98 percent of the people of Bangladesh are Bangalees. The major
religion is Muslim with 80 percent of total population. The second major religion is Hinduism
which constitutes 16 percent. Other religions
include Buddhism and Christianity. Minorities include Biharis and tribes.
Among the tribes Chakma is the biggest.
Bangladesh is one of the largest Muslim
countries in the world. Most Bangladeshi Muslims are Sunnis, but there is a small Shia
community. Among religious festivals of Muslims Eidul Fitr, Eidul Azha,
Eiday Miladunnabi, Muharram etc. are prominent . The contention that Bengali Muslims are all
descended from lower-caste Hindus who were converted to Islam
is incorrect; a substantial proportion are descendants of the
Muslims who reached the subcontinent from elsewhere.
Hinduism is professed by about 12 percent of the
population. Durga Puja, Saraswati Puja, Kali Puja etc. are Hindu
festivals. Hindus in
Bangladesh are almost evenly distributed in all regions,
with concentrations in Khulna, Jessore, Dinajpur, Faridpur, and Barisal.
Biharis, who are not ethnic Bangalees, are Urdu-speaking Muslim
refugees from Bihar and other parts of northern India. They numbered about 1
million in 1971 but now had decreased to around 600,000.
They once dominated the upper levels of the society. They sided with Pakistan during the 1971 war.
Hundreds of thousands of Biharis were repatriated to Pakistan after the
war.
Tribal race constitutes less than 1 percent of the
total population. They live in the Chittagong Hills and in the
regions of Mymensingh, Sylhet, and Rajshahi. The majority of the tribal
population live in rural areas. They differ in their social organization,
marriage customs, birth and death rites, food, and other social customs
from the people of the rest of the country. They speak Tibeto-Burman
languages. In the mid-1980s, the percentage distribution of tribal
population by religion was Hindu 24, Buddhist 44, Christian 13, and others
19.
Major tribes are the Chakmas, Maghs (or Marmas), Tipras, Murangs, Kukis
and Santals. The tribes tend to intermingle and
could be distinguished from one another more by differences in their
dialect, dress, and customs than by tribal cohesion. Only the Chakmas and
Marmas display formal tribal organization. They are of mixed origin
but reflect more Bengali influence than any other tribe. Unlike the other
tribes, the Chakmas and Marmas generally live in the highland valleys.
Most Chakmas are Buddhists, but some practice Hinduism or Animism.
The Santals live in the northwestern part of
Bangladesh. They obey a set of religious beliefs
closely similar to Hinduism. The Khasais live in Sylhet in the Khasia Hills
near the border with Assam, and the Garo and Hajang in the
northeastern part of the country.
Statistics
Population:
127,117,967 (July 1999 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.59% (1999 est.)
Birth rate:
25.2 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate:
8.5 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.79
migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 38% (male 24,516,722; female 23,346,904)
15-64 years: 59% (male 38,441,064; female 36,586,743)
65 years and over: 3% (male 2,303,613; female 1,922,921) (1999 est.)
0-14 years: 38% (male 24,516,722; female 23,346,904)
15-64 years: 59% (male 38,441,064; female 36,586,743)
65 years and over: 3% (male 2,303,613; female 1,922,921) (1999 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.2 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.2 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
69.68 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total 55.86 years
male: 56.02 years female: 55.69 years (1996 est.)
Total
fertility rate: 3.57 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Ethnic divisions:
Bengali 98%, Biharis 250,000, tribal less than 1 million
Religions: Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, Buddhist, Christian, others
1%
Languages: Bangla (official), English
Literacy: 38.1%
male: 49.4% female: 26.1%
