# Demographics of Nicaragua

According to the 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects, Nicaragua has a population of 6,850,540..According to a 2014 research published in the journal Genetics and Molecular Biology, European ancestry predominates in 69% of Nicaraguans, followed by African ancestry in 20%, and lastly indigenous ancestry in 11%. A Japanese research of "Genomic Components in America's demography" demonstrated that, on average, the ancestry of Nicaraguans is 58–62% European, 28% Native American, and 14% African, with a very small Near Eastern contribution. Non-genetic data from the CIA World Factbook establish that from Nicaragua's 2016 population of 5,966,798, around 69% are mestizo, 17% white, 5% Native American, and 9% black and other races. This fluctuates with changes in migration patterns. The population is 58% urban as of 2013.
Prior to the Sandinista revolution of 1979 since most of the migration during the years that followed were primarily of upper or middle-class Nicaraguans, a group primarily made up of whites. A growing number of these expats have returned, while many continue to live abroad.
42.5% of the population lives below the poverty line. The general poverty rate is estimated at 47.3%, although much of the population falls in the lower middle class due to low salaries and a low GDP (US$1000–3000).
The most populous city in the country is the capital city, Managua, with a population of 1.2 million (2005). As of 2005, over 4.4 million inhabitants live in the Pacific, Central and North regions. 2.7 million inhabitants reside in the Pacific region alone, while inhabitants in the Caribbean region only reach an estimated 700,000.
The Census Bureau in Nicaragua is the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC). The institution is in charge of completing censuses and surveys. INEC ran its first census in 1906, the last census was taken in 2005, it was the eighth to date.

## Population

According to the 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects the total population was 6,850,540 in 2021, compared to only 1,295,000 in 1950. The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2010 was 34.5%, 60.9% was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 4.6% was 65 years or older .
| Year | Total population (million) | Proportion percentage | Proportion percentage | Proportion percentage |
| Year | Total population (million) | aged 0–14 | aged 15–64 | aged 65+ |
| 1950 | 1 295 | 43.0% | 54.2% | 2.8% |
| 1955 | 1 508 | 45.2% | 52.1% | 2.7% |
| 1960 | 1 775 | 47.4% | 50.0% | 2.5% |
| 1965 | 2 063 | 49.2% | 48.3% | 2.5% |
| 1970 | 2 400 | 48.1% | 49.4% | 2.5% |
| 1975 | 2 798 | 47.1% | 50.2% | 2.6% |
| 1980 | 3 250 | 47.1% | 50.1% | 2.7% |
| 1985 | 3 710 | 47.1% | 50.0% | 2.9% |
| 1990 | 4 138 | 46.0% | 50.9% | 3.2% |
| 1995 | 4 659 | 44.0% | 52.6% | 3.4% |
| 2000 | 5 069 | 39.7% | 56.6% | 3.8% |
| 2005 | 5 439 | 36.2% | 59.6% | 4.2% |
| 2010 | 5 824 | 33.3% | 62.2% | 4.5% |
| 2015 | 6 223 | 31.3% | 64.0% | 4.8% |
| 2020 | 6 625 | 29.5% | 64.8% | 5.7% |

