Demographics of Belgium

Demographic features of the population of Belgium include ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects. All figures are from the National Institute for Statistics unless otherwise indicated.[2]

Demographics of the Kingdom of Belgium
Population pyramid of Belgium in 2022
Population11,556,297 (February 2021) 82nd
Growth rate0.54% (2021 est.)
Birth rate10.3 births/1,000 population (2021)
Death rate9.8 deaths/1,000 population (2021)
Life expectancy81.65 years (2021 est.)
 • male79.2 years (2021 )[1]
 • female84 years (2021 )[1]
Fertility rateDecrease 1.54 children born/woman (2022)[lower-alpha 1]
Infant mortality rate3.24 (2021 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years16.1% (male 857,373/female 822,303)
15–64 years66.3% (male 3,480,072/female 3,419,721)
65 and over17.6% (male 760,390/female 1,074,477) (2009 est.)
Sex ratio
At birth1.04 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Under 151.04 male(s)/female
15–64 years1.02 male(s)/female
65 and over0.72 male(s)/female
Nationality
Nationalitynoun: Belgian(s) adjective: Belgian
Major ethnic58% Flemish
Minor ethnic31% Walloon, 11% Mixed/Other
Language
SpokenDutch, French, German
Population density in Belgium by arrondissement.

Population
Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1000 400,000—    
1100 600,000+0.41%
1200 900,000+0.41%
1300 1,250,000+0.33%
1400 800,000−0.45%
1500 1,250,000+0.45%
1600 1,500,000+0.18%
1700 1,750,000+0.15%
1800 3,500,000+0.70%
1846 4,337,196+0.47%
1856 4,529,460+0.43%
1866 4,827,833+0.64%
1876 5,336,185+1.01%
1880 5,520,009+0.85%
1890 6,069,321+0.95%
1900 6,693,548+0.98%
1910 7,423,784+1.04%
1920 7,465,782+0.06%
1930 8,092,004+0.81%
1947 8,512,195+0.30%
1961 9,189,741+0.55%
1970 9,650,944+0.55%
1981 9,848,647+0.18%
1991 9,978,681+0.13%
2001 10,296,350+0.31%
2011 11,000,638+0.66%
2021 11,521,238+0.46%
Source: Our World in Data[3] Statistics Belgium, 2018[4]

Belgium had a population of 11,190,846 people on 1 January 2015 as compared to the 10,839,905 people on 1 January 2010, an increase of 601,000 in comparison to 2000 (10,239,085 inhabitants). Between 1990 (9,947,782 inhabitants) and 2000 the increase was only 291,000. As of January 1, 2020, Belgium has a population of 11,492,641[5] and is the 80th most populous country in the world. The population of Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels on January 1, 2019 was 6,589,069 (57.6% of Belgium), 3,633,795 (31.8% of Belgium) and 1,208,542 (10.6% of Belgium), respectively. The population density of Belgium is 376/km2 (970/sq mi) as of July 1, 2020, making it the 22nd most densely populated country in the world, and the 6th most densely populated country in Europe. The most densely populated province is Antwerp, the least densely populated province is Luxembourg.

The following demographic statistics are from the World Population Review in 2019.[6]

Historic population development of Belgium
  • One birth every 4 minutes
  • One death every 5 minutes
  • One net migrant every 12 minutes
  • Net gain of one person every 9 minutes

[7]

Life expectancy

Sources: Our World In Data and the United Nations.

1841–1950

Years 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 40.3 38.6 40.4 41.9 41.0 37.8 35.1 38.0 35.0 42.3
Years 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 41.9 41.8 41.3 39.7 37.4 40.9 40.4 40.1 38.9 45.1
Years 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 41.2 43.1 41.3 39.8 37.7 32.4 43.0 42.5 42.6 40.9
Years 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 34.3 40.0 43.5 44.7 42.1 43.7 44.5 44.2 43.8 42.4
Years 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 44.4 45.5 44.9 44.2 45.4 43.3 46.0 44.9 45.0 44.1
Years 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 44.0 43.1 44.4 46.6 45.4 48.0 48.8 48.1 46.5 46.5
Years 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 49.4 49.1 49.2 49.3 49.9 49.6 51.0 49.6 50.6 51.3
Years 1911 1912 1913 1919 1920[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 49.2 52.3 52.4 49.8 53.6
Years 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 54.7 55.1 56.7 57.4 57.1 56.9 57.1 57.4 55.0 57.1
Years 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 58.4 58.5 58.7 60.3 59.9 59.9 60.0 60.1 60.0 55.9
Years 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950[8]
Life expectancy in Belgium 58.9 59.1 60.3 56.9 58.4 61.9 63.4 64.9 65.4 66.3

