Editing Demographics of Syria

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use American English|date = March 2019}}
{{Infobox place demographics
 | place              = [[Syria]]
 | image              = Syria single age population pyramid 2020.png
 | image_size         = 350
 | caption            = [[Population pyramid]] of [[Syria]] in 2020

<!-- main demographics -->
 | size_of_population = 25,255,139 (2025 est.)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Syria |date=2024-09-17 |url=https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/syria-population/ |access-date=2025-05-26 |publisher=Worldometers |language=en}}</ref>
 | density            = {{cvt|140|/km2}} (2024 est.)
 | growth             = 4.57% (2024 est.)
 | birth              = 21.7 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
 | death              = 4 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
 | life               = 74.8 years (2024 est.)
 | life_male          = 73.4 years
 | life_female        = 76.4 years
 | fertility          = 2.69 children born/woman (2024 est.)
 | infant_mortality   = 15.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
 | net_migration      = -1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)

<!-- age structure -->
 | age_0–14_years     = 33% (male 4,037,493/female 3,828,777)
 | age_15–64_years    = 62.8% (male 7,475,355/female 7,522,797)
 | age_65_years       = 4.2% (2024 est.) (male 468,730/female 532,271)
<!-- sex ratio -->
 | total_mf_ratio     = 1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
 | sr_at_birth        = 1.06 male(s)/female
 | sr_under_15        = 1.05 male(s)/female
 | sr_15–64_years     = 0.99 male(s)/female
 | sr_65_years_over   = 0.88 male(s)/female

<!-- nationality -->
 | nation             = ''noun'': Syrian(s) ''adjective'': Syrian
 | major_ethnic       = {{unbulleted list
|{{Tree list}}
* [[Arabs]] 
** [[Arab Muslims]]
*** [[Alawites]]
*** Others
** [[Arab Christians]]
*** [[Maronites]]
*** Others
** Other Arabs
{{tree list/end}}
}}
 | minor_ethnic       = {{unbulleted list
|{{Tree list}}
* [[Kurds]]
** [[Yazidis]]
** Other Kurds
* [[Turkish people|Turks]]
* [[Druze]]
* [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]]
* [[Dom people|Doms]]
* [[Circassians]]
* [[Armenians]]
* [[Afro-Arabs]] 
* [[Greeks]]
* Others
{{tree list/end}}
}}

<!-- language -->
 | official           = [[Arabic language|Arabic]]
 | spoken             = [[Kurmanji|Kurdish]], [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Neo-Aramaic languages|Neo-Aramaic]] ([[Turoyo]], [[Western Neo-Aramaic]], [[Suret language|Sureth]]
}}

[[Syria]]'s estimated pre–[[Syrian Civil War]] 2011 population was 22 <small>±.5</small><ref>{{cite news|title=Syria's drained population|newspaper=The Economist|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2015/09/daily-chart-18|date=30 September 2015|access-date=12 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815162318/https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2015/09/daily-chart-18|archive-date=15 August 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> million permanent inhabitants, which included 21,124,000 [[Syrians]],<ref name="cbspop">{{cite web|title=Population Existed in Syria According To Censuses (1960, 1970, 1981, 1994, 2004) And Estimates of Their Number in Mid Years 2005–2011(000)|url=http://www.cbssyr.sy/yearbook/2011/Data-Chapter2/TAB-10-2-2011.htm|publisher=Central Bureau of Statistics|access-date=18 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023010741/http://www.cbssyr.sy/yearbook/2011/Data-Chapter2/TAB-10-2-2011.htm|archive-date=23 October 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> as well as 1.3 million [[Refugees of Iraq#Syria|Iraqi refugees]]<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008" /> and over 500,000 [[Palestinian refugees#Syria|Palestinian refugees]].<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008" /refugees.<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008">{{cite news|title=World Refugee Survey 2008 |publisher=U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants |date=19 June 2008 |url=http://www.refugees.org/resources/refugee-warehousing/archived-world-refugee-surveys/2008-world-refugee-survey.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121228132236/http://www.refugees.org/resources/refugee-warehousing/archived-world-refugee-surveys/2008-world-refugee-survey.html |archive-date=28 December 2012 }}</ref> The war makes an accurate count of the Syrian population difficult, as the numbers of [[Refugees of the Syrian Civil War|Syrian refugees]],<ref name="unhcr">{{Cite web|url=https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria|title=Syria Regional Refugee Response|date=4 July 2019|publisher=UNHCR Syria Regional Refugee Response|access-date=18 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719173216/https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria|archive-date=19 July 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Internally displaced persons in Syria|internally displaced Syrians]] and [[Casualties of the Syrian Civil War|casualty]] numbers are in flux. The [[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]] showed an estimated 20.4 m people as of July 2021.<ref name="CIA">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/syria/|title=The World Factbook: Syria|publisher=CIA Library|access-date=22 December 2018}}</ref> Of the pre-war population, six million are [[Refugees of the Syrian civil war|refugees outside the country]], seven million are [[Internally displaced persons in Syria|internally displaced]] and two million live in the Kurdish-ruled [[Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria]].

Most modern-day [[Syrians]] are commonly described as [[Arabs]] by virtue of their modern-day language and bonds to [[Arab culture]] and [[Arab history|history]]. But they are, in fact, genetically a blend of the various [[Semitic languages|Semitic]]-speaking groups indigenous to the region.<ref>{{cite book |author=Michael Haag |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oIdK623wy0UC&pg=PA65 |title=The Templars: The History and the Myth - From Solomon's Temple to the Freemasons |publisher=Profile Books Limited |year=2009 |isbn=9781846681530 |page=65 |access-date=2015-11-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019161713/https://books.google.com/books?id=oIdK623wy0UC&pg=PA65 |archive-date=2017-10-19 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|first1=Danielle A.|last1=Badro|first2=Bouchra|last2=Douaihy|first3=Marc|last3=Haber|first4=Sonia C.|last4=Youhanna|first5=Angélique|last5=Salloum|first6=Michella|last6=Ghassibe-Sabbagh|first7=Brian|last7=Johnsrud|first8=Georges|last8=Khazen|first9=Elizabeth|last9=Matisoo-Smith|first10=David F.|last10=Soria-Hernanz|first11=R. Spencer|last11=Wells|first12=Chris|last12=Tyler-Smith|first13=Daniel E.|last13=Platt|first14=Pierre A.|last14=Zalloua|date=30 January 2013|title=Y-Chromosome and mtDNA Genetics Reveal Significant Contrasts in Affinities of Modern Middle Eastern Populations with European and African Populations|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=8|issue=1|page=e54616|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0054616|pmid=23382925|pmc=3559847|bibcode=2013PLoSO...854616B|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|first1=Mirvat|last1=El-Sibai|first2=Daniel E.|last2=Platt|first3=Marc|last3=Haber|first4=Yali|last4=Xue|first5=Sonia C.|last5=Youhanna|first6=R. Spencer|last6=Wells|first7=Hassan|last7=zaabel|first8=May F.|last8=Sanyoura|first9=Haidar|last9=Harmanani|first10=Maziar Ashrafian|last10=Bonab|first11=Jaafar|last11=Behbehani|first12=Fuad|last12=Hashwa|first13=Chris|last13=Tyler-Smith|first14=Pierre A.|last14=Zalloua|title= Geographical Structure of the Y-chromosomal Genetic Landscape of the Levant: A coastal-inland contrast|journal= Annals of Human Genetics|date= 16 August 2009|doi=10.1111/j.1469-1809.2009.00538.x|pmid=19686289|pmc=3312577|volume=73|issue=6|pages=568–581}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=John Joseph |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=79wj2hj4wKUC&pg=PA30 |title=The Modern Assyrians of the Middle East |publisher=BRILL |year=2000 |isbn=978-9004116412 |page=30 |access-date=2015-11-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019162143/https://books.google.com/books?id=79wj2hj4wKUC&pg=PA30 |archive-date=2017-10-19 |url-status=live}}</ref> With around 10% of the population, [[Kurds]] are the second biggest [[ethnic groups in Syria|ethnic group in Syria]], followed by [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmen]].

== Population ==
{{Update section|date=June 2023}}

This data is from [[CIA World Factbook]]:<ref name="SyriaTWF" /> In 2023, the Syrian population increased by 6.39%. This made Syria the country with the highest population growth. The birth rate was estimated at 22.19 births per 1000 people. The death rate is 4.07 deaths for 1000 people. The median age (estimated in 2020) for males is 23 years old, while for females, it is 24 years old. Overall, the Syrian median age is 23.5 years old. The migration rate is 45.78 migrants for 1,000 people. 

