Demographics of Nicaragua

File:Nicaragua single age population pyramid 2020.png

Nicaragua population pyramid in 2020

Demographics of Nicaragua
Population	Template:UN Population (Template:UN Population est.)Template:UN Population
Male population	2,839,168
Female population	2,836,188
Population growth	1.855%
Birth rate	15.6/1,000 (2023 est.)
Death rate	5.0/1,000 (2021 est.)
Infant mortality rate	11.861/1,000<ref name="worldometer">Template:Cite web</ref>
Life expectancy	74.8 years<ref name="worldometer" />
Nationality	Nicaraguan
Demographic bureaus	INEC

According to Template:UN Population, Nicaragua has a population of Template:UN Population.Template:UN Population.According to a 2014 research published in the journal Genetics and Molecular Biology, European ancestry predominates in 69% of Nicaraguans, followed by African ancestry in 20%, and lastly indigenous ancestry in 11%.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A Japanese research of "Genomic Components in America's demography" demonstrated that, on average, the ancestry of Nicaraguans is 58–62% European, 28% Native American, and 14% African, with a very small Near Eastern contribution.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Non-genetic data from the CIA World Factbook establish that from Nicaragua's 2016 population of 5,966,798, around 69% are mestizo, 17% white, 5% Native American, and 9% black and other races.<ref name=cia>Template:CIA World Factbook link</ref> This fluctuates with changes in migration patterns. The population is 58% urban Template:As of.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Prior to the Sandinista revolution of 1979 since most of the migration during the years that followed were primarily of upper or middle-class Nicaraguans, a group primarily made up of whites. A growing number of these expats have returned, while many continue to live abroad.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

42.5% of the population lives below the poverty line.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The general poverty rate is estimated at 47.3%, although much of the population falls in the lower middle class due to low salaries and a low GDP (US$1000–3000).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The most populous city in the country is the capital city, Managua, with a population of 1.2 million (2005). As of 2005, over 4.4 million inhabitants (82%) live in the Pacific, Central and Northern regions. 2.7 million inhabitants (about 50%, not including Managua) reside in the Pacific region alone, while inhabitants in the Caribbean region only reach an estimated 700,000.<ref name="CN">Template:Cite news</ref>

The Census Bureau in Nicaragua is the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC). The institution is in charge of completing censuses and surveys. INEC ran its first census in 1906, the last census was taken in 2005, it was the eighth to date.

Population

File:Nicaragua-demography.png

Nicaragua's total population, 2005. Number of inhabitants in thousands.

According to Template:UN Population the total population was Template:UN Population in Template:UN Population, compared to only 1,295,000 in 1950. The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2010 was 34.5%, 60.9% was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 4.6% was 65 years or older .<ref name="WPP 2012">Template:Cite web</ref>

Year	Total population (million)	Proportion percentage
		aged 0–14	aged 15–64	aged 65+
1950	1 295	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1955	1 508	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1960	1 775	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1965	2 063	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1970	2 400	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1975	2 798	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1980	3 250	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1985	3 710	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1990	4 138	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
1995	4 659	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
2000	5 069	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
2005	5 439	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
2010	5 824	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
2015	6 223	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar
2020	6 625	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar	Template:Percentage bar

Structure of the population

Age group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	2 844 244	2 898 072	5 742 316	100
0-4	347 205	332 920	680 125	11.84
5-9	336 817	323 279	660 096	11.50
10-14	344 831	332 925	677 756	11.80
15-19	331 536	329 072	660 608	11.50
20-24	286 484	290 439	576 923	10.05
25-29	250 672	260 730	511 402	8.91
30-34	197 120	214 967	412 087	7.18
35-39	162 472	174 845	337 317	5.87
40-44	136 223	143 572	279 795	4.87
45-49	115 914	124 028	239 942	4.18
50-54	98 355	107 733	206 088	3.59
55-59	74 173	80 156	154 329	2.69
60-64	45 221	48 460	93 681	1.63
65-69	43 121	46 230	89 351	1.56
70-74	32 418	35 443	67 861	1.18
75-79	22 249	25 956	48 205	0.84
80+	19 433	27 317	46 750	0.81
Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0-14	1 028 853	989 124	2 017 977	35.14
15-64	1 698 170	1 774 002	3 472 172	60.47
65+	117 221	134 946	252 167	4.39

