Editing Demographics of the Soviet Union

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2024}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox place demographics
|place  =the Soviet Union
|image=Soviet Union 1989 Population pyramid.svg
|image_size= 350px
|caption=[[Population pyramid]] of the Soviet Union as of 1989
|size_of_population={{Increase}} 285,742,511 (January 1989)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
|fertility={{decrease}} 2.4 (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|growth={{Increase}} 0.7% (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|birth={{DecreaseNegative}} 18 births/1,000 population (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|death={{IncreaseNegative}} 10 deaths/1,000 population (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|infant_mortality={{IncreaseNegative}} 24 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|life={{decrease}} 69.5 years (1988)<ref>{{cite web |title=Life expectancy at birth in the United States and Soviet Union in select years between 1970 and 1988 |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/1248540/us-ussr-life-expectancy-at-birth-cold-war/ |website=Statista |publisher=Statista Research Department |access-date=20 February 2025}}</ref>
|life_male={{decrease}} 65 years (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|life_female={{decrease}} 74 years (1990)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
|net_migration={{Increase}} 1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2020)<ref name="cia">{{Cite web |date=2005-06-01 |title=The CIA World Factbook – 1990 |url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |access-date=2022-08-08 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050601080906/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact90/world12.txt |archive-date=1 June 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
<!-- nationality -->
|nation       = ''noun'': Soviet(s) ''adjective'': Soviet
|major_ethnic = Russians (50.8%)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
|minor_ethnic = {{unbulleted list
|{{Tree list}}
* [[Ukrainians]] (15.5%) 
* [[Uzbeks]] (5.8%) 
* [[Belarusians]] (3.5%) 
* [[Kazakhs]] (2.8%) 
* [[Azerbaijanis]] (2.4%) 
* [[Tatars]] (2.3%) 
* [[Armenians]] (1.6%) 
* [[Tajiks]] (1.5%) 
* [[Georgians]] (1.4%)
* [[Moldovans]] (1.2%) 
* [[Lithuanians]] (1.1%) 
* [[Turkmens]] (1.0%) 
* [[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]] (0.9%) 
* [[Germans]] (0.7%) 
* [[Chuvash people|Chuvash]] (0.6%) 
* [[Latvians]] (0.5%) 
* [[Jews]] (0.5%) 
* [[Mordvinian]] (0.4%) 
* [[Poles (people)|Poles]] (0.4%) 
* [[Estonians]] (0.4%) 
* Others (4.7%)
{{tree list/end}}
}}
<!-- language -->
|official     = Russian{{efn|''De facto'', legally since 1990. [[Republics of the Soviet Union|Constituent republics]] had the right to declare their own regional languages.}}
|spoken       = [[Languages of the Soviet Union]]
}}
[[File:USSR Population 1974.jpg|thumb|right|514x514px|Demographic distribution of the population within the Soviet Union in 1974]]

{{Historical populations
|type =
|footnote = Source:<ref name=gorl/><ref name=newt>[https://newtimes.ru/articles/detail/28970 КАК ПЕРЕПИСЫВАЛИ ИМПЕРСКИЙ, СОВЕТСКИЙ, РОССИЙСКИЙ НАРОД], ''[[The New Times (magazine)|The New Times]]'', no. 34, October 18, 2010</ref>{{efn|In 1920, the Bolshevik government took a partial census, which did not include parts Ukraine, the Caucasus, and Central Asia}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/ussr_nac_26.php |title=Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей }}</ref><ref name=Andreyev>[http://demoscope.ru/weekly/2007/0271/arxiv01.php Ye.&nbsp;M.&nbsp;Andreyev, L.&nbsp;Ye.&nbsp;Darsky, and T.&nbsp;L.&nbsp;Kharkova ''On the trails of the deleted census''] Originally published in Население Советского Союза. 1922–1991. М.: Наука. 1993. с. 23–29.</ref><ref name="demoscope.ru">{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_39.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Urban and rural populations of the Soviet Union and the Russian Soviet Republic in 1940 and 1955 (in 1,000s) |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/1260522/soviet-and-russian-population-1940-1950/ |website=Statista |publisher=Statista Research Department |access-date=20 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_59.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_70.php?reg=0|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_79.php?reg=0|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
| percentages = pagr
|1920    | 136800000
|1926 | 147027915
|1937 | 162039470
|1939 | 170557093
|1940 | 194077000
|1950 | 178547000
|1959 | 208826650
|1970 | 241720134
|1979 | 262084654
|1989 | 285742511
}}

[[Demography|Demographic]] features of the population of the [[Soviet Union]] include vital statistics, [[Ethnic group|ethnicity]], religious affiliations, education level, health of the populace, and other aspects of the population. 

During its existence from 1922 until 1991, the Soviet Union had one of the largest populations in the world. When the [[1989 Soviet census|last census was taken in 1989]], the USSR had the third largest in the world with over 285 million citizens, behind [[China]] and [[India]]. The former nation was a [[federal union]] of [[Republics of the Soviet Union|national republics]], home to hundreds of different ethnicities. By the time the [[Soviet Union dissolved]], [[Russians]] were the largest ethnic group by making up nearly 51% of the country.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref> The remaining 49% of Soviet citizens identified with a variety of groups, including [[Ukrainians]], [[Belarusians]], [[Uzbeks]], [[Kazakhs]], [[Georgians]], [[Jews]], etc.         

== History ==
{{see also|History of the Soviet Union}}
=== Revolution and Civil war, 1917–1923 ===
During the Russian Revolution and Civil War period, Russia lost former territories of the [[Russian Empire]] with about 30 million inhabitants after the [[Russian Revolution (1917)|Russian Revolution]] of 1917 ([[Poland]]: 18 million; [[Finland]]: 3 million; [[Romania]]: 3 million; the [[Baltic states]]: 5 million, [[Kars]]: 400 thousand). At least 2 million citizens of the former Russian Empire died in the course of the [[Russian Civil War]] of 1917–1923, and a further 1 to 2 million [[white émigré|emigrated]].

=== Interwar period, 1924 to 1939 ===
An estimated 800,000 to 1,200,000 people died during the [[Soviet purges of the 1930s|purges of the 1930s]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

=== World War Two, 1939–1945 ===
According to the [[Russian Academy of Sciences]] the [[Soviet Union]] suffered [[World War II casualties of the Soviet Union|26.6 million deaths]] (1941–1945) during [[World War II]], including an increase in [[infant mortality]] of 1.3 million. Total war-loss figures include territories annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939–1945.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}} At this time, the population pyramid was starting to look more triangular.

To counter the population loses, the Soviet government started to push pro [[natalist]] policies, such as a [[Childless tax]] and a award for mothers called the [[Mother Heroine]].

