thumb|400px|right|Population of Latvia (in millions) from 1950-2009.This article is about the
demographic features of the
population of the historical territory of
Latvia, including
population density,
ethnic background, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Background
Latvia was settled by the Baltic tribes some three millennia ago. The territories along the eastern Baltic first came under foreign domination at the beginning of the 13th century, with the formal establishment of Riga in 1201 under the German
Teutonic Knights.
Latvia, in whole or in parts, remained under foreign rule for the next eight centuries, finding itself at the cross-roads of all the regional superpowers of their day, including
Denmark (the Danes held on lands around the
Gulf of Riga),
Sweden, and
Russia, with southern (Courland) Latvia being at one time a vassal to Poland-Lithuania as well as Latgale falling directly under Poland-Lithuania rule. Through all this time, Latvia remained largely under Baltic German hegemony, with Baltic Germans comprising the largest land-owners, a situation which did not change until Latvia's independence.
Historically, Latvia has had significant
German,
Russian,
Jewish and
Polish minorities. The majority (roughly two thirds) of Latvians, under Swedish influences, adopted Lutheranism, while the minority (the remaining third) of Latvians under Poland-Lithuania, Latgale in particular, adopted Catholicism. Aglona, in Latgale, has been the site of annual Catholic pilgrimage for centuries, even through to today.
Historical shifts
In 1897, the first official census in this area indicated that Latvians formed 68.3 % of the total population of 1.93 million; Russians accounted for 12%, Jews for 7.4 %, Germans for 6.2 %, and Poles for 3.4 %. The remainder were Lithuanians, Estonians, Gypsies, and various other nationalities.
The demographics shifted greatly in the 20th century due to the world wars, the repatriation of the Baltic Germans, the
Holocaust, and occupation by the
Soviet Union. Today, only the Russian minority, which has tripled in numbers since 1935, remains important. The share of ethnic Latvians grew from 77% (1,467,035) in 1935 to 80% (1,508,800), after human loss in WWII and human deportation and other repressive measures, fell strongly to 52% (1,387,757) in 1989.
In 2005, there were even fewer Latvians than in 1989, though their share of the population was larger - 1,357,099 (58.8% of the inhabitants). People who arrived in Latvia during the Soviet era, and their descendants born before 21 August 1991, have to pass naturalisation process to receive Latvian citizenship. Children born to residents after the restoration of independence in 1991 automatically receive citizenship. However, if both parents are "stateless," then the parents must take the extra step of choosing Latvian citizenship for their child—who is automatically entitled, but for whom citizenship is not automatic (neither granted nor imposed).
Over 130,000 persons have been naturalized as Latvian citizens since 1995, but 351,435 persons (231,711 of them ethnic
Russians), as of July 2009, live in Latvia with aliens' passports. Large numbers of Russians, as well some Ukrainians and Belarussians remained in Latvia after the fall of the Soviet Union.
Latvians and
Livonians, the indigenous peoples of Latvia, are now 60% of the population.
Livonians are the other indigenous ethnic group, with about 100 of them remaining. Some
Latgalians consider themselves as a group separate from Latvians, but the predominant view is that Latgalians are a distinctive subgroup of Latvians.
According to rankings provided by the: United states Census Bureau - International Data Base (IDB) - Country Rankings, Latvia is estimated to have a population of 1,544,000 in the year 2050.
Polish minority in Latvia forms numbers about 60,000-75,000 and forms about 2.5% of Latvian population.
CIA World Factbook demographic statistics
The following data are estimates as of September 2009, obtained from the [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/lg.html CIA World Factbook].
Population
2,231,503 (2009 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years: 13.3% (male 152,472/female 145,161)
15–64 years: 69.6% (male 756,469/female 797,505)
65 years and over: 17% (male 124,432/female 255,464) (2009 est.)
Population growth rate
-0.614% (2009 est.)
Birth rate
9.78 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate
13.62 deaths/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Net migration rate
-2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female
total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate
Total 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births
Male 10.63 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 6.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 72.15 years
male: 66.98 years
female: 77.59 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.3 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Nationality
noun: Latvian(s) (archaic:
Lett(s))
adjective: Latvian (archaic:
Lettish)
Ethnic groups
Latvians 59.3%,
Russians 27.8%,
Belarusians 3.6%,
Ukrainians 2.5%,
Poles 2.4%,
Lithuanians 1.3%, other 3.1% (2009)
Religions
Lutheran 19.6%,
Russian Orthodox 15.3%, other Christian 1%, other 0.4%, unspecified 63.7% (2006)
NB. In a 2005 survey, 24.1 % described themselves as Russian Orthodox, 20.7% Catholics, 20.0% Lutherans, 4.4%
Old Believers, 10.6% non-denominational believers and 15.8% non-believers.
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.7%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.7% (2000 census)
Languages
- other languages widely spoken: English
In the 2000
census, 1,311,093 persons in Latvia reported Latvian as their mother tongue; 891,451 respondents listed Russian as their mother tongue,
representing 37.5% of the total population, whereas Latvian was recorded as the mother tongue for 58.2%. Latvian was spoken as a second language by 20.8% of the population, and 43.7% spoke Russian as a second language. In total, 71% of ethnic Latvians said they could speak Russian, and 52% of Russians could speak Latvian.
See also