1950–2015

Life expectancy in Belgium since 1841
Life expectancy in Belgium since 1960 by gender
Period Life expectancy in
Years		 Period Life expectancy in
Years
1950–1955 67.8 1985–1990 75.3
1955–1960 69.5 1990–1995 76.4
1960–1965 70.3 1995–2000 77.4
1965–1970 70.7 2000–2005 78.4
1970–1975 71.5 2005–2010 79.6
1975–1980 72.7 2010–2015 80.5
1980–1985 73.9 2015-2020 81.44

Source: UN World Population Prospects[9]

Life expectancy at birth; total population: 81.65 years. Country comparison to the world: 32nd

male: 79.02 years
female: 84.4 years (2021 est.)

Fertility

The total fertility rate (TFR) gradually increased during the last decade from 1.60 in 1997, 1.65 in 2002 and 1.82 in 2007. The rates in Brussels are higher than the national average (1.79 in 1997, 1.93 in 2002 and 2.09 in 2007), while they are below the average in Flanders (1.54 in 1997, 1.56 in 2002 and 1.77 in 2007), due to the higher percentage of non-European immigrants with higher birth rates in Brussels.[10]

The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources: Our World In Data and Gapminder Foundation.[11]

Years18301831183218331834183518361837183818391840[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.724.774.824.874.924.974.974.984.984.995
Years1841184218431844184518461847184818491850[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.944.884.824.764.74.644.584.514.454.38
Years1851185218531854185518561857185818591860[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.324.254.184.254.314.384.444.514.534.56
Years1861186218631864186518661867186818691870[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.584.614.634.664.684.714.734.764.784.8
Years1871187218731874187518761877187818791880[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.834.854.874.854.834.824.84.784.754.71
Years1881188218831884188518861887188818891890[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.684.644.614.554.494.424.364.34.274.25
Years189118921893189418951896189718981899[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Belgium4.224.24.174.134.094.064.023.983.91

Total fertility rate; 1.71 children born/woman (2021 est.) Country comparison to the world: 160st

Birth rate; 11.03 births/1,000 population (2021 est.) Country comparison to the world: 175st

Mother's mean age at first birth; 29 years (2018 est.)

Population pyramid of Belgium from 1950 to 2020

Age structure
0-14 years: 17.22% (male 1,033,383/female 984,624)
15-24 years: 11.2% (male 670,724/female 642,145)
25-54 years: 39.23% (male 2,319,777/female 2,278,450)
55-64 years: 13.14% (male 764,902/female 775,454)
65 years and over: 19.21% (male 988,148/female 1,263,109)

Median age in 2020 (estimation); total: 41.6 years.

male: 40.4 years
female: 42.8 years

Density

Urbanization; urban population: 98.1% of total population (2020)

rate of urbanization: 0.62% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

Vital statistics
Population, fertility rate and net reproduction rate since 1950, United Nations estimates

Note: Territorial changes in East-Belgium occurred in 1925, 1940 and 1944.