=== Rejuvenation of the population, 1946–1960s ===
After the Second World War, the population of the Soviet Union began to gradually recover to pre-war levels. By 1959 there were a registered 209,035,000 people, over the 1941 population count of 196,716,000. In 1958–59, Soviet fertility stood at around 2.8 children per woman.<ref name="jstor.org">{{cite journal |last1=Aanderson |first1=Barbara A. |title=Growth and Diversity of the Population of the Soviet Union |journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science |date=July 1990 |volume=510 |pages=155–177 |doi=10.1177/0002716290510001012 |jstor=1046801 |hdl=2027.42/67141 |s2cid=31041389 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1046801 |access-date=3 June 2023|hdl-access=free }}</ref>

=== Population dynamics in the 1970–1980s ===
The [[Birth rate#Crude birth rate|crude birth rate]] in the Soviet Union throughout its history had been decreasing – from 44.0 per thousand in 1926 to 18.0 in 1974, mostly due to urbanization and rising average age of marriages. The total fertility rate fell from 2.4 in 1969–70 to 2.3 in 1978–79.<ref name="jstor.org"/> The [[crude death rate]] had been gradually decreasing as well – from 23.7 per thousand in 1926 to 8.7 in 1974.<ref name="GSE">{{cite book |title=[[Great Soviet Encyclopedia]]. |publisher=Sovetskaya Entsiklopediya |year=1977 |edition=3rd |location=Moscow |pages=vol. 24 (part II), p. 15 |language=ru |no-pp=true}}</ref>  While death rates did not differ greatly across regions of the Soviet Union through much of Soviet history, birth rates in the southern republics of Transcaucasia and Central Asia were much higher than those in the northern parts of the Soviet Union, and in some cases even increased in the post-World War II period. This was partly due to slower rates of urbanization and traditionally early marriages in southern republics.<ref name="GSE" />

Mainly as a result of differential birthrates, with most of the European nationalities moving toward [[sub-replacement fertility]] and the Central Asian and other nationalities of southern republics having well-above replacement-level fertility, the percentage of the population who were ethnic Russians was gradually being reduced.  According to some Western predictions made in the 1990s, if the Soviet Union had stayed together, it is likely that ethnic Russians would have lost their majority status in the 2000s (decade).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=Barbara A. |last2=Silver |first2=Brian D. |date=1990 |title=Growth and Diversity of the Population of the Soviet Union |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1046801 |journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science |volume=510 |pages=155–177 |doi=10.1177/0002716290510001012 |jstor=1046801 |hdl=2027.42/67141 |s2cid=31041389 |issn=0002-7162|hdl-access=free }}</ref>  This differential could not be offset by assimilation of non-Russians by Russians, in part because the nationalities of southern republics maintained a distinct ethnic consciousness and were not easily assimilated.

The late 1960s and the 1970s witnessed a dramatic reversal of the path of declining mortality in the Soviet Union, and was especially notable among men in working ages, and also especially in Russia and other predominantly Slavic areas of the country.<ref>The first to call attention to the reversal of declining adult mortality in the Soviet Union (in contrast to trends in Western Europe) were J. Vallin and J. C. Chesnais, "Recent Developments of Mortality in Europe, English-Speaking Countries and the Soviet Union, 1960–1970," ''Population'' 29 (4–5): 861–898. For a probe into the age-specific and regional aspects of the trends, once new mortality tables were released in the late 1980s, see Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver. 1989. "The Changing Shape of Soviet Mortality, 1958–1985: An Evaluation of Old and New Evidence," ''Population Studies'' 43: 243–265.  Also see Alain Blum and Roland Pressat. 1987. "Une nouvelle table de mortalité pour l'URSS (1984–1985)," ''Population'', 42e Année, No. 6 (Nov.): 843–862.</ref> While not unique to the Soviet Union (Hungary in particular showed a pattern that was similar to Russia), this male mortality increase, accompanied by a noticeable increase in [[infant mortality]] rates in the early 1970s, drew the attention of Western [[demographer]]s and Sovietologists at the time.<ref>For a summary of the mortality trends and the literature concerning them, see Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver. 1990. "Trends in Mortality of the Soviet Population," ''Soviet Economy'' 6, No. 3: 191–251.</ref>

An analysis of the official data from the late 1980s showed that after worsening in the late 1970s and the early 1980s, the situation for adult mortality began to improve again.<ref>Michael Ryan, "Life expectancy and mortality data from the Soviet Union," ''British Medical Journal,'' Vol. 296, No. 6635 (May 28, 1988): 1, 513–1515.</ref>  Referring to data for the two decades ending in 1989–1990, while noting some abatement in adult mortality rates in the Soviet republics in the 1980s, Ward Kingkade and Eduardo Arriaga characterized this situation as follows: "All the former Soviet countries have followed the universal tendency for mortality to decline as infectious diseases are brought under control while death rates from degenerative diseases rise. What is exceptional in the former Soviet countries and some of their East European neighbors is that a subsequent increase in mortality from causes other than infectious disease has brought about overall rises in mortality from all causes combined. Another distinctive characteristic of the former Soviet case is the presence of unusually high levels of mortality from accidents and other external causes, which are typically associated with alcoholism."<ref>W. Ward Kingkade and Eduardo E. Arriaga, “Mortality in the New Independent States: Patterns and Impacts,” in José Luis Bobadilla, Christine A. Costello, and Faith Mitchell, Eds., ''Premature Death in the New Independent States'' (Washington, D.C., National Academy Press 1997), 156–183, citation at p. 157.</ref>

The rising infant mortality rates in the Soviet Union in the 1970s became the subject of much discussion and debate among Western demographers. The infant mortality rate (IMR) had increased from 24.7 in 1970 to 27.9 in 1974. Some researchers regarded the rise in infant mortality as largely real, a consequence of worsening health conditions and services.<ref>Most notably, see Christopher Davis and [[Murray Feshbach]]. 1980. "Rising Infant Mortality in the Soviet Union in the 1970s," U.S. Bureau of the Census, International Population Reports, Series P-95, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. The following article, which ostensibly reviewed the Davis and Feshbach report, brought widespread attention to the issue of health care in the Soviet Union: [[Nicholas Eberstadt|Nick Eberstadt]], "The Health Crisis in the Soviet Union," ''New York Review of Books'' 28, No. 2 (February 19, 1981).</ref> Others regarded it as largely an artifact of improved reporting of infant deaths, and found the increases to be concentrated in the Central Asian republics where improvement in coverage and reporting of births and deaths might well have the greatest effect on increasing the published rates.<ref>Most notably, see Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver. 1986. "Infant Mortality in the Soviet Union: Regional Differences and Measurement Issues," ''Population and Development Review'' 12, No. 4: 705–737, and Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver, "The Geodemography of Infant Mortality in the Soviet Union, 1950–1990," in G. J. Demko, Z. Zaionchkovskaya, S. Pontius, and G. Ioffe, Eds., ''Population Under Duress: The Geodemography of Post-Soviet Russia,'' [[Westview Press]], pp. 73–103 (1999).</ref>

