Demographics of Sri Lanka
Sri Lankapopulation pyramid in 2020
Population	21,763,170 (2024 Census)[1]
Density	332/km2(2018)
Growth rate	0.61% (2022)
Birth rate	11.2 births/1,000 population(2023 est.)
Death rate	8.2 deaths/1,000 population(2023 est.)
Life expectancy	75.94 years(2012 est.)
• male	72.43 years(2012 est.)
• female	79.59 years(2012 est.)
Fertility rate	1.97 children born/woman(2023 est.)[2]
Infant mortality rate	9.47 deaths/1,000 live births(2012 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years	20.7%(2024)[3]
15–64 years	66.7%(2024)[3]
65 and over	12.6%(2024)[3]
Sex ratio
Total	0.93 male(s)/female(2018)[3]
At birth	1.02 male(s)/female(2018)[3]
Under 15	1.02 male(s)/female(2018)[3]
15–64 years	0.93 male(s)/female(2018)[3]
65 and over	0.76 male(s)/female(2018)[3]
Nationality
Nationality	noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan
Major ethnic	Sinhala (74.1%)(2024 census)
Minor ethnic	Sri Lanka Tamil (12.3%)(2024 census) Moor (10.5%)(2024 census) Indian Tamil (2.8%)(2024 census)
Language
Official	Sinhala,Tamil
Spoken	English

This is ademography of the population ofSri Lanka includingpopulation density,ethnicity, education level, health of the population, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Sri Lanka is an island in theIndian Ocean, also called Ceylon and many other names. It is about the size of Ireland. It is about 28 kilometres (18 mi.) off the south-eastern coast of India with a population of about 22 million. Density is highest in the south west whereColombo, the country's main port and industrial center, is located. The net population growth is about 0.7%. Sri Lanka is ethnically, linguistically, and religiously diverse.

According to the 2012 census the population of Sri Lanka was 20,359,439, giving a population density of 325/km2.^[8] The population had grown by 5,512,689 (37.1%) since the 1981 census (the last full census), equivalent to an annual growth rate of 1.1%.^[8] 3,704,470 (18.2%) lived in urban sectors - areas governed by municipal and urban councils.^[10]

5,131,666 (25.2%) of the population were aged 14 or under whilst 2,525,573 (12.4%) were aged 60 or over, leaving a working age (15-59) population of 12,702,700.^[11] Thedependency ratio was 60.2%.^[8] Themean age was 32 years and themedian age was 31 years.^[8] Thesex ratio was 94 males per 100 females.^[8] Thefertility rate for married females aged 15 or over was 2.65 live births.^[12] There were 5,264,282 households, of which 3,986,236 (75.7%) were headed by males and 1,278,046 (24.3%) were headed by females.^[8]

Of the 15,227,773 aged 15 or over, 10,322,105 (67.8%) were married, 3,927,602 (25.8%) were never married, 792,947 (5.2%) were widowed and 185,119 (1.2%) were divorced or separated.^[13]

Of those aged 15 or over, 7,857,370 (51.6%) were economically active, 4,199,558 (27.6%) didhousework, 1,431,105 (9.4%) were students, 914,934 (6.0%) were unable to work and 346,084 (2.3%) were pensioners.^[14] 521,938 (6.6%) of the economically active wereunemployed.^[8] 604,540 Sri Lankans were living aboard for more than six months but were intending to return to Sri Lanka, mostly in theGulf states (373,050 61.7%).^[15]

The overallliteracy rate for those aged 10 and over was 95.7% but amongst those living in the estate sector it was only 86.1%.^[16] Of the 18,615,577 aged 5 or over, 499,563 (2.7%) had received a higher education qualification, 2,293,841 (12.3%) had passedG.C.E. A/L, 3,159,402 (17.0%) had passedG.C.E. O/L and 700,419 (3.8%) had no formal schooling.^[17] The remaining 11,962,352 (64.3%) had left school with no qualifications or were currently at school.^[17]

Sri Lanka's population isaging faster than any other nation inSouth Asia and has the fifth highest rapidly growing population of older people in Asia after China, Thailand, South Korea and Japan.^[18][19][20] In 2015, Sri Lanka's population aged over 60 was 13.9%, by 2030 this will increase to 21% and by 2050 this number will reach 27.4%.^[19][20] Sri Lanka's rapidly growing older population has ignited concerns of the socio-economic challenges that the country will face because of this.^[21]

Period	Live births	Deaths	Natural increase
January - June 2024	109,025		+
January - June 2025	110,652
Difference	+1,627 (+1.5%)		-
Source:[26]

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR):