### Structure of the population

| Age group | Male | Female | Total | % |
| Total | 2 844 244 | 2 898 072 | 5 742 316 | 100 |
| 0-4 | 347 205 | 332 920 | 680 125 | 11.84 |
| 5-9 | 336 817 | 323 279 | 660 096 | 11.50 |
| 10-14 | 344 831 | 332 925 | 677 756 | 11.80 |
| 15-19 | 331 536 | 329 072 | 660 608 | 11.50 |
| 20-24 | 286 484 | 290 439 | 576 923 | 10.05 |
| 25-29 | 250 672 | 260 730 | 511 402 | 8.91 |
| 30-34 | 197 120 | 214 967 | 412 087 | 7.18 |
| 35-39 | 162 472 | 174 845 | 337 317 | 5.87 |
| 40-44 | 136 223 | 143 572 | 279 795 | 4.87 |
| 45-49 | 115 914 | 124 028 | 239 942 | 4.18 |
| 50-54 | 98 355 | 107 733 | 206 088 | 3.59 |
| 55-59 | 74 173 | 80 156 | 154 329 | 2.69 |
| 60-64 | 45 221 | 48 460 | 93 681 | 1.63 |
| 65-69 | 43 121 | 46 230 | 89 351 | 1.56 |
| 70-74 | 32 418 | 35 443 | 67 861 | 1.18 |
| 75-79 | 22 249 | 25 956 | 48 205 | 0.84 |
| 80+ | 19 433 | 27 317 | 46 750 | 0.81 |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | Percent |
| 0-14 | 1 028 853 | 989 124 | 2 017 977 | 35.14 |
| 15-64 | 1 698 170 | 1 774 002 | 3 472 172 | 60.47 |
| 65+ | 117 221 | 134 946 | 252 167 | 4.39 |
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total | % |
| Total | 3 357 138 | 3 446 748 | 6 803 886 | 100 |
| 0–4 | 328 587 | 314 177 | 642 764 | |
| 5–9 | 339 464 | 324 833 | 664 297 | |
| 10–14 | 338 766 | 324 761 | 663 527 | |
| 15–19 | 318 320 | 306 443 | 624 763 | |
| 20–24 | 299 073 | 290 339 | 589 412 | |
| 25–29 | 294 819 | 293 641 | 588 460 | |
| 30–34 | 272 934 | 282 281 | 555 215 | |
| 35–39 | 240 254 | 255 454 | 495 708 | |
| 40–44 | 209 895 | 231 173 | 441 068 | |
| 45–49 | 167 212 | 190 927 | 358 139 | |
| 50–54 | 137 219 | 154 183 | 291 402 | |
| 55–59 | 115 265 | 128 180 | 243 445 | |
| 60–64 | 97 984 | 111 544 | 209 528 | |
| 65-69 | 79 279 | 92 356 | 171 635 | |
| 70-74 | 51 336 | 60 269 | 111 605 | |
| 75-79 | 30 342 | 36 448 | 66 790 | |
| 80+ | 36 389 | 49 739 | 86 128 | |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | Percent |
| 0–14 | 1 006 817 | 963 771 | 1 970 588 | 28.96 |
| 15–64 | 2 152 975 | 2 244 165 | 4 397 140 | 64.63 |
| 65+ | 197 346 | 238 812 | 436 158 | 6.41 |

### Population distribution

Ninety percent of Nicaraguans live in the Pacific lowlands and the adjacent interior highlands. The population is 54% urban. The most populous city in Nicaragua is the capital city, Managua, with a population of 1.2 million (2005). As of 2005, over 4.4 million inhabitants live in the Pacific, Central and North regions of the country. There are 2.7 million residents in the Pacific region. The Caribbean region has an estimated 700,000 residents. In addition, many Nicaraguans live abroad.

### Departments by population
## Vital statistics
### UN estimates

Registration of vital events is in Nicaragua not complete. The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates.
| Period | Live births per year | Deaths per year | Natural change per year | CBR* | CDR* | NC* | TFR* | IMR* | Life expectancy | Life expectancy | Life expectancy |
| Period | Live births per year | Deaths per year | Natural change per year | CBR* | CDR* | NC* | TFR* | IMR* | total | for males | for females |
| 1950–1955 | 77 000 | 32 000 | 45 000 | 54.9 | 23.0 | 31.9 | 7.20 | 172 | 42.3 | 40.9 | 43.7 |
| 1955–1960 | 89 000 | 33 000 | 56 000 | 54.2 | 20.4 | 33.8 | 7.50 | 151 | 45.4 | 44.1 | 46.8 |
| 1960–1965 | 93 000 | 33 000 | 60 000 | 48.5 | 17.0 | 31.5 | 7.10 | 131 | 48.7 | 47.3 | 50.0 |
| 1965–1970 | 103 000 | 32 000 | 71 000 | 46.3 | 14.4 | 31.9 | 6.95 | 114 | 52.0 | 50.5 | 53.4 |
| 1970–1975 | 120 000 | 33 000 | 88 000 | 46.3 | 12.6 | 33.7 | 6.79 | 98 | 55.3 | 53.7 | 56.8 |
| 1975–1980 | 137 000 | 34 000 | 102 000 | 45.2 | 11.3 | 33.9 | 6.35 | 90 | 57.6 | 55.3 | 60.0 |
| 1980–1985 | 149 000 | 35 000 | 114 000 | 42.9 | 10.1 | 32.7 | 5.85 | 80 | 59.5 | 56.5 | 62.6 |
| 1985–1990 | 150 000 | 33 000 | 117 000 | 38.2 | 8.4 | 29.8 | 5.00 | 65 | 62.2 | 59.0 | 65.5 |
| 1990–1995 | 156 000 | 29 000 | 127 000 | 35.4 | 6.5 | 28.9 | 4.50 | 48 | 66.1 | 63.5 | 68.7 |
| 1995–2000 | 147 000 | 27 000 | 120 000 | 30.1 | 5.6 | 24.6 | 3.60 | 34 | 68.4 | 65.9 | 71.1 |
| 2000–2005 | 139 000 | 26 000 | 112 000 | 25.8 | 5.2 | 20.6 | 2.91 | 26 | 70.9 | 68.0 | 73.8 |
| 2005–2010 | 140 000 | 27 000 | 113 000 | 24.3 | 5.1 | 19.2 | 2.68 | 22 | 72.9 | 69.9 | 76.0 |
| 2010–2015 | | | | 22.8 | 5.0 | 17.8 | 2.54 | | | | |
| 2015–2020 | | | | 20.9 | 5.1 | 15.8 | 2.42 | | | | |
| 2020–2025 | | | | 18.7 | 5.1 | 13.6 | 2.28 | | | | |
| 2025–2030 | | | | 17.1 | 5.3 | 11.8 | 2.16 | | | | |
| * CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births; TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman) ||||||||||||

