Demography of the United Kingdom
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According to the 2001 census, the total population of the United Kingdom was 58,789,194 - the third-largest in the European Union (behind Germany and metropolitan France) and the 21st-largest in the world. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world, due to the particularly high population density in England. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban, with about 8.2 million in the capital of London. The United Kingdom's extremely high literacy rate (99%) is attributable to universal public education introduced for the primary level in 1870 (Scotland 1872, free 1890[1]) and secondary level in 1900. Education is compulsory from the ages of 5 to 16. About two-fifths of British students go on to post-secondary education (18+). The Church of England and the Church of Scotland function as the official national churches in their respective countries, but the major religions found in the world are represented in the United Kingdom.
The UK's population is predominantly White British and white. Being located close to continental Europe, the countries that formed the United Kingdom were subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries. Historically, British people were thought to be descended mainly from the varied ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century; the pre-Celtic, Celtic, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, Norse and the Normans, who had lived in Northern France. However, recent genetic analysis appears to indicate that around 80% of British DNA comes from an indigenous population who settled Britain around 12,000 years ago, with subsequent invaders contributing very little to the genepool.[2][3] Although Celtic languages are also spoken in Wales, Scotland, Cornwall, and Northern Ireland, the predominant language is English.
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[edit] History
Three sets of demographic statistics are useful to governments and others concerned with their nations’ political and economic stability. The first is an enumeration of the number of inhabitants distinguished by age, sex, and occupation. The second involves a continuous record of population trends from the registration of births, marriages, and burials. The third is documentation of the extent of internal and external migration.
[edit] England and Wales
Before 1800, England had none of these except for the civil registration of births, marriages, and burials briefly attempted under the Commonwealth (1653–1660) and an even more short-lived initiative of the same kind in 1694 in connection with the attempt to raise a tax on the occasion of every birth, marriage, and death—paupers excepted. At that time, the chief source of information on the demography was provided by parish registration of baptisms, marriages, and burials that had occurred in the parish churches, supplemented by information on mortality in the Bills of Mortality that were published for certain large towns and by inferences drawn from various counts of taxpayers. The article focuses on the reliability of the parochial registration system and the way in which it was exploited by the state as measured against the state’s objectives for establishing it in 1538. These objectives were rarely achieved. By the end of the 18th century, the parish registers were falling short of providing a national system of registration. Neither had the registers at any time provided the requisite detail to allow the verification of age, lineal descent, or right of inheritance. They had not been used as a way of raising revenue except briefly between 1694 and 1705. Moreover, the Anglican Church was extremely lax about the enforcement of its own regulations regarding the appropriate time for registering baptisms, burials, and marriages.
The ability of the registration system to fulfil these original objectives can be measured in terms of the breadth of its coverage and the quality of the information provided. Each category can be further subdivided. For example, the breadth of coverage can be defined to include the speed with which parishes throughout the country commenced the registration of baptisms, marriages, and burials; the percentage of the population whose vital events went unrecorded even in the parishes that established registers; and the success of the incumbents and churchwardens in preserving the registers completed by their predecessors. The quality of the recording can be assessed based on the amount of information offered about individuals mentioned in the registers, the extent to which that information was provided in a standard form across the country, and the clarity of the presentation (whether separate registers for baptisms, marriages, and burials were maintained). The accuracy of the work undertaken by the parochial clergy as unpaid servants of the state in providing Rickman with the totals of baptisms, marriages, and burials can also be assessed. Each of these aspects will now be considered in turn before an assessment of the overall effectiveness of the registration system is attempted. Cromwell’s brief instructions establishing the registration system did not specify what sort of register book was to be provided. Not unnaturally, most parishes chose to use paper rather than the dearer, but more durable, parchment. In 1597, the Convocation of the clergy, bishops, and archbishop of the province of Canterbury found it necessary to order parchment copies of all entries from old paper registers, instructions that were soon reissued in 1603.
The first census held throughout the UK was organised in 1801. England and Wales started the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths in 1837. The first attempt by the state to compile statistics on migration was included in the census of 1841.
[edit] Population
The population of the United Kingdom in the 2001 census was 58,789,194. This has since risen to 60,587,300 according to mid-2006 estimates by the Office for National Statistics [1].
| Part | Population (mid-2006) | % (mid-2006) |
|---|---|---|
| England | 50,762,900 | 83.8 |
| Scotland | 5,116,900 | 8.4 |
| Wales | 2,965,900 | 4.9 |
| Northern Ireland | 1,741,600 | 2.9 |
| United Kingdom | 60,587,300 | 100 |
(1 July 2006 population estimates by UK National Statistics)[2]
There are 11 cities which exceed 300,000 inhabitants, these being London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Cardiff and Coventry. Cities with urban areas in excess of 300,000 inhabitants include Nottingham, Leicester, Belfast, Southampton and Newcastle Upon Tyne.
