Trinidad and Tobago population

The islands were originally inhabited by Indians . After the start of colonization, the Indians were gradually exterminated and assimilated by European settlers.

During the three centuries of Spanish rule over Trinidad, the island was inhabited very slowly. In 1783, the population of Trinidad was only about 2.8 thousand people, of which only 126 Europeans. It was in this year that Spain announced favorable conditions for the acquisition of land on the island for Catholics . This led to the fact that over the next 14 years a large number of French planters with slaves moved to the colony from other islands of the West Indies. When in 1797 the colony fell under British rule, the population was already about 20,000 people (of which 2,000 were Europeans). Since the 1830s, after the abolition of slavery in the British Caribbean, a large number of workers from India have been sent to Trinidad.

The vast majority of the population of Trinidad is concentrated on the island of Trinidad (about 96%). The western part of the island is most densely populated, especially the coastal strip between Port of Spain and San Fernando. In Tobago, most of the residents are concentrated in Scarborough , the administrative center of the island. Recently, in connection with the development of industry, there is an active process of urbanization .

Indotrinidadians

The largest ethnic group of the state, accounting for about 40% of the total population of Trinidad and Tobago. Indotrinids are descended from workers brought from India after the abolition of slavery on the islands of the Caribbean . Some Indotrinidadans profess Hinduism and Islam and have preserved cultural traditions, some have adopted Christianity .

Afrotrinidadites

The second largest ethnic group, almost equal to the first - about 37.5% of the country's population. For the most part, its representatives are the descendants of slaves brought to the islands from the west coast of Africa in the last years of Spanish rule and the first years of British power. Afrotrinidadians make up the majority of the population in Tobago , while Trinidad is ethnically more diverse. Most Afrotrinidadites are Christians.

Other ethnic groups

Of the other ethnic groups, Trinidadians of Chinese descent, numbering about 20,000, stand out. Their ancestors were also brought to Trinidad and Tobago, when the islands began to lack workers after the abolition of slavery. Most of them now live in Port of Spain and San Fernando .

The white population comes mainly from the first settlers and from immigrants. About half of it is made up of Trinidadians of British descent, numbering about 11,000 people. Other significant groups are Trinidadians with Spanish , French , German, and Portuguese roots. Spanish-born islanders, descended from the first Spanish immigrants and peasants who moved from Venezuela , make up a national minority called the Cocoa Paniol .

A large number of Trinidadians are of mixed origin.

The only official language is English , but the Indo-Aryan language Bhojpuri is widely spoken, which is spoken by many Indotrinids . In colloquial speech, mainly Trinidad Creole is used on the basis of English, which has experienced and is influenced by French , Patois , Spanish and Bhojpuri.

The percentage of Spanish speakers, despite the proximity of Venezuela and other Spanish-speaking countries, is negligible, but this language is the first foreign language: the state campaign SAFFL ( Spanish As the First Foreign Language ), launched in 2005 , provides for the teaching of Spanish in most elementary schools and teaching him at least a third of the country's government officials ^[1] . The government also announced that by 2020, Spanish will again become the official language of the country along with English ^[2] .

According to the 2000 census, 26% of the population considers themselves Catholics , 24.6% are Protestants (including 7.8% are Anglicans , 6.8% are Pentecostals , 4% are Seventh-day Adventists , 3.3% are Presbyterians , 1 , 8% are Baptists , 0.9% are Methodists ), 22.5% are Hindus , 5.8% are Muslims . Few followers of other Protestant churches, Buddhists , Judaists , Baha'is .

Statistics from the last two censuses show a decrease in the number of followers of traditional faiths, Catholicism and Hinduism, and an increase in Protestant communities.

The emigration rate in Trinidad and Tobago, as in other countries in the Caribbean, is high. The traditional directions of movement of emigration from the country are the USA , Canada and Great Britain . Together with the low birth rate that is characteristic of industrialized countries, a decrease in the country's population by 0.87% per year is currently observed. In 2006, Trinidad and Tobago recorded the lowest level of population growth in the world ^[3] .

• Trinidad and Tobago (eng.) In the CIA Handbook
• Trinidad and Tobago // Encyclopedia " Round the World ".