{{Historical populations
|align=right
|percentages = pagr
|0|2110000|200|2860000|500|2430000|900|2200000|1200|2700000|1500|1070000|1700|1250000|1850|1480000|1900|1720000|1937|2368000 |1950|3252000 |1960|4565000 |1970|6305000 |1980|8704000 |1990|12116000 |1995|14186000 |2004|17921000|2011|21124000|2016|17185000|2023|23,022,427|footnote = Source:<ref name="Russell Crusader">{{Setton-A History of the Crusades|last=Russell|first=Josiah C.|chapter=The Population of the Crusader States|pages=295–314|volume=5}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Syria Population - Our World in Data |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/population?time=0..latest&country=~SYR |website=ourworldindata.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>Demographic Developments and Population Policies in Baʻthist Syria, Onn. Winkler, page 184,  1998.</ref> 2016 estimate<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/syria/|title=The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency|access-date=2011-05-02}}</ref> 2023 estimate<ref>{{Cite web |title=Syria Population 2023 (Live) |url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/syria-population |access-date=2023-05-08 |website=worldpopulationreview.com}}</ref>
}}
[[File:Population development of Syria.svg|thumb|Population history of Syria|230x230px]]
In 1200, the territories of modern-day Syria had an estimated population of 2.7 million.<ref name="Russell Crusader">{{Setton-A History of the Crusades|last=Russell|first=Josiah C.|chapter=The Population of the Crusader States|pages=295–314|volume=5}}</ref> This number sharply decreased due to the [[Black Death|Plague epidemic]] in 1348–1353, which killed off an estimated third of the [[Levant]]'s population. By 1937, the population reached an estimated 2,368,000, still considerably lower than 1200's estimated population.

Since 1960, censuses have been conducted in 1960, 1970, 1981, 1994, and 2004.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://international.ipums.org/international/microdata_inventory.shtml|title=World Microdata Inventory|date=2009|work=IPUMS-International|publisher=University of Minnesota|access-date=27 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151004221103/https://international.ipums.org/international/microdata_inventory.shtml|archive-date=4 October 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>
In 2014, 17,951,639, a massive decline due to nearly 4 million [[Refugees of the Syrian Civil War|Syrian refugees]] leaving the country because of the [[Syrian Civil War]] and furthermore because of the death in the war. This is a drop of 9.7% from the previous year.<ref name="SyriaIM">{{cite web|url=http://www.indexmundi.com/syria/demographics_profile.html|title=Syria Demographics Profile 2014|work=indexmundi.com|access-date=29 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151108081118/http://www.indexmundi.com/syria/demographics_profile.html|archive-date=8 November 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2017, the head of the Syrian Commission for Family Affairs, Mohammad Akram al-Qash, said that the Syrian population was 28 million, of which, 21 million were living in Syria and that 7 million were refugees.<ref name="EnabBaladi">{{cite web |script-title=ar:حكومة النظام السوري تحصي عدد سكان سوريا|url=https://www.enabbaladi.net/archives/191247#ixzz5Lw82tbj2|year=2017|publisher=[[Enab Baladi]]|language=ar|access-date=22 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180722041200/https://www.enabbaladi.net/archives/191247#ixzz5Lw82tbj2|archive-date=22 July 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018,  the population was estimated to be 19,454,263 people.<ref name="SyriaTWF">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/syria/|title=The World Factbook|publisher=CIA |access-date=2019-04-07}} This data is from [[CIA World Factbook]]</ref> Ever since the [[Syrian Civil War]], the population has been steadily declining, however rebounded in 2023, with an estimated population of 23,022,427 people.

=== Forced displacement ===
{{See also|Refugees of the Syrian Civil War|Internally displaced persons in Syria}}
More than six million refugees left the country during the civil war,<ref name="BBC News 2016">{{cite web | title=Syria: Five years into war, what is left of the country? | publisher=BBC News | date=15 March 2016 | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-841ebc3a-1be9-493b-8800-2c04890e8fc9 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617173849/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-841ebc3a-1be9-493b-8800-2c04890e8fc9 | archive-date=17 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> of whom over five million are registered as refugees by the [[UNHCR]] as of mid-2019.<ref name="Situations ">{{cite web| title=Situation Syria Regional Refugee Response| publisher=UNHCR| url=https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria| access-date=12 June 2019| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611173834/https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria| archive-date=11 June 2019| url-status=live}}</ref> Most of them fled to neighboring countries such as [[Turkey]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2012/03/11/148327930/syrian-refugees-may-be-wearing-out-turks-welcome |title=Syrian Refugees May Be Wearing Out Turks' Welcome |publisher=NPR |date=11 March 2012 |access-date=10 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402005834/http://www.npr.org/2012/03/11/148327930/syrian-refugees-may-be-wearing-out-turks-welcome |archive-date=2 April 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17635434 |title=Syria crisis: Turkey refugee surge amid escalation fear |publisher=BBC News |date=6 April 2012 |access-date=10 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120408231033/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17635434 |archive-date=8 April 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Lebanon]], [[Jordan]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.news24.com/World/News/Syria-Refugees-brace-for-more-bloodshed-20120312 |title=Syria: Refugees brace for more bloodshed |work=News24 |date=12 March 2012 |access-date=10 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171023184006/http://www.news24.com/World/News/Syria-Refugees-brace-for-more-bloodshed-20120312 |archive-date=23 October 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Iraq]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_131434512.htm|title=30 Syrian soldiers flees to Iraq's Kurdish region: official|access-date=13 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131118205329/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_131434512.htm|archive-date=18 November 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> as well as European nations like [[Greece]], [[Germany]] and [[Sweden]]. Since 2017, tens of thousands have returned.<ref name="ECFR.EU 2019">{{cite web | title=The displacement dilemma: Should Europe help Syrian refugees return home? | website=ECFR.EU | date=13 March 2019 | url=https://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/the_displacement_dilemma_should_europe_help_syrian_refugees_return_home | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605215302/https://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/the_displacement_dilemma_should_europe_help_syrian_refugees_return_home | archive-date=5 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref>

The war resulted in large-scale displacement in the country. The UNHCR estimates [[Internally displaced persons in Syria|internally displaced people]] (IDPs) at seven million. A further 70,000 people were trapped on the border with Jordan at [[Rukban]] in 2016–18,<ref name="Human Rights Watch 2017">{{cite web | title=World Report 2017: Rights Trends in Syria | publisher=Human Rights Watch | date=12 January 2017 | url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2017/country-chapters/syria | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611171554/https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2017/country-chapters/syria | archive-date=11 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Enab Baladi 2018">{{cite web | title=In 15 Days, Healthcare Deterioration Leads to 14 Civilians' Death in al-Rukban camp – Enab Baladi | website=Enab Baladi | date=10 October 2018 | url=https://english.enabbaladi.net/archives/2018/10/in-15-days-healthcare-deterioration-leads-to-14-civilians-death-in-al-rukban-camp/ | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330044739/https://english.enabbaladi.net/archives/2018/10/in-15-days-healthcare-deterioration-leads-to-14-civilians-death-in-al-rukban-camp/ | archive-date=30 March 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> with up to 40,000 still there in 2019.<ref name="Al-Khalidi 2019">{{cite web | last=Al-Khalidi | first=Suleiman | title=Russian 'siege' chokes Syrian camp in shadow of U.S. base | publisher=Reuters | date=28 April 2019 | url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-security-camp-idUKKCN1S404T | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508205951/https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-security-camp-idUKKCN1S404T | archive-date=8 May 2019 | url-status=dead }}</ref>

