Demographics of the Netherlands

Demographics of {{{place}}}
Population of Netherlands (1900-2000)
Population	16,615,275 (61st)
Density	397 per km² (27th)
Growth rate	0.436% (141st)
Birth rate	10.53 births/1,000 (161st)
Death rate	8.71 deaths/1,000 (82nd)
Life expectancy	79.25 years (20th)
• male	76.66 years
• female	81.98 years
Fertility rate	1.77 children/woman
Age structure
0–14 years	17.6%
15–64 years	67.8%
65 and over	14.6%
Sex ratio
Total	0.98 male/female
At birth	1.05 male/female
Under 15	1.05 male/female
15–64 years	1.02 male/female
65 and over	0.75 male/female
Nationality
Nationality	Dutch
Major ethnic	Dutch 79.71%
Minor ethnic	Turkish 2.31% Indonesian 2.3% German 2.28% Moroccan 2.1% Surinamese 2.06% Netherlands Antilles/Aruba 0.83% Other 8.36%
Language
Official	Dutch, Frisian

This article is about the demographic of the Netherlands, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Population size

The Netherlands is the 61st most populated country in the world and as of February 23, 2009 it has a population of 16,499,084.

Between 1900 and 1950 the population had doubled from 5.1 to 10.0 million people. From 1951 to 2000 the population increased from 10.0 to 15.9 million people, making the relative increase smaller.

Population density

Population density per province in 2006

The Netherlands is the twenty-seventh most densely populated country in the world. The 16,499,084 Dutch men and women are concentrated on an area of 41,526 km²; this means that the country has a population density of 397 per km², or 487 per km² if only the land area, 33,883 km², is counted.

Bangladesh and South Korea are larger and more densely populated (hence have a larger population), and only Taiwan is smaller and has a larger population (hence a larger population density). There are 21 more countries (12 independent ones and 9 dependent territories) with a larger population density, but they all have a smaller population (hence a smaller area). If the water area is not counted then Taiwan is larger, and there are 16 more countries (9 independent ones and 7 dependent territories) with a larger population density.

As a result of these demographic characteristics the Netherlands has had to plan its land use strictly. Since 1946 the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment has been occupied with the national coordination of land use. Because of its high population density the Netherlands has also reclaimed land from the sea by poldering. Between 1927 and 1968 an entire province, Flevoland was created. It currently houses 365,301 people. Because of these policies, the Dutch have been able to combine high levels of population density with extremely high levels of agricultural production.

Even though the Netherlands is so densely populated; there are no cities with a population over 1 million in the Netherlands. Instead 'four big cities' as they are called (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht) can in many ways be regarded as a single metropolitan area, the Randstad ('rim or edge city') with about 7 million inhabitants around an agricultural 'green heart' (het Groene Hart). The unity of this conurbation can be illustrated by the current idea effort to create a circular train system connecting the four cities.

Largest municipalities in the Netherlands Statistics Netherlands
	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.
Amsterdam Rotterdam	1	Amsterdam	North Holland	905,234	11	Apeldoorn	Gelderland	165,648	The Hague Utrecht
	2	Rotterdam	South Holland	656,050	12	Arnhem	Gelderland	164,096
	3	The Hague	South Holland	552,995	13	Haarlem	North Holland	162,914
	4	Utrecht	Utrecht	361,924	14	Enschede	Overijssel	160,383
	5	Eindhoven	North Brabant	238,478	15	Haarlemmermeer	North Holland	159,346
	6	Groningen	Groningen	234,649	16	Amersfoort	Utrecht	158,712
	7	Tilburg	North Brabant	224,702	17	Zaanstad	North Holland	157,215
	8	Almere	Flevoland	218,096	18	's-Hertogenbosch	North Brabant	156,599
	9	Breda	North Brabant	184,716	19	Zwolle	Overijssel	130,872
	10	Nijmegen	Gelderland	179,073	20	Leeuwarden	Friesland	127,088

Births and deaths

Dutch population pyramid
(in % of total population)

%	Male	Age	Female	%
0.36		85+		1.05
0.60		80-84		1.18
1.14		75-79		1.74
1.55		70-74		1.95
1.93		65-69		2.13
2.30		60-64		2.33
2.77		55-59		2.69
3.73		50-54		3.60
3.65		45-49		3.54
3.93		40-44		3.81
4.27		35-39		4.08
4.25		30-34		4.05
3.63		25-29		3.54
3.04		20-24		2.93
2.96		15-19		2.83
3.11		10-14		2.97
3.20		05-09		3.06
3.11		00-04		2.98
Data: International Data Base (2000)

The Dutch population is ageing. Furthermore, the life expectancy has increased because of developments in medicine, and in addition to this, the Netherlands has seen increasing immigration. These developments combined with the population boom after the Second World War has created extremely low population growth: in 2005 saw the lowest absolute population growth since 1900.

