Demographics of Sri Lanka

Historical population of Sri Lanka

This is a demography of the population of Sri Lanka including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the population, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean, also called Ceylon and many other names. It is about the size of Ireland. It is about 28 kilometres (18 mi.) off the south-eastern coast of India with a population of about 22 million. Density is highest in the south west where Colombo, the country's main port and industrial center, is located. The net population growth is about 0.7%. Sri Lanka is ethnically, linguistically, and religiously diverse.

Overview

Template:Historical populations According to the 2012 census the population of Sri Lanka was 20,359,439, giving a population density of 325/km2.<ref name=final2012>Template:Cite web</ref> The population had grown by 5,512,689 (37.1%) since the 1981 census (the last full census), equivalent to an annual growth rate of 1.1%.<ref name=final2012/> 3,704,470 (18.2%) lived in urban sectors - areas governed by municipal and urban councils.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

5,131,666 (25.2%) of the population were aged 14 or under whilst 2,525,573 (12.4%) were aged 60 or over, leaving a working age (15-59) population of 12,702,700.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The dependency ratio was 60.2%.<ref name=final2012/> The mean age was 32 years and the median age was 31 years.<ref name=final2012/> The sex ratio was 94 males per 100 females.<ref name=final2012/> The fertility rate for married females aged 15 or over was 2.65 live births.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> There were 5,264,282 households, of which 3,986,236 (75.7%) were headed by males and 1,278,046 (24.3%) were headed by females.<ref name=final2012/>

Of the 15,227,773 aged 15 or over, 10,322,105 (67.8%) were married, 3,927,602 (25.8%) were never married, 792,947 (5.2%) were widowed and 185,119 (1.2%) were divorced or separated.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Of those aged 15 or over, 7,857,370 (51.6%) were economically active, 4,199,558 (27.6%) did housework, 1,431,105 (9.4%) were students, 914,934 (6.0%) were unable to work and 346,084 (2.3%) were pensioners.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 521,938 (6.6%) of the economically active were unemployed.<ref name=final2012/> 604,540 Sri Lankans were living aboard for more than six months but were intending to return to Sri Lanka, mostly in the Gulf states (373,050 61.7%).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The overall literacy rate for those aged 10 and over was 95.7% but amongst those living in the estate sector it was only 86.1%.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Of the 18,615,577 aged 5 or over, 499,563 (2.7%) had received a higher education qualification, 2,293,841 (12.3%) had passed G.C.E. A/L, 3,159,402 (17.0%) had passed G.C.E. O/L and 700,419 (3.8%) had no formal schooling.<ref name=tableA30>Template:Cite web</ref> The remaining 11,962,352 (64.3%) had left school with no qualifications or were currently at school.<ref name=tableA30/> Template:Clear

Sri Lanka's population is aging faster than any other nation in South Asia and has the fifth highest rapidly growing population of older people in Asia after China, Thailand, South Korea and Japan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="ANU">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Asiaagingpopulation">Template:Cite news</ref> In 2015, Sri Lanka's population aged over 60 was 13.9%, by 2030 this will increase to 21% and by 2050 this number will reach 27.4%.<ref name="ANU"/><ref name="Asiaagingpopulation"/> Sri Lanka's rapidly growing older population has ignited concerns of the socio-economic challenges that the country will face because of this.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Age groups

Template:Hidden begin

Age Group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	9 856 634	10 502 805	20 359 439	100
0–4	879 223	864 639	1 743 862	8.57
5–9	882 108	865 644	1 747 752	8.58
10–14	829 069	810 983	1 640 052	8.06
15–19	819 927	824 322	1 644 249	8.08
20–24	742 316	790 567	1 532 883	7.53
25–29	743 510	809 338	1 552 848	7.63
30–34	796 866	842 549	1 639 415	8.05
35–39	686 037	723 040	1 409 077	6.92
40–44	661 623	697 586	1 359 209	6.68
45–49	618 140	667 690	1 285 830	6.32
50–54	581 293	638 167	1 219 460	5.99
55–59	500 871	563 358	1 064 229	5.23
60–64	425 428	492 482	917 910	4.51
65-69	283 764	349 525	633 289	3.11
70-74	181 846	230 568	412 414	2.03
75-79	116 389	166 797	283 186	1.39
80-84	64 250	95 129	159 379	0.78
85-89	28 293	45 148	73 441	0.36
90-94	9 293	14 965	24 258	0.12
95+	6 388	10 308	16 696	0.08
Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0–14	2 590 400	2 541 266	5 131 666	25.21
15–64	6 576 011	7 049 099	13 625 110	66.92
65+	690 223	912 440	1 602 663	7.87