The rising reported adult mortality and infant mortality was not explained or defended by Soviet officials at the time. Instead, they simply stopped publishing all mortality statistics for ten years. Soviet demographers and health specialists remained silent about the mortality increases until the late 1980s, when the publication of mortality data resumed and researchers could delve into the real and artificial aspects of the reported mortality increases.  When these researchers began to report their findings, they accepted the increases in adult male mortality as real and focused their research on explaining its causes and finding solutions.<ref>See, for example, Juris Krumins. 1990. "The Changing Mortality Patterns in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia: Experience of the Past Three Decades," Paper presented at the International Conference on Health, Morbidity and Mortality by Cause of Death in Europe. December 3–7. Vilnius; A. G. Vishnevskiy, V.M. Shkolnikov, and S.A. Vasin. 1990. "Epidemiological Transition in the Soviet Union as Mirrored by Regional Disparities," Paper presented at the International Conference on Health, Morbidity and Mortality by Cause of Death in Europe. December 3–7. Vilnius; and F. Meslé, V. Shkolnikov, and J. Vallin. 1991. "Mortality by Cause in the Soviet Union in 1970–1987: The Reconstruction of Time Series," Paper presented at the European Population Conference, October 21–25, Paris.</ref> In contrast, investigations of the rise in reported infant mortality concluded that while the reported increases in the IMR were largely an artifact of improved reporting of infant deaths in the Central Asian republics, the actual levels in this region were much higher than had yet been reported officially.<ref>See, for example, A. A. Baranov, V. Y. Al‘bitskiy, and Y. M. Komarov. 1990. "Тенденции младенческой смертности в СССР в 70–80е годы [Trends in infant mortality in the Soviet Union in the 70's and 80's]," Советское здравоохранение, 3: 3–37; and Y. M. Andreyev and N. Y. Ksenofontova. 1991. "Оценка достоверности данных о младенческой смертности“ [Assessment of the reliability of data on infant mortality], Вестник статистики, 8: 21–28.</ref> In this sense, the reported ''rise'' in infant mortality in the Soviet Union as a whole was an artifact of improved statistical reporting, but reflected the reality of a much higher actual infant mortality ''level'' than had previously been recognized in official statistics.

As the detailed data series that was ultimately published in the late 1980s showed, the reported IMR for the Soviet Union as a whole increased from 24.7 in 1970 to a peak of 31.4 in 1976.  After that the IMR gradually decreased and by 1989 it had fallen to 22.7, which was lower than had been reported in any previous year (though close to the figure of 22.9 in 1971).<ref>Comecon Secretariat, Статистический ежегодник стран-членов Совета экономической взаимопомощи, 1990 [Yearbook of the Member-Countries of Comecon] (Moscow: Finansy i statistika, 1990), and Goskomstat SSSR, Демографический ежегодник СССР 1990 [Demographic Yearbook of the Soviet Union] (Moscow: Finansy i statistika, 1990).</ref>  In 1989, the IMR ranged from a low of 11.1 in the Latvian SSR to a high of 54.7 in the Turkmen SSR.<ref>See Демографический ежегодник СССР 1990, at p. 382.</ref>

Research conducted after the dissolution of the Soviet Union revealed that the originally reported mortality rates vary substantially underestimated the actual rates, especially for infant mortality. This has been shown for [[Transcaucasia]]n and [[Central Asia]]n republics.<ref>Géraldine Duthé, Irina Badurashvili, Karine Kuyumjyan, France Meslé, and Jacques Vallin, "Mortality in the Caucasus: An attempt to re-estimate recent mortality trends in Armenia and Georgia," ''Demographic Research,'' Vol. 22, art. 23, pp. 691–732 (2010).</ref><ref>Michel Guillot, So-jung Lim, Liudmila Torgasheva & Mikhail Denisenko, "Infant mortality in Kyrgyzstan before and after the break-up of the Soviet Union," ''Population Studies,'' Vol. 67, No. 3: 335–352 (2013).</ref>

After two decades of declining and stagnating fertility rates, the Soviet TFR rose from 2.27 in 1978–79 to 2.51 in 1986–87. Most Muslim areas of the USSR continued to fall, while non-Muslim regions rose slightly.<ref name="jstor.org"/>

== Population ==
[[File:Demography USSR.svg|thumb|300px|right|Demographics of Soviet Union, Data of Andreev, E.M., ''et al.'', ''Naselenie Sovetskogo Soiuza, 1922–1991''. Number of inhabitants in thousands.]]
Although the [[population growth]]-rate decreased over time, it remained positive throughout the history of the Soviet Union in all [[Republics of the Soviet Union|republics]], and the population grew each year by more than 2 million except during periods of wartime, and [[Droughts and famines in Russia and the Soviet Union|famine]].
<gallery>
File:USSR population density map 1982.jpg|Soviet Union urban and rural population density map 1982
</gallery>

=== Age structure ===
[[File:Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1926.svg|thumb|Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1926]]
[[File:Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1939.svg|thumb|Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1939]]
{{multiple image
| height            = 200
| footer            = 
| image1            = Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1941.svg
| width1            = 200
| caption1          = 1941
| image2            = Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1946.svg
| width2            = 200
| caption2          = 1946
| header            = Population pyramid before and after the Second World War
}}
[[File:Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1950.svg|thumb|Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1950|249x249px]]
[[File:Soviet Union 1989 Population pyramid.svg|thumb|Population pyramid of the Soviet Union in 1989|284x284px]]

===Literacy===
*99.8% (1980)<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Mironov|first1=Boris|title=The Development of Literacy in Russia and the USSR from the Tenth to the Twentieth Centuries|journal=History of Education Quarterly|date=1991|volume=31|issue=2|pages=247|doi=10.2307/368437|jstor=368437|s2cid=144460404 }}</ref>

===Labor force===
Labor force: 152,300,000 civilians; 80% industry and other nonagricultural fields, 20% agriculture; shortage of skilled labor (1989)

Organized labor: 98% of workers were union members; all trade unions were organized within the [[All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions]] (AUCCTU) and conducted their work under the guidance of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union|Communist party]]. There was a market relationship between the people and the state as the employer; people were free to choose their job and leave if they wished, although members of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] could be ordered to work in certain places, but seldom were.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Economy: An Economic History of the USSR 1945–1991|last=Hanson|first=Philip|publisher=Pearson Education Limited|year=2003|pages=12}}</ref>

===Life expectancy and infant mortality===
A newborn Soviet child in 1926–27 had a life expectancy of 44.4 years, up from 32.3 years in the Russian Empire thirty years before. By 1958–59, the life expectancy for newborns had reached 68.6 years.<ref name="SeemingParadox">The Seeming Paradox of Increasing Mortality in a Highly Industrialized Nation: the Example of the Soviet Union : 1985. author Dinkel, R. H.</ref> Life expectancy in the Soviet Union remained fairly stable during most years, although in the 1970s it decreased slightly.

