POPULATION OF BOLIVIA

Bolivia is one of only three countries in Latin America whose largest population segment is comprised of Amerindians - the other two being Guatemala and Peru.

Aymara (2 million), Chiquitano (180,000), and Guaraní (125,000) are the largest. The great majority of European descendants are of Spanish origin, although fairly large German, North American and Italian communities exist as well. There are also smaller Asian, Middle Eastern, Japanese, Chinese, and other minority groups. Many of these families settled in Bolivia several generations ago.

Bolivia is one of the least-developed countries in South America. Almost two-thirds of its people, many of whom are subsistence farmers, live in poverty.

Population density ranges from 1 person per square kilometer in the far southeastern savannah region to about 10 per square kilometer in the Andes highlands.

Annual growth rate as of July 2006 has been estimated at about 1.45%.

Census According to Bolivia’s 2005 census, the country had approximately 8,858,000 inhabitants in 2005. However, a July 2006 estimate indicates this has since increased to about 8,989,046.

Languages Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official), Guaraní, Pano, and other dialects. Spanish is the first or native language in about 50% of the country. Today Quechua and Aymara are still spoken throughout a large part of Bolivia and are two of Bolivia's three official languages. This map shows the area of Bolivia in which Aymara and Quechua are still primary languages (Aymara and Quechua are also spoken as a primary language by many people who have migrated to other regions, and to many others they are second languages).

Religions The great majority of Bolivians are Roman Catholic (95%) and this is the country's official religion, although Protestant denominations (5%) are expanding strongly. Islam is practiced by the descendants of Middle Easterners, many of whom originated in Lebanon. There is also a small,yet influential Jewish community. More than 3 percent of Bolivians practice the Baha'í faith, giving Bolivia one of the largest percentages of Baha'í practitioners in the world. Due to extensive Mormon missionary efforts, there is a substantial Mormon demographic. A colony of Mennonites resides near Santa Cruz. Many indigenous communities interweave pre-Columbian and Christian symbols in their worship. Indigenous groups still live and practice their native beliefs, and tend to blend them with Roman Catholicism.

Cultural Development The cultural development of present-day Bolivia is divided into three distinct periods: pre-Columbian, colonial, and republican. Important archeological ruins, gold and silver ornaments, stone monuments, ceramics, and weavings remain from several important pre-Columbian cultures. Major ruins include Tiahuanacu, Samaipata, Incallajta, and Iskanwya. There are many more archeological sites that are yet to be explored.

Literacy (definition: age 15 and over can read and write) total literate population: 87.2%. The literacy rate tends to be much lower in some rural areas. Approximately 90% of children attend primary school, but some for only a year or less.

Bolivia's distinctive topography and ecology have had an enduring impact on settlement patterns. They also have figured in the relations among the country's diverse groups because the isolation most communities and regions faced until at least the 1950s.

The following video is 10 minutes long and in Spanish, but it features excellent examples of the many cultures that make up Bolivia. You'll hear some of the country's various languages and see dances and typical clothing from different regions. The Spanish narration explains the origins and gives brief histories of several of the indigenous populations present in Bolivia. Heavy on the current government's political views, it contains excellent footage on Bolivia's many population groups.

The 2001 census in Bolivia counted 8,274,325 inhabitants, of which 62% over the age of 15 identified themselves with an indigenous peoples.

Bolivia's population is made up of native indigenous peoples who occupied areas of the current national territory for hundreds (in some cases thousands) of years prior to the arrival of the Spanish in 1534 and other Europeans, Africans and Asians thereafter.

Indigenous groups are either from the Andean peoples, including the Aymara and Quecha, or the Eastern lowlands peoples, among which are the Chiquitanos, Guarani, Moxeños, Movida, Guarayos, and several dozen other peoples from the Amazon tropics.

Most Europeans arrived from Spain during the colonization. During the industrial revolution in the 1800's many German and Italian immigrants arrived. In the early 1900's, due to political changes in the area, Croats, Hungarians, Turks and Palestinians migrated to Bolivia. And after World War II, mostly during the early 1950's, many Japanese colonists arrived as well.

Bolivia has a very small number of African-Bolivians, most of whom reside in the Yungas region. They were brought over during the Slave Trade era by the Spanish from Congo and Angola.

A recent (2006) Country Profile by the Library of Congress reports the following:

Population: In 2004 Bolivia had an estimated population of nearly 9.3 million, with an annual growth rate of 2.4 percent. Bolivia has low population density, only 8.5 people per square kilometer. In terms of geographic settlement, 42 percent of Bolivians live in the altiplano region in the west, followed by 30 percent in the eastern plains region and 29 percent in highland valleys in the central part of the country. Urbanization is low but rising. The urban population of the country is increasing at a rate of 3.6 percent annually, mostly as a result of the migration of rural residents to cities. In 2004 about 62 percent of Bolivians lived in cities, including 40 percent in cities with more than 200,000 inhabitants. La Paz, located in the altiplano, and Santa Cruz, in central Bolivia, are the most densely populated cities. Oruro, located in the altiplano southeast of La Paz, is Bolivia’s fastest growing urban area.

Demography: Bolivia has a young and ethnically diverse population. Statistics show that 35 percent of the population is younger than 15, nearly 60 percent is 15–64, and only 4 percent is 65 and older. Experts estimate Bolivia’s birthrate at nearly 23.8 births per 1,000. The infant mortality rate stands at 53 deaths per 1,000 live births and the child mortality rate at 66 deaths per 1,000 live births, while the overall death rate is 7.6 deaths per 1,000. Life expectancy in Bolivia, 65.5 years on average, is shorter than in most other South American countries.

Ethnic Groups and Languages: Ethnically, Bolivia is not dominated by any single group of people. In a survey conducted in 2001, the National Statistics Institute found the following breakdown: mestizo (mixed race), 30 percent; Quechua, 28 percent; Aymara, 19 percent; and European, 12 percent. The remaining 11 percent come from a collection of ethnicities. Spanish is spoken by 87 percent of the population. Quechua (34 percent) and Aymara are the other prominent languages.

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