The Brazilian population, in the beginning of the decade of 2010, exceeded 190 million inhabitants, according to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the IBGE. Since the 20th century, the number of inhabitants in our country has grown more than 10 times! But what are the general characteristics of this population?
Of the total number of people living in Brazil, 51.8% (a little more than half) are women and 48.5% are men. It is estimated that there are six million more women in the country than men. The difference, however, is that most men are aged between 25 and 39 years, while, among women, most are aged between 40 and 59 years.
Dividing the population by color, 47.7% of people declare themselves white, 43.1% declare themselves brown and 7.6% declare themselves black. These data are from the 2010 Demographic Census and, if compared to the 2000 demographic census, represent an increase in the black and brown population, in addition to a decrease in the number of people who declare themselves as white.
Brazil is a country with a great ethnic diversity
The most populous region in Brazil is the Southeast, with 42% of the total number of people; in second place is the Northeast region, with 27%; in third is the South region, with 14%; in fourth, the North region, with 8%, and, finally, the Midwest, with 7%.
The most populous state is São Paulo, with more than 41 million inhabitants, followed by Minas Gerais, which has almost 20 million and, in third place, Rio de Janeiro, with 16 million. The state that has the smallest number of people is Roraima, with less than 500 thousand.
Among the municipalities, the leadership is with the city of São Paulo, with almost 12 million, and the lantern is with the small city of Borá, in the interior of São Paulo, with just over 800 people.
São Paulo, the most inhabited city in the country
With the analysis of demographic data provided by the IBGE Demographic Census, it is possible to conclude that the Brazilian population is mostly urban. Just over 84% of Brazilians live in cities, and less than 16% of Brazilians live in the countryside.
By Rodolfo Alves Pena
Graduated in Geography