==Vital statistics==
[[File:Population of former USSR.PNG|thumb|520x520px|right|Soviet Union and [[Former Soviet Union]] [[Population]] from 1950 to 2100.]]

=== Soviet demographic table, 1950–1991 ===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: right;"
|-
!
! style="width:80pt;"|Average population '''(thousand)'''
! style="width:80pt;"|Live births '''(thousand)'''
! style="width:80pt;"|Deaths '''(thousand)'''
! style="width:80pt;"|Natural change '''(thousand)'''
! style="width:80pt;"|Crude birth rate (per 1,000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Crude death rate (per 1,000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Natural change (per 1,000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Crude migration change (per 1,000)
! style="width:80pt;"|[[Total Fertility Rate|Total fertility rate]]{{refn|group=fn|In fertility rates, 2.1 and above is a stable population and has been marked blue, 2 and below leads to an aging population and the result is that the population decreases.}}
|-
| 1950
| style="text-align:right;" | 179,020
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,805
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,745
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,060
| style="text-align:right;" |26.7
| style="text-align:right;" |9.7
| style="text-align:right;" |17.0
|0.3
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |3.08
|-
| 1951
| style="text-align:right;" | 181,582
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,953
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,779
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,174
| style="text-align:right;" |27.0
| style="text-align:right;" |9.7
| style="text-align:right;" |17.3
|–3.4

| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |3.10
|-
| 1952
| style="text-align:right;" | 185,966
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,028
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,749
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,279
| style="text-align:right;" |26.5
| style="text-align:right;" |9.4
| style="text-align:right;" |17.1
|5.9
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |3.03
|-
| 1953
| style="text-align:right;" | 188,127
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,754
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,727
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,027
| style="text-align:right;" |25.1
| style="text-align:right;" |9.1
| style="text-align:right;" |16.0
|–4.6
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |2.85
|-
| 1954
| style="text-align:right;" | 191,569
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,179
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,724
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,455
| style="text-align:right;" |26.6
| style="text-align:right;" |8.9
| style="text-align:right;" |17.7
|–0.1
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |3.04
|-
| 1955
| style="text-align:right;" | 194,409
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,048
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,613
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,435
| style="text-align:right;" |25.7
| style="text-align:right;" |8.2
| style="text-align:right;" |17.5
|–3.1
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |2.93
|-
| 1956
| style="text-align:right;" | 197,880
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,023
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,511
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,512
| style="text-align:right;" |25.2
| style="text-align:right;" |7.6
| style="text-align:right;" |17.6
|–0.2
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |2.91
|-
| 1957
| style="text-align:right;" | 201,355
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,164
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,594
| style="text-align:right; color:blue" | 3,570
| style="text-align:right;" |25.4
| style="text-align:right;" |7.8
| style="text-align:right;" |17.6
|–0.5
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |2.94
|-
| 1958
| style="text-align:right;" | 204,963
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,240
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,490
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,750
| style="text-align:right;" |25.3
| style="text-align:right;" |7.2
| style="text-align:right;" |18.1
|–0.7
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |2.92
|-
| 1959
| style="text-align:right;" | 208,827
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,264
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,604
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,660
| style="text-align:right;" |25.0
| style="text-align:right;" |7.6
| style="text-align:right;" |17.4
|1.0
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1960
| style="text-align:right;" | 212,417
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,341
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,529
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,812
| style="text-align:right;" |24.9
| style="text-align:right;" |7.1
| style="text-align:right;" |17.8
|–1.0
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1961
| style="text-align:right;" | 216,307
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,192
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,563
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,629
| style="text-align:right;" |23.9
| style="text-align:right;" |7.2
| style="text-align:right;" |16.7
|1.2
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1962
| style="text-align:right;" | 220,017
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,959
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,667
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,292
| style="text-align:right;" |22.4
| style="text-align:right;" |7.5
| style="text-align:right;" |14.9
|1.9
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1963
| style="text-align:right;" | 223,457
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,758
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,627
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,131
| style="text-align:right;" |21.1
| style="text-align:right;" |7.2
| style="text-align:right;" |13.9
|1.4
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1964
| style="text-align:right;" | 226,665
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,457
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,581
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,876
| style="text-align:right;" |19.5
| style="text-align:right;" |6.9
| style="text-align:right;" |12.6
|1.5
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1965
| style="text-align:right;" | 229,616
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,253
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,690
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,563
| style="text-align:right;" |18.4
| style="text-align:right;" |7.3
| style="text-align:right;" |11.1
|1.7
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1966
| style="text-align:right;" | 232,220
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,242
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,711
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,531
| style="text-align:right;" |18.2
| style="text-align:right;" |7.3
| style="text-align:right;" |10.9
|0.3
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1967
| style="text-align:right;" | 234,800
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,093
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,799
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,294
| style="text-align:right;" |17.3
| style="text-align:right;" |7.6
| style="text-align:right;" |9.7
|1.2
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1968
| style="text-align:right;" | 237,209
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,088
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,833
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,255
| style="text-align:right;" |17.2
| style="text-align:right;" |7.7
| style="text-align:right;" |9.5
|0.6
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1969
| style="text-align:right;" | 239,507
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,087
