Editing Sardinia (section)

== Demographics ==
{{See also|Sardinian people|Corsican people|Italian people|Catalan people|List of Sardinians}}
{{Historical populations
|1485 |157578
|1603 |266676
|1678 |299356|1688 |229532
|1698 |259157
|1728 |311902
|1751 |360805
|1771 |360785
|1776 |422647
|1781 |431897
|1821 |461931
|1824 |469831
|1838 |525485
|1844 |544253
|1848 |554717
|1857 |573243
|1861 |609015|1871 |636413|1881 |680450|1901 |795793|1911 |868181|1921 |885487
|1931 |983760|1936 |1034206|1951 |1276023|1961 |1419362|1971 |1473800|1981 |1594175|1991 |1648248|2001 |1631880|2011 |1639362|2021|1587413|source=[[National Institute of Statistics (Italy)|ISTAT]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Popolazione residente e presente dei comuni. Censimenti dal 1861 al 1971|trans-title=Resident and present population of the municipalities. Censuses from 1861 to 1971|url=https://ebiblio.istat.it/digibib/Censimenti%20popolazione/Censimentipopolazioneresidentedal1861/PUV0027177Pop_res_pres_cens_1861_1971_Tomo1.pdf|date=1971-10-24|lang=it|publisher=[[National Institute of Statistics (Italy)|ISTAT]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Dashboard Permanent census of population and housing|url=https://esploradati.censimentopopolazione.istat.it/databrowser/#/en/censtest/dashboards|publisher=[[National Institute of Statistics (Italy)|ISTAT]]}}</ref> D.Angioni-S.Loi-G.Puggioni, La popolazione dei comuni sardi dal 1688 al 1991, CUEC, Cagliari, 1997 – F. Corridore, Storia documentata della popolazione di Sardegna, Carlo Clausen, Torino, 1902}}

With a [[population density]] of 65/km<sup>2</sup>, slightly more than a third of the national average, Sardinia is the fourth-least populated region in Italy. In the recent past the population distribution was anomalous compared to that of other Italian regions lying on the sea. In fact, contrary to the general trend, most urban settlement, with the exception of the fortified cities of [[Cagliari]], [[Alghero]], [[Castelsardo]] and few others, has taken place not primarily along the coast but in the subcoastal areas and towards the centre of the island. Historical reasons for this include the repeated [[Saracen]] raids during the [[Middle Ages]] and then [[Barbary]] raids until the early 19th century (making the coast unsafe), widespread pastoral activities inland, and the swampy nature of the coastal plains (reclaimed definitively only in the 20th century). The situation has been reversed with the expansion of seaside tourism; all of Sardinia's major urban centres are now located near the coasts, and the island's interior is very sparsely populated.

It is the region with the lowest [[total fertility rate]]<ref>[[Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|ISTAT]] [http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2005/Tab_4.pdf Numero medio di figli per donna per regione 2002–2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214164012/http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2005/Tab_4.pdf |date=14 February 2012 }}</ref> (1.087 births per woman) and the second-lowest [[birth rate]] of Italy<ref>[[Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|ISTAT]] [http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2005/Tab_1.pdf Tassi generici di natalità, mortalità e nuzialità per regione 2002–2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214164031/http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2005/Tab_1.pdf |date=14 February 2012 }}</ref> (which is already one of the lowest in the world). Combined with the aging of population going rather fast (in 2009, people older than 65 were 18.7%), rural [[Population decline|depopulation]] is quite a big issue: between 1991 and 2001, 71.4% of Sardinian villages have lost population (32 more than 20% and 115 between 10% and 20%), with over 30 of them being at risk to become [[ghost town]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unionesarda.it/articolo/cronaca_sardegna/2014/01/21/l_isola_che_rischia_di_scomparire_ecco_i_trenta_paesi_fantasma-6-350833.html|title=La Sardegna che rischia l'estinzione Ecco i trenta paesi "fantasma" – Cronache dalla Sardegna – L'Unione Sarda.it|work=L'Unione Sarda.it|date=21 January 2014}}</ref> It is predicted that at that rate, Sardinia will be the European island with the second-lowest population density, immediately after [[Iceland]], by 2080.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lanuovasardegna.it/regione/2016/04/26/news/nel-2080-solo-1-milione-di-abitanti-1.13369851|title=Spopolamento, nel 2080 la Sardegna avrà solo un milione di abitanti|publisher=La Nuova Sardegna|year=2016|last=Budroni|first=Dario}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lanuovasardegna.it/regione/2019/02/24/news/nel-2066-isola-spopolata-come-nel-dopoguerra-1.17776214|title=Nel 2066 isola spopolata come nel dopoguerra|publisher=La Nuova Sardegna|year=2019|last=Palmas|first=Antonello|access-date=16 November 2019|archive-date=16 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191116142054/https://www.lanuovasardegna.it/regione/2019/02/24/news/nel-2066-isola-spopolata-come-nel-dopoguerra-1.17776214|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Nonetheless, the overall population estimate has remained relatively stable because of a considerable immigration flow, mainly from the Italian mainland, but also from Eastern Europe (especially Romania), Africa and Asia.

