Guyana

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Guyana

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Guyana's population of roughly 760,000-780,000 is diverse: the three major groups are the Indians or Indo-Guyanese (around 50%) who have remained predominantly rural, the Africans or Afro-Guyanese (about 36%-43%) who constitute the majority urban population, and the Amerindians (around 7%, some estimates say as low as 4%) who live in the country's interior. They are divided into a number of different groups, the main ones being the Akawaio, Arawak, Carib, Macushi, Makuxi, Pemon and Wapishana. Chinese and Europeans (mostly Portuguese (Guyana) and British) and those of mixed origins make up the remainder (roughly 2%). The overwhelming majority of the population - around 90% - live along the coastal strip, where population density is more than 115 persons per km². There is much racial tension between the Indian and African communities, and the two main parties are largely mono-racial.

Related Topics:
India - Indo-Guyanese - Africa - Afro-Guyanese - Amerindian - Akawaio - Arawak - Carib - Macushi - Makuxi - Pemon - Wapishana - Chinese - Europe - Portuguese (Guyana) - British

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Religion in Guyana runs mainly along racial lines. Christianity (50%) predominantely Anglicanism, is the main religion practiced by Afro-Guyanese, though some are Black Muslim or other Christian denominations. The Indo-Guyanese community mainly follow Hinduism (35%), though there is a sizable minority who practice Islam (10%). Guyana is the country with the largest percentage of Bahá'ís (7%). Ninety percent of the inhabitants live on the narrow coastal plain,

Related Topics:
Christianity - Anglicanism - Black Muslim - Hinduism - Islam - Bahá'ís

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Emigration has been a large and persistent problem in Guyana, with an estimated 500,000 Guyanese living abroad. Since independence, as many as 10,000 Guyanese have left and settled permanently in the United States alone per year and demand to emigrate remains very high. Canada, Britain and English-speaking Caribbean islands are the other main countries people choose to emigrate to. At the same time, the birth rate has fallen sharply, and because of the emigration, can no longer sustain the country's population level. Many in the government worry that the country may become depopulated, but few concrete steps have been taken to stem the outflow.

Related Topics:
Emigration - United States - Canada - Britain

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