Demographics of Antwerp

Demographics of Antwerp
Population pyramid of Antwerp in 2022
Population530,630 (2022)

The demographics of Antwerp are monitored by Statistics Belgium. The population of the city as of 2022 is currently 530,630.[1]

Population

Population history of the city of Antwerp:
  • 1374: 18,000[2]
  • 1486: 40,000[3]
  • 1500: around 44/49,000 inhabitants[4]
  • 1526: 50,000[5]
  • 1567: 105,000 (90,000 permanent residents and 15,000 "floating population", including foreign merchants and soldiers. At the time only 10 cities in Europe reached this size.)[5][6][7][8]
  • 1584: 84,000 (after the Spanish Fury, the French Fury[9] and the Calvinist republic)
  • 1586 (May): 60,000 (after siege)
  • 1586 (October): 50,000
  • 1591: 46,000
  • 1612: 54,000[10]
  • 1620: 66,000 (Twelve Years' Truce)
  • 1640: 54,000 (after the Black Death epidemics)
  • 1700: 66,000[11]
  • 1765: 40,000
  • 1784: 51,000
  • 1800: 45,500
  • 1815: 54,000[12]
  • 1830: 73,500
  • 1856: 111,700
  • 1880: 179,000
  • 1900: 275,100
  • 1925: 308,000
  • 1959: 260,000[13]
Population of Antwerp over time by population projections from 2008 included

Growth rate

Antwerp as a city has grown and declined in population size throughout its history.

Age structure

The age structure of the city is as follows for 2022;

Age structure[1] 2022
Under 18 18 to 64 65 and older
Population 119,762 324,378 86,490
Percentage 22.6% 61.1% 16.3%

Fertility and births

In 2019, a total of 7,398 were born in total[14]

Gender

There are slightly more men in the city of Antwerp then females.[1]

Gender structure 2022
Men Women
Population number 266,100 264,530
Percentage 50.15% 49.85%

Language

As in all Flemish provinces, the official and standard language of the Antwerp province is Dutch. As with Flemish Brabant, North Brabant and Brussels, the local dialect is a Brabantian variety.

Religion

The Religion of the City of Antwerp has historically been that of Roman Catholic. Due to modern migration however, there has been an introduction of non-Christian religions to the city such as the growth of Islam.

Antwerp is one of the few remaining European cities with a large Haredi (or Ultra Orthodox) Jewish population. The Jewish population numbers around 20,000 in total with a large portion belonging to the Ultra Orthodox community.[15]

The Jewish community was once heavily involved in the diamond trade, however in recent years, immigrants from Gujurat in India have largely taken over the sector, with the vast majority of them being adherents of the Jain faith, making Antwerp also one of the few European cities with a substantial Jain population. [16]

Origin

In 2010, 36% to 39% of the inhabitants of Antwerp had a migrant background.

Nationality

(by citizenship)

Population – 2020

(all districts)[17]

 Belgium 415,747
 Netherlands 20,103
 Morocco 11,780
 Poland 8,387
 Spain 6,221
 Afghanistan 4,539
 Bulgaria 4,376
 Turkey 4,360
 Romania 4,131
 Iraq 3,082
 Portugal 3,043
 Syria 2,894
 India 2,389
 Algeria 2,364
 Italy 2,322
 France 2,017
Others 34,659

In 2022, 22% of the city did not have Belgian nationality (classified as a 'non-Belgian').[1]

Group of origin Year[18]
2001 2006 2011 2016 2023
Number % Number % Number % Number % Number %
Belgians with Belgian background 340,130 76.3% 316,993 68.7% 291,499 59.1% 268,317 51.9% 235,374 43.7%
Belgians with foreign background 50,378 11.3% 85,171 18.5% 115,236 23.3% 143,009 27.6% 178,476 33.1%
Neighboring country 10,344 2.3% 11,911 13,387 14,820 17,132 3.2%
EU27 (excluding neighboring country) 5,179 1.2% 6,328 7,518 9,181 12,514 2.3%
Outside EU 27 34,855 7.8% 66,932 94,331 119,008 148,830 27.6%
Non-Belgians 55,062 12.3% 59,332 12.9% 86,782 17.6% 105,716 20.4% 125,060 23.2%
Neighboring country 11,515 2.6% 13,385 18,810 22,588 23,253 4.3%
EU27 (excluding neighboring country) 7,130 1.6% 9,215 18,557 28,197 33,109 6.1%
Outside EU 27 36,417 8.2% 36,732 49,415 54,931 68,698 12.7%
Total 445,570 100% 461,496 100% 493,517 100% 517,042 100% 538,910 100%

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Structure of the Population | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
  2. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1300–1399". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 7 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  3. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1400–1499". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  4. ^ Braudel, Fernand The Perspective of the World, 1985
  5. ^ a b "Antwerp timeline 1500–1599". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 2 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  6. ^ Coornaert, Émile (1961). Les Français et le commerce international à Anvers : fin du XVe, XVIe siècle. Paris: Marcel Rivière et cie. p. 96.
  7. ^ Boumans, R; Craeybeckx, J (1947). Het bevolkingscijfer van Antwerpen in het derde kwart der XVIe eeuw. T.G. pp. 394–405.
  8. ^ van Houtte, J. A. (1961). "Anvers aux XVe et XVIe siècles : expansion et apogée". Annales. Économies, Sociétés, Civilisations. 16 (2): 249. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  9. ^ Description of the French Fury matter, see chapter 'Declaration of independence' in article 'William the Silent'
  10. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1600–1699". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 7 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  11. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1700–1799". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 4 August 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  12. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1800–1899". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 22 December 2007. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  13. ^ "Antwerp timeline 1900–1999". Strecker.be. Archived from the original on 7 January 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  14. ^ "Births and fertility | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
  15. ^ "Hidden Belgium: Antwerp's Jewish Quarter".
  16. ^ "'Diamonds are in my blood': The Jain traders who dominate Antwerp jewels".
  17. ^ "Stad in Cijfers – Databank – Inwoners naar nationaliteit, leeftijd, (8 klassen) en geslacht 2020 – Antwerpen". Antwerpen.be. City of Antwerp. Retrieved 18 April 2020.
  18. ^ "Origin | Statbel". statbel.fgov.be. Retrieved 2023-07-04.