The demographics of Poland constitute all
demographic
Demography () is the statistical study of populations, especially human beings.
Demographic analysis examines and measures the dimensions and dynamics of populations; it can cover whole societies or groups defined by criteria such as edu ...
features of the population of
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
, including
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
,
ethnicity
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
, education level, the health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population.
According to the 2011 census by the
Polish Central Statistical Office (GUS), at the end of 2011, Poland had a population of 38,538,447, which translates into an average population density of 123 people/km
2 (urban ; rural ). 61.5% of the Polish population lives in urban areas, a number which is slowly diminishing. Poland is the 37th most populous country in the world (8th in Europe, with 5.4% of the European population). The total population of Poland is almost stagnant (
population growth
Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 83 million annually, or 1.1% per year. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to ...
was 0.08%). In 2018, the average life expectancy was 77.9 years; 74.1 for men and 82 for women. Population distribution is uneven.
Ethnically, Poland used to be one of, if not the most multi-ethnic countries in Europe before World War Two and it hosted the largest Jewish community in Europe with Warsaw being home to the second largest community of people of Jewish origin after New York. After war, Poland became an ethnically homogenous country but this has been changing in recent years as large cities have been attracting migrant workers from Eastern Europe. For example, already in 2017 (i.e. before
2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
), 10% of the population of Wroclaw (4th largest city in Poland) was Ukrainian; this jumped to 23% in a few months after 2022 war in Ukraine. In connection with the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
on 24 February 2022, as part of the
Russian-Ukrainian war
The Russo-Ukrainian War; uk, російсько-українська війна, rosiisko-ukrainska viina. has been ongoing between Russia (alongside Russian separatists in Ukraine) and Ukraine since February 2014. Following Ukraine's Revo ...
, by 2 August 2022, more than 10.4 million
Ukrainian refugees
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine
* So ...
left the territory of Ukraine, moving to the countries closest to the west of Ukraine, of which more than 5.1 million people fled to neighboring Poland. The number of Ukrainians refugees who continued living in Poland instead of moving to other countries is large and robust estimates using social security number registrations and geodata indicate that Ukrainian population in major Polish cities ranges between 15% - 25% of their total populatio
A number of censuses have assessed this data, including
Polish 2002 census, a national census in 2002, and a survey by the
Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights
The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights is the name of non-governmental organizations in a number of countries established under the now defunct International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights.
The organizations include:
*
*Turkmen Helsinki F ...
(HFHR), which confirmed there are numerous
autochthonous
Autochthon, autochthons or autochthonous may refer to:
Fiction
* Autochthon (Atlantis), a character in Plato's myth of Atlantis
* Autochthons, characters in the novel ''The Divine Invasion'' by Philip K. Dick
* Autochthon, a Primordial in the ...
ethnic groups in Poland. Estimates by INTEREG and ''Eurominority'' present a similar demographic picture of Poland, but they provide estimates only for the most numerous of these ethnic groups.
Like many nations with falling birth rates and considerable emigration,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
is ageing. In 1950, the median age was 25.8; today it is 41.7, and if current trends continue, it may be 51 by 2050. As the population is ageing, it also started to decline in the 1990s mainly due to low birth rates and continued emigration overseas, which impacted the local economy; however, this has started to change, with the Polish government encouraging citizens to return to Poland with increased wage incentives. The number of children born in Polish families (
TFR of 1.31, down from 2 in 1990) is one of the lowest in
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
, but has started to increase in recent years.
History
For many centuries, until the end of World War II in 1945, the population of Poland included many significant ethnic minorities.
Twentieth century
The population of Poland decreased by about six million due to the losses sustained during
the Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
and
German occupation during World War II (1939-1945), and Poland became one of the most ethnically homogeneous areas in Europe (next to the populations of Slovakia and the Czech Republic) as a result of
radically altered borders and population expulsions at the end of and after the war. The post-war population movements were accompanied by waves of forced migrations ordered by the
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
and Polish communist authorities, including the
transfers of sizable Polish populations (1944–1946) from
Poland's pre-war eastern territories, which were incorporated into the Soviet Union, the
expulsion of ethnic Ukrainians to the USSR (1944–1946),
Operation Vistula
Operation Vistula ( pl, Akcja Wisła; uk, Опера́ція «Ві́сла») was a codename for the 1947 forced resettlement of 150,000 Ukrainians (Boykos and Lemkos) from the south-eastern provinces of post-war Poland, to the Recovered Te ...
(1947), and the
expulsion of Germans
Expulsion or expelled may refer to:
General
* Deportation
* Ejection (sports)
* Eviction
* Exile
* Expeller pressing
* Expulsion (education)
* Expulsion from the United States Congress
* Extradition
* Forced migration
* Ostracism
* Person ...
(1945–1950) from
former German provinces awarded to Poland.
Recent trends
According to
GUS
Gus is a masculine name, often a diminutive for Angus, August, Augustine, or Augustus, and other names (e.g. Aengus, Argus, Fergus, Ghassan, Gustav, Gustave, Gustafson, Gustavo, Gussie).
It can also be used as the adaptation into English of ...
, about 38,325,000 people live in Poland; however, the same report states that the number of residents living in the country all the time is approximately 37,200,000, with 1,125,000 people living abroad for 6 to 7 months or more. It means that the permanent population may be correspondingly smaller.