Age Group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	3 357 138	3 446 748	6 803 886	100
0–4	328 587	314 177	642 764
5–9	339 464	324 833	664 297
10–14	338 766	324 761	663 527
15–19	318 320	306 443	624 763
20–24	299 073	290 339	589 412
25–29	294 819	293 641	588 460
30–34	272 934	282 281	555 215
35–39	240 254	255 454	495 708
40–44	209 895	231 173	441 068
45–49	167 212	190 927	358 139
50–54	137 219	154 183	291 402
55–59	115 265	128 180	243 445
60–64	97 984	111 544	209 528
65-69	79 279	92 356	171 635
70-74	51 336	60 269	111 605
75-79	30 342	36 448	66 790
80+	36 389	49 739	86 128
Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0–14	1 006 817	963 771	1 970 588	28.96
15–64	2 152 975	2 244 165	4 397 140	64.63
65+	197 346	238 812	436 158	6.41

Population distribution

Ninety percent of Nicaraguans live in the Pacific lowlands and the adjacent interior highlands. The population is 54% urban. The most populous city in Nicaragua is the capital city, Managua, with a population of 1.2 million (2005). As of 2005, over 4.4 million inhabitants live in the Pacific, Central and North regions, accounting for 82% of the population. There are 2.7 million residents in the Pacific region, not including Managua. The Caribbean region, including the Mosquito Coast, has an estimated 700,000 residents.<ref name="CN"/> In addition, many Nicaraguans live abroad.

Departments by population

Rank	City	Department	Pop.	Rank	City	Department	Pop.
1	Managua	Managua	1,262,978	10	Estelí	Estelí	201,548
2	Matagalpa	Matagalpa	469,172	11	Granada	Granada	168,186
3	Chinandega	Chinandega	378,970	12	Jinotepe	Carazo	166,073
4	León	León	355,779	13	Rivas	Rivas	156,283	Managua
5	Jinotega	Jinotega	331,335	14	Juigalpa	Chontales	153,932	File:Town Square - Granada, Nicaragua.JPG Granada
6	Bilwi	RAAN	314,130	15	Boaco	Boaco	150,636
7	Bluefields	RAAS	306,510	16	Somoto	Madriz	132,459
8	Masaya	Masaya	289,988	17	San Carlos	Río San Juan	95,596
9	Ocotal	Nueva Segovia	208,523	18	Total	--	5,142,098 (2005)
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<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:GraphChart

Vital statistics

UN estimates

Registration of vital events is in Nicaragua not complete. The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates. <ref name="WPP 2012"/>

Period	Live births per year	Deaths per year	Natural change per year	CBR*	CDR*	NC*	TFR*	IMR*	Life expectancy
									total	for males	for females
1950–1955	77 000	32 000	45 000	54.9	23.0	31.9	7.20	172	42.3	40.9	43.7
1955–1960	89 000	33 000	56 000	54.2	20.4	33.8	7.50	151	45.4	44.1	46.8
1960–1965	93 000	33 000	60 000	48.5	17.0	31.5	7.10	131	48.7	47.3	50.0
1965–1970	103 000	32 000	71 000	46.3	14.4	31.9	6.95	114	52.0	50.5	53.4
1970–1975	120 000	33 000	88 000	46.3	12.6	33.7	6.79	98	55.3	53.7	56.8
1975–1980	137 000	34 000	102 000	45.2	11.3	33.9	6.35	90	57.6	55.3	60.0
1980–1985	149 000	35 000	114 000	42.9	10.1	32.7	5.85	80	59.5	56.5	62.6
1985–1990	150 000	33 000	117 000	38.2	8.4	29.8	5.00	65	62.2	59.0	65.5
1990–1995	156 000	29 000	127 000	35.4	6.5	28.9	4.50	48	66.1	63.5	68.7
1995–2000	147 000	27 000	120 000	30.1	5.6	24.6	3.60	34	68.4	65.9	71.1
2000–2005	139 000	26 000	112 000	25.8	5.2	20.6	2.91	26	70.9	68.0	73.8
2005–2010	140 000	27 000	113 000	24.3	5.1	19.2	2.68	22	72.9	69.9	76.0
2010–2015				22.8	5.0	17.8	2.54
2015–2020				20.9	5.1	15.8	2.42
2020–2025				18.7	5.1	13.6	2.28
2025–2030				17.1	5.3	11.8	2.16
* CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births; TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman)

