Theme - Population

Key figures:
Population at 1.10.2011:	4 973 029
2010:
Immigration:	73 852
Emigration:	31 506
Population growth:	62 106
Live births:	61 442
Deaths:	41 499
Couples who married:	23 577
Couples who divorced:	10 264

Befolkningsklokke

Norway's population right now:

This shows the estimated population,
and not the actual population.

The world's population right now:
- U.S Census Bureau. Population Clocks
- UNFPA, the United Nations. Current World Population

Explanation of terms

Life expectancy - remaining years
Fertility rate
Total fertility rate
Divorce rate
Mean population
Infant mortality rate
Age standardised mortality rate
Age standardised fertility rates
Marriage rate
Net migration
Marital status
Family types

Focus on

Population

In 1665, Norway's population was 440 000. It had grown to one million by 1822, two million by 1890, three million by 1942 and four million by 1975. Today, Norway's population is 4.9 million.

There were born 61 500 children in Norway in 2010, which is somewhat fewer than in 2009. The number of births describes the average number of babies born per woman during her reproductive period. In the mid-1980s, the number ranged between 1.66 and 1.75, but it has increased over the past seven years. For the years 2001-2005 the average was 1.80. Norwegian women's fertility is among the highest in Europe.

Life expectancy has changed over time, and today Norwegians can expect to live longer than ever before. In 2010, a newborn girl could expect to live to just over 83 years of age, whereas a boy could expect to live to almost 78 years of age. Twenty years ago, the corresponding figures were 79 and 73 years.

Of the population in the whole country was 25.3 per cent below 20 years of age, 61.7 per cent were aged 20-66 years, and 12.9 per cent were over 66 years. The difference between the most and least central municipalities is due to the fact that relatively fewer people of working age and more elderly people are living in the least central municipalities.

Immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents accounted for 11.4 per cent of Norway's population per 1 January 2010. The 552 000 immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents come from more than 200 different countries. All Norwegian municipalities are home to immigrants, but Oslo has the largest proportion of immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents with 27 per cent, or 160 000 people. For more information, go to Focus on immigration.

1 January 2011 there were 50.01 per cent males and 49.99 per cent women in Norway. The earliest population figures broken down by sex are from the Population Census in 1769. For the first time there were now registered 1 400 more men than women resident in Norway. The changes from a surplus of women to a surplus of men, is a result of different demographic conditions during the last hundred years. About 4-6 per cent more boys than girls is born every year and this contributes steadily to decrease the surplus of women. Furthermore, we have had the particular situation since 1997 that more women than men have died, which is connected to the fact that there are more women than men at the ages where people mostly die. This is due to the strong falling birth figures in the first 15 years after 1920, and because these women live about 6-7 years longer than men. Nevertheless, the absolute most important reason for the change to male surplus is the migration to and from abroad, which since 2005 has contributed to the male surplus in the population by about 20 000.