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,957
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,130
| style="text-align:right;" |17.0
| style="text-align:right;" |8.1
| style="text-align:right;" |8.9
|0.7
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1970
| style="text-align:right;" | 241,720
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,226
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,996
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,230
| style="text-align:right;" |17.4
| style="text-align:right;" |8.2
| style="text-align:right;" |9.2
|–0.1
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1971
| style="text-align:right;" | 243,950
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,372
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,015
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,357
| style="text-align:right;" |17.8
| style="text-align:right;" |8.2
| style="text-align:right;" |9.6
|–0.5
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;" |
|-
| 1972
| style="text-align:right;" | 246,254
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,404
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,105
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,299
| style="text-align:right;" |17.8
| style="text-align:right;" |8.5
| style="text-align:right;" |9.3
|0.0
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1973
| style="text-align:right;" | 248,613
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,386
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,164
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,222
| style="text-align:right;" |17.6
| style="text-align:right;" |8.7
| style="text-align:right;" |8.9
|0.6
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1974
| style="text-align:right;" | 250,865
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,546
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,191
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,355
| style="text-align:right;" |18.0
| style="text-align:right;" |8.7
| style="text-align:right;" |9.3
|–0.4
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1975
| style="text-align:right;" | 253,279
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,611
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,363
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,248
| style="text-align:right;" |18.1
| style="text-align:right;" |9.3
| style="text-align:right;" |8.8
|0.7
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1976
| style="text-align:right;" | 255,463
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,720
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,426
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,294
| style="text-align:right;" |18.4
| style="text-align:right;" |9.5
| style="text-align:right;" |8.9
|–0.4
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1977
| style="text-align:right;" | 257,892
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,693
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,495
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,198
| style="text-align:right;" |18.1
| style="text-align:right;" |9.6
| style="text-align:right;" |8.5
|0.9
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1978
| style="text-align:right;" | 260,125
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,763
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,546
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,217
| style="text-align:right;" |18.2
| style="text-align:right;" |9.7
| style="text-align:right;" |8.5
|0.1
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1979
| style="text-align:right;" | 262,436
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,807
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,666
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,141
| style="text-align:right;" |18.2
| style="text-align:right;" |10.1
| style="text-align:right;" |8.1
|0.6
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1980
| style="text-align:right;" | 264,530
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,851
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,744
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,107
| style="text-align:right;" |18.3
| style="text-align:right;" |10.3
| style="text-align:right;" |8.0
|0.0
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1981
| style="text-align:right;" | 266,629
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,961
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,742
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,219
| style="text-align:right;" |18.5
| style="text-align:right;" |10.2
| style="text-align:right;" |8.3
|–0.5
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1982
| style="text-align:right;" | 268,841
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,100
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,724
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,376
| style="text-align:right;" |19.0
| style="text-align:right;" |10.1
| style="text-align:right;" |8.9
|–0.6
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1983
| style="text-align:right;" | 271,227
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,392
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,823
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,569
| style="text-align:right;" |19.8
| style="text-align:right;" |10.4
| style="text-align:right;" |9.4
|–0.7
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1984
| style="text-align:right;" | 273,769
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,387
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,965
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,422
| style="text-align:right;" |19.6
| style="text-align:right;" |10.8
| style="text-align:right;" |8.8
|0.4
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1985
| style="text-align:right;" | 276,310
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,374
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,947
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,427
| style="text-align:right;" |19.4
| style="text-align:right;" |10.6
| style="text-align:right;" |8.8
|0.4
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1986
| style="text-align:right;" | 278,845
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,611
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,737
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,874
| style="text-align:right;" |20.0
| style="text-align:right;" |9.8
| style="text-align:right;" |10.2
|–1.2
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-
| 1987
| style="text-align:right;" | 281,537
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,599
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,805
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,794
| style="text-align:right;" |19.8
| style="text-align:right;" |9.9
| style="text-align:right;" |9.9
|–0.4
| style="text-align:right;" |2.53
|-
| 1988
| style="text-align:right;" | 284,049
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,381
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,889
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,492
| style="text-align:right;" |18.9
| style="text-align:right;" |10.1
| style="text-align:right;" |8.8
|0.1
| style="text-align:right;" |2.45
|-
| 1989
| style="text-align:right;" | 286,731
| style="text-align:right;" | 5,062
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,875
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,187
| style="text-align:right;" |17.6
| style="text-align:right;" |10.0
| style="text-align:right;" |7.6
|1.7
| style="text-align:right;" |2.33
|-
| 1990
| style="text-align:right;" | 288,624
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,853
| style="text-align:right;" | 2,985
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,868
| style="text-align:right;" |16.8
| style="text-align:right;" |10.3
| style="text-align:right;" |6.5
|0.1
| style="text-align:right;" |2.26
|-
| 1991
| style="text-align:right;" | 290,034
| style="text-align:right;" | 4,756
| style="text-align:right;" | 3,206
| style="text-align:right;" | 1,550
| style="text-align:right;" |16.4
| style="text-align:right;" |11.1
| style="text-align:right;" |5.3
|–0.5
| style="text-align:right;" |
|-