In the 21st century, many Poles migrated following
Poland's accession to the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
in 2004 and the opening of the EU's labor market, with approximately 2 million (primarily young) Poles taking up jobs abroad.
[
]
Population
![Historical_population_of_Poland](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Historical_population_of_Poland.svg)
![Poland total fertility rate by region 2014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Poland_total_fertility_rate_by_region_2014.png)
Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2019.
*One birth every 2 minutes
*One death every 1 minutes
*Net loss of one person every 7 minutes
*One net migrant every 53 minutes
Fertility
![Total fertility rate of Poland overtime to 2016](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Total_fertility_rate_of_Poland_overtime_to_2016.svg)
The
total fertility rate
The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if:
# she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime
# she were t ...
is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources:
Our World In Data
Our World in Data (OWID) is a scientific online publication that focuses on large global problems such as poverty, disease, hunger, climate change, war, existential risks, and inequality.
It is a project of the Global Change Data Lab, a re ...
and
Gapminder Foundation
Gapminder Foundation is a non-profit venture registered in Stockholm, Sweden, that promotes sustainable global development and achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals by increased use and understanding of statistics and ...
.
;Birth rate
![BirthDeath 1950 PL](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/BirthDeath_1950_PL.svg)
:
:9.3 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 202nd
;Total fertility rate
:
:1.36 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 214th
;Mother's mean age at first birth
:
:27.4 years (2014 est.)
Life expectancy
Source: ''UN World Population Prospects''
Age structure
:''0-14 years:'' 14.8% (male 2,924,077 /female 2,762,634)
:''15-24 years:'' 10.34% (male 2,040,043 /female 1,932,009)
:''25-54 years:'' 43.44% (male 8,431,045 /female 8,260,124)
:''55-64 years:'' 13.95% (male 2,538,566 /female 2,819,544)
:''65 years and over:'' 17.47% (male 2,663,364 /female 4,049,281) (2018 est.)
;Median age
:
:total: 41.1 years. Country comparison to the world: 44th
:male: 39.4 years
:female: 42.8 years (2018 est.)
Vital statistics
Vital statistics from 1921 to 1938
[B.R. Mitchell. European historical statistics, 1750-1975.]
After World War II
Current vital statistics
Employment and income
;Unemployment, youth ages 15–24:
:total: 17.7%. Country comparison to the world: 74th
:male: 17.4%
:female: 18% (2016 est.)
Population density and urban areas
![Population density in Poland](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Population_density_in_Poland.png)
;Urbanization
:
:urban population: 60.1% of total population (2018)
:rate of urbanization: -0.25% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)
Demographics by town
Demographics by voivodeship
Immigration
Immigration to Poland has only picked up recently after 2014, when unemployment started falling and more workforce was needed. Most migration is temporary, with workers arriving for 3 to 12 months and then returning home with the earned money. Some of them stay long enough to acquire permanent and long-term stay permits (table below), but the actual amount of immigrants in Poland is far higher.
Most immigrants are hired using short-term work registrations, which are an easier way for employers to hire foreigners, than work permits, and only apply to workers from 6 former
CIS
Cis or cis- may refer to:
Places
* Cis, Trentino, in Italy
* In Poland:
** Cis, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, south-central
** Cis, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, north
Math, science and biology
* cis (mathematics) (cis(''θ'')), a trigonome ...
countries. Between 2007 and 2017, they figured as a "Declaration of intention to entrust work to a foreigner", though it led to numerous abuses, since after submitting the statement, employers were not obliged to report whether the foreigner had come, and whether he had taken the job. Migrants would sometimes take up different work than previously indicated, use the permit to move to Western Europe, or not arrive at all. On 1 January 2018, it was replaced by "Declaration of entrusting work to a foreigner". Since then, employers are obliged to report the fact that the migrant has taken up employment. The change limits the comparability of the data from the previous periods.
Since January 2018, employers may hire foreigners on a seasonal work permit, used specifically for agricultural and tourism-related work. In 2020, 60,8% of hired foreigners were women, 42% were under 35 years old, and most worked in Poland from 31 to 90 days.
The vast majority of migrants come from
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, as well as
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
,
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
, and
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, since the law doesn't require the employer to look for potential Polish workers before hiring a foreigner from said countries.
Ethnic groups
Religions
Languages
:Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census)
See also
*
Health in Poland Health status
Life expectancy in Poland at birth was 74.1 years for men in 2019 and 81.8 for women. In 2019 life expectancy for both sexes reached value 77.86 years. Despite that, the life expectancy in Poland was rapidly increasing in the last 3 ...
*
Polish diaspora
The Polish diaspora comprises Poles and people of Polish heritage or origin who live outside Poland. The Polish diaspora is also known in modern Polish as ''Polonia'', the name for Poland in Latin and many Romance languages.
There are roughly 20,0 ...
*
Statistics Poland
Statistics Poland (formerly known in English as the Central Statistical Office ( pl, Główny Urząd Statystyczny, popularly called GUS)) is Poland's chief government executive agency charged with collecting and publishing statistics related to th ...
Notes
References
External links
Statistics PolandCIA World Factbook 2004report by
Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights
The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights is the name of non-governmental organizations in a number of countries established under the now defunct International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights.
The organizations include:
*
*Turkmen Helsinki F ...
Internationales Institut für Nationalitätenrecht und Regionalismus
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Demographics Of Poland
Demographics of Poland
Society of Poland
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