Demographics of French Guiana

Historical population estimates and average annual growth rate
YearPop.±% p.a.
179014,520—    
183920,940+0.75%
185725,561+1.11%
189133,500+0.80%
Source: INSEE estimates
Census population and average annual growth rate
YearPop.±% p.a.
193637,005—    
194625,499−3.66%
195427,863+1.11%
196133,505+2.67%
196744,392+4.80%
197455,125+3.14%
198273,022+3.58%
1990114,678+5.80%
1999156,790+3.54%
2007213,031+3.91%
2012239,648+2.38%
2017268,700+2.31%
Source: SPLAF (1954-1961)[1] and INSEE (1967-2017)[2]

The Demographics of French Guiana are characterized by a young population with 44% below the age of 20 in 2017. The total population stood at 268,700 as of 1 January 2017. The demographic profile is a reflection of the territory's high fertility rates. Regarding nationality, as of 2010, 64.5% of the population had French nationality, while 35.5% were of foreign nationality with significant communities from Suriname, Haiti, and Brazil among others.

Population

[edit]

According to INSEE the population of French Guiana was 268,700 as of 1 January 2017.[2] The population is very young: 44% are below the age of 20, while only 1.7% are 75 years or older. The age distribution is a reflection of the high fertility rates of French Guiana.

Nationality

[edit]

On January 1, 2010, 64.5% of the population had French nationality, while 35.5% had a foreign nationality.[3] Of these, Surinamese (13.8% of the total population), Haitians (8.8%) and Brazilians (8.7%) were the largest groups. Smaller groups included people with nationality of Guyana (1.7%), Colombia (1.0%), China (0.5%), the Dominican Republic (0.4%) and Peru (0.2%).

Vital statistics

[edit]

The total fertility rate in French Guiana has remained high and is today considerably higher than in metropolitan France, and also higher than the average of the French overseas departments. It is largely responsible for the high population growth of French Guiana.[4][5]

Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Total fertility rate
1936 24,000 355 554 -199 14.8 23.1 -8.3
1937 24,000 408 487 -79 17.0 20.3 -3.3
1938 24,000 381 649 -268 15.9 27.0 -11.2
1939 24,000 333 499 -166 13.9 20.8 -6.9
1940 24,000 436 505 -69 18.2 21.0 -2.9
1941 24,000 437 626 -189 18.2 26.1 -7.9
1942 24,000 453 733 -280 18.9 30.5 -11.7
1943 24,000 422 702 -280 17.6 29.3 -11.7
1944 24,000 474 627 -153 19.8 26.1 -6.4
1945 24,000 620 539 81 25.8 22.5 3.4
1946 24,000 515 596 -81 21.5 24.8 -3.4
1947 24,000 539 623 -84 22.5 26.0 -3.5
1948 25,000 529 547 -18 21.2 21.9 -0.7
1949 25,000 607 471 136 24.3 18.8 5.4
1950 25,000 590 384 206 23.6 15.4 8.2
1951 26,000 558 383 175 21.5 14.7 6.7
1952 27,000 781 462 319 30.0 17.8 12.3
1953 27,000 720 426 294 26.7 15.8 10.9
1954 28,000 900 378 522 32.1 13.5 18.6
1955 29,000 941 377 564 32.6 13.0 19.5
1956 29,000 949 411 538 32.1 13.9 18.2
1957 30,000 993 426 567 33.0 14.2 18.8
1958 31,000 940 404 536 30.9 13.3 17.6
1959 31,000 1,043 460 583 34.1 15.0 19.1
1960 32,000 1,026 451 575 31.4 13.8 17.6
1961 34,000 1,066 487 579 31.8 14.5 17.3
1962 35,000 1,041 410 631 30.1 11.8 18.2
1963 36,000 1,118 446 672 31.1 12.4 18.7
1964 38,000 1,213 399 814 32.0 10.5 21.5
1965 39,000 1,161 403 758 29.0 10.1 19.0
1966 41,000 1,244 401 843 29.5 9.5 20.0
1967 43,000 1,281 376 905 29.2 8.6 20.6
1968 45,000 1,390 408 982 30.4 8.9 21.5
1969 47,000 1,424 431 993 30.0 9.1 20.9
1970 49,000 1,584 385 1,199 32.2 7.8 24.4
1971 50,000 1,600 400 1,200 31.4 7.8 23.5
1972 52,000 1,670 399 1,271 31.7 7.6 24.1
1973 54,000 1,473 418 1,055 27.1 7.7 19.4
1974 55,000 1,529 435 1,094 27.4 7.8 19.6
1975 57,000 1,476 408 1,068 25.6 7.1 18.5
1976 59,000 1,439 415 1,024 24.2 7.0 17.2
1977 61,000 1,476 463 1,013 24.0 7.5 16.4
1978 63,000 1,568 470 1,098 24.5 7.4 17.2
1979 65,000 1,704 454 1,250 25.7 6.9 18.9
1980 68,000 1,933 468 1,465 28.1 6.8 21.3
1981 71,000 2,092 428 1,664 29.3 6.0 23.3
1982 74,000 2,379 492 1,887 31.6 6.5 25.1
1983 78,000 2,314 489 1,825 28.9 6.1 22.8
1984 83,000 2,319 491 1,828 27.3 5.8 21.5
1985 87,000 2,482 501 1,981 27.6 5.6 22.0
1986 93,000 2,392 491 1,901 25.2 5.2 20.0
1987 99,000 2,700 550 2,150 27.2 5.6 21.7
1988 105,000 3,000 550 2,450 28.5 5.2 23.2
1989 111,000 3,300 550 2,750 29.6 4.9 24.7
1990 113,351 3,606 594 3,012 30.8 5.1 25.7
1991 117,327 3,922 583 3,339 32.2 4.8 27.4
1992 121,469 4,045 568 3,477 32.0 4.5 27.5
1993 125,786 4,113 578 3,535 31.5 4.4 27.1
1994 130,282 4,188 618 3,570 31.5 4.6 26.8
1995 134,968 4,264 540 3,671 30.7 3.9 26.8
1996 139,848 4,331 556 3,775 30.4 3.8 26.6
1997 144,937 4,426 598 3,828 30.1 3.8 26.3
1998 150,242 4,696 607 4,089 30.6 4.0 26.6 3.83
1999 155,760 4,907 648 4,259 30.9 4.1 26.8 3.87
2000 162,018 5,149 635 4,514 31.2 3.8 27.4 3.94
2001 168,614 5,140 660 4,480 29.9 3.9 26.0 3.79
2002 176,638 5,276 669 4,607 29.4 3.7 25.7 3.73
2003 184,792 5,553 721 4,832 29.7 3.9 25.8 3.77
2004 193,167 5,312 719 4,593 27.3 3.7 23.6 3.47
2005 199,206 5,998 705 5,293 29.7 3.5 26.2 3.79
2006 205,954 6,276 711 5,565 30.1 3.4 26.7 3.80
2007 213,031 6,386 690 5,696 29.8 3.2 26.6 3.74
2008 219,266 6,247 762 5,485 28.4 3.5 24.9 3.57
2009 224,469 6,171 699 5,472 27.4 3.1 24.3 3.50
2010 229,040 6,082 773 5,309 26.3 3.3 23.0 3.37
2011 237,549 6,259 714 5,545 26.4 3.0 23.4 3.42
2012 239,648 6,609 789 5,820 27.2 3.2 24.0 3.60
2013 244,118 6,474 767 5,707 26.1 3.1 23.0 3.47
2014 252,338 6,591 786 5,805 25.9 3.1 22.8 3.44
2015 259,865 6,806 834 5,972 26.2 3.2 23.0 3.44
2016 269,352 7,270 901 6,369 26.9 3.3 23.6 3.61
2017 268,700 8,057 964 7,093 29.6 3.5 26.1 3.92
2018 276,128 7,995 899 7,096 28.7 3.2 25.5 3.82
2019 281,678 8,104 1,020 7,084 28.6 3.6 25.0 3.82
2020 285,133 7,992 990 7,002 28.0 3.5 24.5 3.75
2021 286,618 8,127 1,365 6,762 28.2 4.7 23.5 3.78
2022 289,876 7,718 1,210 6,508 26.5 4.2 22.3 3.55
2023 292,892 7,689 1,228 6,461 24.8 4.0 20.8 3.32
2024 295,385