|}

=== Abortion ===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
! rowspan="4" |Year
! colspan="9" |Abortions in the USSR from 1954 – 1990<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Avdeev |first1=Alexandre |last2=Blum |first2=Alain |last3=Troitskaya |first3=Irina |date=1995 |title=The History of Abortion Statistics in Russia and the USSR from 1900 to 1991 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2949057 |journal=Population: An English Selection |volume=7 |pages=39–66 |jstor=2949057 |issn=1169-1018}}</ref> {{Flag icon|Soviet Union}}
|-
! colspan="3" |All abortions
! colspan="3" |Legal induced abortions ('complete')
! rowspan="3" |Spontaneous or criminal abortions ('incomplete')
! colspan="2" |Legal abortion rate
|-
! rowspan="2" |Total figures
! rowspan="2" |By Ministry of Health
! rowspan="2" |By Ministry of Transport
! rowspan="2" |All methods
(Total legal)
! rowspan="2" |Curettage
! rowspan="2" |Aspiration
('mini')
! rowspan="2" |per 100 live birthes
! rowspan="2" |per 1,000 women aged 15 – 49
|-
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!1954
|'''1,985,302'''
|1,895,964
|89,339
|'''399,046'''
|399,046
| –
|'''1,586,257'''
|7.84
|6.84
|-
!1955
|'''2,598,761'''
|2,481,816
|116,944
|'''600,314'''
|600,314
| –
|'''1,998,447'''
|11.92
|10.15
|-
!1956
|'''4,724,547'''
|4,511,942
|212,605
|'''3,316,632'''
|3,316,632
| –
|'''1,407,915'''
|65.10
|55.40
|-
!1957
|'''5,338,738'''
|5,108,970
|229,768
|'''3,996,159'''
|3,996,159
| –
|'''1,342,579'''
|76.81
|66.26
|-
!1958
|'''6,128,871'''
|5,892,260
|236,611
|'''4,844,567'''
|4,844,567
| –
|'''1,284,304'''
|92.24
|80.62
|-
!1959
|'''6,398,541'''
|6,211,160
|187,381
|'''5,102,306'''
|5,102,306
| –
|'''1,296,235'''
|96.21
|85.79
|-
!1960
|'''7,038,395'''
|6,504,677
|533,718
|'''5,642,210'''
|5,642,210
| –
|'''1,396,185'''
|107.17
|96.06
|-
!1961
|'''7,425,507'''
|7,073,785
|351,722
|'''6,006,038'''
|6,006,038
| –
|'''1,419,469'''
|118.39
|103.57
|-
!1962
|'''7,774,506'''
|7,344,506
|430,000
|'''6,414,217'''
|6,414,217
| –
|'''1,360,289'''
|132.08
|110.19
|-
!1963
|'''8,023,290'''
|7,662,242
|361,048
|'''6,667,354'''
|6,667,354
| –
|'''1,355,936'''
|144.82
|114.64
|-
!1964
|'''8,408,408'''
|8,030,030
|378,378
|'''7,021,021'''
|7,021,021
| –
|'''1,387,387'''
|161.30
|120.23
|-
!1965
|'''8,551,351'''
|8,166,540
|384,811
|'''7,191,686'''
|7,191,686
| –
|'''1,359,665'''
|169.33
|122.46
|-
!1966
|'''8,337,567'''
|7,962,377
|375,191
|'''7,020,232'''
|7,020,232
| –
|'''1,317,336'''
|168.52
|118.15
|-
!1967
|'''7,846,354'''
|7,493,268
|353,086
|'''6,624,990'''
|6,624,990
| –
|'''1,222,364'''
|161.94
|109.72
|-
!1968
|'''7,654,441'''
|7,301,396
|344,045
|'''6,471,055'''
|6,471,055
| –
|'''1,174,386'''
|158.32
|105.25
|-
!1969
|'''7,460,316'''
|7,124,602
|335,714
|'''6,330,413'''
|6,330,413
| –
|'''1,129,903'''
|152.26
|101.84
|-
!1970
|'''7,531,270'''
|7,192,363
|338,907
|'''6,406,594'''
|6,406,594
| –
|'''1,124,676'''
|148.99
|101.44
|-
!1971
|'''7,610,001'''
|7,267,551
|342,450
|'''6,489,481'''
|6,489,481
| –
|'''1,120,520'''
|147.89
|101.07
|-
!1972
|'''7,497,264'''
|7,159,887
|337,377
|'''6,408,802'''
|6,408,802
| –
|'''1,088,462'''
|144.45
|98.27
|-
!1973
|'''7,514,765'''
|7,176,601
|338,164
|'''6,439,040'''
|6,439,040
| –
|'''1,075,725'''
|145.48
|97.50
|-
!1974
|'''7,449,129'''
|7,113,918
|335,211
|'''6,397,731'''
|6,397,731
| –
|'''1,051,398'''
|139.71
|95.89
|-
!1975
|'''7,471,572'''
|7,135,351
|336,221
|'''6,431,773'''
|6,431,773
| –
|'''1,039,798'''
|137.65
|95.68
|-
!1976
|'''7,636,191'''
|7,292,562
|343,629
|'''6,588,364'''
|6,588,364
| –
|'''1,047,827'''
|140.09
|97.22
|-
!1977
|'''7,579,105'''
|7,238,045
|341,060
|'''6,553,674'''
|6,553,674
| –
|'''1,025,430'''
|138.70
|96.22
|-
!1978
|'''7,497,397'''
|7,160,014
|337,383
|'''6,497,226'''
|6,497,226
| –
|'''1,000,171'''
|136.12
|94.98
|-
!1979
|'''7,339,566'''
|7,009,286
|330,380
|'''6,374,161'''
|6,374,161
| –
|'''965,406'''
|131.63
|93.21
|-
!1980
|'''7,333,073'''
|7,003,085
|329,988
|'''6,382,028'''
|6,382,028
| –
|'''951,045'''
|130.49
|93.18
|-
!1981
|'''7,155,594'''
|6,833,592
|322,002
|'''6,240,562'''
|6,240,562
| –
|'''915,032'''
|124.57
|91.17
|-
!1982
|'''7,250,355'''
|6,924,089
|326,266
|'''6,336,188'''
|6,336,188
| –
|'''914,167'''
|120.29
|92.13
|-
!1983
|'''7,085,370'''
|6,766,528
|318,842
|'''6,204,515'''
|6,204,515
| –
|'''880,855'''
|115.07
|90.05
|-
!1984
|'''7,115,825'''
|6,795,613
|320,212
|'''6,243,572'''
|6,243,572
| –
|'''872,253'''
|115.70
|89.98
|-
!1985
|'''7,365,852'''
|7,034,389
|331,463
|'''6,475,595'''
|6,475,595
| –
|'''890,258'''
|118.64
|92.77
|-
!1986
|'''7,116,000'''
|6,790,141
|325,859
|'''6,267,984'''
|6,267,984
| –
|'''848,016'''
|110.62
|89.47
|-
!1987
|'''6,818,000'''
|6,496,499
|321,501
|'''6,009,655'''
|6,009,655
| –
|'''808,345'''
|109.33
|85.71
|-
!1988
|'''7,229,000'''
|6,965,221
|263,779
|'''6,469,096'''
|5,271,096
|1,198,000
|'''759,904'''
|124.16
|92.42
|-
!1989
|'''6,974,431'''
|6,672,041
|302,390
|'''6,286,035'''
|4,828,267
|1,457,768
|'''688,396'''
|126.89
|90.03
|-
!1990
|'''6,459,000'''
|6,226,821
|232,179
|'''5,836,823'''
|4,150,448
|1,686,375
|'''622,177'''
|123.57
|84.77
|-
!1991
| –
|6,014,000
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
|-
!1992
| –
|5,442,900
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
| –
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Total number from time period
|'''258,723,655'''(1954–1990)
|258,476,032
(1954–92)
|11,695,624 
(1954–90)
|'''216,987,139'''(1954–90)
|212,644,996
(1954–1990)
|4,342,143
(1988–90)
|'''41,728,518'''
(1954–90)
| –
| –
|}
[[File:Ethnic makeup of the Soviet Union in 1989.svg|thumb|516x516px|Ethnic makeup of the Soviet Union visualised]]

== Ethnic groups ==
{{main category|Ethnic groups in the Soviet Union}}
The Soviet Union was one of the world's most ethnically diverse countries, with more than 100 distinct national ethnicities living within its borders.<ref name="sakwa soviet pols in perspec">{{cite book|last=Sakwa|first=Richard|title=Soviet Politics in Perspective|publisher=Routledge|year=1998|isbn=0-415-07153-4|location=London|pages=242–250}}</ref>
[[File:U.S. S.R. - Ethnic Compositions - DPLA - 754227d4ec980a6b169104b656de499a.jpg|thumb|350px|U.S.S.R. - Ethnic Composition by the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] 1949.]]