### Registered births and deaths

| Year | Population | Live births | Deaths | Natural increase | Crude birth rate | Crude death rate | Rate of natural increase | Crude migration (per thousands) | TFR |
| 1990 | 3,959,785 | | | | | | | | |
| 1991 | 4,058,434 | | | | | | | | |
| 1992 | 4,162,367 | | | | | | | | |
| 1993 | 4,268,685 | | | | | | | | |
| 1994 | 4,374,490 | | | | | | | | |
| 1995 | 4,476,881 | | | | | | | | |
| 1996 | 4,574,524 | | | | | | | | |
| 1997 | 4,669,352 | | | | | | | | |
| 1998 | 4,763,366 | | | | | | | | |
| 1999 | 4,858,570 | | | | | | | | |
| 2000 | 4,956,964 | | | | | | | | |
| 2001 | 5,058,643 | | | | | | | | |
| 2002 | 5,162,275 | | | | | | | | |
| 2003 | 5,267,714 | | | | | | | | |
| 2004 | 5,374,820 | | | | | | | |
| 2005 | 5,483,447 | 121,380 | 16,770 | 104,610 | 22.1 | 3.1 | 19.0 | | 2.94 |
| 2006 | 5,522,606 | 123,886 | 16,595 | 107,291 | 22.4 | 3.0 | 19.4 | -12.3 | |
| 2007 | 5,595,541 | 128,171 | 17,288 | 110,883 | 22.9 | 3.1 | 19.8 | -6.6 | 2.51 |
| 2008 | 5,668,876 | 129,506 | 18,262 | 111,244 | 22.8 | 3.2 | 19.6 | -6.5 | 2.49 |
| 2009 | 5,742,310 | 132,222 | 18,179 | 114,043 | 23.0 | 3.2 | 19.8 | -6.8 | 2.49 |
| 2010 | 5,815,524 | 132,165 | 19,944 | 112,221 | 22.7 | 3.4 | 19.3 | -6.6 | 2.46 |
| 2011 | 5,996,619 | 140,958 | 19,523 | 121,435 | 23.5 | 3.3 | 20.2 | 10.9 | 2.54 |
| 2012 | 6,071,045 | 142,874 | 20,300 | 122,574 | 23.5 | 3.3 | 20.2 | -7.8 | 2.54 |
| 2013 | 6,134,270 | 142,756 | 21,381 | 121,375 | 23.3 | 3.5 | 19.8 | -9.4 | 2.53 |
| 2014 | 6,198,154 | 143,421 | 22,469 | 120,952 | 23.1 | 3.6 | 19.5 | -9.1 | 2.52 |
| 2015 | 6,262,703 | 144,597 | 23,540 | 121,057 | 23.1 | 3.8 | 19.3 | -8.9 | 2.52 |
| 2016 | 6,327,927 | 139,595 | 23,738 | 115,857 | 22.1 | 3.8 | 18.3 | -7.9 | 2.43 |
| 2017 | 6,393,824 | 139,487 | 24,300 | 115,187 | 21.8 | 3.8 | 18.0 | -7.6 | 2.42 |
| 2018 | 6,460,411 | 139,126 | 24,296 | 114,830 | 21.5 | 3.8 | 17.7 | -7.3 | 2.42 |
| 2019 | 6,527,691 | 131,673 | 25,340 | 106,333 | 20.1 | 3.9 | 16.2 | - 5.8 | 2.28 |
| 2020 | 6,595,674 | 124,365 | 33,681 | 90,684 | 18.9 | 5.1 | 13.8 | -3.4 | 2.16 |
| 2021 | 6,664,000 | 120,473 | 34,999 | 85,474 | 17.5 | 5.0 | 12.5 | -2.1 | |
| 2022 | 6,734,000 | 118,118 | | | | | | |
| 2023 | | 106,439 | 26,160 | 80,279 | 15.6 | | | |

