Population
The population of the Dominican Republic in 2007 was estimated by the United Nations at 9,760,000. which placed it as number 82 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In that year approximately 5% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 35% of the population under 15 years of age. There were 103 males for every 100 females in the country in 2007. According to the UN, the annual population growth rate for 2006–2007 is 1.5%, with the projected population for the year 2015 at 10,121,000.
It was estimated by the Dominican government that the population density in 2007 was 192 per km² (498 per sq mi), and 63% of the population lived in urban areas. The southern coastal plains and the Cibao Valley are the most densely populated areas of the country. The capital city, Santo Domingo, had a population of 3,014,000 in 2007. Other important cities are Santiago de los Caballeros (pop. 756,098), La Romana (pop. 250,000), San Pedro de Macorís, San Francisco de Macorís, San Felipe de Puerto Plata, and Concepción de la Vega. According to the United Nations, the urban population growth rate for 2000–2005 was 2.3%.
Population:
9,507,133 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 31.8% (male 1,537,981/female 1,482,546)
15-64 years: 62.4% (male 3,029,349/female 2,905,471)
65 years and over: 5.8% (male 255,898/female 295,888) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 24.7 years
male: 24.6 years
female: 24.8 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.495% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
22.65 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
5.3 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 26.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29.01 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.39 years
male: 71.61 years
female: 75.24 years (2008 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria
water contact disease: leptospirosis (2008)
Nationality:
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican
Ethnic groups:
mixed 73%, white 16%, black 11%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 95%, other 5%
Languages:
Spanish
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 87%
male: 86.8%
female: 87.2% (2002 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 12 years
male: 12 years
female: 13 years (2004)
Education expenditures:
3.6% of GDP (2006)
Courtesy of Wikipedia and CIA World Fact Book
Ethnic composition
Dominican girls at carnival in Taíno garments and makeup (2005)The ethnic composition of the Dominican population is 73% mixed race, 16% white and 11% black. The mixed population is a racial mixture of black, white, and, to a small extent, Taíno heritage. Other ethnic groups in the Dominican Republic include Haitians, Spaniards, Germans, Italians, Portuguese, Irish, Corsicans, French, and Americans. A smaller, yet significant presence of East Asians (primarily ethnic Chinese and Japanese) and Middle Easterners, primarily Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinians, can be found throughout the population.
Racial issues
As elsewhere in the Spanish Empire, the original Spanish colony of Hispaniola employed a social system known as casta, wherein Peninsulares (Spaniards born in Spain) occupied the highest echelon. These were followed, in descending order of status, by: criollos, castizos, mestizos, mulattoes, Indians, zambos, and lastly, black slaves. The stigma of these social strata persisted for many years, reaching its culmination in the Trujillo regime, as the dictator used racial persecution and nationalistic fervor against Haitians.
According to a study by the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute, about 70% of the contemporary Dominican population has African ancestry. Most Dominicans self-identify as being of mixed-race rather than black, in contrast to African identity movements in the United States. A variety of terms are used to represent a range of skintones depending on ancestry, such as morena (brown), canela (red/brown) ["cinnamon"], india (Indian), blanca oscura (dark white), and trigueño (wheat colored), among others.
Many have claimed that this represents a reluctance to self-identify with African descent and the culture of the freed slaves. According to Dr. Miguel Anibal Perdomo, professor of Dominican Identity and Literature at Hunter College in New York City, "There was a sense of 'deculturación' among the African slaves of Hispaniola. [There was] an attempt to erase any vestiges of African culture from the Dominican Republic. We were, in some way, brainwashed and we've become westernized."
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