Demographics of Mozambique
Encyclopedia
The demographics of Mozambique
describes the condition and overview of Mozambique's peoples. Demographic topics include basic education, health, and population statistics as well as identified racial and religious affiliations.
s encompass numerous subgroups with diverse languages, dialects, cultures, and histories. Many are linked to similar ethnic groups living in inland countries.
The estimated 4 million Makua are the dominant group in the northern part of the country — the Sena
and Shona
(mostly Ndau
) are prominent in the Zambezi valley, and the Shangaan (Tsonga)
dominate in southern Mozambique. Other groups include Makonde, Yao, Swahili
, Tonga
, Chopi
, and Nguni
(including Zulu). The country has also a small number of European descent residents of Portuguese
ancestry. During Portuguese colonial rule, a large minority of Portuguese settlers lived permanently in almost all areas of Mozambique, and Mozambicans with Portuguese blood at the time of independence was about 360,000. Most of these left the region after its independence in 1975, returning to Portugal where they were called retornados. As compared to the European population, there is a higher mestiço
minority of Mozambicans with mixed Bantu and Portuguese heritage. The remaining Caucasians in Mozambique are Indians in Mozambique
,primarily known as Indo-Mozambicans, Pakistan
, Portuguese India
and Arab
countries. There are various estimates for the size of Mozambique's Chinese community
, ranging from 1,500 to 12,000 .
, most urban Mozambicans are required to learn English starting high-school.
missionaries were active in Mozambique, and many foreign clergy remain in the country. According to the 2007 census, about 56.1% of the population are Christians (including 28.4% Catholics), 17.9% are Muslim, 7.3% adheres to traditional beliefs and 18.7% do not associate with a specific religion.
is the official and most widely spoken language of the nation, but only 40% of Mozambique's population speak Portuguese as either their first or second language, and only 6.5% speak Portuguese as their first language. Arabs, Chinese, and Indians speak their own languages (Indians from Portuguese India speak any of the Portuguese Creole
s of their origin) aside from Portuguese as their second language. Most educated Mozambicans speak English
, which is used in schools and business as second or third language.
ic coastal traders and Europe
an colonizers, the people of Mozambique have largely retained an indigenous culture based on smallscale agriculture. Mozambique's most highly developed art forms have been wood sculpture, for which the Makonde in northern Mozambique are particularly renowned, and dance. The middle and upper classes continue to be heavily influenced by the Portuguese colonial and linguistic heritage.
The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.
Population:
Age structure:
0-14 years:
15-64 years:
65 years and over:
Population growth rate:
Birth rate:
Death rate:
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 1.02 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
under 15 years: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 1.01 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.949 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.717 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.968 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 78.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
female: 81.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
male: 76.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
total population: 51.78 years
male:
male: 51.01 years
female:
female: 52.57 years (2011 est.)
Total fertility rate:
HIV/AIDS — people living with HIV/AIDS: 1.4 million (2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS — deaths: 74,000 (2009 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Mozambican(s)
adjective:
Mozambican
Ethnic groups:
indigenous tribal groups 97.8% (Shangana, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, Ndau, and others), Euro-Africans 1%, Indians 0.5%, Arabs 0.1%, Chinese 0.1%, Europeans 0.5%
Religions:
Catholic 23.8%, Muslim 17.8%, Zionist Christian 17.5%, other 17.8%, none 23.1% (1997 census)
Languages
:
Portuguese language
(official)
Emakhuwa 26.1%, Xichangana 11.3%, Portuguese 8.8% (official; spoken by 27% of population as a second language), Elomwe 7.6%, Cisena 6.8%, Echuwabo 5.8%, other Mozambican languages 32%, other foreign languages 0.3%, unspecified 1.3% (1997 census)
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
47.8% (2003 est.), 40.1% (1995 est.)
male:
63.5% (2003 est.), 57.7% (1995 est.)
female:
32.7% (2003 est.), 23.3% (1995 est.)