[edit] Age structure
The most numerous age groups (at the 2001 census) were the 5-year group born in the years 1946-51 (the post-World War II baby boom); the baby boom born a generation later in 1961-66 (the largest group of all); and a more modest boom a generation after that, born in 1986-91. [3] The 1946-51 group reaches retirement age from 2006 onwards (women from 2006 and men from 2011), and the sudden increase in the number of people claiming the state pension has led politicians and political commentators to fear a "pensions crisis".
The age groups are not evenly distributed around the country, with some areas having many young adults and children [4] and some areas having large numbers of older people. [5]
| Age group | Population | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | ||
| 0–14 | 5,560,489 | 5,293,871 | 18.0 |
| 15–64 | 20,193,876 | 19,736,516 | 66.3 |
| 65+ | 4,027,721 | 5,458,235 | 15.7 |
[edit] Fertility
In 2007 the UK's total fertility rate (TFR) was 1.90 children per woman, below the replacement rate of 2.10. In 2001, the TFR was at a record low of 1.63, but it has increased each year since. The TFR was considerably higher during the 1960s 'baby boom', peaking at 2.95 children per woman in 1964.[4] TFR varies widely across the UK, standing at 2.02 in Northern Ireland, 1.73 in Scotland, 1.92 in England and 1.90 in Wales.
The TFR for British residents also varies by country of birth. In England and Wales in 1996, people born in the UK had a TFR of 1.67, India 2.21 and Pakistan and Bangladesh 4.90, for example.[5]
Most of the increase in overall fertility in England and Wales can be attributed to rising fertility among UK born women, who make up the majority of the female population of childbearing age (85 per cent in 2007). According to new estimates, the TFR for women born in the UK has risen substantially, from 1.68 in 2004 to 1.79 in 2007.
[edit] Ethnicity
From the United Kingdom Census 2001:
| Ethnic group | Population | % of total* |
|---|---|---|
| White British | 50,366,497 | 85.67% |
| White (other) | 3,096,169 | 5.27% |
| Indian | 1,053,411 | 1.8% |
| Pakistani | 747,285 | 1.3% |
| White Irish | 691,232 | 1.2% |
| Mixed race | 677,117 | 1.2% |
| Black Caribbean | 565,876 | 1.0% |
| Black African | 485,277 | 0.8% |
| Bangladeshi | 283,063 | 0.5% |
| Other Asian (non-Chinese) | 247,644 | 0.4% |
| Chinese | 247,403 | 0.4% |
| Other | 230,615 | 0.4% |
| Black (others) | 97,585 | 0.2% |
| * Percentage of total UK population | ||
[edit] Religion
The traditional religion in the United Kingdom is Christianity. In England the established church is the Church of England (Anglican). In Scotland, the Church of Scotland (a Presbyterian Church) is regarded as the 'national church' but there is not an established church. In Wales there is no established church, with the Church in Wales having been disestablished in 1920. Likewise, in Northern Ireland the Church of Ireland was disestablished in 1871. In Northern Ireland and similarly in parts of Scotland, there is a sectarian divide between Roman Catholic and Protestant communities.
The table below shows the most recent census data regarding religious belief:[6]
| Religion | Number | % |
|---|---|---|
| Christian | 42,079,000 | 71.6% |
| Muslim | 1,591,000 | 2.7% |
| Hindu | 559,000 | 1.0% |
| Sikh | 336,000 | 0.6% |
| Jewish | 267,000 | 0.5% |
| Buddhist | 152,000 | 0.3% |
| Other religion | 179,000 | 0.3% |
| Not stated | 4,289,000 | 7.3% |
| No religion | 9,104,000 | 15.5% |
| Total religious | 45,163,000 | 76.8% |
Although the Census 2001 also recorded 390,000 Jedi Knights, making Jedi the fourth-largest "religion" in the UK, this does not confer them any official recognition.
See also: Status of religious freedom in the United Kingdom, Islam in the United Kingdom, Hinduism in the United Kingdom, Buddhism in the United Kingdom, Sikhism in the United Kingdom, Judaism in the United Kingdom
[edit] Languages
The United Kingdom has no official language. The dominant language, spoken as a first language by 95% of the population is English. Scots is spoken by around 1.5 million people in Scotland and 30,000 in Northern Ireland, where it is called Ulster Scots, though this is often exaggerated. Welsh is spoken by around 610,000 people. Scottish Gaelic is spoken by about 60,000 speakers, mostly in Scotland. Cornish is spoken by around 2,500 people. Irish is spoken by about 106,844 speakers in Northern Ireland. The Polish minority in the United Kingdom estimated over 600,000 people speak mostly Polish language at homes, Polish Britons are mainly Polish-born immigrants to the UK.
