Venezuela is a large Latin American state. The form of government is the Bolivarian Republic. It is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It shares borders with Colombia, Guyana and Brazil. The Venezuelan nation was formed by the amalgamation of such racial and ethnic groups as Spaniards, Africans and Indians. Over the past 100 years, the population of the country has increased by almost 15 times. The official language is Spanish.
Population characteristics
The last large-scale census in the country was conducted back in 2001. At that time, the number of local residents barely exceeded 23 million people. Most of the population were Venezuelans. The second largest ethnic group was the Indians. The most densely populated areas of the state are the mountainous coast of the Caribbean Sea, as well as the Orinoco Delta. The rest of the population is concentrated near Lake Maracaibo, famous for its oil deposits.
Even at the beginning of the 19th century, there were only minor settlements on the territory of the country. The number of inhabitants was limited to 800 thousand people. The migration explosion happened immediately after World War II. The Venezuelan authorities began to recruit skilled workers andengineers from Europe for the oilfield. A few years later, the standard of living began to grow rapidly in the country.
The population of Venezuela (see photo below) is almost 5% of illegal migrants. Their number varies within 1.2 million people. In total, more than 51% of mestizos live in the country, 43% of Europeans, the rest are Indians, African Americans and other ethnic groups. With regards to religion, Catholicism prevails here, as well as Protestantism.
Urbanization process
The population of Venezuela (most of it, namely 93%) lives in cities. The most numerous is Caracas. About 3 million people live in it. The second most densely populated city is the city of Maracaibo. The number of its inhabitants is more than 2.1 million people.
A century ago, on the site of the main cities of the country there were simple huts on stilts. Today, Maracaibo and Caracas are modern economically developed centers not only of Venezuela, but of the whole of South America. Less populated cities are Barcelona, Maracay, Barquisimeto, Cumana, Petare and others. Interestingly, the southern region of Venezuela is practically uninhabited. This area is dominated by rocky plateaus and dense jungle.
Lifespan
Recently, the republic's authorities have been spending a lot of money to create all conditions of comfort for their citizens. This applies to both he alth and social needs.
Nevertheless, Venezuela, whose standard of living is graduallyrising is far from ideal. First of all, this concerns poorly developed he alth care. The reason for this is the lack of qualified personnel and expensive medicines. And yet, life expectancy here is kept at 70 and 76 years for men and women, respectively.
The guarantee of the he alth of local residents is considered alternative medicine based on herbal medicine and shamanic rituals.
Population indicators
Back in the early 1960s, the population of Venezuela was just over 7.5 million. The natural increase was practically zero, but the overall positive dynamics was maintained by the influx of migrants from Eurasia. By 1970, the population of Venezuela had grown by almost 50%. The average annual increase was about 4%.
In the entire modern history of the state, the trend in the number of its local residents has never been negative. No other Latin American country can boast of such results.
In 2006, it was announced that the population of Venezuela is 2.7 x 107 people. In other words, the population has reached 27 million.
Population in 2014
At the beginning of the year, the population of this country barely reached 30.8 million people. During the reporting period (12 months), the population increased by almost half a million inhabitants. Thus, the growth for the year amounted to about 1.5%. This is not the largest demographic indicator in the history of the state, but during the economic crisis, many experts did not even expectsuch results. Thus, last year in a Latin American country called Venezuela, the population was about 31.3 million people.
It is noteworthy that the entire volume of growth is a positive balance of births and deaths. The migration flow was equal to zero this year.
Current headcount numbers
The population of Venezuela in 2015 increased by about 300 thousand people. According to experts, by December, a total increase in the number of 0.5 million inhabitants is expected. Thus, the population of the country will be 31.8 million people.
Natural growth is announced at the level of 470 thousand citizens. As for migration indicators, there is no specifics here. Nevertheless, a slight influx of migrants (up to 15-20 thousand) is expected. Interesting fact: Venezuela has one of the highest birth rates in South America. More than 1.7 thousand children are born every day. At the same time, the death rate is kept within 450 people per day.
Local customs
Venezuelans spend almost all their free time with their families. Often men arbitrarily sacrifice the main traditional hobbies. In Venezuela, it is customary for the whole family to go to carnival processions and Sunday masses.
Favorite sports are football, bowling, cockfighting and horse racing.
Local wedding traditions and customs require a separate story. The event includes civiland church marriages. Exactly 2 weeks must pass between the ceremonies. After each wedding, the newlyweds are forced to arrange grand banquets for everyone.