### Demographic and Health Surveys

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR):
| Year | Total | Total | Urban | Urban | Rural | Rural |
| Year | CBR | TFR | CBR | TFR | CBR | TFR |
| 1998 | 29 | 3,6 (2,5) | 2,9 (2,0) | | 5,0 (3,3) | |
| 2001 | 27 | 3,2 (2,3) | 24 | 2,6 (1,8) | 31 | 4,4 (3,0) |
| 2006–2007 | | 2,7 | | 2,2 | | 3,5 |
| 2011/2012 | | 2,4 | | 2,1 | | 2,9 |

## Ethnic groups

* Mestizo (69%)
* White (17%)
* Black (9%)
* Native American (5%)
According to the 2005 census 443,847 (8.6%) residents consider themselves to belong to an indigenous people or to an ethnic community. The remaining majority of the Nicaraguan population (91.6%) are deemed mestizo and white, with the majority of these being of Spanish, with some German, Italian, Portuguese and French ancestry. Mestizos and whites mainly reside in the western region of the country.
Possibly also a part of the black or Afro-Nicaraguan population, which mainly resides on the country's sparsely populated Caribbean (or Atlantic) coast, is included in the majority population which does not consider itself to belong to an ethnic community. In the 2005 census, there were only 19,890 Creoles (0.4% of the total population). The Creole population is mostly of West Indian (Antillean) origin, the descendants of indentured laborers brought mostly from Jamaica when the region was a British protectorate.
Primarily in the 19th century, Nicaragua saw several waves of immigration from European nations. In particular the northern cities of Estelí, Jinotega and Matagalpa have significant populations of fourth generation Germans.
The Garifuna, a people of mixed Carib, Angolan, Congolese and Arawak descent, numbered 3,271 in 2005 (0.1%). 112,253 people considered themselves "Mestizo de la Costa Caribe" (mestizo of the Caribbean coast). In addition to the inhabitants who declared themselves Indigenous or Ethnic community, 13,740 answered "Other". Another 47,473 responded "Not Sure" and an additional 19,460 responded "Ignore".

### Indigenous population

The Native American population, the unmixed descendants of the country's indigenous inhabitants, numbered 227,760 (4.4% of the total population) in 2005. Nicaragua's pre-Columbian consisted of many indigenous groups. In the western region, the Nicarao people were present along with other groups such as the Mangue and Subtiaba, all three being considered Mesoamerican peoples.
The central region and the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua were mainly inhabited by speakers of Misumalpan languages and some speakers of Chibchan languages. These groups include the Miskitos (120,817 people), Matagalpa (15,240 people), Ramas (4,185 people), Sumos (9,756 people) and Ulwa (698 people).
In the 19th century, the indigenous population was more demographically significant, but they have since largely been culturally assimilated into the mestizo majority. In the mid-1980s, the government divided the department of Zelaya – consisting of the eastern half of the country — into two autonomous regions and granted the black and indigenous people of this region limited self-rule within the Republic.
Those belonging to recognized indigenous communities (2005) :
| Rama | 4,185 | 0.9% | Chorotega | 46,002 | 10.4 |
| Sumo | 9,756 | 2.2% | Miskito | 120.817 | 27.2% |
| Ulwa | 698 | 0.2% | Matagalpa | 15,240 | 3.4% |
| Subtiaba | 19,949 | 4.5% | Nahua | 11,113 | 2.5 |

## Migration
### Immigration

Relative to its overall population, Nicaragua has never experienced any large scale wave of immigrants. The total number of immigrants to Nicaragua, both originating from other Latin American countries and all other countries, never surpassed 1% of its total population prior to 1995. The 2005 census showed the foreign-born population at 1.2%, having risen 0.06% in 10 years. However, in the 19th century, Nicaragua received immigrants from Europe, who established many agricultural businesses such as coffee and sugar cane plantations, and also newspapers, hotels and banks.

