Demographics of Sarajevo

The demographics of Sarajevo and its precise population are uncertain, as no official census has been taken since 1991. As of June 2011, the population of the city's four municipalities is estimated to be 311,161, whereas the Sarajevo Canton population is estimated at 438,757.[1]

Last official census 1991

total: 361,735

total: 527,049

Ethnic composition by municipalities, 1991 census

Ethnic composition of Sarajevo, by municipalities, 1991. census
municipality total Muslims (nationality) (Bosniaks) Serbs Yugoslavs Croats others
Centar 79,286 39,761 (50.14%) 16,631 (20.97%) 13,030 (16.43%) 5,428 (6.84%) 4,436 (5.59%)
Novi Grad 136,616 69,430 (50.82%) 37,591 (27.51%) 15,580 (11.40%) 8,889 (6.50%) 5,126 (3.75%)
Novo Sarajevo 95,089 33,902 (35.65%) 32,899 (34.59%) 15,099 (15.87%) 8,798 (9.25%) 4,391 (4.61%)
Stari Grad 50,744 39,410 (77.66%) 5,150 (10.14%) 3,374 (6.64%) 1,126 (2.21%) 1,684 (3.31%)
total 361,735 182,503 (50.45%) 92,271 (25.50%) 47,083 (13.01%) 24,241 (6.70%) 15,637 (4.32%)
Ethnic composition of Sarajevo Canton, by municipalities, 1991. census
municipality total Muslims (nationality) (Bosniaks) Serbs Yugoslavs Croats others
Centar 79,286 39,761 (50.14%) 16,631 (20.97%) 13,030 (16.43%) 5,428 (6.84%) 4,436 (5.59%)
Hadžići 24,200 15,392 (63.60%) 6,362 (26.28%) 841 (3.47%) 746 (3.08%) 859 (3.54%)
Ilidža 67,937 29,337 (43.18%) 25,029 (36.84%) 5,181 (7.62%) 6,934 (10.20%) 1,456 (2.14%)
Ilijaš 25,184 10,585 (42.03%) 11,325 (44.96%) 1,167 (4.63%) 1,736 (6.89%) 371 (1.47%)
Novi Grad 136,616 69,430 (50.82%) 37,591 (27.51%) 15,580 (11.40%) 8,889 (6.50%) 5,126 (3.75%)
Novo Sarajevo 95,089 33,902 (35.65%) 32,899 (34.59%) 15,099 (15.87%) 8,798 (9.25%) 4,391 (4.61%)
Pale 16,355 4,364 (26.68%) 11,284 (68.99%) 396 (2.42%) 129 (0.78%) 182 (1.11%)
Stari Grad 50,744 39,410 (77.66%) 5,150 (10.14%) 3,374 (6.64%) 1,126 (2.21%) 1,684 (3.31%)
Trnovo 6,991 4,790 (68.81%) 2,059 (29.45%) 72 (1.02%) 16 (0.22%) 54 (0.77%)
Vogošća 24,647 12,499 (50.71%) 8,813 (35.75%) 1,730 (7.01%) 1,071 (4.34%) 534 (2.16%)
total 527,049 259,470 (49.23%) 157,143 (29.81%) 56,470 (10.71%) 34,873 (6.61%) 19,093 (3.62%)

Historical population

Historically Sarajevo had always been a very populous city, but as the Ottoman Empire declined, so did its population. Although it had around 100,000 people in the 1660s, by the end of World War II in the 1940s Sarajevo had only grown to some 115,000 people.

The population of the district of Sarajevo, according to the 1921 Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes religious population census:

In 1921 there were 8 municipalities, and their populations were:

The same year, the City of Sarajevo had 78,173 inhabitants:

Heavy industrialization and increased importance in regional affairs during the time of Yugoslavia resulted in a rapid increase, however, and by the time of the 1984 Olympics the greater Sarajevo area had more than 500,000 residents. Although exact ethnic distribution is unknown, of these 500,000, 49% were Muslim, 30% Orthodox Christians, and 7% Catholics, indicating relatively corresponding percentages of Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats.

The Yugoslav wars and the resulting siege of Sarajevo radically disrupted this order of things. The city itself was completely surrounded by Bosnian Serb forces, and it has been estimated that some 12,000 people were killed, with another 50,000 wounded. Combined with horrific living conditions forced upon by the besieging forces, the result was thousands of refugees leaving the city. By 1996, Sarajevo had less than 300,000 residents. In the years that followed, a tremendous influx of returning refugees and people from a war-torn countryside resulted in the city population once again going above 300,000 residents. Most of the Sarajevo Serbs and Croats have never returned to their homes.[2]

The following are some recorded populations of Sarajevo throughout its history. The figures from 1626 and 1660 are based on the accounts of traveling writers who estimated that Sarajevo at the time had 20,000 houses, and figures an average of 5 people per house. All latter figures are based on official censuses by Austria-Hungary, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and Socialist Yugoslavia, except for that of 2002, which is an estimate by the Sarajevo Canton government. All figures after 1945 represent the greater Sarajevo area.

Year Population
1626 more than 60,000
1660 more than 100,000
1910 51,919
1921 66,317
1931 78,173
1945 115,000
1971 359,448
1991 527,049
2002 401,118

Population density

According to the official government statistics, Sarajevo's population density is 2470.1 per square kilometer. The most densely populated part of Sarajevo is in the municipality Novo Sarajevo (7524.5 inhabitants per square kilometer), while the least densely populated is the Stari Grad municipality (742.5 inhabitants per square kilometer).

Age

Regarding the age structure of Sarajevo, the overwhelming majority of people are between 15 and 64 years of age. This group consists of 208,703 people, or a little over 70% of the total city population. When it comes to people 14 years of age or under and people over 65 years of age, the youth have a slight edge. There are 47,558 people under 14 years of age in Sarajevo, making up 16% of the overall population, compared to 41,138 people over 65 years of age, who make up 13.8% of the total population. The Novi Grad municipality has the highest percentage of citizens under 14 years of age in the city, at 17.4%, while 17.5% of Novo Sarajevo municipality's population is over 65 years of age. Overall, the city's population is slightly older than its surrounding areas and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a whole.

Ethnic groups

The biggest ethnic group in Sarajevo are the Bosniaks, who with more than 230,000 people make up 77.4% of the city. They are followed by the Serbs, of which there are some 35,000 (12% of the city), and Croats with a population of 22,380 (7.5% of the total population). 9,283 people (3.1% of overall population) are classified as others. They most likely consist of Sephardi Jews, and Romani, along with a small number of foreign workers and also Bosnians who come from mixed marriages and do not take either side as their own, other than simply 'others' or Bosnians.

Birth rate

The city's birth rate is 9.17 while the mortality is 8.10, resulting in a population growth rate of 1.07. The greater Sarajevo area, meanwhile, has a 9.56 birth rate and 8.01 mortality rate, which makes for a population growth rate of about 1.55. This would indicate a population of 303,797 in the city by December 2004, and a population of 413,649 in the metropolitan area. If current growth trends continue, the city's population should reach the pre-war population in less than 25 years. The metro area would do the same a bit sooner, in some 15 years. Depending on regional stability, immigration, and growth and development, it is not unreasonable to expect the city's population to breach 1,000,000 inhabitants by the latter half of the 21st century.

References

  1. ↑ "First release" (PDF). Federal Office of Statistics, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. 2011-08-31. Retrieved 2013-02-03.
  2. ↑ "Catholic News | Catholic Church News | Catholic News Service – The Australian Catholic News". Australiancatholicnews.com.au. 2012-01-20. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
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