Population and Demographics

Brazil's population is very diverse, comprising many races and ethnic groups. In general, Brazilians are descended from five sources of migration:

Amerindians, Brazil's indigenous population, descended from human groups that migrated from Siberia across the Bering Strait around 9000 BC.

• Portuguese colonists and settlers, arriving from 1500 onward.
• Diverse groups of immigrants from Europe, Asia and the Middle East arriving in Brazil during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
• African slaves brought to the country from 1530 until the end of the slave trade in 1850.
• Neighbouring countries, primarily Peru and Argentina.

According to the Memorial do Imigrante, Brazil attracted nearly 5.5 million immigrants between 1870 and 1953: approximately 1,550,000 Italians, 1,470,000 Portuguese, 650,000 Spaniards, 210,000 Germans, 190,000 Japanese, 120,000 Poles and 650,000 of many other nationalities.

Brazil's population is mostly concentrated along the coast, with a lower population density in the interior. The population of the southern states is mainly of European descent, while the majority of the inhabitants of the north and northeast are of mixed ancestry (Amerindians, Africans and Europeans)

Ethnic Groups

Aboriginal Brazilians

The Amerindians make up 0.4% of Brazil's population, or about 700,000 people. Indigenous peoples are found in the entire territory of Brazil, although the majority of them live in Indian reservations in the North and Centre-Western part of the country. Aboriginal Brazilians are all people who descend from the earliest settlers of the country.

Although millions of Brazilians possess Indian ancestry, only 0.4% of the population consider themselves to be Indians. Reasons for this include race-mixing and the loss of their identity throughout the centuries.

White Brazilians

White Brazilians make up 53.7% of Brazil's population, or around 100 million people. Whites are found in the entire territory of Brazil, although the main concentrations are found in the wealthier South and Southeastern part of the country. Until the mid-19th century, the vast majority of Brazil's White population was of Portuguese origin, but in the large immigration period in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, people from several European countries immigrated. Nowadays, White Brazilians come from a very diverse background, which includes:

Portuguese

Most Brazilians are full or partly of Portuguese ancestry. They started arriving in 1500, the immigration grew in the 18th century and the boom occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Italians

Italians started arriving in Brazil in 1875. First they settled in rural communities across Southern Brazil. In the early 20th century, they mostly settled in the coffee plantations in the Southeast. 25 million Brazilians are of Italian origin, the largest numbers outside of Italy itself, most of them descended from Northern Italians.

Germans

The first Germans arrived in Brazil in 1824. Most of them established themselves in rural communities across Southern Brazil, such as São Leopoldo, Novo Hamburgo, Blumenau and Pomerode. In states of the south, such as Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, they may represent as much as 35% of the population.

Spaniards

Spaniards came in large numbers to Brazil, starting in the late 19th century. Most of them were attracted to work in the coffee plantations in the State of São Paulo. Today there is an estimated 15 million Brazilians of direct Spanish descent.

Dutch

The Dutch were some of the first Europeans to settle in Brazil. At a certain time they controlled as much as half of present-day Brazil.

Poles

Poles came in significant numbers to Brazil after 1870. Most of them settled in the State of Paraná, working as small farmers.

Arabs

The Arab Brazilian population is estimated at about 10 million people Besides the Europeans, many Brazilians descend from Caucasian Arabs, mostly Syrians and Lebanese people.

Black Brazilians

Black Brazilians make up 6.2% of Brazil's population, or about 11 million people. Blacks are found in the entire territory of Brazil, although the majority of them live in the Northeastern part of the country. Black Brazilians are mostly people who descend from the African slaves.

Asian Brazilians

Asian Brazilians make up 0.5% of Brazil's population, or about 2 million people. They are concentrated in two states; São Paulo and Paraná, but smaller communities are found in the entire territory of Brazil. Asian Brazilians are the descendants of East Asian immigrants.

The vast majority of Asian Brazilian are of Japanese ancestry. Brazil has the largest ethnic Japanese population outside of Japan, with over 1.5 million people. Japanese people immigrated to Brazil from 1908 to 1960, due to economic problems in Japan. There are also smaller communities of Koreans and Chinese.

Multiracial Brazilians

Multiracial Brazilians make up 38.5% of Brazil's population, or 60 million people, possess at least one Amerindian ancestor, according to a recent mitochondrial DNA study, although most of them do not know any information about their Native Brazilian ancestry.

However, their biggest communities are in the northeastern part of the country. States such as Maranhão and Piauí have the biggest amount of people that belong to this group.

Facts and Figures

• Population: 188,078,227
• Age Structure:
  • 0-14 years: 25.8% (male 24,687,656/female 23,742,998)
  • 15-64 years: 68.1% (male 63,548,331/female 64,617,539)
  • 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 4,712,675/female 6,769,028)
• Median Age:
  • Total: 28.2 years
  • Male: 27.5 years
  • Female: 29 years
• Population Growth Rate: 1.04%
• Birth Rate: 16.56 births/1,000 population
• Death Rate: 6.17 deaths/1,000 population
• Net Migration Rate: -0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population
• Sex Ratio:
  • At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  • Under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
  • 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
  • Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female
• Infant Mortality Rate:
  • Total: 28.6 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Male: 32.3 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Female: 24.7 deaths/1,000 live births
• Life Expectancy at Birth:
  • Total population: 71.97 years
  • Male: 68.02 years
  • Female: 76.12 years
• Total Fertility Rate: 1.91 children born/woman
• HIV/AIDS:
  • Adult prevalence rate: 0.7%
  • People living with HIV/AIDS: 660,000
• Ethnic Groups:
  • White 53.7%
  • Mulatto (mixed white and black) 38.5%
  • Black 6.2%
  • Other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 0.9%
  • Unspecified 0.7%
• Religions:
  • Roman Catholic (nominal) 73.6%
  • Protestant 15.4%
  • Spiritualist 1.3%
  • Bantu/voodoo 0.3%
  • Other 1.8%
  • Unspecified 0.2%
  • None 7.4%
• Languages:
  • Portuguese (official)
  • Spanish
  • English
  • French
• Literacy:
  • Total population: 86.4%
  • Male: 86.1%
  • Female: 86.6%