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
describes the condition and overview of Mozambique's peoples. Demographic topics include basic education, health, and population statistics as well as identified racial and religious affiliations.
Ethnic groups
Mozambique's major ethnic groupEthnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
s encompass numerous subgroups with diverse languages, dialects, cultures, and histories. Many are linked to similar ethnic groups living in inland countries.
The estimated 4 million Makua are the dominant group in the northern part of the country — the Sena
Sena people
The Sena are major people of Mozambique.Historically the autocephalous Sena groups were situated between the two major centralised kingdoms of Monomotapa and of Maravi or between the two cultures of Shona and Nyanja-Chewa...
and Shona
Shona people
Shona is the name collectively given to two groups of people in the east and southwest of Zimbabwe, north eastern Botswana and southern Mozambique.-Shona Regional Classification:...
(mostly Ndau
Ndau
The Ndau is an ethnic group which inhabits the Zambezi valley, in central Mozambique all the way to the coast, and eastern Zimbabwe, south of Chipinge and Chimanimani....
) are prominent in the Zambezi valley, and the Shangaan (Tsonga)
Shangaan
The Tsonga people inhabit the southern coastal plain of Mozambique, parts of Zimbabwe and Swaziland, and the Limpopo Province of South Africa...
dominate in southern Mozambique. Other groups include Makonde, Yao, Swahili
Swahili people
The Swahili people are a Bantu ethnic group and culture found in East Africa, mainly in the coastal regions and the islands of Kenya, Tanzania and north Mozambique. According to JoshuaProject, the Swahili number in at around 1,328,000. The name Swahili is derived from the Arabic word Sawahil,...
, Tonga
Tonga people
The Tonga are an ethnic group living in northern Malawi. A related ethnic group also called the Tonga are found in Zambia and Zimbabwe, with some in Mozambique.-History:...
, Chopi
Chopi
The Chopi are an ethnic group of Mozambique. They have traditionally lived primarily in the Zavala region of southern Mozambique, in the Inhambane Province. They traditionally lived a life of subsistence agriculture, traditionally living a rural existence, although many were displaced or killed in...
, and Nguni
Nguni people
-History:The ancient history of the Nguni people is wrapped up in their oral history. According to legend they were a people who migrated from Egypt to the Great Lakes region of sub-equatorial Central/East Africa...
(including Zulu). The country has also a small number of European descent residents of Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
ancestry. During Portuguese colonial rule, a large minority of Portuguese settlers lived permanently in almost all areas of Mozambique, and Mozambicans with Portuguese blood at the time of independence was about 360,000. Most of these left the region after its independence in 1975, returning to Portugal where they were called retornados. As compared to the European population, there is a higher mestiço
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
minority of Mozambicans with mixed Bantu and Portuguese heritage. The remaining Caucasians in Mozambique are Indians in Mozambique
Indians in Mozambique
Indians in Mozambique form the sixth-largest Indian diaspora community in Africa, according to the statistics of India's Ministry of External Affairs. Roughly 40,000 people of Indian descent reside in Mozambique, as well as 870 Indian expatriates.-Origins:...
,primarily known as Indo-Mozambicans, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Portuguese India
Portuguese India
The Portuguese Viceroyalty of India , later the Portuguese State of India , was the aggregate of Portugal's colonial holdings in India.The government started in 1505, six years after the discovery of a sea route to India by Vasco da Gama, with the nomination of the first Viceroy Francisco de...
and Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
countries. There are various estimates for the size of Mozambique's Chinese community
Ethnic Chinese in Mozambique
Ethnic Chinese in Mozambique once numbered around five thousand individuals, but their population fell significantly during the Mozambican Civil War...
, ranging from 1,500 to 12,000 .