=== Life expectancy ===
Average [[life expectancy]] is slightly over 82 years (85 for women and 79.7 for men<ref>ISTAT – INDICATORI DEMOGRAFICIStime perl'anno 2015</ref>). Sardinia shares with the Japanese island of [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]] the highest rate of [[centenarians]] in the world (22 centenarians per 100,000 inhabitants).
Sardinia is the first discovered [[Blue Zone]], a demographic or geographic area in the world with an oversize concentration of centenarians and supercentenarians.

=== Foreign immigration ===
In 2023, there were 50,211 foreign national residents, forming 3,2% of the total Sardinian population.<ref name=Istatstr>{{cite web|url=https://www.tuttitalia.it/sardegna/statistiche/cittadini-stranieri-2023/|title=Cittadini stranieri 2023 - Sardegna|access-date=8 May 2024}}</ref> The most represented nationalities were:<ref name=Istatstr />
{{colbegin|colwidth=15em}}
* {{ROU}} 11,313
* {{SEN}} 4,289
* {{MAR}} 3,982
* {{CHN}} 3,253
* {{UKR}} 2,885
* {{PHI}} 1,969
* {{NGA}} 1,795
* {{BGD}} 1,406
* {{GER}} 1,214
* {{PAK}} 1,047
* {{POL}} 1,037
* {{KGZ}} 946
* {{RUS}} 788
* {{FRA}} 763
* {{ALB}} 762
* {{UK}} 710
{{colend}}

=== Main cities and Functional Urban Areas ===
[[File:Città Sardegna collage.png|thumb|right|Cagliari, Alghero, Sassari, Nuoro, Oristano, Olbia]]
Sardinia's most populated cities are Cagliari and Sassari. The [[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]] has 431,302 inhabitants, or about ¼ of the population of the entire island. [[Eurostat]] has identified in Sardinia two [[Functional Urban Area]]s:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=urb_lpop1&lang=en |title=Population on 1 January by age groups and sex - functional urban areas |publisher=Eurostat |access-date=26 June 2021 }}</ref> Cagliari, with 477,000 inhabitants, and Sassari, with 222,000 inhabitants.
{| class="sortable wikitable"
|-
!Rank
!Commune
!Province
!Population<ref>{{cite web |title=January 2016 |url=http://demo.istat.it/pop2016/index.html |work=ISTAT |access-date=26 June 2021 |archive-date=26 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626094728/http://demo.istat.it/pop2016/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
!Density (inh./km<sup>2</sup>)
|-
|1st
| [[Cagliari]] / Casteddu <small>([[Campidanese Sardinian|Sardinian]])</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|154,460
|1,805
|-
|2nd
|[[Sassari]] / Sassari <small>([[Sassarese language|Sassarese]])</small> / Tatari <small>([[Logudorese Sardinian|Sardinian]])</small>
|[[Province of Sassari]]
|127,525
|230
|-
|3rd
| [[Quartu Sant'Elena]] / Cuartu Sant'Aleni<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area">[[Cagliari metropolitan area]]</ref> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|71,125
|719
|-
| 4th
|[[Olbia]] / Terranoa <small>(Sardinian)</small> / Tarranoa <small>([[Gallurese dialect|Gallurese]])</small>
|[[Province of Sassari]]
|59,368
|146
|-
|5th
|[[Alghero]] / L'Alguer <small>([[Algherese dialect|Catalan]])</small>
|[[Province of Sassari]]
|44,019
|181
|-
|6th
|[[Nuoro]] / Nùgoro <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Province of Nuoro]]
| 37,091
|189
|-
|7th
|[[Oristano]] / Aristanis <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Province of Oristano]]
|31,630
|380
|-
|8th
| [[Carbonia, Sardinia|Carbonia]] / Crabònia <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Province of South Sardinia]]
|28,755
|197
|-
|9th
|[[Selargius]] / Ceraxius<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area"/> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|28,975
|1092
|-
| 10th
|[[Iglesias, Sardinia|Iglesias]] / Igrèsias or Bidd'e Cresia <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Province of South Sardinia]]
|27,189
|133
|-
| 11th
|[[Assemini]] / Assèmini<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area"/> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|26,686
|238
|-
| 12th
|[[Capoterra]] / Cabuderra<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area"/> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|23,861
|349
|-
| 13th
|[[Porto Torres]] / Posthudorra <small>(Sassarese)</small>
|[[Province of Sassari]]
|22,313
|218
|-
| 14th
|[[Sestu]]<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area"/> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|20,454
|423
|-
| 15th
|[[Monserrato]] / Pauli<ref name="Cagliari metropolitan area"/> <small>(Sardinian)</small>
|[[Metropolitan City of Cagliari]]
|20,055
|3,180

|}