Template:Hidden end

Vital statistics

UN estimates

Period<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Live births per year	Deaths per year	Natural change per year	CBR¹	CDR¹	NC¹	TFR¹	IMR¹
1950–1955	322,000	171,000	151,000	37.4	19.8	17.5	5.80	103.9
1955–1960	367,000	143,000	223,000	38.6	15.1	23.5	5.80	86.7
1960–1965	377,000	128,000	248,000	35.5	12.1	23.4	5.20	77.5
1965–1970	391,000	116,000	276,000	32.9	9.7	23.2	4.70	69.3
1970–1975	383,000	103,000	280,000	29.1	7.8	21.3	4.00	55.4
1975–1980	401,000	99,000	302,000	27.8	6.9	20.9	3.61	38.8
1980–1985	401,000	96,000	305,000	25.6	6.1	19.5	3.19	30.3
1985–1990	362,000	110,000	253,000	21.6	6.5	15.1	2.64	24.1
1990–1995	349,000	119,000	230,000	19.6	6.7	12.9	2.39	22.1
1995–2000	329,000	146,000	183,000	17.8	7.9	9.9	2.16	18.9
2000–2005	360,000	121,000	239,000	18.7	6.3	12.4	2.27	15.9
2005–2010	386,000	132,000	253,000	19.0	6.5	12.5	2.36	12.4
2010–2015				16.4	6.6	9.8	2.11
2015–2020				14.9	7.1	7.8	2.03
¹ CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births