Registered births and deaths

<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Year	Population	Live births	Deaths	Natural increase	Crude birth rate	Crude death rate	Rate of natural increase	Crude migration (per thousands)	TFR
1990	3,959,785
1991	4,058,434
1992	4,162,367
1993	4,268,685
1994	4,374,490
1995	4,476,881
1996	4,574,524
1997	4,669,352
1998	4,763,366
1999	4,858,570
2000	4,956,964
2001	5,058,643
2002	5,162,275
2003	5,267,714
2004	5,374,820
2005	5,483,447	121,380	16,770	104,610	22.1	3.1	19.0		2.94
2006	5,522,606	123,886	16,595	107,291	22.4	3.0	19.4	-12.3
2007	5,595,541	128,171	17,288	110,883	22.9	3.1	19.8	-6.6	2.51
2008	5,668,876	129,506	18,262	111,244	22.8	3.2	19.6	-6.5	2.49
2009	5,742,310	132,222	18,179	114,043	23.0	3.2	19.8	-6.8	2.49
2010	5,815,524	132,165	19,944	112,221	22.7	3.4	19.3	-6.6	2.46
2011	5,996,619	140,958	19,523	121,435	23.5	3.3	20.2	10.9	2.54
2012	6,071,045	142,874	20,300	122,574	23.5	3.3	20.2	-7.8	2.54
2013	6,134,270	142,756	21,381	121,375	23.3	3.5	19.8	-9.4	2.53
2014	6,198,154	143,421	22,469	120,952	23.1	3.6	19.5	-9.1	2.52
2015	6,262,703	144,597	23,540	121,057	23.1	3.8	19.3	-8.9	2.52
2016	6,327,927	139,595	23,738	115,857	22.1	3.8	18.3	-7.9	2.43
2017	6,393,824	139,487	24,300	115,187	21.8	3.8	18.0	-7.6	2.42
2018	6,460,411	139,126	24,296	114,830	21.5	3.8	17.7	-7.3	2.42
2019	6,527,691	131,673	25,340	106,333	20.1	3.9	16.2	- 5.8	2.28
2020	6,595,674	124,365	33,681	90,684	18.9	5.1	13.8	-3.4	2.16
2021	6,664,000	120,473	34,999	85,474	17.5	5.0	12.5	-2.1
2022	6,734,000	118,118
2023		106,439	26,160	80,279	15.6				1.8

Demographic and Health Surveys

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR):<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Year	Total		Urban		Rural
	CBR	TFR	CBR	TFR	CBR	TFR
1998	29	3,6 (2,5)	2,9 (2,0)		5,0 (3,3)
2001	27	3,2 (2,3)	24	2,6 (1,8)	31	4,4 (3,0)
2006–2007		2,7		2,2		3,5
2011/2012		2,4		2,1		2,9

Ethnic groups

File:Afro-Nica.jpg

An Afro-Nicaraguan.

According to the 2005 census 443,847 (8.6%) residents consider themselves to belong to an indigenous people or to an ethnic community.<ref name="census 2005">Template:Cite web</ref> The remaining majority of the Nicaraguan population (91.6%) are deemed mestizo and white, with the majority of these being of Spanish, with some German, Italian, Portuguese and French ancestry. Mestizos and whites mainly reside in the western region of the country.

