Demographics of Qatar
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Qatar, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Natives of the Arabian Peninsula, many Qataris are descended from a number of migratory tribes that came to Qatar in the 18th century to escape the harsh conditions of the neighboring areas of Nejd and Al-Hasa. Some are descended from Omani tribes. Qatar has over 1.5 million people, the majority of whom (about 90%) live in Doha, the capital. Foreign workers with temporary residence status make up about four-fifths of the population. Most of them are South Asians, Egyptians, Palestinians, Jordanians, Iranians and Somalis. About 5,000 U.S. citizens resided there as of 2001.
For centuries, the main sources of wealth were pearling, fishing, and trade. At one time, Qataris owned nearly one-third of the Persian Gulf fishing fleet. With the Great Depression and the introduction of Japan's cultured-pearl industry, pearling in Qatar declined drastically.
The Qataris are mainly Sunni Muslims. Islam is the official religion, and Islamic jurisprudence is the basis of Qatar's legal system. Arabic is the official language and English is the lingua franca of business. Urdu is also widely spoken, especially by the South Asian foreign workers.[1] Education is compulsory and free for all residents 6–16 years old. Qatar has an increasingly high literacy rate.
Population
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 25,000 | — |
| 1960 | 47,000 | +88.0% |
| 1970 | 108,000 | +129.8% |
| 1980 | 222,000 | +105.6% |
| 1990 | 474,000 | +113.5% |
| 2000 | 591,000 | +24.7% |
| 2010 | 1,759,000 | +197.6% |
| Source:[2] | ||
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1908 est. | 22,000[3] |
| 1939 est. | 28,000[3] |
| late 1960s | 70,000[4] |
| 1986 | 369,079 |
| 1997 | 522,023[5] |
| 2000 | 744,483 |
| 2001 | 769,152 |
| 2002 | 793,341 |
| 2003 | 817,052 |
| 2004 | 840,290 |
| 2005 | 863,051 |
| 2006 | 885,359 |
| 2007 | 1,207,229 |
| 2008 | 1,524,789 |
| 2009 | 1,309,000[6] |
| 2010 | 1,696,563 |
| 2011 | 1,692,262 |
CIA World Factbook demographic statistics
The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.
Population
1,951,591 (July 2011 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years: 21.8% (male 92,896/female 87,201) 15–64 years: 76.8% (male 451,127/female 182,330) 65 years and over: 1.4% (male 6,545/female 4,690) (2008 est.)
Population growth rate
1.093% (2008 est.)
9.56% – World Bank (2009 est.)
0.96% – CIA World FactBook (2009 est.)
2.11% – 2005–2010 List by the United Nations
Birth rate
15.69 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate
2.47 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate
-2.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.06 male(s)/female
15–64 years:
2.47 male(s)/female
65 years and over: Qatari men to women is 1.3 male(s) / female or including foreigners
1.4 male(s)/female
total population:
2.00 male(s)/female (2008 est.) (the reasoning is because of high immigration of male workers to Qatar)
Infant mortality rate
total: 13.09 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.99 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population:
75.19 years
male:
73.5 years
female:
76.98 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.45 children born/woman (2009 est.) (Qataris: 3.9, Foreign nationals: 2)
Nationality
noun:
Qatari(s)
adjective:
Qatari
Ethnic groups
Mostly Arab. 85 000 Pakistanis, 30 000 Iranians, 2600 Afghans, 1000 Turks.
Religions
Islam 71–77.5%, Christian 8.5–10.3%, Hindu 7.2–12.7%, Buddhist 5%, other 1% [7][8][9][10]
Languages
Arabic (official), English (commonly used as a second language), Urdu, Hindi, Bengali and Malayalam.
Literacy
- definition: age 15 and over can read and write
- total population: 89%
- male: 89.1%
- female: 88.6% (2008 est.)
Genetics
Y-chromosome DNA
Y-Chromosome DNA Y-DNA represents the male lineage, The Qatari Y-chromosome in large belongs to haplogroup J which comprises two thirds of the total chromosomes[11]
Mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA mtDNA represents the female lineage The Qatari mitochondrial DNA shows much more diversity than the Y-DNA lineages, with more than 35% of the lineages showing African ancestry (East African & Subsaharan) & the rest of the lineages being Eurasian.[12]
- R0 ~ 22% (14% R0*, 8% H)
- JT ~ 22% (18% J & 4% T)
- UK ~ 20% (11% K & 9% U)
- L3 ~ 10% (East African & Subsaharan lineages)
- Other lineages ~ 26%
- See also : Qatar
References
- ^ "Qatar Tourist Guide". Retrieved 2012-02-15.
- ^ World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision
- ^ a b John Lockerbie (6 June 1998). "The population of Qatar". Catnaps.org. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
- ^ "Qatar – Country overview, Location and size, Population, Industry, Mining, Manufacturing, Services, Tourism". Nationsencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
- ^ "CGIS Home Page – Main Section". Gisqatar.org.qa. 31 December 1998. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
- ^ Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Population Division (2009). "World Population Prospects, Table A.1". 2008 revision. United Nations.
{{cite journal}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help);|format=requires|url=(help); Cite journal requires|journal=(help); Unknown parameter|unused_data=ignored (help); line feed character in|author=at position 42 (help) - ^ CIA World Factbook - Qatar
- ^ Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs - Background Note: Qatar
- ^ religiousintelligence.co.uk - Country Profile: Qatar (State of Qatar)
- ^ International Religious Freedom Report 2007 - Qatar
- ^ Cadenas et al. 2007
- ^ Rowold et al. 2007