British Sign Language is also common.
[edit] Education
Each country of the United Kingdom has a separate education system, with power over education matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland being devolved.
The Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families and the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills are responsible to the UK Parliament for education in England, though the day to day administration and funding of state schools is the responsibility of Local Education Authorities. Universal state education in England and Wales was introduced for primary level in 1870 and secondary level in 1900.[7] Education is mandatory from ages five to sixteen (15 if born in late July or August). The majority of children are educated in state-sector schools, only a small proportion of which select on the grounds of academic ability. Despite a fall in actual numbers, the proportion of children in England attending private schools has risen to over 7%[8]. Just over half of students at the leading universities of Cambridge and Oxford had attended state schools.[9] State schools which are allowed to select pupils according to intelligence and academic ability can achieve comparable results to the most selective private schools: out of the top ten performing schools in terms of GCSE results in 2006 two were state-run grammar schools. England has some of the top universities in the world with Cambridge, Oxford, and London ranked amongst the top 20 in the 2007 THES - QS World University Rankings.[10]
In Scotland, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning is responsible to the Scottish Parliament for education, with day to day administration and funding of state schools being the responsibility of Local Authorities. Scotland first legislated for universal provision of education in 1696. The proportion of children in Scotland attending private schools is just over 4% though it has been rising slowly in recent years.[11] Scottish students who attend Scottish universities pay neither tuition fees nor graduate endowment charges as the fees were abolished in 2001 and the graduate endowment scheme was abolished in 2008.[12]
The National Assembly for Wales has responsibility for education in Wales. A significant number of students in Wales are educated either wholly or largely through the medium of Welsh and lessons in the language are compulsory for all until the age of 16. There are plans to increase the provision of Welsh Medium schools as part of the policy of having a fully bi-lingual Wales.
The Northern Ireland Assembly is responsible for education in Northern Ireland though responsibility at a local level is administered by 5 Education and Library Boards covering different geographical areas.
[edit] See also
- Geography of the United Kingdom
- Population of England - historical estimates
- Citizen Information Project proposals for a national population register
- Office for National Statistics
- UK Census
- Lists of U.K. locations with large ethnic populations
[edit] References
- ^ Education (Scotland) Act 1872
- ^ Review of "The Tribes of Britain" James Owen, National Geographic 19 July 2005.
- ^ Stephen Oppenheimer, Myths of British ancestry, Prospect, October 2006, accessed 21 September 2006.
- ^ "Fertility: UK fertility highest since 1980". Office for National Statistics (2007-08-22). Retrieved on 2007-09-22.
- ^ Charles F. Westoff and Tomas Frejka, Fertility and religiousness among European Muslims, 21 February 2007, accessed 22 September 2007
- ^ 2001 census data (by ethnicity)
- ^ "United Kingdom". Humana. Retrieved on 2006-05-18.
- ^ Private school pupil numbers in decline guardian.co.uk November 9th, 2007
- ^ More state pupils in universities BBC News, July 19th, 2007
- ^ "The top 200 world universities". Times Higher Education (2007-11-09). Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ in private school intake BBC News April 17th, 2007
- ^ MSPs vote to scrap endowment fee BBC News, February 28, 2008
- This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
- "Census 2001". Religion in Britain. Retrieved on September 6, 2005.
- "Census 2001". 390,000 Jedis There Are. Retrieved on September 6, 2005.
- Census 2001 website
- Abstract (1833). Abstract of the Answers and Returns made pursuant to an act passed in the eleventh year of the reign of His MajestyKing George IV intituled an act for taking an account of the population of Great Britain, and the increase and diminution thereof. Population Register Abstract 1831. British Parliamentary Papers, 38.
- Arkell, T. (1992). An examination of the poll taxes of the late seventeenth century, the Marriage Duty Act and Gregory King.
- K. Schurer, & T. Arkell (Eds.), Surveying the people. The interpretation and use of document sources for the study of population in the late seventeenth century (pp. 142–177). Oxford: Leopard’s Hill Press.
- Boulton, J. (1992). The Marriage Duty Act and parochial registration in London, 1695–1706. In K. Schurer, & T. Arkell (Eds.), Surveying the people. The interpretation and use of document sources for the study of population in the late seventeenth century (pp. 222–252). Oxford: Leopard’s Hill Press.
- Boulton, J. (1993). Clandestine marriage in London: an examination of the neglected urban variable. Urban History, 20,
191–210.
[edit] External links
- Population Trends
- Social Trends
- Population and migration Office for National Statistics
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