Demographics of Morocco


This article is about the demographic features of the population of Morocco, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
The population of Morocco in 2014 is 33,848,242. The overwhelming majority of Moroccans are of Arabs and Berber descent. Those who identify as Arab-Berbers are genetically nearly identical to non-Arab Berbers, suggesting that the processes of 'Arabization' were almost entirely cultural rather than genetic. Some Moroccans identify themselves as Berbers through the spoken language, through a mix of family/tribal/territorial ties or through both. Other Moroccans identify themselves as Arabised Berbers, mostly based on them speaking Arabic or being coerced to speak Arabic and/or not being able to speak Berber. However, due to Arabisation and its policies, some of them believe they have Arab descent from the Arabian Peninsula or the Levant. Some Moroccans believe themselves to be of mixed Arab-Berber descent or of Arab-Berber-Andalusian ancestry. There are no official figures about the exact ethnic origins of all Moroccans, but the implicitly accepted idea inside and outside Morocco is that Moroccans are essentially mixed Arab-Berbers.
Morocco has been inhabited by Berbers since at least 5,000 years ago. Some estimate the presence of Berbers to be 8,000+ years old. The oldest known sovereign state in Morocco is the Berber Kingdom of Mauretaina established in 110 BC. Part of the northern areas of Morocco was for limited periods under the rule of Romans and Byzantine principalities, sometimes in alliance with the indigenous Berbers, such as the one of Julian, count of Ceuta. There was probably a high occurrence of intermarriage and interbreeding between some Berbers and European settlers, laying the foundation for the emergence of Moorish and Romano-Berber cultures. Since around 710 AD, many Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula and Arabised Levantine people conquered the territory or migrated to it during the Umayyad conquest, though historical scholars argue that the amount of the population that remained Arab is minimal. The deep and mountainous areas of ancient Morocco always remained under Berber control. A small minority of the population is identified as Haratin and Gnaoua, dark-skinned sedentary agriculturalists of the southern oases that speak either Tamazight or Darija.
About 99% of Moroccans are considered to be Sunni Muslims religiously or culturally. The numbers of the Jewish minority has decreased significantly since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. Today there are 2,500 Moroccan Jews inside the country. Thousands of Moroccan Jews living in Europe, Israel and North America visit the country regularly. There is a small but apparently growing minority of Moroccan Christians made of local Moroccan converts. In 2014, most of the 86,206 foreign residents are French people, Spaniards, Algerians and sub-Saharan African students. There is a small community of Shia Muslim converts in northwestern Morocco of unknown numbers. Both Christian and Shia Muslim Moroccans and their religious activities are under surveillance and restrictions from Moroccan authorities as they are seen as a threat to the dominance of Sunni Islam and the monarch's religious authority. The number of non-believers and non-religious Moroccans is unknown.

Population

Average populationLive birthsDeathsNatural changeCrude birth rate Crude death rate Natural change Fertility rates
196212,177,000561,360227,710333,65046.118.727.47.20
197517,072,0005.91
198220,334,000756,425215,504540,92137.210.626.65.52
199425,996,000675,896174,173501,72326.06.719.33.28
200429,840,000602,768173,073429,69620.25.814.42.47
201031,894,000599,607178,606421,00118.85.613.22.19
201433,848,0002.21
201835,000,0002.38

Source: Haut-Commissariat au Plan

Fertility rate (The Demographic Health Survey)

Figures from The Demographic Health Survey
Fertility Rate and CBR :
YearCBR TFR CBR TFR CBR TFR
19874,62 3,24 5,88
199228,44,04 21,52,54 33,75,54
199526,03,31 20,42,17 30,64,50
2003–200421,12,5 18,72,1 24,33,0

Life expectancy

Source: UN World Population Prospects

Structure of the population

Structure of the population :
Age GroupMaleFemaleTotal%
Total215 039 40729 680 069100
Total214 783 48728 828 62497.13%
0–41 488 6311 435 8332 924 4649.85%
5–91 552 4401 502 7183 055 15810.29%
10–141 666 6321 614 3683 281 00011.05%
15–191 564 9001 583 6903 148 59010.61%
20–2421 521 5262 947 7009.93%
25–291 190 1111 292 1622 482 2738.36%
30–341 054 0691 149 3022 203 3717.42%
35–39897 812993 7391 891 5516.37%
40–44892 083968 3911 860 4746.27%
45–49758 044731 6351 489 6795.02%
50–54627 433599 7551 227 1884.13%
55–59370 969388 594759 5632.56%
60–64340 722400 169740 8912.50%
65–69261 046274 018535 0641.80%
70–74236 107267 260503 3671.70%
75+58 93360 327119 2600.40%
unknown595 525255 920851 4452.87%

According to 2004 census
Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPercent
0–14~9 260 18231.2%
15–59~18 164 20261.2%
60+~2 404 0868.1%

