The practice of conducting a periodic census began in Egypt in the second millennium BC, where it was used for tax gathering and to determine fitness for military services.
Censuses in Egypt first appeared in the late Middle Kingdom and develops in the New Kingdom.[1] Pharaoh Amasis, according to Herodotus, required every Egyptian to declare annually to the nomarch, "whence he gained his living".[2] Under the Ptolemies and the Romans several censuses were conducted in Egypt by government officials.[3]
Roman censuses in Egypt estimated the population at 4.5 million inhabitants in the year 14 AD and 5 million in 164 AD.
A census also took place in the era of Hesham Abdel Malek ben Marwan in the year 600 AD including the number of people, their ages and residences.[citation needed]
In 1798, Egypt's population was estimated at 3 million when Napoleon invaded the country.[citation needed]
After preliminary enumerations in some urban areas and villages the first countrywide census was carried out in 1848.[4][5] A modern analysis of the 1848 census records, which attempts to adjust for various discrepancies in the data, concluded that Egypt's population was 4.476 million people back then.[6] The 1848 census is said to be the first in a non-Western country to include demographic, social, and economic data on practically all individuals including females, children, and slaves. Digitization of the 1848 and 1868 census records is underway based on documents in the National Archives of Egypt.[7]
During the last 135 years, Egypt has managed to carry out around 14 official population censuses, the first being in 1882 and the last in 2017.
Population Censuses carried out officially in Egypt since 1882[8] | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
N.º | Year | Population | Census | Census Carried Out During | photo | |
1° | 1882 | 6,806,381 | 1882 Egyptian Census | Reign of the Khedive Tewfik Pasha (1879-1892) |
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2° | 1897 | 9,734,405 | 1897 Egyptian Census | Reign of the Khedive Abbas II Hilmi (1892-1914) |
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3° | 1907 | 11,189,978 | 1907 Egyptian Census | Reign of the Khedive Abbas II Hilmi (1892-1914) |
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4° | 1917 | 12,716,255 | 1917 Egyptian Census | Reign of Sultan Fuad I (1917-1936) |
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5° | 1927 | 14,177,864 | 1927 Egyptian Census | Reign of Sultan Fuad I (1917-1936) |
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6° | 1937 | 15,921,000 | 1937 Egyptian Census | Reign of Sultan Faruq (1936-1952) |
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7° | 1947 | 18,967,000 | 1947 Egyptian Census | Reign of Sultan Faruq I (1936-1952) |
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8° | 1960 | 26,085,000 | 1960 Egyptian Census | Government of President Gamal Abdel Nasser (1954-1970) |
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9° | 1966 | 30,076,000 | 1966 Egyptian Census | Government of President Gamal Abdel Nasser (1954-1970) |
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10° | 1976 | 36,626,000 | 1976 Egyptian Census | Government of President Anwar El-Sadat (1970-1981) |
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11° | 1986 | 48,205,049 | 1986 Egyptian Census | Government of President Hosni Mubarak (1981-2011) |
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12° | 1996 | 59,276,672 | 1996 Egyptian Census | Government of President Hosni Mubarak (1981-2011) |
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13° | 2006 | 72,798,031 | 2006 Egyptian Census | Government of President Hosni Mubarak (1981-2011) |