Structure of the population

[edit]
Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.01.2010) (Provisional) :[6]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 113 824 116 617 230 441 100
0-4 14 591 13 849 28 440 12.34
5-9 14 090 13 618 27 708 12.02
10-14 12 843 12 024 24 867 10.79
15-19 10 729 10 672 21 401 9.29
20-24 7 728 8 478 16 206 7.03
25-29 7 281 9 109 16 390 7.11
30-34 7 692 8 676 16 368 7.10
35-39 7 877 8 865 16 742 7.27
40-44 7 415 7 650 15 065 6.54
45-49 6 698 6 582 13 280 5.76
50-54 5 397 5 148 10 545 4.58
55-59 4 207 4 107 8 314 3.61
60-64 2 931 2 684 5 615 2.44
65-69 1 740 1 693 3 433 1.49
70-74 1 083 1 260 2 343 1.02
75-79 752 974 1 726 0.75
80-84 433 619 1 052 0.46
85-89 225 402 627 0.27
90-94 77 144 221 0.10
95+ 35 63 98 0.04
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0-14 41 524 39 491 81 015 35.16
15-64 67 955 71 971 139 926 60.72
65+ 4 345 5 155 9 500 4.12
Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 01.I.2015): [7]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 128 973 130 892 259 865 100
0–4 14 800 14 161 28 961 11.14
5–9 15 050 14 512 29 563 11.38
10–14 14 151 14 085 28 237 10.87
15–19 12 158 11 784 23 941 9.21
20–24 8 960 9 569 18 529 7.13
25–29 8 674 9 890 18 563 7.14
30–34 9 230 9 846 19 077 7.34
35–39 9 068 9 326 18 394 7.08
40–44 8 701 8 949 17 650 6.79
45–49 7 357 7 359 14 715 5.66
50–54 6 042 6 091 12 133 4.67
55–59 5 010 4 941 9 951 3.83
60–64 3 959 3 790 7 749 2.98
65-69 2 574 2 464 5 038 1.94
70-74 1 496 1 570 3 066 1.18
75-79 860 999 1 859 0.72
80-84 479 758 1 237 0.48
85-89 257 466 723 0.28
90-94 102 254 356 0.14
95-99 32 68 100 0.04
100+ 13 10 23 0.01
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 44 001 42 758 86 759 33.39
15–64 79 159 81 545 160 704 61.84
65+ 5 813 6 589 12 402 4.77
Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.I.2021): [7]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 140 463 150 065 290 528 100
0–4 15 210 15 355 30 565 10.52
5–9 15 253 15 368 30 621 10.54
10–14 15 265 15 006 30 271 10.42
15–19 13 697 13 899 27 596 9.50
20–24 10 402 10 901 21 303 7.33
25–29 8 367 10 345 18 712 6.44
30–34 9 119 11 051 20 170 6.94
35–39 9 170 10 909 20 079 6.91
40–44 8 884 9 650 18 534 6.38
45–49 7 891 8 787 16 678 5.74
50–54 7 211 7 412 14 623 5.03
55–59 6 107 6 372 12 479 4.30
60–64 5 009 5 165 10 174 3.50
65-69 3 714 3 705 7 419 2.55
70-74 2 440 2 545 4 985 1.72
75-79 1 394 1 559 2 953 1.02
80-84 744 1 012 1 756 0.60
85-89 397 539 936 0.32
90-94 118 297 415 0.14
95-99 42 142 184 0.06
100+ 29 46 75 0.03
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 45 728 45 729 91 457 31.48
15–64 85 857 94 491 180 348 62.08
65+ 8 878 9 845 18 723 6.44

Infant mortality rate

[edit]

The infant mortality in French Guiana is higher than in metropolitan France:[8]

  • 2007-2009: 12.0
  • 2008-2010: 11.6
  • 2009-2011: 10.1

Life expectancy

[edit]

At birth, life expectancy is 76.2 years for male children, and 82.8 for female (figures for 2011).[9]

Ethnic groups

[edit]

Estimates of the percentages of French Guiana ethnic composition vary, a situation compounded by the large proportion of immigrants.

