Colombia is the third-most populous country in Latin America, after Brazil and Mexico. Movement from rural to urban areas has been heavy. The urban population increased from 57% of the total population in 1951 to about 74% by 1994. Thirty cities have a population of 100,000 or more. The nine eastern lowlands departments, constituting about 54% of Colombia's area, have less than 3% of the population and a density of less than one person per square kilometer (two persons per sq. mi.).
Ethnic diversity in Colombia is a result of the intermingling of indigenous Indians, Spanish colonists, and Africans. Today, only about 1% of the people can be identified as fully Indian on the basis of language and customs.
Population: 39,685,655 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years:
32% (male 6,463,195; female 6,310,723)
15-64 years:
63% (male 12,206,095; female 12,854,682)
65 years and over:
5% (male 832,986; female 1,017,974) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.68% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 22.85 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.73 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.82 male(s)/female
total population:
0.97 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 24.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
70.28 years
male:
66.43 years
female:
74.27 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.69 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Colombian(s)
adjective:
Colombian
Ethnic groups: mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%
Religions: Roman Catholic 90%
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
91.3%
male:
91.2%
female:
91.4% (1995 est.)\n
