What is the population of Kazakhstan?
The total population of Kazakhstan is slightly over fifteen million inhabitants. Various periods in the country's history have affected the existing demographic situation: the ethnic composition consists of Kazakhs, Russians, Ukrainians, Germans, Koreans, Poles, Greeks, Tatars, Turks and many other nationalities.
It should be noted that these hospitable lands became a secure place for hundreds of thousands of individuals of various nationalities and religions. Today, many of them recall with gratitude the warmth and comfort offered to them by the natives who shared their last piece of bread in the harsh years of the repressions.
The government ensures equality and development of the various national cultures. The Peoples' Assembly of Kazakhstan was established in order to coordinate the work carried out by the republic-wide, regional, national and cultural centers.
An increase in the total population has occurred due to the steady increase in birth rates, as well as the return of Kazakhs to their historic fatherland. Under a government quota alone, 374, 000 ethnic Kazakhs have come to the Republic from the countries of the CIS and foreign states.
On the entire post-Soviet territory, only Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan manifest a positive balance in terms of population growth. Population density in Kazakhstan is 5.5 individuals per square kilometer. The region of Southern Kazakhstan is the most densely populated area of the country, with 18 individuals per square kilometer.
As of January 1, 2004, the Republic consists of 14 regions, 86 towns (including 2 cities of national importance), 160 districts, 186 settlements, and 7, 719 villages; the largest city of the country is Almaty, with a population over 1.5 million.
Covering a huge territory, Kazakhstan is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world - at 6.1 persons per square kilometre. There are 16.2 million inhabitants in Kazakhstan today (fiftieth place in the world): 63, 6% of the population are ethnic Kazakhs, and 23, 3% - Russians. In addition to the two indicated main ethnic groups, over 120 nationalities live in Kazakhstan. Among them are more than 333, 2 thousand Ukranians, 178, 2 thousand Germans, 457, 2 thousand Uzbeks, and more than 203, 3 thousand Tatars. Nearly 54 per cent of the population live in towns and workers' settlements, the rest in rural areas.
During the last two decades, the rate of population growth has been slow. Such a situation can be explained on one side by the emigration of millions abroad and on the other by the stable decline of the absolute and relative...
