Page last updated on June 20, 2014

Nationality:
noun: Uruguayan(s)
adjective: Uruguayan

Ethnic groups:
white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian (practically nonexistent)

Languages:
Spanish (official), Portunol, Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier)

Religions:
Roman Catholic 47.1%, non-Catholic Christians 11.1%, nondenominational 23.2%, Jewish 0.3%, atheist or agnostic 17.2%, other 1.1% (2006)

Demographic profile:
Uruguay rates high for most development indicators and is known for its secularism, liberal social laws, and well-developed social security, health, and educational systems. It is one of the few countries in Latin America and the Caribbean where the entire population has access to clean water. Uruguay's provision of free primary through university education has contributed to the country's high levels of literacy and educational attainment. However, the emigration of human capital has diminished the state's return on its investment in education. Remittances from the roughly 18% of Uruguayans abroad amount to less than 1 percent of national GDP. The emigration of young adults and a low birth rate are causing Uruguay's population to age rapidly.
In the 1960s, Uruguayans for the first time emigrated en masse - primarily to Argentina and Brazil - because of economic decline and the onset of more than a decade of military dictatorship. Economic crises in the early 1980s and 2002 also triggered waves of emigration, but since 2002 more than 70% of Uruguayan emigrants have selected the US and Spain as destinations because of better job prospects. Uruguay had a tiny population upon its independence in 1828 and welcomed thousands of predominantly Italian and Spanish immigrants, but the country has not experienced large influxes of new arrivals since the aftermath of World War II. More recent immigrants include Peruvians and Arabs.

Population:
3,332,972 (July 2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 135
[see also: Population country ranks ]

Age structure:
0-14 years: 21% (male 356,851/female 344,576)
15-24 years: 16% (male 269,820/female 262,830)
25-54 years: 38.9% (male 639,766/female 658,257)
55-64 years: 10.1% (male 158,170/female 178,194)
65 years and over: 13.9% (male 185,132/female 279,376) (2014 est.)
population pyramid:

Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 55.9 %
youth dependency ratio: 33.8 %
elderly dependency ratio: 22.1 %
potential support ratio: 4.5 (2014 est.)

Median age:
total: 34.3 years
male: 32.6 years
female: 35.9 years (2014 est.)

Population growth rate:
0.26% (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 175
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]

Birth rate:
13.18 births/1,000 population (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 152
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]

Death rate:
9.48 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 56
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]

Net migration rate:
-1.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 149
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]

Urbanization:
urban population: 92.5% of total population (2011)
rate of urbanization: 0.45% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major urban areas - population:
MONTEVIDEO (capital) 1.672 million (2011)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2014 est.)

Maternal mortality rate:
29 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)
country comparison to the world: 124
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]

Infant mortality rate:
total: 8.97 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 149
male: 9.95 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 7.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2014 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.81 years
country comparison to the world: 71
male: 73.67 years
female: 80.06 years (2014 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.84 children born/woman (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 149
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]

Contraceptive prevalence rate:
77%
note: percent of women aged 15-50 (2004)
[see also: Contraceptive prevalence rate country ranks ]

Health expenditures:
8% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 61
[see also: Health expenditures country ranks ]

Physicians density:
3.74 physicians/1,000 population (2008)
[see also: Physicians density country ranks ]

Hospital bed density:
3 beds/1,000 population (2011)
[see also: Hospital bed density country ranks ]

Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 99.9% of population
rural: 94.9% of population
total: 99.5% of population
unimproved:
urban: 0.1% of population
rural: 5.1% of population
total: 0.5% of population (2012 est.)

Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 96.5% of population
rural: 95.8% of population
total: 96.4% of population
unimproved:
urban: 3.5% of population
rural: 4.2% of population
total: 3.6% of population (2012 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.7% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 60
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
13,200 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 95
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
24.8% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 64
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
4.5% (2011)
country comparison to the world: 94
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]

Education expenditures:
4.5% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 92
[see also: Education expenditures - percent of GDP country ranks ]

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.1%
male: 97.6%
female: 98.5% (2010 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 16 years
male: 14 years
female: 17 years (2010)

Child labor - children ages 5-14:
total number: 51,879
percentage: 7 % (2006 est.)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 18.5%
country comparison to the world: 66
male: 14.7%
female: 23.6% (2012)