Possibly also a part of the black or Afro-Nicaraguan population, which mainly resides on the country's sparsely populated Caribbean (or Atlantic) coast, is included in the majority population which does not consider itself to belong to an ethnic community. In the 2005 census, there were only 19,890 Creoles (0.4% of the total population). The Creole population is mostly of West Indian (Antillean) origin, the descendants of indentured laborers brought mostly from Jamaica when the region was a British protectorate.

Primarily in the 19th century, Nicaragua saw several waves of immigration from European nations. In particular the northern cities of Estelí, Jinotega and Matagalpa have significant populations of fourth generation Germans.

The Garifuna, a people of mixed Carib, Angolan, Congolese and Arawak descent, numbered 3,271 in 2005 (0.1%). 112,253 people considered themselves "Mestizo de la Costa Caribe" (mestizo of the Caribbean coast). In addition to the inhabitants who declared themselves Indigenous or Ethnic community, 13,740 answered "Other". Another 47,473 responded "Not Sure" and an additional 19,460 responded "Ignore".

Indigenous population

The Native American population, the unmixed descendants of the country's indigenous inhabitants, numbered 227,760 (4.4% of the total population) in 2005.<ref name="census 2005"/> Nicaragua's pre-Columbian consisted of many indigenous groups. In the western region, the Nicarao people were present along with other groups such as the Mangue and Subtiaba, all three being considered Mesoamerican peoples.

The central region and the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua were mainly inhabited by speakers of Misumalpan languages and some speakers of Chibchan languages. These groups include the Miskitos (120,817 people), Matagalpa (15,240 people), Ramas (4,185 people), Sumos (9,756 people) and Ulwa (698 people).

In the 19th century, the indigenous population was more demographically significant, but they have since largely been culturally assimilated into the mestizo majority. In the mid-1980s, the government divided the department of Zelaya – consisting of the eastern half of the country — into two autonomous regions and granted the black and indigenous people of this region limited self-rule within the Republic.Template:Clear

Those belonging to recognized indigenous communities (2005)
Rama	4,185	0.9%	Chorotega	46,002	10.4
Sumo	9,756	2.2%	Miskito	120.817	27.2%
Ulwa	698	0.2%	Matagalpa	15,240	3.4%
Subtiaba	19,949	4.5%	Nahua	11,113	2.5

Migration

Immigration

Relative to its overall population, Nicaragua has never experienced any large scale wave of immigrants. The total number of immigrants to Nicaragua, both originating from other Latin American countries and all other countries, never surpassed 1% of its total population prior to 1995. The 2005 census showed the foreign-born population at 1.2%, having risen 0.06% in 10 years.<ref name="CN"/> However, in the 19th century, Nicaragua received immigrants from Europe, who established many agricultural businesses such as coffee and sugar cane plantations, and also newspapers, hotels and banks.

File:DeutscheClub.JPG

The founding members of the Deutscher Club in Nicaragua, 1901

Emigration

During the Nicaraguan Revolution and the Civil War, thousands of Nicaraguans left the country. After the 1990 Nicaraguan Elections some people returned, but many more emigrated during the rest of the decade. In 1998, the Hurricane Mitch killed almost 4,000 people in the country and destroyed much of the Nicaraguan economy, as a result thousands of Nicaraguans received the TPS enabling them to emigrate to the United States as "refugees".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In recent years, many Nicaraguans had left the country to escape poverty and unemployment.

Nicaraguan emigration is a recent process. During the 1990–2004 period, more than 800,000 Nicaraguans left the country, compared to 100,000 during the 1970–1989 period.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> According to the World Bank, in 2005 there were 683,520 Nicaraguans living outside Nicaragua legally. If those who are undocumented are counted, some sources estimate as many as 1,500,000 Nicaraguans living abroad by the end of 2005.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Nicaraguans are the third largest community of Central Americans living abroad, after Guatemalans and Salvadorans. Nicaragua is also the second country in Central America by percentage of population living abroad.