Creoles, or Mulattoes (people of mixed African and French ancestry), are the largest ethnic group, though estimates vary as to the exact percentage, depending upon whether the large Haitian community is included as well. Generally the Creole population is judged to be about 60 to 70% of the total population if Haitians (comprising roughly one-third of Creoles) are included, and 30 to 50% without.

Roughly 41,000 people or 14% of the population of French Guiana is of European ancestry. The vast majority of these are of French heritage, though there are also people of Dutch, British, Spanish and Portuguese ancestry.

The main Asian communities are the Chinese (about 3-4%, primarily from Zhejiang province in mainland China and Hong Kong) and Hmong[10] from Laos (1-2%). There are also smaller groups from various Caribbean islands, mainly Saint Lucia as well as Dominica. Other Asian groups include East Indians, Lebanese and Vietnamese.

The main groups living in the interior are the Maroons (formerly called "Bush Negroes") who are from African descent, and Amerindians. The Maroons, descendants of escaped African slaves, live primarily along the Maroni River. The main Maroon groups are the Saramaka, Ndyuka (both of whom also live in Suriname), and Boni (Aluku).[10] The Maroons are the fastest growing ethnic group, and as of 2018 constitute about one-third of the total population with an estimated population of close to 100,000 people.[11]

The main Amerindian groups (estimated population about 10,000[10]) are the Arawak, Carib, Teko (previously called Emerillon), Galibi (now called the Kaliña), Palikur, Wayampi and Wayana. The estimated population for the beginning of the 17th century was 30,000 people.[12] Until the middle of the 20th century, there was a sharp decline in population to almost 1,200 people[13] in 1961 which was mainly caused by European diseases. Improved health care managed to turn the tide.[12]

Languages

[edit]

French and French Guianese Creole are the most widely spoken languages. There are also several native languages, including Arawakan (Arawak and Palikúr), Cariban (Carib and Wayana), and Tupi-Guarani (Emerillon and Wayampi) languages.[14] Other languages spoken include Hakka Chinese and Javanese.[14] The official language, like for all overseas departments and territories of France, is French.

Religion

[edit]

Religion in French Guiana (ARDA 2015)[15]

  Catholic Church (74.3%)
  Protestant (9.9%)
  Christian syncretic (3.5%)
  Chinese folk religion (2.9%)
  Hinduism (1.6%)
  Other religion (4.4%)
  No religion (3.4%)

The dominant religion of French Guiana is Roman Catholicism; some of the Maroons and Amerindian people maintain their own religions, however large tribes like the Kalina, Ndyuka have been Christianized.[16]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Historique de la Guyane, SPLAF
  2. ^ a b Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
  3. ^ "Résultats de la recherche". Insee.fr. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  4. ^ "TABLEAU P3D – INDICATEURS GÉNÉRAUX DE LA POPULATION PAR DÉPARTEMENT ET RÉGION". Insee.fr (in French). Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  5. ^ "United Nations Statistics Division - Demographic and Social Statistics". Unstats.un.org. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  6. ^ "United Nations Statistics Division - Demographic and Social Statistics". Unstats.un.org. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  7. ^ a b "UNSD — Demographic and Social Statistics". unstats.un.org. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  8. ^ "Résultats de la recherche - Insee". Insee.fr. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  9. ^ "Résultats de la recherche - Insee". Insee.fr. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  10. ^ a b c "Une population métissée". Guyane Amazonie (in French). 16 February 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  11. ^ Price, Richard (2018). "Maroons in Guyane". New West Indian Guide. New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids Volume 92: Issue 3-4. 92 (3–4). Brill Publishers: 275–283. doi:10.1163/22134360-09203001. S2CID 134482919. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  12. ^ a b Françoise Grenand and Pierre Grenand (1976). "Les amérindiens de Guyane française aujourd'hui : éléments de compréhension". Persée. Journal de la société des américanistes (in French). 66 (1): 363-364. doi:10.3406/jsa.1979.3041.
  13. ^ Michotte Jean. Un pays sous-développé sous-peuplé : l'exemple de la Guyane. Institution française publique de recherche (Thesis) (in French). Université de Bordeaux. p. 57. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  14. ^ a b "French Guiana". Ethnologue.com. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  15. ^ "French Guiana". Association of Religion Data Archives. 2015. Archived from the original on 2 May 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  16. ^ "French Guiana". Retrieved 5 August 2020.



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