Average population (Januari 1) Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1,000) Crude death rate (per 1,000) Natural change (per 1,000) Crude migration change (per 1,000) Total fertility rates[fn 1][11][12]
1900 6,719,000 193,230 126,633 66,597 28.8 18.8 9.9 -5.7 3.84
1901 6,747,000 199,068 113,136 85,932 29.5 16.8 12.7 2.3 3.79
1902 6,848,000 195,076 116,075 79,001 28.5 17.0 11.5 2.1 3.73
1903 6,941,000 191,563 115,884 75,679 27.6 16.7 10.9 1.9 3.68
1904 7,030,000 191,067 117,097 73,970 27.2 16.7 10.5 2.0 3.63
1905 7,118,000 186,665 115,486 71,179 26.2 16.2 10.0 1.5 3.57
1906 7,200,000 185,508 115,514 69,994 25.8 16.0 9.7 1.1 3.52
1907 7,278,000 184,371 112,656 71,715 25.3 15.5 9.9 0.3 3.47
1908 7,352,000 183,046 118,997 64,049 24.9 16.2 8.7 0.4 3.42
1909 7,419,000 175,714 115,027 60,687 23.7 15.5 8.2 -5.6 3.95
1910 7,438,000 175,768 110,403 65,365 23.6 14.8 8.8 -6.2 3.31
1911 7,457,000 171,029 119,896 51,133 22.9 16.1 6.9 3.0 3.26
1912 7,531,000 170,465 109,405 61,060 22.6 14.5 8.1 1.7 3.2
1913 7,605,000 170,102 108,296 61,806 22.4 14.2 8.1 -0.6 3.15
1914 7,662,000 156,389 108,720 47,669 20.4 14.2 6.2 -1.6 3.22
1915 7,697,000 124,291 100,674 23,617 16.1 13.1 3.1 -2.6 3.04
1916 7,701,000 99,360 101,044 -1,684 12.9 13.1 -0.2 -4.2 2.99
1917 7,667,000 86,675 124,824 -38,149 11.3 16.3 -5.0 -3.9 2.94
1918 7,599,000 85,056 157,340 -72,284 11.2 20.7 -9.5 5.2 2.89
1919 7,566,000 128,236 112,986 15,250 16.9 14.9 2.0 -11.9 2.87
1920 7,491,000 164,257 102,706 61,551 21.9 13.7 8.2 -14.5 2.78
1921 7,444,000 162,401 100,468 61,933 21.8 13.5 8.3 0.7 2.73
1922 7,511,000 152,779 104,155 48,624 20.3 13.9 6.5 1.8 2.67
1923 7,573,000 156,005 99,113 56,892 20.6 13.1 7.5 2.1 2.62
1924 7,646,000 153,387 98,332 55,055 20.1 12.9 7.2 6.1 2.57
1925 7,748,000 153,190 99,569 53,621 19.8 12.9 6.9 5.4 2.51
1926 7,843,000 148,840 101,018 47,822 19.0 12.9 6.1 1.6 2.46
1927 7,903,000 144,211 103,007 41,204 18.2 13.0 5.2 3.0 2.41
1928 7,968,000 145,953 102,270 43,683 18.3 12.8 5.5 2.5 2.36
1929 8,032,000 145,542 115,901 29,641 18.1 14.4 3.7 1.8 2.3
1930 8,076,000 150,271 103,397 46,874 18.6 12.8 5.8 0.4 2.25
1931 8,126,000 147,489 103,773 43,716 18.2 12.8 5.4 2.0 2.22
1932 8,186,000 143,824 104,221 39,603 17.6 12.7 4.8 0.7 2.19
1933 8,231,000 134,754 104,640 30,114 16.4 12.7 3.7 0.1 2.08
1934 8,262,000 131,736 96,851 34,885 15.9 11.7 4.2 -1.1 2.04
1935 8,288,000 126,304 102,132 24,172 15.2 12.3 2.9 0.4 1.94
1936 8,315,000 125,511 101,595 23,916 15.1 12.2 2.9 0.8 1.95
1937 8,346,000 125,495 104,163 21,332 15.0 12.5 2.6 0.8 1.99
1938 8,374,000 130,133 104,684 25,449 15.5 12.5 3.0 -1.0 2.11