A significant part of the population lives in territory outside government sovereignty. At its peak in 2015, [[ISIL]] ruled over ten million people across Syria and Iraq.<ref name="BBC ISIL maps 2018">{{cite web | title=The war against 'Islamic State' in maps and charts | publisher=BBC News | date=28 March 2018 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-27838034 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190616195731/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-27838034 | archive-date=16 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (NES), commonly referred to as [[Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria|Rojava]], has a population of around two million.<ref name="washingtoninstitute1">{{cite web|author1=Fabrice Balanche|author-link=Fabrice Balanche|title=Sectarianism in Syria's Civil War|page=24|url=https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/SyriaAtlasCOMPLETE-3.pdf|publisher=The Washington Institute for Near East Policy|access-date=2019-06-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180922063624/https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/SyriaAtlasCOMPLETE-3.pdf|archive-date=2018-09-22|url-status=live}}</ref> Areas controlled by the opposition have had a population in the millions. In mid-2017, UN OCHA estimated that around 540,000 persons were trapped in besieged areas as of June 2017, the majority besieged by government forces in [[Siege of Eastern Ghouta|Eastern Ghouta]].<ref name="Human Rights Watch 2018">{{cite web | title=World Report 2018: Rights Trends in Syria | publisher=Human Rights Watch | date=2 January 2018 | url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2018/country-chapters/syria | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181222103038/https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2018/country-chapters/syria | archive-date=22 December 2018 | url-status=live }}</ref> By the time the government retook Ghouta in April 2018, some 140,000 individuals had fled their homes and up to 50,000 were evacuated to Idlib and Aleppo governorates.<ref name="UN News 2018">{{cite web | title=Siege of Syria's eastern Ghouta 'barbaric and medieval', says UN Commission of Inquiry | website=UN News | date=20 June 2018 | url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/06/1012632 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530192352/https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/06/1012632 | archive-date=30 May 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> The latter [[Idlib demilitarization (2018–present)|rebel areas]] had an estimated population of 3 million (40% of them displaced from defeated rebel areas).<ref name="BBC News 2019">{{cite web | title=Why does the battle for Idlib matter? | publisher=BBC News | date=4 June 2019 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-45403334 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606061005/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-45403334 | archive-date=6 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect 2019">{{cite web | title=Syria : Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect | publisher=Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect | date=23 March 2019 | url=http://www.globalr2p.org/regions/syria | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190602034206/http://www.globalr2p.org/regions/syria | archive-date=2 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> [[Northwestern Syria offensive (April 2019–present)|Fighting in Idlib]] has led to further displacements, of up to 250,000 people, and generating new refugee outflows to neighbouring Turkey.<ref name="TRTWorld NGOs 2019">{{cite web | author=TRTWorld | title=Syria NGOs prepare for 'largest ever' surge in IDPs and refugees | website=Syria NGOs prepare for ‘largest ever’ surge in IDPs and refugees | date=13 May 2019 | url=https://www.trtworld.com/middle-east/syria-ngos-prepare-for-largest-ever-surge-in-idps-and-refugees-26602 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516081648/https://www.trtworld.com/middle-east/syria-ngos-prepare-for-largest-ever-surge-in-idps-and-refugees-26602 | archive-date=16 May 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref>

Displacement has led to demographic shifts. One example is the area in the North under control by Kurdish-led and US-backed [[Syrian Democratic Forces]] (SDF). Many human rights groups, including [[Amnesty International]]<ref>{{cite news |title= Syria: US ally's razing of villages amounts to war crimes |url= https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/10/syria-us-allys-razing-of-villages-amounts-to-war-crimes/ |publisher= Amnesty International |date= 13 October 2015 |access-date= 9 June 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151014151034/https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/10/syria-us-allys-razing-of-villages-amounts-to-war-crimes/ |archive-date= 14 October 2015 |url-status= live }}</ref> and international organizations<ref>{{cite news|title=Syria: Kurdish militias plan a demographic change in Manbij|url=https://www.middleeastobserver.org/2016/08/14/syria-kurdish-militias-plan-a-demographic-change-in-manbij/|publisher=Middle East Observer|date=14 August 2016|access-date=9 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526223319/https://www.middleeastobserver.org/2016/08/14/syria-kurdish-militias-plan-a-demographic-change-in-manbij/|archive-date=26 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Tal Abyad: Achilles Heel of the Syrian Kurdish Belt|url=https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/tal-abyad-achilles-heel-of-the-syrian-kurdish-belt|publisher=Middle East Observer|date=21 December 2018|access-date=9 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190217084951/https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/tal-abyad-achilles-heel-of-the-syrian-kurdish-belt|archive-date=17 February 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> have accused SDF forces of committing ethnic cleansing in Arab areas they were capturing from other war factions.<ref>{{cite news|title=Syrian Kurds accused of ethnic cleansing and killing opponents|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/18/syrian-kurds-accused-of-ethnic-cleansing-and-killing-opponents/|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=18 May 2016|access-date=9 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617144708/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/18/syrian-kurds-accused-of-ethnic-cleansing-and-killing-opponents/|archive-date=17 June 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The accusation was repeated on 8 May 2019 by Russia's foreign minister [[Sergey Lavrov]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Lavrov: US attempts to resettle Kurds in Arab areas might trigger Syria's breakup|url=http://tass.com/politics/1057531|publisher=Tass Agency|date=8 May 2019|access-date=9 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516023441/http://tass.com/politics/1057531|archive-date=16 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> NGOs and the opposition have also accused the government of using the conflict to affect demographic restructuring.<ref name="FILDH ReliefWeb 2019">{{cite web | author=Fédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de I'Homme | title=Assad's Syria: how he planned to transform Syria since 2011 - Syrian Arab Republic | website=ReliefWeb | date=15 March 2019 | url=https://reliefweb.int/report/syrian-arab-republic/assad-s-syria-how-he-planned-transform-syria-2011 | access-date=12 June 2019}}</ref><ref name="Arfeh 2019">{{cite web | last=Arfeh | first=Hasan | title=The Institutionalization of Demographic Change in Syria | publisher=Atlantic Council | date=4 April 2019 | url=https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/syriasource/the-institutionalization-of-demographic-change-in-syria | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606005711/https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/syriasource/the-institutionalization-of-demographic-change-in-syria | archive-date=6 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Dajani Sheff 2018">{{cite web | last1=Dajani | first1=Mohammed S. | last2=Sheff | first2=Marcus | title=Assad's Law 10: Reshaping Syria's Demographics | publisher=The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | date=17 September 2018 | url=https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/assads-law-10-reshaping-syrias-demographics | access-date=12 June 2019}}</ref><ref name="TRTWorld 2019">{{cite web | author=TRTWorld | title=Bashar al Assad's bet on permanent demographic change in Syria | website=Bashar al Assad’s bet on permanent demographic change in Syria | date=10 April 2019 | url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/bashar-al-assad-s-bet-on-permanent-demographic-change-in-syria-25728 | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717095317/https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/bashar-al-assad-s-bet-on-permanent-demographic-change-in-syria-25728 | archive-date=17 July 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Casualties of the civil war ===
{{Human toll of Syrian Civil War}}
{{See also|Casualties of the Syrian Civil War}}
In April 2016, the UN estimated that 400,000 people had died in the war,<ref name="Al Jazeera 2016">{{cite web | title=Syria death toll: UN envoy estimates 400,000 killed | publisher=Al Jazeera English | date=23 April 2016 | url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/staffan-de-mistura-400000-killed-syria-civil-war-160423055735629.html | access-date=12 June 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613102827/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/staffan-de-mistura-400000-killed-syria-civil-war-160423055735629.html | archive-date=13 June 2019 | url-status=live }}</ref> and casualties have continued since, with estimates for the total dead by mid-2019 of up to 220,000 civilians, 175,000 government combatants, and 174,000 anti-government combatants  (see [[Casualties of the Syrian Civil War]]).

