Demographics of Brunei

This article is about the demographic features of the population of Brunei, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. Like neighbouring countries, Brunei is a Malay-dominated country. Many cultural and linguistic differences make Brunei Malays distinct from the larger Malay populations in nearby Malaysia and Indonesia, even though they are ethnically related and share the Muslim religion.

Brunei has a hereditary nobility with the title Pengiran these are, more often than not, related to the Sultan by blood. The Sultan can award to commoners the title Pehin, the equivalent of a life peerage awarded in the United Kingdom. The Sultan also can award his subjects the Dato, the equivalent of a knighthood in the United Kingdom, and Datin, the equivalent of a damehood.

Bruneians adhere to the practice of using complete full names with all titles, including the title Haji (for men) or Hajjah (for women) for those who have made the Haj pilgrimage to Mecca. Many Brunei Malay women wear the tudong, a traditional head covering. Men wear the songkok, a traditional Malay cap. Men who have completed the Haj wear a white songkok.

The requirements to attain Brunei citizenship include passing tests in Malay culture, customs and language. Stateless permanent residents of Brunei are given International Certificates of Identity, which allow them to travel overseas. The majority of Brunei's Chinese are permanent residents, and many are stateless.

Petroleum wealth allows the Brunei Government to provide the population with one of Asia's finest health care systems. The Brunei Medical and Health Department introduced the region's first government "flying doctor service" in early 1965. Malaria has been eradicated, and cholera is virtually nonexistent. There are three general hospitals--in Bandar Seri Begawan, Tutong, and Kuala Belait--and there are numerous health clinics throughout the country.

Education starts with preschool, followed by 6 years of primary education and up to 6 years of secondary education. Nine years of education are mandatory. Most of Brunei's college students attend universities and other institutions abroad, but approximately 2,542 study at the University of Brunei Darussalam. Opened in 1985, the university has a faculty of over 300 instructors and is located on a sprawling campus at Tungku, overlooking the South China Sea.

The official language is Malay, but English is widely understood and used in business. Other languages spoken are several Chinese dialects, Iban, and a number of native dialects. Islam is the official religion, but religious freedom is guaranteed under the constitution.

Contents

Population

400,000 (July 2010 est.)

UN estimates[1]

Total population (thousands) Population aged 0-14 (%) Population aged 15-64 (%) Population aged 65+ (%)
1950 48 36.4 58.7 4.9
1955 63 39.5 56.1 4.4
1960 80 42.1 53.8 4.1
1965 100 44.7 51.4 3.9
1970 125 41.1 55.0 3.8
1975 157 39.8 56.3 3.8
1980 189 38.7 58.4 3.0
1985 219 38.7 58.3 3.0
1990 252 35.4 61.8 2.8
1995 290 33.3 63.7 3.0
2000 327 30.3 66.7 2.9
2005 363 28.2 68.6 3.2
2010 399 26.2 70.2 3.6

Median age

total: 27.5 years
male: 27.5 years
female: 27.5 years (2009 est.)

Population growth rate

1.785% (2008 est.)

Net migration rate

2.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Urbanization

Urban population: 79% of total population (2009)
Rate of urbanization: 2.8% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Vital statistics

UN estimates [1]

Period Live births per year Deaths per year Natural change per year CBR1 CDR1 NC1 TFR1 IMR1
1950-1955 3 000 1 000 2 000 49.6 13.5 37.3 7.00 90.2
1955-1960 3 000 1 000 2 000 43.5 10.6 37.1 6.38 68.8
1960-1965 4 000 1 000 3 000 41.9 8.7 34.0 6.56 52.1
1965-1970 4 000 1 000 3 000 35.1 7.1 29.6 5.59 39.1
1970-1975 5 000 1 000 4 000 37.4 6.3 29.2 5.87 29.3
1975-1980 6 000 1 000 5 000 34.4 5.2 25.5 4.71 21.9
1980-1985 6 000 1 000 5 000 29.9 4.4 26.3 3.92 16.4
1985-1990 7 000 1 000 6 000 29.8 3.9 23.6 3.72 12.2
1990-1995 8 000 1 000 7 000 28.1 3.5 25.0 3.28 9.1
1995-2000 7 000 1 000 6 000 23.9 3.1 22.2 2.60 6.8
2000-2005 8 000 1 000 7 000 21.9 3.0 20.8 2.28 5.1
2005-2010 8 000 1 000 6 000 20.1 3.1 16.5 2.11 4.8
1 CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births

Registered births and deaths[2]