===Ethnic Groups (1926–1989)===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! rowspan="3" |Ethnic Group
! colspan="12" |Year
|-
! colspan="2" |1926<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/ussr_nac_26.php |title=Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей }}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1939<ref name="demoscope.ru">{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_39.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1959<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_59.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1970<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_70.php?reg=0|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1979<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_79.php?reg=0|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1989<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_89.php|title = Демоскоп Weekly – Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей}}</ref>
|-
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
![[East Slavs]]
!113,725,023
!77.3%
!132,977,920
!78%
!159,279,997
!76.2%
!178,820,141
!74%
!189,207,191
!72.2%
!199,377,746
!69.8%
|-
|[[Russians]] [[File:Flag of Russian SFSR.svg|20x20px]]
|77,791,124
|52.9%
|99,591,520
|58.4%
|114,113,579
|54.6%
|129,015,140
|53.4%
|137,397,089
|52.4%
|145,155,489
|50.8%
|-
|[[Ukrainians]] [[File:Flag of Ukrainian SSR.svg|20x20px]]
|31,194,976
|21.2%
|28,111,007
|16.5%
|37,252,930
|17.8%
|40,753,246
|16.9%
|42,347,387
|16.2%
|44,186,006
|15.5%
|-
|[[Belarusians]] [[File:Flag of Byelorussian SSR.svg|20x20px]]
|4,738,923
|3.2%
|5,275,393
|3.1%
|7,913,488
|3.8%
|9,051,755
|3.7%
|9,462,715
|3.6%
|10,036,251
|3.5%
|-
!Baltic
!337,832
!0.2%
!290,689
!0.2%
!4,714,249
!2.3%
!5,102,144
!2.1%
!5,309,793
!2%
!5,553,025
!2%
|-
|[[Lithuanians]] [[File:Flag-lithuanian-ssr.png|20x20px]]
|41,463
|–
|32,624
|–
|2,326,094
|1.1%
|2,664,944
|1.1%
|2,850,905
|1.1%
|3,067,390
|1.1%
|-
|[[Latvians]] [[File:Flag of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic.png|20x20px]]
|141,703
|0.1%
|114,476
|0.1%
|1,399,539
|0.7%
|1,429,844
|0.6%
|1,439,037
|0.5%
|1,458,986
|0.5%
|-
|[[Estonians]] [[File:Flag of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic (1953–1990).svg|20x20px]]
|154,666
|0.1%
|143,589
|0.1%
|988,616
|0.5%
|1,007,356
|0.4%
|1,019,851
|0.4%
|1,026,649
|0.4%
|-
!Central Asia
!10,378,267
!7.1%
!10,872,278
!6.3%
!13,004,209
!6.3%
!19,607,300
!8.1%
!25,844,301
!9.9%
!34,306,926
!12%
|-
|[[Uzbeks]] [[File:Flag of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (1952–1991).svg|20x20px]]
|3,904,622
|2.7%
|4,845,140
|2.8%
|6,015,416
|2.9%
|9,195,093
|3.8%
|12,455,978
|4.8%
|16,697,825
|5.8%
|-
|[[Kazakhs]] [[File:Flag of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic (1953–1991); Flag of Kazakhstan (1991–1992).svg|20x20px]]
|3,968,289
|2.7%
|3,100,949
|1.8%
|3,621,610
|1.7%
|5,298,818
|2.2%
|6,556,442
|2.5%
|8,135,818
|2.8%
|-
|[[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]] [[File:Flag of the Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic.svg|20x20px]]
|762,736
|0.5%
|884,615
|0.5%
|968,659
|0.5%
|1,452,222
|0.6%
|1,906,271
|0.7%
|2,528,946
|0.9%
|-
|[[Tajiks]] [[File:Flag of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic (1953–1990).svg|20x20px]]
|978,680
|0.7%
|1,229,170
|0.7%
|1,396,939
|0.7%
|2,135,883
|0.9%
|2,897,697
|1.1%
|4,215,372
|1.5%
|-
|[[Turkmens]] [[File:Flag of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic (1973–1991).svg|20x20px]]
|763,940
|0.5%
|812,404
|0.5%
|1,001,585
|0.5%
|1,525,284
|0.6%
|2,027,913
|0.8%
|2,728,965
|1%
|-
!Caucasus
!5,095,357
!3.5%
!6,678,174
!3.9%
!8,418,590
!4%
!11,184,388
!4.6%
!13,199,075
!5.1%
!15,374,680
!5.4%
|-
|[[Azerbaijanis]] [[File:Flag of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (1956–1991).svg|20x20px]]
|1,706,605
|1.2%
|2,275,678
|1.3%
|2,939,728
|1.4%
|4,379,937
|1.8%
|5,477,330
|2.1%
|6,770,403
|2.4%
|-
|[[Georgians]] [[File:Flag of Georgian SSR.png|20x20px]]
|1,821,184
|1.2%
|2,249,636
|1.3%
|2,691,950
|1.3%
|3,245,300
|1.3%
|3,570,504
|1.4%
|3,981,045
|1.4%
|-
|[[Armenians]] [[File:Flag of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (1952–1990).svg|20x20px]]
|1,567,568
|1.1%
|2,152,860
|1.3%
|2,786,912
|1.3%
|3,559,151
|1.5%
|4,151,241
|1.6%
|4,623,232
|1.6%
|-
!Other prominent Ethnic groups
!11,060,350
!7.5%
!13,329,325
!7.8%
!16,143,803
!7.7%
!17,791,480
!7.4%
!18,316,932
!7%
!18,989,883
!6.6%
|-
|[[Moldovans]] [[File:Flag of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (1952–1990).svg|20x20px]]
|278,905
|0.2%
|260,418
|0.2%
|2,214,139
|1.1%
|2,697,994
|1.1%
|2,968,224
|1.1%
|3,352,352
|1.2%
|-
|[[History of the Jews in the Soviet Union|Jews]] [[File:Star of David.svg|23x23px]]
|2,672,499
|1.8%
|3,028,538
|1.8%
|2,267,814
|1.1%
|2,099,833
|0.9%
|1,761,724
|0.7%
|1,378,344
|0.5%
|-
|[[Russia Germans|Germans]]
|1,238,549
|0.8%
|1,427,232
|0.8%
|1,619,655
|0.8%
|1,846,317
|0.8%
|1,936,214
|0.7%
|2,038,603
|0.7%
|-
|[[Tatars]]
|2,916,536
|2%
|4,313,488
|2.5%
|4,917,991
|2.4%
|5,783,111
|2.4%
|6,185,196
|2.4%
|6,648,760
|2.3%
|-
|[[Polish minority in Russia|Poles]]
|782,334
|0.5%
|630,097
|0.4%
|1,380,282
|0.7%
|1,167,523
|0.5%
|1,150,991
|0.4%
|1,126,334
|0.4%
|-
|[[Chuvash people|Chuvash]]
|1,117,419
|0.8%
|1,369,574
|0.8%
|1,469,766
|0.7%
|1,694,351
|0.7%
|1,751,366
|0.7%
|1,842,346
|0.6%
|-
|[[Mordvinian]] 
|1,340,415
|0.9%
|1,456,330
|0.9%
|1,285,116
|0.6%
|1,262,670
|0.5%
|1,191,765
|0.5%
|1,153,987
|0.4%
|-
|[[Bashkirs|Bashkir]]
|713,693
|0.5%
|843,648
|0.5%
|989,040
|0.5%
|1,239,681
|0.5%
|1,371,452
|0.5%
|1,449,157
|0.5%
|-
!Others
!6,431,086
!4.4%
!6,408,707
!3.8%
!7,216,092
!3.5%
!9,214,681
!3.8%
!10,207,362
!3.9%
!12,140,251
!4.2%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Total:
!147,027,915
!100%
!170,557,093
!100%
!208,826,650
!100%
!241,720,134
!100%
!262,084,654
!100%
!285,742,511
!100%
|}Other ethnic groups included [[Abkhaz people|Abkhaz]], [[Adyghe people|Adyghes]], [[Aleut people|Aleut]]s, [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]], [[Caucasian Avars|Avars]], [[Bulgarians]], [[Buryats]], [[Chechen people|Chechens]], [[Han Chinese|Chinese]], [[Cossacks]], [[Crimean Tatars]], [[Evenks]], [[Finns]], [[Gagauz people|Gagauz]], [[Greeks]], [[Hungarian people|Hungarians]], [[Ingush people|Ingushes]], [[Inuit]], [[Kalmyk people|Kalmyks]], [[Karakalpaks]], [[Karelians]], [[Ket people|Kets]], [[Koreans]], [[Lezgins]], [[Mari people|Maris]], [[Mongols]], [[Nenets people|Nenetses]], [[Ossetians]], [[Romani people|Roma]], [[Romanians]], [[Tat people (Caucasus)|Tats]], [[Tuvans]], [[Udmurt people|Udmurts]], and [[Yakuts]]. Dozens of these other ethnic groups were the titular nations of different [[Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics of the Soviet Union|Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics]] or [[Autonomous oblasts of the Soviet Union|Autonomous Oblasts]] within the union-level republics (ex. Tatars in [[Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Tatar ASSR]] within the RSFSR, [[Abkhaz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Abkhaz ASSR]] within Georgia) or had been previously ([[Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Volga German ASSR]], [[Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Crimean ASSR]]).