Registered births and deaths

Year<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Population	Live births	Deaths	Natural increase	Crude birth rate	Crude death rate	Rate of natural increase	Crude migration rate	TFR
1948		287,695	93,711	193,984	39.7	13.0	26.7
1949		291,191	91,889	199,302	39.1	12.4	26.7
1950		304,635	95,142	209,493	39.7	12.6	27.1
1951		313,662	100,072	213,590	39.8	12.9	26.9
1952		313,532	95,298	218,234	38.8	12.0	26.8
1953		321,217	89,003	232,214	38.7	10.9	27.8
1954		303,894	86,794	217,100	35.7	10.4	25.3
1955		325,538	94,368	231,170	37.3	11.0	26.3
1956		325,067	87,561	237,506	36.4	9.8	26.6
1957		334,135	92,759	241,376	36.5	10.1	26.4
1958		335,690	90,815	244,875	35.8	9.7	26.1
1959		356,336	87,971	268,365	37.0	9.1	27.9
1960		361,702	84,918	276,784	36.6	8.6	28.0
1961		363,677	81,653	282,024	35.8	8.0	27.8
1962		370,762	88,928	281,834	35.5	8.5	27.0
1963		365,842	91,673	274,169	34.1	8.5	25.6
1964		361,577	95,618	265,959	33.2	8.8	24.4
1965		369,437	91,728	277,709	33.1	8.8	24.3
1966		369,153	94,419	274,734	32.3	8.3	24.0
1967		369,531	87,877	281,654	31.9	7.5	24.4
1968		384,178	94,903	289,275	32.0	7.9	24.1
1969		372,774	102,356	270,418	30.4	8.1	22.3
1970		367,901	94,129	273,772	29.4	7.5	21.9
1971		382,668	96,328	286,340	30.4	7.7	22.7
1972		385,462	100,080	285,382	30.0	8.1	21.9
1973		367,158	100,678	266,480	28.0	7.7	20.3
1974		365,902	119,518	246,384	27.5	9.0	18.5
1975		374,689	115,108	259,581	27.8	8.5	19.3
1976		380,702	106,506	274,196	27.8	7.8	20.0
1977		389,522	103,284	286,238	27.9	7.4	20.5
1978		404,831	93,971	310,860	28.5	6.6	21.9
1979		417,986	94,244	323,742	28.9	6.5	22.4
1980		418,373	91,020	327,353	28.4	6.2	22.2
1981		423,973	88,481	335,492	28.2	5.9	22.3
1982		408,895	92,244	316,651	26.9	6.1	20.8
1983		405,122	95,174	309,948	26.3	6.2	20.1
1984		391,064	100,725	290,339	25.1	6.5	18.6
1985		389,599	98,089	291,510	24.6	6.2	18.4
1986		361,735	96,145	265,590	22.4	6.0	16.4
1987		357,723	97,756	259,967	21.8	6.0	15.8
1988		344,179	95,934	248,245	20.7	5.8	14.9
1989		363,343	105,239	258,104	21.6	6.3	15.3
1990		341,223	97,713	243,510	20.8	6.0	14.8
1991		356,593	95,574	261,019	21.7	5.8	15.9
1992		356,842	98,380	258,462	21.5	5.9	15.6
1993		350,707	96,179	254,528	20.8	5.7	15.1
1994		356,071	100,394	255,677	20.8	5.9	14.9
1995		343,224	104,707	238,517	19.9	6.0	13.9
1996		340,649	122,161	218,488	19.5	7.0	12.5
1997		333,219	114,591	218,628	18.8	6.4	12.4
1998		322,672	112,653	210,019	18.2	6.2	12.0
1999		328,725	115,330	213,395	18.1	6.3	11.8
2000		347,749	116,200	231,549	18.4	6.1	12.3
2001		358,583	112,858	245,725	18.9	5.9	13.0
2002		367,709	111,863	255,846	19.1	5.8	13.3
2003		370,643	115,495	255,148	18.9	5.9	13.0
2004		364,711	114,915	249,796	18.5	5.8	12.7
2005		370,731	132,097	238,634	18.1	6.5	11.6
2006		373,538	117,467	256,071	18.8	5.9	12.9
2007		386,573	118,992	267,581	19.2	5.9	13.3
2008		373,575	123,814	249,761	18.4	6.1	12.3
2009		368,304	127,776	240,528	18.0	6.2	11.8
2010		364,565	128,603	235,962	17.7	6.2	11.4
2011		363,415	123,261	240,154	17.4	5.9	11.5
2012	20,425,000	355,900	122,063	233,837	17.5	6.0	11.5		2.25
2013	20,585,000	365,792	127,124	238,668	17.9	6.2	11.7	-3.9	2.26
2014	20,771,000	349,715	127,758	221,957	16.8	6.2	10.6	-1.6	2.15
2015	20,970,000	334,821	131,634	203,187	16.0	6.3	9.7	-0.1	2.05
2016	21,203,000	331,073	130,765	200,308	15.6	6.2	9.4	1,7	1.98
2017	21,444,000	326,052	139,822	186,230	15.2	6.5	8.7	2.7	1.94
2018	21,670,000	328,112	139,498	188,614	15.1	6.4	8.7	1.8	1.94
2019	21,803,000	319,010	146,053	172,957	14.6	6.7	7.9	-1.8
2020	21,919,000	301,706	132,431	169,275	13.8	6.0	7.8	-2.5
2021	22,156,000	284,848	163,936	120,912	12.9	7.4	5.5	5.3	1.7(e)
2022	22,181,000	275,321	179,792	95,529	12.4	8.1	4.3	-3.2	1.65(e)
2023	22,037,000	247,900	181,239	66,661	11.2	8.2	3.0	-9.5	1.49(e)
2024	21,763,170	220,961	171,194	49,767	10.1	7.8	2.3		1.37(e)

Current vital statistics


Period<ref>http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Population/StaticalInformation/VitalStatistics/MidYearPopulation_web_release2024Sep_En</ref>	Live births	Deaths	Natural increase
January - June 2023	128,834		+
January - June 2024	109,025
Difference	Template:Decrease -19,809 (-15.4%)	Template:Decreasepositive	Template:Decrease -

Demographic and Health Surveys

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR):

Year<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	total		urban		rural		estate
Year<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	CBR	TFR	CBR	TFR	CBR	TFR	CBR	TFR
1981–1983		3,1		2,4		3,2		3,4
1987		2,8 (2,4)		2,3 (1,9)		2,9 (2,4)		3,4 (3,2)
2006–2007	18,7	2,3 (2,1)	18,5	2,2 (2,0)	18,6	2,3 (2,1)	20,0	2,5 (2,1)