1939 8,391,000 126,257 110,393 15,864 15.0 13.2 1.9 -12.6 2.1
1940 8,301,000 110,323 125,083 -14,760 13.3 15.1 -1.8 -1.2 1.84
1941 8,276,000 98,417 118,670 -20,253 11.9 14.3 -2.4 -1.2 1.66
1942 8,246,000 105,749 117,291 -11,542 12.8 14.2 -1.4 0.8 1.81
1943 8,241,000 120,665 107,767 12,898 14.6 13.1 1.6 4.5 2.06
1944 8,291,000 124,075 124,861 -786 15.0 15.1 -0.1 5.9 2.12
1945 8,339,000 127,245 121,155 6,090 15.3 14.5 0.7 2.7 2.17
1946 8,367,000 146,731 110,413 36,318 17.5 13.2 4.3 5.6 2.53
1947 8,450,000 144,979 108,136 36,843 17.2 12.8 4.4 8.3 2.47
1948 8,557,000 148,210 103,576 44,634 17.3 12.1 5.2 1.5 2.45
1949 8,614,000 144,670 106,704 37,966 16.8 12.4 4.4 -1.5 2.39
1950 8,639,000 142,970 104,039 38,931 16.5 12.0 4.5 0 2.33
1951 8,678,000 142,524 107,688 34,836 16.4 12.4 4.0 2.0 2.34
1952 8,730,000 146,142 103,624 42,518 16.7 11.9 4.9 0.6 2.35
1953 8,778,000 146,522 106,024 40,498 16.7 12.1 4.6 0.1 2.37
1954 8,819,000 148,128 104,795 43,333 16.8 11.9 4.9 0.7 2.4
1955 8,868,000 148,798 108,316 40,482 16.8 12.2 4.6 1.7 2.42
1956 8,924,000 150,181 108,016 42,165 16.8 12.1 4.7 2.6 2.6
1957 8,989,000 152,388 107,236 45,152 17.0 11.9 5.0 2.1 2.49
1958 9,053,000 155,694 105,746 49,948 17.2 11.7 5.5 0.1 2.53
1959 9,104,000 160,662 103,513 57,149 17.6 11.4 6.3 -0.9 2.57
1960 9,153,000 155,520 113,106 42,414 17.0 12.4 4.6 -1.2 2.6
1961 9,184,000 158,262 106,259 52,003 17.2 11.6 5.7 1.6 2.64
1962 9,251,000 154,338 111,545 42,793 16.7 12.1 4.6 3.7 2.59
1963 9,328,000 158,196 115,618 42,578 17.0 12.4 4.6 6.1 2.68
1964 9,428,000 160,371 109,342 51,029 17.0 11.6 5.4 2.1 2.71
1965 9,499,000 154,856 114,507 40,349 16.3 12.1 4.2 -1.1 2.62
1966 9,528,000 150,636 114,557 36,079 15.8 12.0 3.8 1.8 2.52
1967 9,581,000 145,899 114,509 31,390 15.2 12.0 3.3 0.7 2.41
1968 9,619,000 141,242 121,275 19,967 14.7 12.6 2.1 2.2 2.31
1969 9,660,000 140,834 119,375 21,459 14.6 12.4 2.2 -2.6 2.27
1970 9,656,000 141,119 119,623 21,496 14.6 12.4 2.2 1.8 2.25
1971 9,695,000 139,104 118,853 20,251 14.3 12.3 2.1 -0.4 2.21
1972 9,711,000 134,437 116,743 17,694 13.8 12.0 1.8 1.4 2.09
1973 9,742,000 129,425 118,313 11,112 13.3 12.1 1.1 2.0 1.95
1974 9,772,000 123,155 116,039 7,116 12.6 11.9 0.7 2.3 1.83
1975 9,801,000 119,273 119,273 0 12.2 12.2 0.0 1.7 1.74
1976 9,818,000 120,472 118,765 1,707 12.3 12.1 0.2 1.0 1.72
1977 9,830,000 121,523 112,208 9,315 12.4 11.4 0.9 0.1 1.71
1978 9,840,000 121,983 115,060 6,923 12.4 11.7 0.7 0.1 1.69
1979 9,848,000 123,658 112,156 11,502 12.6 11.4 1.2 -1.1 1.69
1980 9,849,000 124,794 114,364 10,430 12.7 11.6 1.1 -0.1 1.69