===History===
Throughout its entire history, [[ethnic Russians]] made up a majority of Soviet citizens. According to the [[Soviet Census (1939)|1939 census]], Russians reached a peak of 58.4% of the population.<ref name="demoscope.ru"/> Previously in 1926, Russians were 52.9% of the population. This could be due to the decrease of Ukrainians, which coincides with the [[Holodomor]].

Since 1939, the percentage of ethnic Russians in the USSR began to decrease. By 1959, 54.6% of Soviet citizens were recorded as ethnic Russians. At first, this was due to the incorporation of new territories westward in Europe after World War II, such as the [[Kresy|Polish Eastern Borderlands]], the [[Baltic states]], [[Carpathian Ruthenia]], and [[Bessarabia]]. This resulted in an increase of non-Russian ethnic groups, especially those who were [[Belarusians|Belarusian]], [[Ukrainians|Ukrainian]], [[Polish people|Polish]], [[Moldovans|Moldovan]], [[Lithuanians|Lithuanian]], [[Latvians|Latvian]], and [[Estonians|Estonian]]. However, starting in the 1960s, the decline of the Russian majority was mainly driven by indigenous ethnic groups residing in the [[Caucasus|Caucasian]] and [[Central Asian]] Soviet republics. For example, the five main Central Asian groups, [[Uzbeks]], [[Kazakhs]], [[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]], [[Tajiks]], and [[Turkmens]], together saw a 163.81% increase from 1959 to 1989. Azerbaijanis, the largest Muslim group in the Soviet Caucasus, grew from 2.9 million people to almost 6.8 million during the same time, which represents a 130.31% increase. Meanwhile, ethnic Russians increased by only 27.20%. When the 1989 census was released, ethnic Russians made up just 50.8% of the population and were projected to become a minority within the next decade.
 
The rise of non-Russians, especially Soviet Muslims from the [[Caucasus]] and [[Central Asia]] can be explained by analysing the different patterns of total fertility rates among ethnic groups. According to research professors Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver, Soviet fertility was both high and low. The national rate stood at 2.8 children per woman in 1958–59 before falling to 2.4 in 1969–70 and 2.3 in 1978–79.<ref name="jstor.org"/> The total fertility for ethnic Russian women within the [[RSFSR]] declined from 2.4 to 1.8 in the late 1960s and 1970s. The same trend could be found in the Baltic and Western regions of the USSR, which each of the Soviet republics' titular nationality approaching [[sub-replacement fertility]]. Caucasian ethnic groups, such as [[Armenians]] and [[Georgians]] followed the same trend, but on average had more children than Soviet citizens living in the Soviet European republics. Overall, the mentioned ethnicities had an average total fertility rate between 1.8 and 2.3 by 1978–79.<ref name="jstor.org"/> In contrast, Soviet Muslim women had much higher fertility rates. In 1969–70, the average Muslim woman had 7 children, which represents an increase from 6.2 in 1958–59. Despite decreasing to 5.6 in 1978–79 and further falling in the 1980s, the birth rate amongst Soviet Muslims remained consistently higher than those who were non-Muslims.<ref name="jstor.org"/>

== Religion ==
{{main|Religion in the Soviet Union}}
The Soviet Union promoted [[state atheism]] from 1928 to 1941, in which religion was largely discouraged and heavily persecuted. The USSR remained a secular state from 1945 until its dissolution. However, according to various Soviet and Western sources, over one-third of the country's people professed religious beliefs: Russian Orthodox 20%, Muslim 10%, Protestant, Georgian Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Roman Catholic 7%, Jewish less than 1%, atheist 60% (1990 est.).<ref name="cia"/> Some indigenous pagan belief systems existed in the [[Siberian]] and [[Russian Far East]]ern lands in the local populations.

== Language ==
{{main|Languages of the Soviet Union}}
[[Russian language|Russian]] became the official language of the Soviet Union in 1990.<ref>[http://legal-ussr.narod.ru/data01/tex10935.htm  "ЗАКОН СССР ОТ 24.04.1990 О ЯЗЫКАХ НАРОДОВ СССР"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160508201331/http://legal-ussr.narod.ru/data01/tex10935.htm |date=2016-05-08 }} (The April 24, 1990 Soviet Union Law about the Languages of the Soviet Union) {{in lang|ru}}</ref>  Until that time it was still necessary to have a language of common communication. The ''de facto'' result inevitably favored Russian, the native language of half of Soviet citizens.<ref name="lang">Bernard Comrie, ''The Languages of the Soviet Union'', page 31, the Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, 1981. {{ISBN|0-521-23230-9}}</ref>

Overall Soviet citizens spoke more than 200 languages and dialects (at least 18 with more than 1 million speakers); [[Slavic languages|Slavic group]]: 75%, other [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]]: 8%, [[Altaic languages|Altaic]]: 12%, [[Uralic languages|Uralic]]: 3%, [[Languages of the Caucasus|Caucasian]]: 2% (1990 est.)<ref name="cia"/>

== See also ==
* [[Demographics of Central Asia]]
* [[Religion in the Soviet Union]]
* [[Family in the Soviet Union]]
* [[List of Russian censuses]]
* [[Demographics of Russia]]
* [[Tax on childlessness]]

== Footnotes ==
{{reflist|group=fn}}<references group="lower-alpha" />
== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

== General sources ==
# [[CIA World Factbook]] 1991 – most figures, unless attributed to another source.
# ''J. A. Newth: The 1970 Soviet Census, [[Soviet Studies]] vol. 24, issue 2 (October 1972) pp.&nbsp;200–222.'' – Population figures from 1897 to 1970.
# ''The Russian State Archive of the Economy: Soviet Censuses of 1937 and 1939'' – Population figures for 1937 and 1939. https://web.archive.org/web/20020927142010/http://www.library.yale.edu/slavic/census3739.html

{{Soviet Union topics}}
{{Demographics of Europe}}
{{Asia in topic|Demographics of}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soviet Union Demographics}}
[[Category:Demographics of the Soviet Union| ]]
[[Category:Demographics of Europe by country]]
[[Category:Demographics of Asia by country]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]