What is the population of Azerbaijan? What nationalities live in this country, and how long did they settle there? You will find answers to these questions in this article.
This small state is located on the shoreCaspian Sea, right on the border of Asia and Europe, eastern and western culture. How many people live in Azerbaijan at the moment? And what kind of ethnos make up its structure?
The population of Azerbaijan, according to the latestdata of the UN, has 9.7 million people. According to this indicator, the country ranks first in the region of Transcaucasia. About 120-140 thousand of them live in the territory of the unrecognized state Nagorno-Karabakh.
Its 9 millionth milestoneAzerbaijan reached in 2010. The birth of a nine millionth citizen of the country was even recorded. It happened in the city of Nakhichevan on the morning of January 15 of the year.
As the statistics show,the population of Azerbaijan for the last hundred years has grown almost five times. Over 25 years of independence, the total population growth of this country was about 2.5 million people, which is a very high indicator for the post-Soviet states. The dynamics of the population of Azerbaijan is presented more graphically on the following schedule.
Women in Azerbaijan are slightly larger than men (50.3%). The population density of the country is 98 people per one square kilometer of the territory.
According to the Constitution, the church in Azerbaijan is separated from the state and has no influence on education, culture or any other spheres of public life.
The religious composition of the country is represented by variouscurrents and confessions, the dominant role of which is occupied by Islam. 99% of the population profess this religion. And about 85% of them are Shiite Muslims.
In addition, Azerbaijan is freethere are temples of other religions: synagogues, Catholic cathedrals, Orthodox and Protestant churches. Registered and operates in the country, even the community of Zoroastrians.
Christianity in Azerbaijan is practically notis common. So, on the territory of the state today there are only six Orthodox churches (half of them are located in the capital). The Catholic Church in this country was born in the XIV century. The most significant event in the life of Azerbaijani Catholics was the arrival in Baku of Pope John Paul III, which took place in the spring of 2002.
Representatives of many nationalities and ethnic groups reside in Azerbaijan. The first ten of them are as follows:
The absolute majority in the ethnic structurecountry belongs to Azerbaijanis. This people dominates in all regions and cities of the state (with the exception of Nagorno-Karabakh). In the early 1990s, the share of this ethnic group in the population structure of the country increased substantially due to the active resettlement of Azerbaijanis from neighboring Armenia (as a result of the Karabakh conflict).
According to the latest census, inAbout 120 thousand Armenians live in Azerbaijan. This people lives compactly in the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh - a territory beyond the control of the authorities of the country, as well as in the city of Baku.
The first Russian communities arose in the territoryAzerbaijan in the XIX century. Now about 200 thousand Russians live in the country, however their number decreases every year (mainly due to leaving the state).
A fairly large andthe whole Ukrainian diaspora. The Ukrainians began to move to this country at the end of the XIX century due to the active industrial development of Azerbaijan. At the same time the Poles began to come to the territory of the country (mainly in Baku). Their resettlement was connected, first of all, with the "oil boom" in Azerbaijan. In Baku, highly skilled engineers and ordinary workers came from Poland.
The population of the cities of Azerbaijan is only53% of the total number of its inhabitants (by European standards, this is very small). Cities with a population of more than 50 thousand people in this country are only ten. Moreover, the capital of the state - the city of Baku has significantly separated from them by the number of people. At the moment it is the only city with a million population in the state.
The largest cities of Azerbaijan: Baku, Ganja, Sumgait, Mingachevir, Khirdalan, Nakhichevan, Sheki.
In the capital of the state, according to demographers,Today there are about 2.1 million people. This city is very different from all other Azerbaijani cities. Today it is actively developing and acquiring modern high-rise buildings.
Today in Azerbaijan livesabout 9.7 million people, and the population of this country is rapidly approaching the 10 million mark. The ethnic composition of this state is rather variegated. In addition to the indigenous people, here live representatives of many other nationalities - Armenians, Russians, Lezgins, Kurds, Tatars, Turks, Ukrainians, Talyshs.