Following the return of Daniel Ortega to power in the 2006 Nicaraguan general election and subsequent democratic backsliding, especially during and after the violently suppressed 2018 Nicaraguan protests, a new wave of political emigration occurred.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Most political emigrants live in Costa Rica<ref>https://www.vozdeamerica.com/a/crisis-de-nicaragua-sacude-a-vecina-costa-rica-con-migraci%C3%B3n-masiva/4519899.html Template:Bare URL inline</ref> which has been a stable representative democracy since the end of the Costa Rican Civil War in 1948. Other target countries of political emigration include the United States and European countries, particularly Spain.

Remittances to Nicaragua represent about 15% of the country's GDP.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2008 Nicaragua received close to one billion dollars in remittances; an increase from the $750,000,000 received in 2007, according to the World Bank<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Language

The official language of Nicaragua is Spanish, or Nicañol as Nicaraguan Spanish is sometimes referred to, and is spoken by the country's population. In Nicaragua the Voseo form is common, just as in other countries in Central and South America like Honduras, Argentina, and Uruguay. Spanish has many different dialects spoken throughout Latin America, Central American Spanish is the dialect spoken in Nicaragua.

Phonology

Some other characteristics of Nicaraguan phonology include:

• /s/ at the end of a syllable or before a consonant is pronounced like [h].
• j (/x/), is aspirated; it is soft as the /h/ in English (e.g.: Yahoo).
• Intervocalic /b/, /d/, and /g/ show no sign of reduction, and are much more pronounced than in most dialects.
• In some regions the double /l/ is pronounced with a ( "Shhh") sound, Argentina has a similar accent.
• There is no confusion between /l/ and /r/, as in the Caribbean.
• /s/, /z/ and in some cases /c/ (as in cerrar) are pronounced as [s]
• /m/ at the end of a word tends to be pronounced as [n]

Nicaraguans on the Caribbean coast speak their indigenous languages and also English. The indigenous peoples of the east who use their original language tend to also speak Spanish and/or English, the main languages being Miskito language, Sumo language, and Rama language. Creole languages are also present in the Caribbean coast, Nicaragua Creole English has 30,000 speakers.

Nicaragua has many minority groups. Many ethnic groups in Nicaragua, such as the Chinese Nicaraguans and Palestinian Nicaraguans, have maintained their ancestral languages while also speaking Spanish and/or English. Minority languages include Chinese, Arabic, German, Italian among others. Nicaragua also has a total of 3 extinct languages.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Nicaraguan Sign Language is also of particular interest to linguists.

Religion

Religion is a significant part of the culture of Nicaragua and forms part of the constitution. Religious freedom, which has been guaranteed since 1939, and religious tolerance is promoted by both the Nicaraguan government and the constitution. Bishops are expected to lend their authority to important state occasions, and their pronouncements on national issues are closely followed. They can also be called upon to mediate between contending parties at moments of political crisis.<ref name="LOCR">Template:Cite news</ref>

Although Nicaragua has no official religion it is nominally Roman Catholic. Practicing Roman Catholics are no longer the majority and are declining while evangelical Protestant groups and Mormons are growing rapidly have been growing since the 1990s. There are also strong Anglican and Moravian communities on the Caribbean coast.

Roman Catholicism came to Nicaragua in the 16th century with the Spanish conquest and remained, until 1939, the established faith. Protestantism and various Christian sects came to Nicaragua during the 19th century, but only during the 20th century have Protestant denominations gained large followings in the Caribbean Coast of the country. Popular religion revolves around the saints, who are perceived as intermediaries between human beings and God.<ref name="LOCR"/>

Most localities, from the capital of Managua to small rural communities, honor patron saints selected from the Roman Catholic calendar with annual fiestas. In many communities, a rich lore has grown up around the celebrations of patron saints, such as Managua's Saint Dominic (Santo Domingo), honored in August with two colorful, often riotous, day-long processions through the city. The high point of Nicaragua's religious calendar for the masses is neither Christmas nor Easter, but La Purísima, a week of festivities in early December dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, during which elaborate altars to the Virgin Mary are constructed in homes and workplaces.<ref name="LOCR"/>

See also

• Culture of Nicaragua
• National Institute of Statistics and Census of Nicaragua

General:

• Ethnic groups in Central America

External links

• Template:Official website – Nicaragua National Institute of Information Development
• Template:Cite web