Education and health
Under Portugal, educational opportunities for poor Mozambicans were limited; 93% of the Bantu population was illiterate, and many could not speak Portuguese. In fact, most of today's political leaders were educated in missionary schools. After independence, the government placed a high priority on expanding education, which reduced the illiteracy rate to about two-thirds as primary school enrollment increased. Unfortunately, in recent years school construction and teacher training enrollments have not kept up with population increases. With post-war enrollments reaching all-time highs, the quality of education has suffered. As a member of Commonwealth of NationsCommonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
, most urban Mozambicans are required to learn English starting high-school.
Religion
During the colonial era, ChristianChristianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
missionaries were active in Mozambique, and many foreign clergy remain in the country. According to the 2007 census, about 56.1% of the population are Christians (including 28.4% Catholics), 17.9% are Muslim, 7.3% adheres to traditional beliefs and 18.7% do not associate with a specific religion.
Languages
PortuguesePortuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
is the official and most widely spoken language of the nation, but only 40% of Mozambique's population speak Portuguese as either their first or second language, and only 6.5% speak Portuguese as their first language. Arabs, Chinese, and Indians speak their own languages (Indians from Portuguese India speak any of the Portuguese Creole
Portuguese Creole
Portuguese creoles are creole languages which have been significantly influenced by Portuguese.- Origins :Portuguese overseas exploration in the 15th and 16th century's led to the establishment of a Portuguese Empire with trading posts, forts and colonies in the Americas, Asia and Africa...
s of their origin) aside from Portuguese as their second language. Most educated Mozambicans speak English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, which is used in schools and business as second or third language.
Culture
Despite the influence of IslamIslam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic coastal traders and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an colonizers, the people of Mozambique have largely retained an indigenous culture based on smallscale agriculture. Mozambique's most highly developed art forms have been wood sculpture, for which the Makonde in northern Mozambique are particularly renowned, and dance. The middle and upper classes continue to be heavily influenced by the Portuguese colonial and linguistic heritage.
CIA World Factbook demographic statistics
Population:
- 22,948,858 (July 2011 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years:
- 45.9% (male 5,295,776; female 5,245,485) (2011 est.)
15-64 years:
- 51.1% (male 5,550,501; female 6,174,668) (2011 est.)
65 years and over:
- 3% (male 313,892; female 368,536) (2011 est.)
Population growth rate:
- 2.444% (2011 est.)
Birth rate:
- 39.62 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Death rate:
- 13 deaths/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 1.02 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
under 15 years: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 1.01 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.949 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.717 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.), 0.968 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 78.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
female: 81.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
male: 76.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
total population: 51.78 years
male:
male: 51.01 years
female:
female: 52.57 years (2011 est.)
Total fertility rate:
- 5.46 children born/woman (2011 est.)
HIV/AIDS — people living with HIV/AIDS: 1.4 million (2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS — deaths: 74,000 (2009 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Mozambican(s)
adjective:
Mozambican
Ethnic groups:
indigenous tribal groups 97.8% (Shangana, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, Ndau, and others), Euro-Africans 1%, Indians 0.5%, Arabs 0.1%, Chinese 0.1%, Europeans 0.5%
Religions:
Catholic 23.8%, Muslim 17.8%, Zionist Christian 17.5%, other 17.8%, none 23.1% (1997 census)
Languages
Languages of Mozambique
Mozambique is a multilingual country. A number of Bantu languages are indigenous to Mozambique. Portuguese, inherited from the colonial period, is the official language, and Mozambique is a full member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries...
:
Portuguese language
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
(official)
Emakhuwa 26.1%, Xichangana 11.3%, Portuguese 8.8% (official; spoken by 27% of population as a second language), Elomwe 7.6%, Cisena 6.8%, Echuwabo 5.8%, other Mozambican languages 32%, other foreign languages 0.3%, unspecified 1.3% (1997 census)
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
47.8% (2003 est.), 40.1% (1995 est.)
male:
63.5% (2003 est.), 57.7% (1995 est.)
female:
32.7% (2003 est.), 23.3% (1995 est.)