===Age structure===
{{Bar chart
| title       = [[CIA World Factbook]] (2018 est.)<ref name="SyriaTWF"/>
| bar_width   = 20
| width_units = em
| label_type  = [[Population pyramid]]
| label1  = 0–14
| label2  = 15–24
| label3  = 25–54
| label4  = 55–64
| label5  = 65+
| data_type = Male
| data_max  = 4000000
| data1  = 3,132,619
| data2  = 1,933,185
| data3  = 3,807,664
| data4  = 531,455
| data5  = 379,360
| col2_data_type = Female
| col2_data_max  = 4000000
| col2_data1  = 2,974,394
| col2_data2  = 1,863,991
| col2_data3  = 3,829,150
| col2_data4  = 542,738
| col2_data5  = 379,360
}}
{{Bar chart
| title       = [[UN]] inc [[Palestinian refugees#Syria|Palestinian refugees]] 2011-07-01 est.<ref name="UN Stats">{{Cite web |url=http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2.htm |title=United Nations Statistics Division - Demographic and Social Statistics |access-date=2016-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227194033/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2.htm |archive-date=2016-12-27 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| bar_width   = 20
| width_units = em
| label_type  = [[Population pyramid]]
| label1  = 0–14
| label2  = 15–64
| label3  = 65+
| data_type = Male
| data_max  = 7000000
| data1  = 4044000
| data2  = 6281000
| data3  = 469000
| col2_data_type = Female
| col2_data_max  = 7000000
| col2_data1  = 6281000
| col2_data2  = 6126000
| col2_data3  = 389000
}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| colspan=5|(2011-07-01) (Estimates, including Palestinian refugees)<ref name="UN Stats">{{Cite web |url=http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2.htm |title=United Nations Statistics Division - Demographic and Social Statistics |access-date=2016-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227194033/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2.htm |archive-date=2016-12-27 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
! width="80pt"|Age Group
! width="80pt"|Male
! width="80pt"|Female
! width="80pt"|Total
! width="80pt"|%
|-
| align="right" | Total
| align="right" | 10 794 000
| align="right" | 10 330 000
| align="right" | 21 124 000
| align="right" | 100
|-
| align="right" | 0-4
| align="right" | 1 428 000
| align="right" | 1 347 000
| align="right" | 2 775 000
| align="right" | 13.14
|-
| align="right" | 5-9
| align="right" | 1 384 000
| align="right" | 1 270 000
| align="right" | 2 654 000
| align="right" | 12.56
|-
| align="right" | 10-14
| align="right" | 1 232 000
| align="right" | 1 198 000
| align="right" | 2 430 000
| align="right" | 11.50
|-
| align="right" | 15-19
| align="right" | 1 191 000
| align="right" | 1 088 000
| align="right" | 2 279 000
| align="right" | 10.79
|-
| align="right" | 20-24
| align="right" | 1 035 000
| align="right" | 944 000
| align="right" | 1 979 000
| align="right" | 9.37
|-
| align="right" | 25-29
| align="right" | 864 000
| align="right" | 873 000
| align="right" | 1 737 000
| align="right" | 8.22
|-
| align="right" | 30-34
| align="right" | 674 000
| align="right" | 697 000
| align="right" | 1 371 000
| align="right" | 6.49
|-
| align="right" | 35-39
| align="right" | 601 000
| align="right" | 628 000
| align="right" | 1 229 000
| align="right" | 5.82
|-
| align="right" | 40-44
| align="right" | 545 000
| align="right" | 551 000
| align="right" | 1 096 000
| align="right" | 5.19
|-
| align="right" | 45-49
| align="right" | 437 000
| align="right" | 433 000
| align="right" | 870 000
| align="right" | 4.12
|-
| align="right" | 50-54
| align="right" | 387 000
| align="right" | 405 000
| align="right" | 792 000
| align="right" | 3.75
|-
| align="right" | 55-59
| align="right" | 293 000
| align="right" | 280 000
| align="right" | 573 000
| align="right" | 2.71
|-
| align="right" | 60-64
| align="right" | 254 000
| align="right" | 227 000
| align="right" | 481 000
| align="right" | 2.28
|-
| align="right" | 65+
| align="right" | 469 000
| align="right" | 389 000
| align="right" | 858 000
| align="right" | 4.06
|-
! width="50"|Age group 
! width="80pt"|Male
! width="80"|Female
! width="80"|Total
! width="50"|Percent
|-
| align="right" | 0–14
| align="right" | 4 044 000
| align="right" | 3 815 000
| align="right" | 7 859 000
| align="right" | 37.20
|-
| align="right" | 15–64
| align="right" | 6 281 000
| align="right" | 6 126 000
| align="right" | 12 407 000
| align="right" | 58.73
|-
| align="right" | 65+
| align="right" | 469 000
| align="right" | 389 000
| align="right" | 858 000
| align="right" | 4.06 
|-
|}

=== Population centers ===
{{main|List of cities in Syria|Cities and towns during the Syrian Civil War}}

{{Location map+ | Syria
| relief   = yes
| width    = 400
| caption  = [[List of cities in Syria|Population centers]] as of 2004<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cbssyr.org/General%20census/census%202004/pop-man.pdf |title=2004 official census |access-date=2019-08-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130310211017/http://www.cbssyr.org/General%20census/census%202004/pop-man.pdf |archive-date=2013-03-10 |url-status=dead }}</ref> '''6,133,652''' Syrians among '''17,921,000''' total population live in the first 10: (1) Aleppo 2,132,100 (2) Damascus 1,711,000 (3) Homs 652,609 (4) Latakia 383,786 (5) Hama 312,994 (6) Raqqa 220,488 (7) Deir ez-Zor 211,857 (8) Al-Hasakah 188,160 (9) Qamishli 184,231 (10) Sayyidah Zaynab 136,427
| float    = center
| places ={{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Aleppo]] 2,132,100</small>
 | marksize   = 21 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 36.216667 
 | lon_deg = 37.166667	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Damascus]] 1,711,000</small>
 | marksize   = 17 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 33.513056
 | lon_deg = 36.291944	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Homs]] 652,609</small>
 | marksize   = 6 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 34.730833
 | lon_deg = 36.709444	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Latakia]] 383,786</small>
 | marksize   = 3 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 35.516667
 | lon_deg = 35.783333	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Hama]] 312,994</small>
 | marksize   = 3 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 35.133333
 | lon_deg = 36.75	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Raqqa]] 220,488</small>
 | marksize   = 2 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 35.95
 | lon_deg = 39.0167	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Deir ez-Zor]] 211,857</small>
 | marksize   = 2 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 35.333333
 | lon_deg = 40.15	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Al-Hasakah]] 	188,160</small>
 | marksize   = 1 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 36.511667
 | lon_deg = 40.742222	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Qamishli]] 184,231</small>
 | marksize   = 1 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = left
 | lat_deg = 37.05
 | lon_deg = 41.22	}}
{{Location map~ | Syria
 | label = <small>[[Sayyidah Zaynab]] 136,427</small>
 | marksize   = 1 <!-- 1 -->
 | position   = right
 | lat_deg = 33.447222
 | lon_deg = 36.336111	}}
}}
60% of the population lives in the [[Aleppo Governorate]], the [[Euphrates]] valley or along the coastal plain; a fertile strip between the coastal mountains and the desert. Overall population density is about {{convert|118.3|PD/km2}}.

==== Urbanization ====
This data is from [[CIA World Factbook]]:<ref name="SyriaTWF"/>
Urban population: 54.2% of total population (2018)
Rate of [[urbanization]]: 1.43% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

==== Major urban areas ====
[[File:Syria pop.jpg|thumb|Population density, 1993]]
As of 2018; this data is from [[CIA World Factbook]]:<ref name="SyriaTWF"/>
Damascus (capital): 2.32 million
Aleppo: 1.754 million
Homs: 1.295 million
Hama: 894,000

== Vital statistics ==
UN estimates:''<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Population Prospects - Population Division - United Nations |url=https://population.un.org/wpp/ |access-date=2022-07-13 |website=population.un.org}}</ref>''