1981 9,859,000 124,827 113,308 11,519 12.7 11.5 1.2 -1.5 1.67
1982 9,856,000 120,382 112,506 7,876 12.2 11.4 0.8 -0.8 1.61
1983 9,856,000 117,395 114,814 2,581 11.9 11.6 0.3 -0.4 1.56
1984 9,855,000 115,790 110,577 5,213 11.7 11.2 0.5 -0.2 1.53
1985 9,858,000 114,283 112,691 1,592 11.6 11.4 0.2 0.2 1.51
1986 9,862,000 117,271 111,671 5,600 11.9 11.3 0.6 0.2 1.54
1987 9,870,000 117,448 105,840 11,608 11.9 10.7 1.2 2.0 1.57
1988 9,902,000 118,764 104,551 14,213 12.0 10.6 1.4 2.2 1.57
1989 9,938,000 120,550 107,332 13,218 12.1 10.8 1.3 1.6 1.58
1990 9,967,000 123,554 104,545 19,009 12.4 10.5 1.9 -0.7 1.62
1991 9,978,681 [13] 125,412 104,223 21,189 12.5 10.4 2.1 2.2 1.66
1992 10,021,997 125,322 103,858 21,464 12.5 10.3 2.1 2.5 1.65
1993 10,068,319 120,835 106,715 14,120 12.0 10.6 1.4 1.8 1.61
1994 10,100,341 116,408 103,688 12,720 11.5 10.2 1.3 1.7 1.56
1995 10,130,398 115,327 104,710 10,617 11.4 10.3 1.0 0.2 1.56
1996 10,142,776 116,262 104,228 12,034 11.4 10.3 1.2 1.5 1.59
1997 10,170,226 116,125 103,822 12,303 11.4 10.2 1.2 1.0 1.60
1998 10.192.264 114,561 104,607 9,954 11.2 10.3 1.0 1.1 1.60
1999 10,213,752 113,710 104,933 8,777 11.1 10.3 0.9 1.6 1.62
2000 10,239,085 115,157 104,921 10,236 11.2 10.2 1.0 1.4 1.67
2001 10,263,414 114,428 103,474 10,95 11.1 10.1 1.1 3.4 1.67
2002 10,309,725 111,484 105,667 5,817 10.8 10.2 0.6 3.9 1.65
2003 10,355,844 112,388 107,068 5,320 10.8 10.3 0.5 3.4 1.67
2004 10,396,421 115,908 101,964 13,944 11.1 9.8 1.3 3.5 1.72
2005 10,445,852 118,290 103,305 14,985 11.3 9.9 1.4 4.9 1.76
2006 10,511,382 121,695 101,614 20,081 11.5 9.6 1.9 5.1 1.80
2007 10,584,534 125,228 102,060 23,168 11.8 9.6 2.2 5.4 1.82
2008 10,665,140 128,049 104,587 23,462 12.0 9.8 2.2 6.0 1.85
2009 10,753,080 127,297 104,509 22,788 11.8 9.7 2.1 6.0 1.84
2010 10,839,905 129,173 105,094 24,079 11.9 9.7 2.2 8.1 1.85
2011 10,951,266 127,655 104,247 23,408 11.7 9.5 2.1 5.6 1.81
2012 11,035,948 126,993 109,034 17,959 11.5 9.9 1.6 4.2 1.79
2013 11,099,554 124,862 109,295 15,567 11.2 9.8 1.4 3.2 1.75
2014 11,150,516 124,415 104,723 19,692 11.2 9.4 1.8 3.4 1.74
2015 11,209,044 121,713 110,508 11,205 10.9 9.9 1.0 4.3 1.69
2016 11,267,910 121,161 108,056 13,105 10.8 9.6 1.2 3.6 1.68
2017 11,322,088 119,102 109,629 9,473 10.5 9.7 0.8 4.0 1.64
2018 11,376,070 117,800 110,645 7,155 10.4 9.7 0.6 4.3 1.61
2019 11,431,406 117,103 108,745 8,358 10.2 9.5 0.7 4.7 1.60
2020 11,492,641 113,739 126,850 -13,111 9.9 11.0 -1.1 3.6 1.55
2021 11,521,238 117,914 112,291 5,623 10.3 9.8 0.5 4.9 1.60
2022 11,584,008 113,593 116,380 -2,787 9.8 10.1 -0.3 10.1 1.53
2023 11,697,557