Life expectancy

File:Life expectancy in Sri Lanka.svg

Life expectancy in Sri Lanka since 1901

File:Life expectancy by WBG -Sri Lanka -diff.png

Life expectancy in Sri Lanka since 1960 by gender

Period<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Life expectancy in Years	Period	Life expectancy in Years
1950–1955	54.5	1985–1990	68.9
1955–1960	58.3	1990–1995	70.0
1960–1965	60.3	1995–2000	69.1
1965–1970	62.9	2000–2005	73.2
1970–1975	65.2	2005–2010	74.1
1975–1980	67.0	2010–2015	74.6
1980–1985	69.1

Ethnicity

File:Sri Lanka - Ethnicity 2012.png

Majority ethnicity by DS Division according to 2012 census

The Sinhalese make up 74.9% of the population (according to 2012 census) and are concentrated in the densely populated south-west and central parts of the island.<ref name=eth2012/>

The Sri Lanka Tamils, who live predominantly in the north and east of the island, form the largest minority group at 11.1% (according to the 2012 census) of the population.<ref name=eth2012/>

The Moors, descendants of Arab + Indian traders and native Sri Lankan Tamils, form the third largest ethnic group at 9.3% of the population.<ref name=eth2012/> These Tamil-speaking Muslims are mostly concentrated in urban areas in the southern parts of the island with substantial populations in the Central and Eastern provinces. During times of Portuguese colonization, Moors were persecuted, and many forced to retreat to the central highlands and the eastern coast.Template:Citation needed

There are also Indian Tamils who form a distinct ethnic group comprising 4.1% of the population.<ref name=eth2012/> The British brought them to Sri Lanka in the 19th century as tea and rubber plantation workers, and they remain concentrated in the "tea country" of south-central Sri Lanka. The Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka were considered to be "stateless" and over 300,000 Indian Tamils were deported back to India, due to the agreement between Sri Lanka and India in 1964.<ref name="Kingsbury">Template:Cite book</ref> Under the pact, India granted citizenship to the remainder, some 200,000 of whom now live in India. Another 75,000 Indian Tamils, who themselves or whose parents once applied for Indian citizenship, now wish to remain in Sri Lanka. The government has stated these Tamils will not be forced to return to India, although they are not technically citizens of Sri Lanka. By the 1990s most Indian Tamils had received Sri Lankan citizenship, and some even were not granted Sri Lankan citizenship until 2003.<ref name="Kingsbury"/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Smaller minorities include the Veddas, the indigenous people of Sri Lanka; Malays who descend from Austronesian settlers; the Burghers, who are descendants of European colonists, principally from Portugal, the Netherlands and, the UK; the ethnic Chinese migrants who came to the island in the 18th and 19th centuries; and the Kaffirs, a small population who are descended from Africans. Template:Clear