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right"
|-
! style="width:80pt;"|Period
! style="width:80pt;"|Population
! style="width:80pt;"|Live births
! style="width:80pt;"|Deaths 
! style="width:80pt;"|Natural change 
! style="width:80pt;"|Birth rate <br />(per 1000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Death rate <br />(per 1000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Natural change  <br />(per 1000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Crude migration rate  <br />(per 1000)
! style="width:80pt;"|Total Fertility rate
! style="width:80pt;"|Infant mortality (1000 births)
! style="width:80pt;"|Life expectancy (years)
|-
|1950
|3 544 000
|   167 000
|   92 000
|   75 000
|47.0
|25.9
|21.1
|
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.60'''
|179.6
|44.14
|-
|1951
|  3 621 000
|  171 000
|  92 000
|  80 000
|47.3
|25.4
|22.0
| -0.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.60'''
|177.5
|44.45
|-
|1952
|  3 703 000
|  176 000
|  91 000
|  85 000
|47.6
|24.7
|23.0
| -0.9
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.61'''
|173.3
|44.99
|-
|1953
|  3 791 000
|  182 000
|  90 000
|  91 000
|47.9
|23.9
|24.0
| -0.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.61'''
|169.1
|45.70
|-
|1954
|  3 886 000
|  187 000
|  88 000
|  99 000
|48.0
|22.6
|25.5
| -1.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.62'''
|160.2
|46.97
|-
|1955
|  3 989 000
|  192 000
|  85 000
|  107 000
|48.2
|21.3
|26.8
| -1.0
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.62'''
|151.7
|48.31
|-
|1956
|  4 099 000
|  197 000
|  83 000
|  114 000
|48.0
|20.3
|27.7
| -0.9
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.59'''
|143.9
|49.39
|-
|1957
|  4 217 000
|  202 000
|  81 000
|  121 000
|47.8
|19.1
|28.7
| -0,7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.57'''
|136.6
|50.58
|-
|1958
|  4 341 000
|  207 000
|  79 000
|  128 000
|47.6
|18.2
|29.4
| -0.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.54'''
|129.9
|51.57
|-
|1959
|  4 473 000
|  212 000
|  77 000
|  135 000
|47.3
|17.2
|30.1
| -0.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.51'''
|123.7
|52.61
|-
|1960
|  4 611 000
|  217 000
|  75 000
|  142 000
|47.0
|16.3
|30.7
| -0.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.49'''
|118.0
|53.55
|-
|1961
|  4 752 000
|  221 000
|  74 000
|  147 000
|46.5
|15.5
|31.0
| -1.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.43'''
|113.0
|54.44
|-
|1962
|  4 895 000
|  227 000
|  73 000
|  154 000
|46.4
|14.8
|31.5
| -2.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.44'''
|108.4
|55.09
|-
|1963
|  5 045 000
|  233 000
|  72 000
|  162 000
|46.2
|14.2
|32.0
| -2.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.44'''
|104.2
|55.78
|-
|1964
|  5 203 000
|  241 000
|  71 000
|  170 000
|46.2
|13.6
|32.6
| -2.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.47'''
|100.3
|56.50
|-
|1965
|  5 368 000
|  249 000
|  70 000
|  179 000
|46.3
|13.1
|33.3
| -2.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.51'''
|96.5
|57.11
|-
|1966
|  5 542 000
|  258 000
|  70 000
|  188 000
|46.5
|12.6
|33.8
| -2.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.55'''
|92.7
|57.60
|-
|1967
|  5 723 000
|  267 000
|  70 000
|  197 000
|46.6
|12.2
|34.4
| -2.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.58'''
|88.9
|58.10
|-
|1968
|  5 913 000
|  276 000
|  68 000
|  208 000
|46.6
|11.5
|35.1
| -3.0
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.60'''
|85.0
|59.07
|-
|1969
|  6 111 000
|  288 000
|  67 000
|  220 000
|47.0
|11.0
|36.0
| -3.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.67'''
|81.1
|59.88
|-
|1970
|  6 319 000
|  298 000
|  67 000
|  231 000
|47.1
|10.5
|36.5
| -3.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.69'''
|77.2
|60.53
|-
|1971
|  6 539 000
|  305 000
|  65 000
|  240 000
|46.7
|10.0
|36.7
| -3.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.65'''
|73.5
|61.37
|-
|1972
|  6 769 000
|  314 000
|  65 000
|  249 000
|46.3
|9.6
|36.7
| -2.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.61'''
|70.1
|61.90
|-
|1973
|  7 003 000
|  322 000
|  69 000
|  253 000
|45.9
|9.8
|36.1
| -2.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.56'''
|66.9
|60.69
|-
|1974
|  7 245 000
|  331 000
|  63 000
|  267 000
|45.6
|8.7
|36.9
| -3.5
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.51'''
|63.8
|63.12
|-
|1975
|  7 497 000
|  341 000
|  63 000
|  278 000
|45.4
|8.4
|37.0
| -3.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.47'''
|60.9
|63.54
|-
|1976
|  7 759 000
|  352 000
|  63 000
|  289 000
|45.3
|8.1
|37.2
| -3.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.44'''
|58.0
|63.92
|-
|1977
|  8 029 000
|  364 000
|  65 000
|  299 000
|45.2
|8.1
|37.2
| -3.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.41'''
|55.2
|63.76
|-
|1978
|  8 310 000
|  373 000
|  60 000
|  314 000
|44.8
|7.2
|style=" color:blue;"|37.7
| -3.9
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.35'''
|52.4
|65.81
|-
|1979
|  8 601 000
|  382 000
|  60 000
|  322 000
|44.3
|6.9
|37.4
| -3.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.27'''
|49.7
|66.14
|-
|1980
|  8 899 000
|  390 000
|  60 000
|  330 000
|43.8
|6.7
|37.1
| -3.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.16'''
|47.2
|66.35
|-
|1981
|  9 204 000
|  396 000
|  68 000
|  328 000
|43.0
|7.4
|35.6
| -2.5
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''7.01'''
|47.0
|64.37
|-
|1982
|  9 511 000
|  404 000
|  83 000
|  321 000
|42.4
|8.7
|33.7
| -1.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.88'''
|48.6
|61.12
|-
|1983
|  9 835 000
|  413 000
|  58 000
|  355 000
|41.9
|5.9
|36.0
| -3.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.74'''
|40.3
|67.83
|-
|1984
|  10 183 000
|  422 000
|  55 000
|  366 000
|41.4
|5.4
|35.9
| -1.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.61'''
|38.3
|68.92
|-
|1985
|  10 541 000
|  432 000
|  57 000
|  375 000
|41.0
|5.4
|35.5
| -1.5
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.48'''
|36.6
|68.76
|-
|1986
|  10 908 000
|  441 000
|  57 000
|  384 000
|40.4
|5.2
|35.2
| -1.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.33'''
|35.0
|69.21
|-
|1987
|  11 281 000
|  447 000
|  58 000
|  389 000
|39.6
|5.1
|34.5
| -1.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''6.13'''
|33.5
|69.30
|-
|1988
|  11 658 000
|  448 000
|  58 000
|  390 000
|38.4
|4.9
|33.4
| -1.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''5.89'''
|32.3
|69.67
|-
|1989
|  12 034 000
|  446 000
|  58 000
|  388 000
|37.1
|4.9
|32.2
| -1.0
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''5.63'''
|31.1
|69.76
|-
|1990
|  12 409 000
|  446 000
|  59 000
|  387 000
|35.9
|4.8
|31.1
| -0.9
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''5.38'''
|29.9
|69.82
|-
|1991
|  12 782 000
|  444 000
|  60 000
|  384 000
|34.7
|4.7
|30.0
| -0.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''5.12'''
|28.8
|70.04
|-
|1992
|  13 156 000
|  448 000
|  60 000
|  387 000
|34.0
|4.6
|29.4
| -1.0
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.95'''
|27.7
|70.26
|-
|1993
|  13 537 000
|  459 000
|  62 000
|  397 000
|33.9
|4.6
|29.3
| -1.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.83'''
|26.5
|70.19
|-
|1994
|  13 923 000
|  468 000
|  64 000
|  404 000
|33.6
|4.6
|29.0
| -1.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.72'''
|25.4
|70.14
|-
|1995
|  14 313 000
|  474 000
|  64 000
|  409 000
|33.1
|4.5
|28.6
| -1.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.57'''
|24.2
|70.42
|-
|1996
|  14 709 000
|  478 000
|  67 000
|  411 000
|32.5
|4.5
|28.0
| -1.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.43'''
|23.1
|70.35
|-
|1997
|  15 104 000
|  481 000
|  69 000
|  412 000
|31.8
|4.5
|27.3
| -1.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.28'''
|22.0
|70.28
|-
|1998
|  15 501 000
|  487 000
|  71 000
|  416 000
|31.4
|4.6
|26.8
| -1.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.18'''
|21.0
|70.20
|-
|1999
|  15 901 000
|  493 000
|  72 000
|  421 000
|31.0
|4.5
|26.5
| -1.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.08'''
|20.1
|70.43
|-
|2000
|  16 308 000
|  500 000
|  72 000
|  428 000
|30.6
|4.4
|26.2
| -1.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.00'''
|19.3
|70.76
|-
|2001
|  16 728 000
|  519 000
|  70 000
|  449 000
|31.0
|4.2
|26.8
| -1.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''4.01'''
|18.6
|71.64
|-
|2002
|  17 164 000
|  529 000
|  70 000
|  459 000
|30.8
|4.1
|26.7
| -1.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.95'''
|18.0
|71.94
|-
|2003
|  17 611 000
|  541 000
|  70 000
|  471 000
|30.7
|4.0
|26.7
| -1.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.90'''
|17.4
|72.41
|-
|2004
|  18 084 000
|  553 000
|  72 000
|  481 000
|30.6
|4.0
|26.6
| -0.4
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.86'''
|17.0
|72.48
|-
|2005
|  18 584 000
|  567 000
|  73 000
|  494 000
|30.5
|3.9
|26.6
| 0.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.81'''
|16.6
|72.77
|-
|2006
|  19 432 000
|  579 000
|  72 000
|  507 000
|30.3
|3.8
|26.5
| 17.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.76'''
|16.3
|73.35
|-
|2007
|  20 703 000
|  625 000
|  75 000
|  551 000
|30.8
|style=" color:blue;"|3.7
|27.1
| 34.3
|style=" color:blue;"|'''3.70'''
|16.1
|73.71
|-
|2008
|  21 474 000
| style=" color:blue;"|673 000
|  81 000
|  style=" color:blue;"|592 000
|31.0
|3.7
|27.3
| 8.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.61'''
|16.0
|73.55
|-
|2009
|  21 827 000
|  650 000
|  80 000
|  569 000
|29.7
|3.7
|26.1
| -9.9
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.51'''
|15.9
|73.85
|-
|2010
|  22 338 000
|  641 000
|  83 000
|  558 000
|28.7
|3.7
|25.0
| -2.1
|style="color:blue;"|'''3.40'''
|15.9
|73.88
|-
|2011
|style="color:blue;"|  22 731 000
|  629 000
|  90 000
|  539 000
|27.5
|3.9
|23.6
| -2.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.28'''
|16.4
|73.31
|-
|2012
|  22 606 000
|  615 000
|  148 000
|  467 000
|26.6
|6.4
|20.2
| -6.3
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.22'''
|23.0
|66.77
|-
|2013
|  21 496 000
|  568 000
|  style=" color:red;"|173 000
|  394 000
|25.2
|7.7
|17.5
| -25.7
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.17'''
|26.3
|63.83
|-
|2014
|  20 072 000
|  465 000
|  168 000
|  297 000
|22.4
|8.1
|14.3
| -69.1
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.10'''
|27.1
|63.15
|-
|2015
|  19 205 000
|  397 000
|  143 000
|  254 000
|20.2
|7.3
|12.9
| -85.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''3.05'''
|25.1
|65.12
|-
|2016
|  18 964 000
|  359 000
|  133 000
|  226 000
|18.9
|7.0
|style=" color:red;"|11.9
| -24.6
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.99'''
|24.5
|65.99
|-
|2017
|  18 983 000
|  355 000
|  115 000
|  240 000
|18.6
|6.0
|12.5
| -11.5
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.94'''
|18.5
|68.48
|-
|2018
|  19 333 000
|  346 000
|  106 000
|  240 000
|style=" color:red;"|18.2
|5.6
|12.6
| 5.5
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.89'''
|18.6
|70.15
|-
|2019
|  20 098 000
|  375 000
|  100 000
|  275 000
|18.9
|5.0
|13.9
| 24.2
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.84'''
|18.1
|71.82
|-
|2020
|  20 773 000
|  406 000
|  103 000
|  303 000
|19.7
|5.0
|14.7
| 17.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.80'''
|18.1
|72.14
|-
|2021
|  21 324 000
|  427 000
|  109 000
|  318 000
|20.1
|5.1
|15.0
| 10.8
|style="text-align:right; color:blue;"|'''2.75'''
|17.8
|72.06
|}
{{GraphChart
| width = 450
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=year
| yAxisTitle= million
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021