Current vital statistics

[14][15]

Period Live births Deaths Natural increase
January - August 2022 76,590 77,188 -598
January - August 2023 74,559 73,744 +815
Difference Decrease -2,031 (-2.65%) Positive decrease -3,444 (-4.46%) Increase +1,413

Structure of the population
Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 01.I.2011): [16]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 5 401 718 5 598 920 11 000 638 100
0–4 330 184 315 328 645 512 5.87
5–9 310 560 296 765 607 325 5.52
10–14 313 738 300 722 614 460 5.59
15–19 331 790 317 228 649 018 5.90
20–24 344 647 339 446 684 093 6.22
25–29 351 045 349 328 700 373 6.37
30–34 364 728 358 208 722 936 6.57
35–39 375 815 365 389 741 204 6.74
40–44 401 530 388 365 789 895 7.18
45–49 418 827 409 340 828 167 7.53
50–54 391 809 389 431 781 240 7.10
55–59 349 489 352 842 702 331 6.38
60–64 320 714 330 190 650 904 5.92
65-69 230 217 249 982 480 199 4.37
70-74 205 382 242 992 448 374 4.08
75-79 171 538 230 056 401 594 3.65
80-84 115 591 189 197 304 788 2.77
85-89 57 963 122 532 180 495 1.64
90-94 13 541 39 167 52 708 0.48
95-99 2 412 10 980 13 392 0.12
100+ 198 1 432 1 630 0.01
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 954 482 912 815 1 867 297 16.97
15–64 3 650 394 3 599 767 7 250 161 65.91
65+ 796 842 1 086 338 1 883 180 17.12
Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.I.2019): [16]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 5 644 826 5 810 693 11 455 519 100
0–4 315 177 300 999 616 176 5.38
5–9 340 923 325 662 666 585 5.82
10–14 336 284 320 521 656 805 5.73
15–19 323 790 307 712 631 502 5.51
20–24 341 598 328 722 670 320 5.85
25–29 374 924 371 623 746 547 6.52
30–34 368 166 368 614 736 780 6.43
35–39 377 157 374 627 751 784 6.56
40–44 368 567 362 807 731 374 6.38
45–49 393 483 384 045 777 528 6.79
50–54 406 309 396 620 802 929 7.01
55–59 395 854 395 473 791 327 6.91
60–64 349 994 360 409 710 403 6.20
65-69 298 587 317 045 615 632 5.37
70-74 249 942 281 596 531 538 4.64
75-79 165 281 206 039 371 320 3.24
80-84 131 154 188 231 319 385 2.79
85-89 76 742 138 520 215 262 1.88
90-94 26 044 63 743 89 787 0.78
95-99 4 640 16 410 21 050 0.18
100-104 201 1 188 1 389 0.01
105-109 9 84 93 <0.01
110+ 0 3 3 <0.01
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0–14 992 384 947 182 1 939 566 16.93
15–64 3 699 842 3 650 652 7 350 494 64.17
65+ 952 600 1 212 859 2 165 459 18.90

Immigration

Since the relaxation of the Belgian nationality law more than 1.3 million migrants have acquired Belgian citizenship and are now considered new Belgians. 89.2% of inhabitants of Turkish origin have been naturalized, as have 88.4% of people of Moroccan background, 75.4% of Italians, 56.2% of the French and 47.8% of Dutch people.[17]

In 2007, there were 1.38 million foreign-born residents in Belgium, corresponding to 12.9% of the total population. Of these, 685 000 (6.4%) were born outside the EU and 695 000 (6.5%) were born in another EU Member State.

Net migration rate; 4.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Employment and income

Unemployment, youth ages 15–24; total: 15.8%.

male: 16.2%
female: 15.3% (2018 est.)

Education

Literacy; Definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2003 est.)

Total population: 99%
Male: 99%
Female: 99%

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education); total: 20 years

male: 19 years
female: 21 years (2018)

Origin groups
Further information: Belgians
Belgians as a proportion of the population regionally and nationally from 2000 - 2021
Belgians with a Belgian background in Brussels

Belgium does not collect data on ethnicity or race, but does collect data on the country of origin of citizens.[18]

The largest group of immigrants and their descendants in Belgium are Italian Belgians, with more than 450,000[19] people, which is well over 4% of Belgium's total population. The Moroccan Belgians are the third-largest group, and the largest Muslim ethnic group, numbering 340,359.[19][20] According to Michèle Tribalat in the beginning of 2020, people of foreign background and their descendants were estimated to have formed 32.1% of the total population.[21] According to Statbel, 65.5% of the Belgian population was Belgian with a Belgian background in 2023. The Belgian background by age group was 52.3% among those under 18, 63.2% among 18-64-year-olds and 85.9% among those aged 65 and over.[22]

Of these 'New Belgians', 55.1% are of non-Belgian European ancestry and 44.9% are from non-Western countries.