This has created a demographic problem with consequences for health care and social security policy. As the Dutch population ages, the number of people able to work, as a percentage of the entire population, decreases. Important policy advisors like the CBS and the CPB have predicted that this makes the current system of old age pensions problematic: fewer people will work to pay for old age pensions, while there will be more people receiving those pensions. Furthermore the costs of health care are also projected to increase. These developments have caused several cabinets, most notably the recent Second cabinet Balkenende to reform the system of health care and social security: increasing participation in the labour market and making people more conscious of the money they spend on health care.

In 2003, the birth rate was highest in the province of Flevoland (15.9). Total fertility rate (TFR) was highest in the province of Flevoland (2.0) and lowest in the province of Limburg (1.6). The municipality with the highest TFR was Urk (3.23) followed by Valkenburg (2.83), Graafstroom (2.79) and Staphorst (2.76). The lowest TFR were recorded in Vaals (1.11)and Thorn (1.21).[4]

In the year 2006, there were 185,124 births, 135,809 deaths, 101,489 immigrants and 132,682 emigrants. The net population growth was 22,704. The total population at December 31, 2006 was 16,356,914. The population loss due to net emigration was 35,502 (an estimated 40-50% of emigrants were ethnic non-Dutch).

In 2007, there were 181,000 births and 133,000 deaths. There were 117,000 immigrants(Including 7,000 Germans, 6,000 Poles, 5,000 Bulgarians, 3,000 Turks and 2,000 Moroccans) and 123,000 emigrants(Nearly half of emigrants were native Dutch, followed at a distance by nearly 5000 Poles and more than 3000 Germans). There was an observable increase in net-immigration from the former USSR, Bulgaria and Romania. [5]

The death rate were lowest in the municipalities of Valkenburg (2.9 per 1000), Zeewolde (3.2), Renswoude (3.4), Westervoort and Zeevang (both 3.9). The highest death rates were recorded in Warmond (22.3), Laren (19.9) and Doorn (18.8). [6]

16.4% of the total births in 2003 were to parents of non-European origin, although they account for only 12.4% of the population in the 25-34 age group. For example, 3.8% of the births were ethnic Moroccan, although they were only 2.26% of the 25-34 age group. Respective figures were 3.27% and 3.0% for Turks. The TFR for Moroccans in 2003 was 3.3 while the general TFR was 1.73. TFR was 2.3 for Turks, 1.7 for Surinamese, 1.8 for Arubans, 3.0 for Africans and 1.8 for Latinos. [7]

According to Statistics Netherlands, for the year 2007, TFR for those who were born in Netherlands was 1.72 (1.65 in 2000). TFR of Moroccan immigrants was 2.87 (3.22 in 2000) and that of Turkish immigrants was 1.88 (2.18 in 2000). [8]

Migration & Ethnicity

As the result of immigration, the Netherlands has a sizeable minority of non indigenous peoples. There is also considerable emigration. In 2005 some 121,000 people left the country, while 94,000 entered it. Out of a total of 101,150 people immigrating to Netherlands in 2006, 66,658 were from Europe, Oceania, Americas or Japan, and 34,492 were from other (mostly developing) countries. Out of a total of 132,470 emigrants, 94,834 were going to Europe, Oceania, Americas or Japan and 37,636 to other countries. [9]

A large number of immigrants come from countries in Western Europe, mostly from the bordering countries of Germany and Belgium. There were five subsequent waves of immigration from other countries in recent history.