| y1= 3.54,3.62,3.7,3.79,3.89,3.99,4.1,4.22,4.34,4.47,4.61,4.75,4.89,5.05,5.2,5.37,5.54,5.72,5.91,6.11,6.32,6.54,6.77,7,7.25,7.5,7.76,8.03,8.31,8.6,8.9,9.2,9.51,9.84,10.18,10.54,10.91,11.28,11.66,12.03,12.41,12.78,13.16,13.54,13.92,14.31,14.71,15.1,15.5,15.9,16.31,16.73,17.16,17.61,18.08,18.58,19.43,20.7,21.47,21.83,22.34,22.73,22.61,21.5,20.07,19.2,18.96,18.98,19.33,20.1,20.77,21.32

| y1Title= population (million)

}}
{{GraphChart
| width = 450
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=years
| yAxisTitle= ‰
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| hAnnotatonsLine=
| hAnnotatonsLabel=
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021

| y1= 21.1,22.0,23.0,24.0,25.5,26.8,27.7,28.7,29.4,30.1,30.7,31.0,31.5,32.0,32.6,33.3,33.8,34.4,35.1,36.0,36.5,36.7,36.7,36.1,36.9,37.0,37.2,
37.2,37.7,37.4,37.1,35.6,33.7,36.0,35.9,35.5,35.2,34.5,33.4,32.2,31.1,30.0,29.4,29.3,29.0,28.6,28.0,27.3,26.8,26.5,26.2,26.8,26.7,26.7,26.6,26.6,
26.5,27.1,27.3,26.1,25.0,23.6,20.2,17.5,14.3,12.9,11.9,12.5,12.6,13.9,14.7,15.0

| y1Title=Natural change (per 1000)
}}
{{GraphChart
| width = 450
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=years
| yAxisTitle= ‰
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| hAnnotatonsLine=
| hAnnotatonsLabel=
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021

| y1= 179.6,177.5,173.3,169.1,160.2,151.7,143.9,136.6,129.9,123.7,118.0,113.0,108.4,104.2,100.3,96.5,92.7,88.9,85.0,81.1,77.2,73.5,70.1,66.9,63.8,60.9,58.0,55.2,
52.4,49.7,47.2,47.0,48.6,40.3,38.3,36.6,35.0,33.5,32.3,31.1,29.9,28.8,27.7,26.5,25.4,24.2,23.1,22.0,21.0,20.1,19.3,18.6,18.0,17.4,17.0,16.6,16.3,16.1,16.0,
15.9,15.9,16.4,23.0,26.3,27.1,25.1,24.5,18.5,18.6,18.1,18.1,17.8

| y1Title=Infant Mortality (per 1000 live births)
}}
{{GraphChart
| width = 450
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=years
| yAxisTitle= TFR
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| hAnnotatonsLine=
| hAnnotatonsLabel=
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021

| y1= 7.60,7.60,7.61,7.61,7.62,7.62,7.59,7.57,7.54,7.51,7.49,7.43,7.44,7.44,7.47,7.51,7.55,7.58,7.60,7.67,7.69,7.65,7.61,7.56,7.51,7.47,7.44,7.41,7.35,7.27,7.16,
7.01,6.88,6.74,6.61,6.48,6.33,6.13,5.89,5.63,5.38,5.12,4.95,4.83,4.72,4.57,4.43,4.28,4.18,4.08,4.00,4.01,3.95,3.90,3.86,3.81,3.76,3.70,3.61,3.51,3.40,3.28,3.22,3.17,3.10,3.05,2.99,2.94,2.89,2.84,2.80,2.75

| y1Title=Total Fertility Rate
}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Fertility<ref name="research">{{Cite web |url=http://schools.aucegypt.edu/research/src/Documents/Fertility_Plateau/Meeting%203_Appendix%203.pdf |script-title=ar:Appendix 3:كود التحول الديموغ ا رفي باتجاه مرحلة التوازن السكاني في سورية: مشكلة تباطؤ ت ا رجع معدل الخصب السكاني |language=ar |trans-title=Appendix 3: Stagnation of demographic transition toward population equilibrium in Syria: The problem of slowing down the fertility rate |year=2011 |location=Damascus |access-date=2018-08-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180827075318/http://schools.aucegypt.edu/research/src/Documents/Fertility_Plateau/Meeting%203_Appendix%203.pdf |archive-date=2018-08-27 |url-status=live }}</ref>
! Name !! TFR (2009)
|-
| [[Aleppo Governorate|Aleppo]] || 3.2
|-
| [[Damascus Governorate|Damascus]] || 2.6
|-
| [[Daraa Governorate|Daraa]] || 5.2
|-
| [[Deir ez-Zor Governorate|Deir ez-Zor]] || 6.9
|-
| [[Hama Governorate|Hama]] || 3.3
|-
| [[Al-Hasakah Governorate|Al-Hasakah]] || 3.5
|-
| [[Homs Governorate|Homs]] || 3.1
|-
| [[Idlib Governorate|Idlib]] || 4.8
|-
| [[Latakia Governorate|Latakia]] || 2.2
|-
| [[Quneitra Governorate|Quneitra]] || 3.8
|-
| [[Raqqa Governorate|Raqqa]] || 5
|-
| [[Rif Dimashq Governorate|Rif Dimashq]] || 3.3
|-
| [[Al-Suwayda Governorate|Al-Suwayda]] || 2.1
|-
| [[Tartus Governorate|Tartus]] || 2.3
|-
| Syria || 3.5
|}

[[File:Life expectancy in Syria.svg|thumb|300px|[[Life expectancy]] in Syria since 1950]]
[[File:Life expectancy by WBG -Syria -diff.png|thumb|300px|Life expectancy in Syria since 1960 by gender]]