The rest consists mostly of French-speaking people from Brussels, Turks, Kurds,[23] Dutch, French, Portuguese, Spaniards, Greeks, Bosniaks, Algerians, Congolese, Vietnamese, Poles, Indians, and Guineans (around 23% of Belgium's population is of non-Belgian origin).[24] Approximately 30,000 Roma live in Belgium.[25]

The exact number of French-speakers in Brussels is hard to determine, but it is estimated that 85% of the people living in Brussels use French and 10% use Dutch in their households, as the sole language or secondary language, while Arabic is also largely spoken. See the Brussels article for more details.[26]

In the table are the top 30 countries by origin of the population of Belgium in 2020

Group of origin Year
2001[27] 2006[27] 2011[27] 2016[27] 2023[27]
Number % Number % Number % Number % Number %
Belgians with Belgian background 8,394,413 81.8% 8,252,547 78.5% 8,132,782 74.3% 7,966,385 70.7% 7,665,100 65.5%
Belgians with foreign background[fn 2] 1,007,316 9.8% 1,358,362 12.9% 1,699,228 15.5% 2,005,865 17.8% 2,459,184 21.0%
Neighbouring country[fn 3] 265,422 2.6% 299,651 334,500 362,196 398,149 3.4%
Other EU 319,180 3.1% 375,091 429,945 481,977 547,298 4.7%
Other Europe 100,019 1% 160,650 215,141 260,067 316,125 2.7%
Africa 210,601 2.1% 363,476 505,113 639,146 823,402 7%
Asia and Oceania 54,409 0.5% 77,410 106,973 133,603 199,302 1.7%
Other 19,655 0.2% 29,446 40,386 49,113 65,623 0.6%
Not classified 38,030 0.4% 52,638 67,170 79,763 109,285 0.9%
Non-Belgians 861,685 8.4% 900,473 8.6% 1,119,256 10.2% 1,295,660 11.5% 1,573,273 13.4%
Neighbouring country[fn 4] 257,981 2.5% 289,826 336,102 360,731 383,151 3.3%
Other EU 313,827 3.1% 314,549 387,389 481,218 569,989 4.9%
Other Europe 68,323 0.7% 67,277 87,645 83,783 144,633 1.2%
Africa 153,603 1.5% 139,458 182,605 207,957 234,162 2%
Asia and Oceania 30,609 0.3% 44,866 64,238 93,839 149,313 1.3%
Other 23,155 0.2% 26,355 33,904 39,605 47,547 0.4%
Not classified 14,187 0.1% 18,142 27,373 28,527 44,478 0.4%
Total 10,263,414 100% 10,511,382 100% 10,951,266 100% 11,267,910 100% 11,697,557 100%
Place of Birth Year
2011[28]
Number %
Place of Birth in Reporting Country 9,371,282
Place of Birth Not in Reporting Country 1,517,608
Other EU Member State 765,523
Outside EU but within Europe 25,764
Outside Europe/ Non-European 752,085
Africa 418,576
Asia 239,474
North America 20,488
Caribbean, South or Central America 45,650
Total 11,000,638 100%
Countries of origin of Belgian population (2020)
Country Number (2020)  % of population of foreign origin  % of total population
 Morocco 340,359 13.3% 3.0%
European Union Italy 278,877 11.1% 2.4%
European Union France 217,200 8.7% 1.9%
European Union Netherlands 190,271 7.3% 1.7%
 Turkey 161,581 6.2% 1.4%
European Union Romania 120,929 4.8% 1.1%
European Union Poland 97,183 3.9% 0.8%
European Union Spain 78,745 3.1% 0.7%
Democratic Republic of the Congo Democratic Republic of the Congo 65,687 2.7% 0.6%
 Russia 62,059 2.5% 0.5%
European Union Portugal 54,719 2.1% 0.5%
European Union Germany 50,772 2.0% 0.4%
European Union Bulgaria 46,876 1.9% 0.4%
 Syria 35,626 1.4% 0.3%
 Algeria 31,956 1.2% 0.3%
 United Kingdom 29,504 1.1% 0.3%
European Union Greece 28,643 1.1% 0.2%
 India 27,267 1.0% 0.2%
 Afghanistan 25,727 1.0% 0.2%
 Cameroon 24,267 0.9% 0.2%
 China 22,283 0.9% 0.2%
 Tunisia 20,921 0.8% 0.2%
 Iraq 20,882 0.8% 0.2%
 Guinea 19,244 0.7% 0.2%
 Brazil 15,158 0.6% 0.1%
 Rwanda 14,729 0.6% 0.1%
 Pakistan 14,580 0.6% 0.1%
 United States 13,820 0.5% 0.1%
 Iran 12,891 0.5% 0.1%
 Albania 12,641 0.5% 0.1%
 Senegal 11,876 0.5% 0.1%
Other countries 414,327 16.2% 3.6%
Total 2,549,724 100% 22.2%