TheSinhalese make up 74.9% of the population (according to 2012 census) and are concentrated in the densely populated south-west and central parts of the island.^[29]

TheSri Lanka Tamils, who live predominantly in thenorth andeast of the island, form the largest minority group at 11.1% (according to the 2012 census) of the population.^[29]

TheMoors, descendants of Arab + Indian traders and native Sri Lankan Tamils, form the third largest ethnic group at 9.3% of the population.^[29] These Tamil-speaking Muslims are mostly concentrated in urban areas in the southern parts of the island with substantial populations in theCentral andEastern provinces. During times ofPortuguese colonization, Moors were persecuted, and many forced to retreat to the central highlands and the eastern coast.^{[citation needed]}

There are alsoIndian Tamils who form a distinct ethnic group comprising 4.1% of the population.^[29] The British brought them to Sri Lanka in the 19th century as tea and rubber plantation workers, and they remain concentrated in the "tea country" of south-central Sri Lanka. The Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka were considered to be "stateless" as they were denied Ceylonese citizenship and simultaneously stripped of Indian citizenship, with over 300,000 Indian Tamils were deported back to India, due to theagreement between Sri Lanka and India in 1964.^[30] Under the pact, India granted citizenship to the remainder, some 200,000 of whom now live in India. Another 75,000 Indian Tamils, who themselves or whose parents once applied for Indian citizenship, now wish to remain in Sri Lanka. The government has stated these Tamils will not be forced to return to India, although they are not technically citizens of Sri Lanka. By the 1990s most Indian Tamils had received Sri Lankan citizenship, and some even were not granted Sri Lankan citizenship until 2003.^[30][31]

Smaller minorities include theVeddas, the indigenous people of Sri Lanka;Malays who descend from Austronesian settlers; theBurghers, who are descendants ofEuropeancolonists, principally fromPortugal, theNetherlands and, theUK; theethnic Chinese migrants who came to the island in the 18th and 19th centuries; and theKaffirs, a small population who are descended from Africans.

• Data from the 2011 census
• 
  Sinhalese
• 
  Sri Lankan Tamils
• 
  Sri Lankan Moors
• 
  Indian/Malayaga Tamils

Sinhala, anIndo-Aryan language, is thefirst language ofSinhalese people. UnlikeTamil Sinhala language is not found in India and is unique to Sri Lanka.

Tamil, aDravidian language, is the first language of native Sri Lankan Tamils. Tamil is also the first language of the majority ofSri Lankan Moors and theIndian Tamils - according to the 2012 census 98% of Sri Lankan Moors could speak Tamil but only 59% could speak Sinhala.^[35]

English is fluently spoken by approximately 23.8%^[36] of the Sri Lanka's population, and widely used for official and commercial purposes.

Malays speakSri Lanka Malay, aCreole language mixing Sinhala, Tamil andMalay. Many of the Burghers speakSri Lankan Indo-Portuguese although its use has declined and the majority now speak Sinhala.^[35] The Veddas speakVedda, a Creole language closely based on Sinhala. Use ofEnglish has declined since independence, but it continues to be spoken by many in the middle and upper middle classes, particularly inColombo. According to the 2012 census 24% of the population could speak English.^[35] The government is seeking to reverse the decline in the use of English, mainly for economic but also for political reasons. According to the constitution Sinhala and Tamil areofficial languages whilst English is the link language.^[37]

According to the 2012 censusBuddhists make up 70.2% of the population,Hindus 12.6%,Muslims 9.7% andChristians 7.6%.^[39] The Sinhalese are predominantly Buddhist, the majority of Tamils practice Hinduism, and Moors and Malays are mostly Muslim. Sizeable minorities of both Sinhalese and Tamils are Christians, most of whom areRoman Catholic. TheBurgher population is mostly Roman Catholic orPresbyterian. TheVeddas haveAnimist and Buddhist practices. The1978 constitution, while assuringfreedom of religion, gives "the foremost place" to Buddhism.^[40][41]

As of 2017, 40,018 foreign-born people lived in Sri Lanka per United Nations' population division.^[44]

Country of birth	Population (2017)
India	10,814
Italy	5,107
China	2,482
Kuwait	1,755
United Arab Emirates	1,689
Saudi Arabia	1,417
Maldives	1,409
United Kingdom	1,193
Malaysia	925
Japan	849
Pakistan	829
Lebanon	741
Bangladesh	674
United States	613
Singapore	612
South Korea	611
Germany	561

Note: * Provisional data.^[45]

• Department of Census and Statistics – Sri Lanka

• Demographics of Sri Lanka

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• Use dmy dates from July 2022
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• Articles with unsourced statements from March 2015