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Marital fertility rate<ref name="research" />
! Name !! MFR (2009)
|-
| [[Aleppo Governorate|Aleppo]] || 5.4
|-
| [[Damascus Governorate|Damascus]] || 4.7
|-
| [[Daraa Governorate|Daraa]] || 7.3
|-
| [[Deir ez-Zor Governorate|Deir ez-Zor]] || 10.2
|-
| [[Hama Governorate|Hama]] || 6.6
|-
| [[Al-Hasakah Governorate|Al-Hasakah]] || 6.8
|-
| [[Homs Governorate|Homs]] || 5.9
|-
| [[Idlib Governorate|Idlib]] || 7.7
|-
| [[Latakia Governorate|Latakia]] || 4.5
|-
| [[Quneitra Governorate|Quneitra]] || 6.5
|-
| [[Raqqa Governorate|Raqqa]] || 7.9
|-
| [[Rif Dimashq Governorate|Rif Dimashq]] || 5.4
|-
| [[Al-Suwayda Governorate|Al-Suwayda]] || 4
|-
| [[Tartus Governorate|Tartus]] || 4.8
|-
| Syria || 6
|}

'''Life expectancy at birth'''

This data is from [[CIA World Factbook]]:<ref name="SyriaTWF"/>

''total'': 75.2 years<br>
''male'': 72.8 years<br>
''female'': 77.8 years (2018 est.)



== Ethnicity and religion ==
{{see also|Nawar people|Religion in Syria}}
On 1 January 2011, Syria was estimated to have a population of 24 million people, distributed over its 14 governorates.<ref name=Khalifa2013>{{cite journal |last=Khalifa|first=Mustafa|year=2013|title=The impossible partition of Syria|url=https://www.arab-reform.net/en/node/510|pages=3–5|journal=[[Arab Reform Initiative]]|quote='''Arabs''' constitute the major ethnic group in Syria, making up between 80 and 85% of the population. <br/> '''Kurds''' are the second largest ethnic group in Syria, making up around 10% of the Syrian population and distributed among four regions...with a Yazidi minority that numbers around 40,000...<br/>'''Turkmen''' are the third largest ethnic group in Syria, making up around 4–5% of the population. Some estimations indicate that they are the second biggest group, outnumbering Kurds, drawing on the fact that Turkmen are divided into two groups: the rural Turkmen who make up 30% of the Turkmen in Syria and who have kept their mother tongue, and the urban Turkmen who have become Arabized and no longer speak their mother language... <br/> '''Assyrians''' are the fourth largest ethnic group in Syria. They represent the original and oldest inhabitants of Syria, today making up around 3–4% of the Syrian population... <br/> '''Circassians''' are the fifth largest ethnic group in Syria, making up around 1.5% of the population... <br/> '''Armenians''' are sixth largest ethnic group in Syria, making up around 1% of the population... <br/> There are also a small number of other ethnic groups in Syria, including Greek, Albanian, Bosnian, Pashtun, Russian, and Azeri people...|access-date=2019-03-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327091448/https://www.arab-reform.net/en/node/510|archive-date=2019-03-27|url-status=live}}</ref> Arabs represent 80-85% of the population, with the rest being a mixture of many ethnic and religious sects, as shown in the table below:

{| class="wikitable"
!Ethnic and religious groups 
!% of Syrian population<ref name=Khalifa2013/> 
!Notes<ref name=Khalifa2013/>
|-
| [[Syrians|Syrian Arabs]] || 80–85% || The Arabs form the majority in all districts except for the [[Al-Hasakah Governorate]].
|-
| [[Kurds in Syria|Kurds]] || 10% || The majority of Kurds are Sunni Muslims, with a Yazidi minority; concentrated in [[Syrian Kurdistan]] region and major urban centres outside that region. 1.5 million Kurds live in Syria.<ref name="HeritageforPeace">{{cite web |title=Demographics of Syria|publisher=[[Heritage for Peace]]|url=https://www.heritageforpeace.org/syria-country-information/geography/ |website=heritageforpeace.org |access-date=7 March 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241205182626/https://www.heritageforpeace.org/syria-country-information/geography/|archive-date=5 December 2024|quote=''Around 1.5 million Kurds form Syria’s largest ethnic minority. About a third of them live in the foothills of the Taurus Mountains north of Aleppo, and an equal number along the Turkish border in the Jazirah. A further 10 per cent can be found in the vicinity of Jarabulus northeast of Aleppo, and from 10-15 per cent in the Hayy al-Akrad (Quarter of the Kurds) on the outskirts of Damascus.''}}</ref>
|-
| [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmen/Turkoman]] || 4–5% || Descendants of ethnic [[Turkish people|Turks]], rather than [[Turkmens]]. These figures exclude the [[Arabic]]-speaking Turks. Only approximately 30% of Turkmen speak a Turkic language. The majority are Sunni Muslims. 
|-
| [[Assyrian people|Assyrians/Syriacs]]|| 3–4% || Assyrians are exclusively Christians following the [[Syriac Christianity|Syriac Christian]] Rite.
|-
| [[Circassians in Syria|Circassians]] || 1.5% || The majority of Circassians are Sunni Muslims. 
|-
| [[Armenians in Syria|Armenians]] || 1% || The majority of Armenians are Christians.
|-
| Smaller groups of [[Albanians in Syria|Albanians]], [[Greeks in Syria|Greeks]] and [[Chechens in Syria|Chechens]], among others || <0.9% (combined) || A significant number of these ethnic groups are [[Arabized]], particularly those that adhere to Islam.
|-
|}

The CIA World Factbook cites the following figures for ethnic groups as in July 2018: approximately [[Arabs|Arab]] 50%, [[Alawites|Alawite]] 15%, [[Syrian Kurds|Kurd]] 10%, [[Levantine Arabic|Levantine]] 10%, other 15% (includes [[Druze people in Syria|Druze]], [[Isma'ilism|Ismaili]], [[Imamate (Twelver doctrine)|Imami]], [[Alawites|Nusairi]], [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]], [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmen]], [[Armenians in Syria|Armenian]], and [[Chechens]]).<ref name="CIA" /> Professor John A. Shoup estimated in 2018 that Kurds made 9% of the population, followed by Turkish-speaking Turkmen comprising 4-5%, Assyrians 4%, Armenians 2%, and Circassians about 1% of the total population.<ref name=Shoup>{{cite book |last=Shoup|first=John A.|year=2018|title=The History of Syria|page=6|publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]]|isbn=978-1440858352|quote=Syria has several other ethnic groups, the Kurds... they make up an estimated 9 percent...Turkomen comprise around 4-5 percent of the total population. The rest of the ethnic mix of Syria is made of Assyrians (about 4 percent), Armenians (about 2 percent), and Circassians (about 1 percent).}}</ref>

{{Pie chart
|thumb = right
|caption = Religion in Syria (est. 2021)<ref name="CIA World Factbook">{{cite web |title=Syria |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/syria/ |publisher=CIA |access-date=28 January 2020}}</ref>
|label1 = [[Sunni Islam]]
|value1 = 74
|color1 = Green
|label2 = [[Shia]] ([[Alawites]], [[Ismailis]], [[Twelvers]])
|value2 = 13
|color2 = LightGreen
|label3 = [[Christianity in Syria|Christianity]]
|value3 = 10
|color3 = blue
|label4 = [[Druze in Syria|Druze]]
|value4 = 3
|color4 = SaddleBrown
}}
There has been no Syrian census including a question about religion since 1960, these are thus the last official statistics available:<ref name="table p.9">{{in lang|fr}} Mouna Liliane Samman, ''La population de la Syrie: étude géo-démographique'', IRD Editions, Paris, 1978, {{ISBN|9782709905008}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=vPxWKyrAAUIC&pg=PA7 table p.9] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812001505/https://books.google.com/books?id=vPxWKyrAAUIC&pg=PA7 |date=2019-08-12 }}</ref>