Languages
Main article: Languages of Belgium

Belgium's three official languages are Dutch, spoken by about 60% of the population, French, spoken by about 40%, and German, spoken by less than 1%. The vast majority of Belgium's population, 99%, is literate as defined by the Belgian government, i.e. capable of reading and writing in an official language by the time a citizen has reached the age of 15. English is the official (meetings) language of the European Commission, 10% of the job market in Brussels; also, Arabic is 2nd most spoken language in Brussels according to fresh sources (around 10%).

Religion
Main article: Religion in Belgium

As of 2012, 58% of Belgians identify as Roman Catholic. Other Christians comprise 7% of the population. Muslims comprise 5%. 27% of Belgians are agnostics, atheists or otherwise irreligious.[29]

See also

Notes
  1. In fertility rates, 2.1 and above is a stable population and has been marked blue, 2 and below leads to an aging population and the result is that the population decreases.
  2. The number includes Belgian nationals who either previously were foreign nationals themselves or at least one of their parents was a foreign national.
  3. This category includes;
    • Germany;
    • France;
    • Luxembourg;
    • the Netherlands;
    • the United Kingdom;
  4. This category includes;
    • Germany;
    • France;
    • Luxembourg;
    • the Netherlands;
    • the United Kingdom;

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook (2023 ed.). CIA. (Archived 2016 edition)

  1. "Life expectancy". Healthy Belgium. 2022.
  2. "Bevolking - Statistieken & Analyses - Home". Statbel.fgov.be. Archived from the original on 9 March 2011. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  3. "Belgium Population". Our World in Data.
  4. "Chiffre global de la population par commune Situation au 1/11/2018" (PDF). www.ibz.rrn.fgov.be. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 24 October 2018. Statistics Belgium, Federal Public Service Economy
  5. "Structuur van de bevolking | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be.
  6. World Population Review: Belgium Population 2018, 14 June 2018
  7. Note: Crude migration change % is a trend analysis, an extrapolation based average population change (current year minus previous) minus natural change of the current year (see table vital statistics). As average population is an estimate of the population in the middle of the year and not end of the year.
  8. "Life expectancy". Our World in Data. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
  9. "World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations". Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  10. "Vruchtbaarheidscijfers volgens verstreken leeftijd van de moeder". Archived from the original on 2010-11-13. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
  11. Max Roser (2014), "Total Fertility Rate around the world over the last two centuries", Our World In Data, Gapminder Foundation
  12. "World Factbook EUROPE : BELGIUM", The World Factbook, February 4, 2021
  13. Structure of the Population, statbel.be, visited 20-08-2023
  14. "Natality and fertility | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be.
  15. "Mortality | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be.
  16. "UNSD — Demographic and Social Statistics". unstats.un.org. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  17. "Verkiezingen 2012 eigen-wijs". Npdata.be. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  18. Shendruk, Amanda (2021-07-08). "Are you even trying to stop racism if you don't collect data on race?". Quartz. Retrieved 2022-07-04.
  19. "Vreemde afkomst 01/01/2012". Npdata.be. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  20. Voor het eerst meer Marokkaanse dan Italiaanse migranten, Hbvl.be, 21 May 2007
  21. "POPULATION D'ORIGINE ÉTRANGÈRE EN BELGIQUE". Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  22. "Origin | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be.
  23. "De situatie van de Koerden is nog een stuk beroerder dan die van de Catalanen". Gazet van Antwerpen. 28 October 2017.
  24. "Non-Profit Data". Npdata.be. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  25. "Belgium Returns to Ethnic Profiling, Raids, and Roundups". European Roma Rights Centre.
  26. "Ethnic demography of Brussels". Archived from the original on 2021-11-24.
  27. "Origin | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  28. "CensusHub2". ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2023-07-12.
  29. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-12-02. Retrieved 2013-08-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

Notes
  1. 2.05 for non-Belgian foreigners, 1.58 for Belgians of foreign background and 1.34 for native Belgians
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