Average population (x 1000) Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000)
1949 45 2 073 766 1 307 47.1 17.4 29.7
1950 48 2 316 826 1 490 50.3 18.0 32.4
1951 51 2 805 708 2 097 58.4 14.8 43.7
1952 54 2 809 865 1 944 54.0 16.6 37.4
1953 57 2 903 808 2 095 51.8 14.4 37.4
1954 60 3 332 776 2 556 54.6 12.7 41.9
1955 63 3 600 878 2 722 55.4 13.5 41.9
1956 66 4 076 904 3 172 59.1 13.1 46.0
1957 70 3 320 1 138 2 182 44.3 15.2 29.1
1958 73 4 399 911 3 488 55.0 11.4 43.6
1959 76 4 201 935 3 266 49.4 11.0 38.4
1960 80 4 105 917 3 188 45.6 10.2 35.4
1961 83 4 312 606 3 706 49.0 6.9 42.1
1962 87 3 980 628 3 352 43.3 6.8 36.4
1963 91 3 521 655 2 866 36.7 6.8 29.9
1964 95 4 178 621 3 557 41.8 6.2 35.6
1965 100 4 193 662 3 531 39.9 6.3 33.6
1966 104 4 089 657 3 432 37.5 6.0 31.5
1967 109 4 381 756 3 625 38.4 6.6 31.8
1968 114 4 912 715 4 197 41.3 6.0 35.3
1969 119 4 614 691 3 923 36.9 5.5 31.4
1970 125 4 823 716 4 107 37.1 5.5 31.6
1971 131 5 181 801 4 380 38.1 5.9 32.2
1972 137 5 008 742 4 266 35.3 5.2 30.0
1973 144 5 034 708 4 326 34.7 4.9 29.8
1974 150 5 013 640 4 373 33.4 4.3 29.2
1975 157 5 141 728 4 413 33.0 4.7 28.3
1976 163 5 300 667 4 633 32.5 4.1 28.4
1977 170 5 397 748 4 649 31.8 4.4 27.4
1978 176 5 590 731 4 859 31.7 4.1 27.5
1979 183 5 877 728 5 149 32.1 4.0 28.1
1980 189 5 767 742 5 025 30.5 3.9 26.5
1981 195 5 877 705 5 172 30.1 3.6 26.5
1982 201 5 952 783 5 169 29.6 3.9 25.7
1983 207 5 983 717 5 266 28.9 3.5 25.4
1984 213 6 330 768 5 562 29.7 3.6 26.1
1985 219 6 682 794 5 888 30.5 3.6 26.9
1986 225 6 920 723 6 197 30.7 3.2 27.5
1987 232 7 088 765 6 323 30.6 3.3 27.3
1988 238 6 881 777 6 104 28.9 3.3 25.6
1989 245 6 926 827 6 099 28.3 3.4 24.9
1990 252 7 011 770 6 241 27.8 3.1 24.8
1991 259 7 106 852 6 254 27.4 3.3 24.1
1992 267 7 290 887 6 403 27.3 3.3 24.0
1993 274 7 314 1 018 6 296 26.7 3.7 22.9
1994 282 7 400 1 000 6 400 26.2 3.5 22.7
1995 290 7 500 1 000 6 500 25.9 3.5 22.4
1996 297 7 633 1 002 6 631 25.7 3.4 22.3
1997 305 7 459 883 6 576 24.5 2.9 21.6
1998 312 7 411 928 6 483 23.7 3.0 20.8
1999 320 7 408 905 6 503 23.2 2.8 20.3
2000 327 7 481 965 6 516 22.9 3.0 19.9
2001 334 7 363 1 014 6 349 22.0 3.0 19.0
2002 342 7 464 1 041 6 423 21.9 3.0 18.8
2003 349 7 047 1 010 6 037 20.2 2.9 17.3
2004 356 7 165 1 010 6 155 20.1 2.8 17.3
2005 363 6 933 1 072 5 861 19.1 3.0 16.1
2006 370 6 526 1 095 5 431 17.6 3.0 14.7
2007 378 6 314 1 174 5 140 16.7 3.1 13.6
2008 385 6 424 1 091 5 333 16.7 2.8 13.9

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 75.52 years
male: 73.32 years
female: 77.83 years (2009 est.)

Ethnic groups

Population of Brunei according to ethnic group 1947-2001[2]
Ethnic
group		 census 1947 census 1960 census 1971 census 1981 census 1991 census 2001
Number  % Number  % Number  % Number  % Number  % Number  %
Malay 16,742 41.2 45,135 53.8 89,267 65.5 125,717 65.2 174,319 66.9
Kedayan1 4,291 5.1
Chinese 8,300 20.4 21,795 26.0 31,925 23.4 39,461 20.5 40,621 15.6
Dusun 2 4,873 5.8 8,552 6,3 15,175 7,9 15,665 6,0
Iban 1,330 3.3 3,900 4.6
Melanau 2,517 6.2 318 0.4
Indians 11,768 28.9 3,565 4.3 2,162 1.6 5,919 3.1 29,877 11.5
Others 4,350 3.2 6,560 3.4
Total 40,657 83,877 136,256 192,832 260,482 332,800
1 The Kedayan were only mentioned as a separate ethnic group in the 1960 census; they are probably included in the Malay in the other censuses.
2 included in 'Others'
Bruneian (Malay or also called Kedayan) 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other (including European and Filipino) 12%. Indigenous groups include the Iban people (a branch of the Dayak people), the Dusun and the Melanau.

Languages

Malay (official), English, Chinese

Religions

Muslim (official) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and non-religious, Atheist or Agnostic 10%

HIV/AIDS

Adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2003 est.)
People living with HIV/AIDS: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)

Nationality

Noun: Bruneian(s)
Adjective: Bruneian

Literacy

Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 93.9%
Male: 96.3%
Female: 91.4% (2002)

Education expenditures

5.2% of total GDP (2000)

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision
  2. ^ a b UN Demographic Yearbooks

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the CIA World Factbook.

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