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14° | 2017 | 94,798,827 | 2017 Egyptian Census | Government of Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (2014-Present) |
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- | 2022 | 103,011,914 | Estimates CAPMAS[9] |
Census Year |
Population[10] (in thousands) |
Arithmetic Density[11] (inhabitants/km2) |
---|---|---|
1882 | 6,712 | 6.65 |
1897 | 9,669 | 9.58 |
1907 | 11,190 | 11.09 |
1917 | 12,718 | 12.60 |
1927 | 14,178 | 14.05 |
1937 | 15,921 | 15.78 |
1947 | 18,967 | 18.79 |
1960 | 26,085 | 25.84 |
1966 | 30,076 | 29.79 |
1976 | 36,626 | 36.28 |
1986 | 48,254 | 47.80 |
1996 | 59,312 | 58.76 |
2006 | 72,798 | 70.70 |
Province or governorate | Population (1947 census) |
---|---|
Alexandria | 928,237 |
Aswan | 285,551 |
Asyut | 1,379,875 |
Beheira | 1,242,478 |
Beni Suef | 613,365 |
Cairo | 2,100,486 |
Dakahlia | 1,366,085 |
Damietta | 124,104 |
Faiyum | 671,885 |
Frontiers | 216,872 |
Gharbia | 2,316,619 |
Girga (currently Sohag Governorate) | 1,288,425 |
Giza | 822,424 |
Ismailia | 132,810 |
Minya | 1,061,417 |
Monufia | 1,168,777 |
Port Said | 178,432 |
Qalyubia | 687,169 |
Qena | 1,106,296 |
Sharqia | 1,290,890 |
Suez | 108,250 |
Total population | 19,090,447 |
A new census was done in 2017. Census day was 18 April 2017 and Egypt's population on that date was estimated to be 94,798,827.[13]
Statement | Total country |
---|---|
% Change in Population compared with Census 1996 | % 22 |
% Change in Population Under 6 Years Old | % 168 |
% Change in Population Under 15 Years Old | % 256 |
% Change in Population Over 45 Years Old | % 289 |
Number of Households | 17,265,567 |
Household Population | 72,131,096 |
Family average | 4 to 5 |
Number of university graduates | 5,476,704 |
Number of Illiterates 2006 | 16,806,657 |
Raw Birth Rate | 26 |
Raw Death Rate | 6 |
Residence | Males | Females | Total |
---|---|---|---|
Urban areas | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Rural areas | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Total Egypt | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Governorate | 1996 | 2006 | Change % |
---|---|---|---|
Cairo | 6,800,991 | 7,786,640 | 14.49 |
Giza | 4,784,095 | 6,272,571 | 31.11 |
Sharqia | 4,281,068 | 5,340,058 | 24.74 |
Dakahlia | 4,223,338 | 4,985,187 | 18.04 |
Beheira | 3,994,297 | 4,737,129 | 18.6 |
Gharbia | 3,404,339 | 4,010,298 | 17.8 |
Alexandria | 3,339,076 | 4,110,015 | 23.09 |
Minya | 3,310,129 | 4,179,309 | 26.26 |
Qalyubia | 3,281,135 | 4,237,003 | 29.13 |
Sohag | 3,123,114 | 3,746,377 | 19.96 |
Asyut | 2,802,334 | 3,441,597 | 22.81 |
Monufia | 2,760,429 | 3,270,404 | 18.47 |
Qena | 2,442,016 | 3,001,494 | 22.91 |
Kafr el-Sheikh | 2,223,383 | 2,618,111 | 17.75 |
Faiyum | 1,989,772 | 2,512,792 | 26.29 |
Beni Suef | 1,859,213 | 2,290,527 | 23.2 |
Aswan | 960,510 | 1,184,432 | 23.31 |
Damietta | 913,555 | 1,092,316 | 19.57 |
Ismailia | 714,828 | 942,832 | 31.9 |
Port Said | 472,331 | 570,768 | 20.84 |
Suez | 417,526 | 510,935 | 22.37 |
Luxor | 361,138 | 451,318 | 24.97 |
North Sinai | 252,160 | 339,752 | 34.74 |
Matruh | 212,001 | 322,341 | 52.05 |
Red Sea | 157,314 | 288,233 | 83.22 |
New Valley | 141,774 | 187,256 | 32.08 |
South Sinai | 54,806 | 149,335 | 172.48 |
Total Egypt | 59,276,672 | 72,579,030 | 22.44 |
At current pace, Egypt's population is expected to reach 160 million by 2050. However, if the current rate of reproduction diminishes, the population may be limited to 120 million by 2050. Egypt already has one of the highest real population densities in the world.[14]