Syria Demographics Profile 2013

Population

22,530,746 (July 2012 est.)
note: approximately 18,700 Israeli settlers live in the Golan Heights (2011)

Age structure

0-14 years: 34.6% (male 3,990,769/female 3,793,859)
15-24 years: 21.1% (male 2,431,142/female 2,326,152)
25-54 years: 36.1% (male 4,140,624/female 4,001,430)
55-64 years: 4.4% (male 487,540/female 501,217)
65 years and over: 3.8% (male 393,984/female 464,029) (2012 est.)

Median age

total: 22.3 years
male: 22.1 years
female: 22.5 years (2012 est.)

Population growth rate

-0.797% (2012 est.)

Birth rate

23.52 births/1,000 population (2012 est.)

Death rate

3.67 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)

Net migration rate

-27.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 56% of total population (2010)
rate of urbanization: 2.5% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major cities - population

Aleppo 2.985 million; DAMASCUS (capital) 2.527 million; Hims 1.276 million; Hamah 854,000 (2009)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 15.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.38 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 74.92 years
male: 72.53 years
female: 77.45 years (2012 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.85 children born/woman (2012 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

fewer than 500 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

fewer than 200 (2003 est.)

Sanitation facility access

improved:
urban: 96% of population
rural: 95% of population
total: 96% of population
unimproved:
urban: 4% of population
rural: 5% of population
total: 4% of population

Nationality

noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian

Ethnic groups

Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%

Religions

Sunni Muslim (Islam - official) 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)

Languages

Arabic (official), Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian (widely understood); French, English (somewhat understood)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79.6%
male: 86%
female: 73.6% (2004 census)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 11 years
male: 12 years
female: 11 years (2007)

Education expenditures

4.9% of GDP (2007)

Maternal mortality rate

70 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

10% (2006)

Health expenditures

2.9% of GDP (2009)

Physicians density

1.5 physicians/1,000 population (2008)

Hospital bed density

1.5 beds/1,000 population (2009)