In 1991, Professor [[Alasdair Drysdale]] and Professor Raymond Hinnebusch said that some 85% of Syrians were [[Muslims]] and that the remainder were almost all [[Christians]], however, both religious groups were subdivided into many ethnic sects.<ref name=Drysdale&Hinnebusch1991>{{cite book |last1=Drysdale|first1=Alasdair|last2=Hinnebusch|first2=Raymond A.|year=1991|title=Syria and the Middle East Peace Process|page=[https://archive.org/details/syriamiddleeast00alas/page/222 222]|publisher=[[Council on Foreign Relations]]|isbn=978-0876091050|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/syriamiddleeast00alas/page/222}}</ref> Among the former, approximately 75% of Syrians were [[Sunni Muslim]], of whom, 60% were [[Arabic language|Arabic]]-speaking and the remainder of Sunnis included [[Kurds in Syria|Kurds]] 8.5%, [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmen/Turkoman]] 3%, and [[Circassians in Syria|Circassians]] (less than 1%).<ref name=Drysdale&Hinnebusch1991/> In addition, [[Alawis]] formed 5.5%, [[Druze]] 3%, and [[Ismailis]] 1.5% of the population. In regards to the Christians, they were subdivided into the [[Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch|Greek Orthodox]] 4.7%, [[Armenians in Syria|Armenians]] 4%, and [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]] 1%.<ref name=Drysdale&Hinnebusch1991/>

According to Pierre Beckouche, before 2011, [[Sunni Muslims]] accounted for 78% of Syria's population, which included 500,000 Palestinian refugees and the non-Arab Sunni Muslims, namely the [[Kurds in Syria|Kurds]] 9-10% and the [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmen/Turkoman]] 4%.<ref name=Pierre>{{cite book |last=Pierre|first=Beckouche|year=2017|chapter=The Country Reports: Syria|title=Europe's Mediterranean Neighbourhood|page=178|publisher=[[Edward Elgar Publishing]]|isbn=978-1786431493}}</ref> Other Muslims included [[Shias]] and [[Alawites]] 11%-16%, whilst the [[Christians]] made up 6% of the population.<ref name=Pierre/> There were also a few [[History of the Jews in Syria|Jewish communities]] in [[Aleppo]] and [[Damascus]].<ref name=Pierre/>

The CIA World Factbook cites the following figures for religious groups: 
religions - [[Muslim]] 87% (official; includes [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] 74% and Alawi, Ismaili, and [[Shia Islam|Shia]] 13%), [[Christians|Christian]] 10% (mainly of the [[Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch|Greek Orthodox]] and [[Melkite Greek Catholic Church|Greek Catholic]] churches<ref name=IRFR2006>{{cite web |url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71432.htm |title=Syria |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=2019-05-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722104603/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71432.htm |archive-date=2019-07-22 |url-status=live }}</ref> - may be smaller as a result of Christians fleeing the country), [[Druze]] 3%.<ref name="CIA" />

The first census which focused on the sectarian distribution was carried out in 1932 under the [[French mandate]], however, this census was only carried out in the lands under the short-lived Government of Latakia (the [[Alawite State]] established by the French) which covered only {{cvt|7000|km2}} out of modern Syria's total area of {{cvt|185,000|km2}}.<ref name=Khalifa2013page3/> A general census of Syria in 1943 gave details of religious groups of the population and the rate of growth of each and estimates of the population in 1953 from an unnamed source were as follows:

{| class="wikitable"
!
!1943 census<ref name=Khalifa2013page3>{{cite web |last=Khalifa|first=Mustafa|year=2013|title=The impossible partition of Syria|url=https://www.arab-reform.net/en/node/510|pages=3|journal=[[Arab Reform Initiative]]|access-date=2019-03-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327091448/https://www.arab-reform.net/en/node/510|archive-date=2019-03-27|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=Hourani>{{cite book|last=Hourani|first=Albert|year=1947|title=Minorities in the Arab World|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}}. See also [[Albert Hourani]].</ref>
!1953 census<ref name=Khalifa2013page3/>
!Growth<ref name=Khalifa2013page3/> 
|-
| Total Muslims || 2,427,605 (84.87%) || 3,145,287 (86.03%) || 30%
|-
! colspan="4" |Individual sects and religions 
|-
| Sunnis || 1,971,053 (68.91%)  || 2,578,810 (70.54%) || 31%
|-
| Christians || 403,036 (14.09%) || 478,970 (13.10%) || 19%
|-
| Alawites || 325,311 (11.37%) || 398,445 (10.90%) || 22%
|-
| Druze || 87,184 (3.05%) || 113,318 (3.10%) || 30%
|-
| Ismailis || 28,527 (1.00%) || 36,745 (1.01%) || 29% 
|-
| Jews || 29,770 (1.04%) || 31,647 (0.87%) || 6%
|-
| Shi'ites|| 12,742 (0.45%) || 14,887 (0.41%) || 17%
|-
| Yezidi || 2,788 (0.10%) || 3,082 (0.08%) || 11%
|}

==Languages==
{{main|Languages of Syria}}
[[Arabic language|Arabic]] is the official, and most widely spoken, language. Arabic speakers make up 85% of the population. Several modern [[Varieties of Arabic|Arabic dialects]] are used in everyday life, most notably [[Levantine Arabic|Levantine]] in the west and [[Mesopotamian Arabic|Mesopotamian]] in the northeast. A report published by the [[UNHCR]] points out that "while the majority of Syrians are considered Arabs, this is a term based on spoken language (Arabic), not ethnicity."<ref name=UNHCR>{{cite report |last1=Hassan|first1=G|last2=Kirmayer|first2=L.J.|last3=Mekki-Berrada|first3=A.|last4=Quosh|first4=C.|last5=el Chammay|first5=R|last6=Deville-Stoetzel|first6=J.B|last7=Youssef|first7=A|last8=Jefee-Bahloul|first8=H|last9=Barkeel-Oteo|first9=A|last10=Coutts|first10=A|last11=Song|first11=S|last12=Ventevogel|first12=P|year=2015|title=Culture, Context and the Mental Health and Psychosocial Wellbeing of Syrians|url=https://www.alberta.ca/documents/syrians-culture-mental-health.pdf|publisher=[[United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees]]|page=10|quote=Given the lack of accurate census data, it is only possible to estimate the ethnic and religious composition of the current Syrian population. While the majority of Syrians are considered Arabs, this is a term based on spoken language (Arabic), not ethnicity. Around nine to ten percent of Syria’s population is Kurdish (close to two million people), followed by Turkmen,...|access-date=2018-07-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160326083805/http://www.alberta.ca/documents/syrians-culture-mental-health.pdf|archive-date=2016-03-26|url-status=dead}}</ref>

According to ''The Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics'', in addition to Arabic, the following languages are spoken in the country, in order of the number of speakers: [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]],<ref name=Behnstedt>{{cite book |last=Behnstedt|first=Peter|year=2008|chapter=Syria|title=Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics|editor1-last=Versteegh|editor1-first=Kees|editor2-last=Eid|editor2-first=Mushira|editor3-last=Elgibali|editor3-first=Alaa|editor4-last=Woidich|editor4-first=Manfred|editor5-last=Zaborski|editor5-first=Andrzej|volume=4|page=402|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|isbn=978-90-04-14476-7}}</ref> [[Turkish language|Turkish]],<ref name=Behnstedt/> [[Neo-Aramaic]] (four dialects),<ref name=Behnstedt/> [[Circassian language|Circassian]],<ref name=Behnstedt/> [[Chechen language|Chechen]],<ref name=Behnstedt/> [[Armenian language|Armenian]],<ref name=Behnstedt/> and finally [[Greek language|Greek]].<ref name=Behnstedt/> None of these languages have official status.<ref name=Behnstedt/>

Many educated Syrians also speak [[English language|English]] and [[French language|French]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.blogs.jbs.cam.ac.uk/socialinnovation/2015/11/16/syrian-refugees-and-the-need-for-english-language-training/|title=Syrian refugees and the need for English language training|website=blogs.jbs.cam.ac.uk|access-date=2016-04-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424210333/http://www.blogs.jbs.cam.ac.uk/socialinnovation/2015/11/16/syrian-refugees-and-the-need-for-english-language-training/|archive-date=2016-04-24|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Etheredge>{{cite book |last=Etheredge|first=Laura|year=2012|title=Middle East Region in Transition: Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan|page=9|publisher=[[Britannica|Britannica Educational Publishing]]|isbn=978-1615303298}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<!--THIS REF NOT USED<ref name=AljazeeraEng_2015.03.17>{{cite news|title=What's left of Syria?|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/interactive/2015/03/left-syria-150317133753354.html|access-date=13 July 2015|publisher=Aljazeera English|date=17 March 2015}}</ref>-->
}}

==External links==
* [https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/syria/dataset/syrian-arab-republic-other Syrian Arab Republic: 2004 Census Data], Humanitarian Response, [[United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]]

{{Asia in topic|Demographics of}}
{{Asia topic|Ethnic groups in}}
{{Demographics of Syria}}

[[Category:Demographics of Syria| ]]

[[pt:Síria#Demografia]]