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 has common borders with Colombia, Guyana and Brazil. The Venezuelan nation was formed as a result of the unification of racial and ethnic groups such as Spaniards, Africans and Indians. Over the past 100 years, the country's population has increased by almost 15 times. The official language is considered to be 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 was Venezuelans. The second largest ethnic group were 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.
As early as the beginning of the 19th century, there were only insignificant settlements on the territory of the country. The number of inhabitants was limited to 800 thousand people. A migratory explosion occurred immediately after the Second World War. The authorities of Venezuela began to recruit skilled workers and engineers from Europe for the oil field. Within a few years, the standard of living began to grow rapidly in the country.
The population of Venezuela (see photo below) is almost 5% composed of illegal migrants. Their number varies within 1.2 million people. In total, more than 51% of Mestizos, 43% of Europeans live in the country, the rest are Indians, African Americans and other ethnic groups. With regard 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 populated city is 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 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. It is interesting that the southern region of Venezuela is practically not populated. Stony plateaus and impenetrable jungle prevail in this area.
Life span
Recently, the republic’s authorities have been spending a lot of money on creating all conditions of comfort for their citizens. This applies to health and social needs.
Nevertheless, Venezuela, whose standard of living is gradually rising, is far from ideal. This primarily concerns poorly developed healthcare. The reason for this is the lack of qualified personnel and expensive medicines. Nevertheless, life expectancy here is at the level of 70 and 76 years for men and women, respectively.
Alternative medicine based on herbal medicine and shamanistic rituals is considered to be the key to the health of local residents.
Numbers
Back in the early 1960s, the population of Venezuela was just over 7.5 million people. Natural growth was almost zero, but the overall positive dynamics was maintained due to the influx of migrants from Eurasia. By 1970, the population of Venezuela had grown by almost 50%. On average, annual growth was about 4%.
Throughout the 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 10 7 people. In other words, the number 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 was about 1.5%. This is not the largest demographic indicator in the history of the state, however, during the period of the economic crisis, many experts did not even expect such 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 the born and the dead. Migration flow was equal to zero this year.
Current numbers
The population of Venezuela in 2015 increased by approximately 300 thousand people. According to experts, by December a total population growth of 0.5 million inhabitants is expected. Thus, the country's population will be 31.8 million people.
Natural growth is announced at the level of 470 thousand citizens. As for migration indicators, there is no specificity here. Nevertheless, a slight influx of immigrants is expected (up to 15-20 thousand). Interesting fact: Venezuela has one of the highest birth rates in South America. More than 1.7 thousand children are born per day. In this case, mortality is kept within 450 people per day.
The customs of the locals
Venezuelans spend almost all their free time with their families. Often, men arbitrarily sacrifice their main traditional hobbies. In Venezuela, the whole family decided to go to carnival processions and Sunday masses.
Favorite sports are football, bowling, cockfights and horse racing.
Local wedding traditions and customs require a separate story. The event includes civil and church marriages. Exactly 2 weeks should elapse between ceremonies. After each marriage, the newlyweds are forced to arrange grand banquets for everyone.