### Emigration

During the Nicaraguan Revolution and the Civil War, thousands of Nicaraguans left the country. After the 1990 Nicaraguan Elections some people returned, but many more emigrated during the rest of the decade. In 1998, the Hurricane Mitch killed almost 4,000 people in the country and destroyed much of the Nicaraguan economy, as a result thousands of Nicaraguans received the TPS enabling them to emigrate to the United States as "refugees". In recent years, many Nicaraguans had left the country to escape poverty and unemployment.
Nicaraguan emigration is a recent process. During the 1990–2004 period, more than 800,000 Nicaraguans left the country, compared to 100,000 during the 1970–1989 period. According to the World Bank, in 2005 there were 683,520 Nicaraguans living outside Nicaragua legally. If those who are undocumented are counted, some sources estimate as many as 1,500,000 Nicaraguans living abroad by the end of 2005. Nicaraguans are the third largest community of Central Americans living abroad, after Guatemalans and Salvadorans. Nicaragua is also the second country in Central America by percentage of population living abroad.
Following the return of Daniel Ortega to power in the 2006 Nicaraguan general election and subsequent democratic backsliding, especially during and after the violently suppressed 2018 Nicaraguan protests, a new wave of political emigration occurred. Most political emigrants live in Costa Rica which has been a stable representative democracy since the end of the Costa Rican Civil War in 1948. Other target countries of political emigration include the United States and European countries, particularly Spain.
Remittances to Nicaragua represent about 15% of the country's GDP. In 2008 Nicaragua received close to one billion dollars in remittances; an increase from the $750,000,000 received in 2007, according to the World Bank

## Language

* Spanish (95.3%)
* Miskito (2.2%)
The official language of Nicaragua is Spanish, or Nicañol as Nicaraguan Spanish is sometimes referred to, and is spoken by the country's population. In Nicaragua the Voseo form is common, just as in other countries in Central and South America like Honduras, Argentina, and Uruguay. Spanish has many different dialects spoken throughout Latin America, Central American Spanish is the dialect spoken in Nicaragua.

### Phonology

Some other characteristics of Nicaraguan phonology include:
* /s/ at the end of a syllable or before a consonant is pronounced like [h].
* j (/x/), is aspirated; it is soft as the /h/ in English (e.g.: Yahoo).
* Intervocalic /b/, /d/, and /g/ show no sign of reduction, and are much more pronounced than in most dialects.
* In some regions the double /l/ is pronounced with a ( "Shhh") sound, Argentina has a similar accent.
* There is no confusion between /l/ and /r/, as in the Caribbean.
* /s/, /z/ and in some cases /c/ (as in cerrar) are pronounced as [s]
* /m/ at the end of a word tends to be pronounced as [n]
Nicaraguans on the Caribbean coast speak their indigenous languages and also English. The indigenous peoples of the east who use their original language tend to also speak Spanish and/or English, the main languages being Miskito language, Sumo language, and Rama language. Creole languages are also present in the Caribbean coast, Nicaragua Creole English has 30,000 speakers.
Nicaragua has many minority groups. Many ethnic groups in Nicaragua, such as the Chinese Nicaraguans and Palestinian Nicaraguans, have maintained their ancestral languages while also speaking Spanish and/or English. Minority languages include Chinese, Arabic, German, Italian among others. Nicaragua also has a total of 3 extinct languages.
Nicaraguan Sign Language is also of particular interest to linguists.

## Religion

Religion is a significant part of the culture of Nicaragua and forms part of the constitution. Religious freedom, which has been guaranteed since 1939, and religious tolerance is promoted by both the Nicaraguan government and the constitution. Bishops are expected to lend their authority to important state occasions, and their pronouncements on national issues are closely followed. They can also be called upon to mediate between contending parties at moments of political crisis.
Although Nicaragua has no official religion it is nominally Roman Catholic. Practicing Roman Catholics are no longer the majority and are declining while evangelical Protestant groups and Mormons are growing rapidly have been growing since the 1990s. There are also strong Anglican and Moravian communities on the Caribbean coast.
Roman Catholicism came to Nicaragua in the 16th century with the Spanish conquest and remained, until 1939, the established faith. Protestantism and various Christian sects came to Nicaragua during the 19th century, but only during the 20th century have Protestant denominations gained large followings in the Caribbean Coast of the country. Popular religion revolves around the saints, who are perceived as intermediaries between human beings and God.
Most localities, from the capital of Managua to small rural communities, honor patron saints selected from the Roman Catholic calendar with annual fiestas. In many communities, a rich lore has grown up around the celebrations of patron saints, such as Managua's Saint Dominic (Santo Domingo), honored in August with two colorful, often riotous, day-long processions through the city. The high point of Nicaragua's religious calendar for the masses is neither Christmas nor Easter, but La Purísima, a week of festivities in early December dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, during which elaborate altars to the Virgin Mary are constructed in homes and workplaces.