Population of Sri Lanka by ethnic group 1881 to 2012<ref name=eth2012>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Year	Sinhalese		Sri Lankan Tamils Template:Efn		Sri Lankan Moors Template:Efn		Indian Tamils Template:Efn		Sri Lankan Malays		Burghers/ Eurasian		Indian Moors Template:Efn		Others		Total No.
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	Total No.
1881 Census	1,846,600	Template:Percentage bar	687,200	Template:Percentage bar	184,500	Template:Percentage bar			8,900	Template:Percentage bar	17,900	Template:Percentage bar			14,500	Template:Percentage bar	2,759,700
1891 Census	2,041,200	Template:Percentage bar	723,900	Template:Percentage bar	197,200	Template:Percentage bar			10,100	Template:Percentage bar	21,200	Template:Percentage bar			14,200	Template:Percentage bar	3,007,800
1901 Census	2,330,800	Template:Percentage bar	951,700	Template:Percentage bar	228,000	Template:Percentage bar			11,900	Template:Percentage bar	23,500	Template:Percentage bar			20,000	Template:Percentage bar	3,566,000
1911 Census	2,715,500	Template:Percentage bar	528,000	Template:Percentage bar	233,900	Template:Percentage bar	531,000	Template:Percentage bar	13,000	Template:Percentage bar	26,700	Template:Percentage bar	32,700	Template:Percentage bar	25,600	Template:Percentage bar	4,106,400
1921 Census	3,016,200	Template:Percentage bar	517,300	Template:Percentage bar	251,900	Template:Percentage bar	602,700	Template:Percentage bar	13,400	Template:Percentage bar	29,400	Template:Percentage bar	33,000	Template:Percentage bar	34,600	Template:Percentage bar	4,498,600
1931 Estimate	3,473,000	Template:Percentage bar	598,900	Template:Percentage bar	289,600	Template:Percentage bar	818,500	Template:Percentage bar	16,000	Template:Percentage bar	32,300	Template:Percentage bar	36,300	Template:Percentage bar	41,800	Template:Percentage bar	5,306,000
1946 CensusTemplate:Efn	4,620,500	Template:Percentage bar	733,700	Template:Percentage bar	373,600	Template:Percentage bar	780,600	Template:Percentage bar	22,500	Template:Percentage bar	41,900	Template:Percentage bar	35,600	Template:Percentage bar	48,900	Template:Percentage bar	6,657,300
1953 CensusTemplate:Efn	5,616,700	Template:Percentage bar	884,700	Template:Percentage bar	464,000	Template:Percentage bar	974,100	Template:Percentage bar	25,400	Template:Percentage bar	46,000	Template:Percentage bar	47,500	Template:Percentage bar	39,500	Template:Percentage bar	8,097,900
1963 Census	7,512,900	Template:Percentage bar	1,164,700	Template:Percentage bar	626,800	Template:Percentage bar	1,123,000	Template:Percentage bar	33,400	Template:Percentage bar	45,900	Template:Percentage bar	55,400	Template:Percentage bar	19,900	Template:Percentage bar	10,582,000
1971 Census	9,131,241	Template:Percentage bar	1,423,981	Template:Percentage bar	855,724	Template:Percentage bar	1,174,606	Template:Percentage bar	43,459	Template:Percentage bar	45,376	Template:Percentage bar			15,510	Template:Percentage bar	12,689,897
1981 Census	10,979,561	Template:Percentage bar	1,886,872	Template:Percentage bar	1,046,926	Template:Percentage bar	818,656	Template:Percentage bar	46,963	Template:Percentage bar	39,374	Template:Percentage bar			28,398	Template:Percentage bar	14,846,750
2001 CensusTemplate:Efn
2011 CensusTemplate:Efn	15,250,081	Template:Percentage bar	2,269,266	Template:Percentage bar	1,892,638	Template:Percentage bar	839,504	Template:Percentage bar	44,130	Template:Percentage bar	38,293	Template:Percentage bar			25,527	Template:Percentage bar	20,359,439

Data from the 2011 census
Sinhalese

Sinhalese
Sri Lankan Tamils

Sri Lankan Tamils
Sri Lankan Moors

Sri Lankan Moors
Indian/Malayaga Tamils

Indian/Malayaga Tamils

Template:Clear

Languages

Template:Main article

File:A road sign in Colombo - Katunayake Expressway, Sri Lanka.jpg

A multi-lingual road sign

Sinhala, an Indo-Aryan language, is the first language of Sinhalese people. Unlike Tamil Sinhala language is not found in India and is unique to Sri Lanka.

Tamil, a Dravidian language, is the first language of native Sri Lankan Tamils. Tamil is also the first language of the majority of Sri Lankan Moors and the Indian Tamils - according to the 2012 census 98% of Sri Lankan Moors could speak Tamil but only 59% could speak Sinhala.<ref name=lan2012>Template:Cite web</ref>

English is fluently spoken by approximately 23.8%<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> of the Sri Lanka's population, and widely used for official and commercial purposes.

Malays speak Sri Lanka Malay, a Creole language mixing Sinhala, Tamil and Malay. Many of the Burghers speak Sri Lankan Indo-Portuguese although its use has declined and the majority now speak Sinhala.<ref name=lan2012/> The Veddas speak Vedda, a Creole language closely based on Sinhala. Use of English has declined since independence, but it continues to be spoken by many in the middle and upper middle classes, particularly in Colombo. According to the 2012 census 24% of the population could speak English.<ref name=lan2012/> The government is seeking to reverse the decline in the use of English, mainly for economic but also for political reasons. According to the constitution Sinhala and Tamil are official languages whilst English is the link language.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Religion