1. In the 1940s people from the newly independent Indonesian republic migrated to the Netherlands - mainly the Indo (people of mixed European and Indonesian ancestry) and people from the Maluku Islands, which had been annexed by Indonesia.
2. In the 1960s and 1970s migrants from Southern Europe (i.e. Italy, Portugal and Spain), Turkey and Morocco came to work in the Netherlands as guest workers. They were expected to return to their own country and many did, but others remained and in the 1980s and 1990s were joined by their families. In the 2000s their children usually marry people from their home country.
3. In the 1970s and 1980s people migrated from the newly independent Surinam and from the Netherlands Antilles, which remained part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. These people migrated because these people still held a Dutch passport and saw a better future in the Netherlands.
4. In the 1990s the Netherlands saw increasing migration of asylum seekers. Most notably are Iraqis, Iranians, Thais, Burmese, Chileans and Argentines fleeing from political oppression and/or persecution.
5. And in the 2000s, migrant workers from new EU member states in Eastern Europe like Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, and non-EU states Moldova, Ukraine and former Yugoslavia in Southern Europe.

Recent developments

Further information: Integration law for new immigrants to the Netherlands

With the enlargement of the European Union during the 2000s, the Netherlands has seen a rise of migrants coming from new member countries. Migrant workers from these countries total about 100,000 as of 2007. In the first nine months of 2007, about 13,000 immigrants from Bulgaria, Romania and Poland moved to the Netherlands, almost twice as much as in the same period a year earlier. Of the Poles who initially moved in 2004, about a quarter had returned by 2006.

As of 2010:

Ethnic Group	Number	Percentage
Ethnic Dutch	13,215,458	79.71%
Turkish	384,164	2.31%
Indonesian	382,319	2.30%
German	379,017	2.28%
Moroccans	349,270	2.10%
Surinamese	342,016	2.06%
Netherlands Antilles and Aruba	138,113	0.83%
Others	1,387,255	8.36%
Total	16,577,612	100%

Emigration

The Netherlands has seen considerable emigration. In the 1950s 560,000 people migrated to the United States, South Africa, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, leaving their war-torn and overpopulated home country behind. In 2005 some 121,000 people migrated from the Netherlands. There is considerable migration towards neighbouring states, Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom and to the Netherlands Antilles. Furthermore almost half of the current emigration consists of people returning to their country of birth, including rejected asylum seekers, after the more stringent migration laws were implemented.

Religion

Main article: Religion in the Netherlands

According to the CIA World Factbook, as of 2002 the religious makeup of the Netherlands was 31% Roman Catholic, 13% Dutch Reformed, 7% Calvinist, 5.5% Muslim, 2.5% other and 41% none. However, according to a survey done in 2006, 25% of the Dutch people are Christian, 3% adhere to another organised religion (Judaism, Islam, Hinduism etc.) , 26% are 'unbounded spiritual' (individual spiritual beliefs, agnostics, etc.), 26% are non-religious (moderate) humanist and the remaining 18% are non-religious non-humanist.

Language

Main article: Languages of the Netherlands

The main language is Dutch, while West Frisian is also a recognized language and it is used by the government in the province of Fryslan. Several dialects of Low Saxon (Nedersaksisch in Dutch) are spoken in much of the north and east and are recognized by the Netherlands as regional languages according to the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Another Dutch dialect granted the status of regional language is Limburgish, which is spoken in the south-eastern province of Limburg.

Genetics

The genetic makeup of the Dutch is typified by a high occurrence of the Y-chromosome markers: haplogroup R1b (averaging 70%) and haplogroup I (averaging 25%). These chromosomes are associated with Eurasiatic Cro Magnoid homo sapiens of the Aurignacian culture, the first modern humans in Europe, and the people of the Gravettian culture that entered Europe from the Middle East 20,000 to 25,000 years ago.

With 70.4%, the Dutch have one of the highest percentages of haplogroup R1b occurrences in Northwestern Europe, comparable to that of the (combined) British population; 72%. Neighbouring populations have lower occurrence of this chromosome (French: 52.2% and Germans: 50.0%); with again a percentage similar to that of the Dutch among the inhabitants of the Iberian peninsula and French Atlantic coast. The Dutch hence fit the Atlantic Haplotype Modal, which is the primary model of peoples living along or in the vicinity of the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea.

Within the R1b haplogroup its R1b1b2a1 subclade is most dominant, and in fact peaks in occurrence among the Dutch and Frisians at 37.2%. The Dutch share this high rate with the people in Southwest England (21.4%) and Denmark (17.7%). Other haplogroups are less frequent in the Dutch population: Haplogroup E1b1b (8%) and haplogroup R1a1 (3.7%). The latter is found more frequently in East of the Netherlands.

See also

• Dutch people
• Islam in the Netherlands
• Immigration to Europe
• List of countries by immigrant population

External links

• CIA World Factbook data
• CBS Dutch Bureau of Statistics