 September 2007). Contours of the World Economy 1–2030 AD:Essays in Macro-Economic History: Essays in Macro-Economic History. OUP Oxford. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-19-922721-1. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  13. ^ "The Jews of Tunisia". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  14. ^ Stearns, Peter N.; Leonard Langer, William (2001). The Encyclopedia of World History: Ancient, Medieval, and Modern, Chronologically Arranged (6 ed.). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 129–131. ISBN 978-0-395-65237-4.
  15. ^ Carr, Matthew (2009). Blood and faith: the purging of Muslim Spain. The New Press. p. 290. ISBN 978-1-59558-361-1.
  16. ^ "World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations". Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  17. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-14. Retrieved 2016-05-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ Cruciani, Fulvio; et al. (May 2004). "Phylogeographic Analysis of Haplogroup E3b (E-M215) Y Chromosomes Reveals Multiple Migratory Events Within and Out Of Africa". The American Journal of Human Genetics. 74 (5): 1014–1022. doi:10.1086/386294. PMC 1181964. PMID 15042509.
  19. ^ The X chromosome Alu insertions as a tool for human population genetics: data from European and African human groups, Athanasiadis et al. 2007
  20. ^ Tomas C, Sanchez JJ, Barbaro A, et al. (2008). "X-chromosome SNP analyses in 11 human Mediterranean populations show a high overall genetic homogeneity except in North-west Africans (Moroccans)". BMC Evol. Biol. 8: 75. doi:10.1186/1471-2148-8-75. PMC 2315647. PMID 18312628. Tunisians did not show a significant level of differentiation with northern populations as mentioned by others
  21. ^ Benammar-Elgaaïed, Amel; Larruga, José M.; Cabrera, Vicente M.; Mahmoudi, Hejer Abdallah El; González, Ana M.; Khodjet-El-Khil, Houssein; Fregel, Rosa; Ennafaa, Hajer (2011). "Mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome microstructure in Tunisia". Journal of Human Genetics. 56 (10): 734–741. doi:10.1038/jhg.2011.92. PMID 21833004.
  22. ^ Bekada, A; Fregel, R; Cabrera, VM; Larruga, JM; Pestano, J; et al. (2013). "Introducing the Algerian Mitochondrial DNA and Y-Chromosome Profiles into the North African Landscape". PLOS ONE. 8 (2): e56775. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...856775B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0056775. PMC 3576335. PMID 23431392.
  23. ^ a b c d e "Africa :: TUNISIA". CIA The World Factbook.
  24. ^ Arabic, Tunisian Spoken. Ethnologue (19 February 1999). Retrieved on 5 September 2015.
  25. ^ As , Walters Keith (2003). "Fergie's prescience: the changing nature of diglossia in Tunisia". International Journal of the Society of Language. 163: 85–87.
  26. ^ The children born in the early 1980s had not yet begun English instruction by the time of the 1996 census, so no literacy rate in English is given. However, the children born between 1970–74 (who had completed their education) had a literacy in English of 20%. It's highly likely that the younger generation's literacy in English was even higher at the conclusion of their schooling. Walters 86.
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