File:Sri Lanka - Religion 2012.png

Majority religion by DS Division according to 2012 census

Template:Pie chart Template:Main article According to the 2012 census Buddhists make up 70.2% of the population, Hindus 12.6%, Muslims 9.7% and Christians 7.6%.<ref name=rel2012/> Most Sinhalese are Buddhist; most Tamils are Hindu; and the Moors and Malays are mostly Muslim. Sizeable minorities of both Sinhalese and Tamils are Christians, most of whom are Roman Catholic. The Burgher population is mostly Roman Catholic or Presbyterian. The Veddas have Animist and Buddhist practices. The 1978 constitution, while assuring freedom of religion, gives "the foremost place" to Buddhism.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Population of Sri Lanka by religion 1881 to 2012<ref name=rel2012>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Year	Buddhist		Hindu		Muslim		Christian		Others		Total
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.
1881 Census	1,698,100	Template:Percentage bar	593,600	Template:Percentage bar	197,800	Template:Percentage bar	268,000	Template:Percentage bar	2,300	Template:Percentage bar	2,759,800
1891 Census	1,877,000	Template:Percentage bar	615,900	Template:Percentage bar	212,000	Template:Percentage bar	302,100	Template:Percentage bar	800	Template:Percentage bar	3,007,800
1901 Census	2,141,400	Template:Percentage bar	826,800	Template:Percentage bar	246,100	Template:Percentage bar	349,200	Template:Percentage bar	2,500	Template:Percentage bar	3,566,000
1911 Census	2,474,200	Template:Percentage bar	938,300	Template:Percentage bar	283,600	Template:Percentage bar	409,200	Template:Percentage bar	1,100	Template:Percentage bar	4,106,400
1921 Census	2,769,800	Template:Percentage bar	982,100	Template:Percentage bar	302,500	Template:Percentage bar	443,400	Template:Percentage bar	800	Template:Percentage bar	4,498,600
1931 Estimate	3,266,600	Template:Percentage bar	1,166,900	Template:Percentage bar	354,200	Template:Percentage bar	518,100	Template:Percentage bar	1,100	Template:Percentage bar	5,306,900
1946 Census	4,294,900	Template:Percentage bar	1,320,400	Template:Percentage bar	436,600	Template:Percentage bar	603,200	Template:Percentage bar	2,200	Template:Percentage bar	6,657,300
1953 Census	5,209,400	Template:Percentage bar	1,610,500	Template:Percentage bar	541,500	Template:Percentage bar	724,400	Template:Percentage bar	12,100	Template:Percentage bar	8,097,900
1963 Census	7,003,300	Template:Percentage bar	1,958,400	Template:Percentage bar	724,000	Template:Percentage bar	884,900	Template:Percentage bar	11,400	Template:Percentage bar	10,582,000
1971 Census	8,536,868	Template:Percentage bar	2,238,666	Template:Percentage bar	901,785	Template:Percentage bar	1,004,326	Template:Percentage bar	8,252	Template:Percentage bar	12,689,897
1981 Census	10,288,325	Template:Percentage bar	2,297,806	Template:Percentage bar	1,121,717	Template:Percentage bar	1,130,568	Template:Percentage bar	8,334	Template:Percentage bar	14,846,750
2001 CensusTemplate:Efn
2012 CensusTemplate:Efn	14,272,056	Template:Percentage bar	2,561,299	Template:Percentage bar	1,967,523	Template:Percentage bar	1,552,161	Template:Percentage bar	6,400	Template:Percentage bar	20,359,439

Migration

Immigration

As of 2017, 40,018 foreign-born people lived in Sri Lanka per United Nations' population division.<ref name="unpop">Template:Cite web</ref>

Country of birth	Population (2017)
Template:Flag	10,814
Template:Flag	5,107
Template:Flag	2,482
Template:Flag	1,755
Template:Flag	1,689
Template:Flag	1,417
Template:Flag	1,409
Template:Flag	1,193
Template:Flag	925
Template:Flag	849
Template:Flag	829
Template:Flag	741
Template:Flag	674
Template:Flag	613
Template:Flag	612
Template:Flag	611
Template:Flag	561

Notes

Template:Notelist

References

Template:Reflist

External links

Template:DCS Sri Lanka

Template:Ethnic groups in Sri Lanka Template:Asia in topic Template:Sri Lanka topics