Structure of the population :
Age GroupMaleFemaleTotal%
Total16 371 47516 578 97132 950 445100
0–41 482 8991 421 0202 903 9198,81
5–91 453 3151 391 8472 845 1618,63
10–141 473 2311 420 9732 894 2048,78
15–191 547 2921 496 2433 043 5359,24
20–241 614 4831 564 3683 178 8519,65
25–291 477 9521 494 2672 972 2199,02
30–341 338 5581 409 1292 747 6878,34
35–391 106 7641 199 8022 306 5667,00
40–44975 4281 070 4412 045 8696,21
45–49862 688947 1581 809 8465,49
50–54859 927902 4211 762 3475,35
55–59704 367670 9231 375 2904,17
60–64543 733529 9131 073 6463,26
65–69314 577348 098662 6742,01
70–74276 251333 385609 6361,85
75+340 012378 983718 9962,18

Structure of the population :
Age GroupMaleFemaleTotal%
Total 16 330 73116 416 14032 746 871100
0–41 700 7961 623 1193 323 9159.82%
5–91 524 5861 460 8402 985 4268.82%
10–141 532 7551 475 2413 007 9968.89%
15–191 490 3441 468 1142 958 4588.74%
20–241 495 4041 520 7703 016 1748.91%
25–291 369 5581 411 5832 781 1418.22%
30–341 289 3751 338 7212 628 0967.76%
35–391 137 2691 198 9862 336 2556.90%
40–441 058 0731 102 2802 160 3536.38%
45–49879 096926 4001 805 4965.33%
50–54877 383925 0061 802 3895.32%
55–59715 207669 6101 384 8174.09%
60–64594 071566 5391 160 6103.43%
65–69316 816321 867638 6831.89%
70–74268 617316 576585 1931.73%
75–7981 38190 488171 8690.51%
unknown1 101 3713.25%

Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPercent
0–144 758 1374 559 2009 317 33727.53%
15–6410 905 78011 128 00922 033 78965.10%
65+666 814728 9311 395 7454.12%

According to 2014 census
Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPercent
0–14~9 477 50828.0%
15–59~21 121 30362.4%
60+~3 249 4319.6%

Languages

and the Standard Moroccan Berber are Morocco's two official languages. The spoken languages in daily life are: Moroccan Arabic, Tamazight, Hassaniya Arabic.
Around 30-33 million Moroccans speak Moroccan Arabic as a first language, including Hilalian dialects and Hassaniya Arabic in the extreme south of the country.
Around 12-15 million Moroccans speak Berber languages in three varieties as a first language.
French is an implicitly "official language" of government and big business, and is taught throughout school and still serves as Morocco's primary language of :Category:Companies of Morocco|business, economics, and scientific university education. French is also widely used in the media. Morocco is a member of La Francophonie. Berber activists have struggled since the 1960s for the recognition of their language as an official language of Morocco, which was achieved in July 2011 following the February 20th 2011 uprising.
About 20,000 Moroccans in the northern part of the country speak some Spanish.
English, while still far behind French in terms of the number of proficient speakers, is rapidly becoming a foreign language of choice among educated youth and business people. It has been taught to Moroccan students after the fourth year of elementary school since the education reforms of 2002.

Status of women

The literacy rate is 51 percent for males and 42.5 percent for females. 26 percent of the non-agricultural labor is female. The ratio of boys to girls in primary and secondary schools is 87 to 9. In the past 20 years, the government has taken initiatives to improve the status of women in society. For instance, the Moudawana 2003 code of law has greatly improved the family status code. It has given women the right to make decisions on marriage, divorce, and custody of children in the case of remarriage/divorce. Nevertheless, gender bias is still commonplace in education, employment and the law.

Main populated areas

Most Moroccans live west and north of the Atlas Mountains, a range that insulates the country from the Sahara Desert. Casablanca is the largest city and the centre of business and industry, and has the leading seaport and airport. Rabat is the seat of government. Tangier and Nador are the two major northern seaports on the Mediterranean. Fez is a cultural, religious and industrial centre. Marrakesh and Agadir are the two major tourist centres. Oujda is the largest city of eastern Morocco. Meknes houses the military academy. Kenitra has the largest military airbase. Mohammedia has the largest oil refineries and other major industrial installations.

Education

Education in Morocco is free and compulsory through primary school. Nevertheless, many children—particularly girls in rural areas—still do not attend school. The country's illiteracy rate is usually around 50 percent for most of the country, but reaches as high as 90 percent among girls in rural regions. In July 2006, Prime minister Driss Jettou announced that illiteracy rate has declined by 39 percent, while two million people had attended literacy courses during the past four years.
Morocco has about 660,000 students enrolled in 14 public universities. One of the oldest and among the most prestigious is Mohammed V in Rabat, with faculties of law, sciences, liberal arts, and medicine. University of Karueein, in Fez, has been a centre for Islamic studies for more than 1,000 years and is the oldest university still in activity in the world. Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, founded in 1993 by King Hassan II and King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, is an English-medium, American-style university comprising about 1,700 students.

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.
Nationality

Vital Statistics

Population
Age structure
Median age
Population growth rate
Total fertility rate
Birth rate
Death rate
Net migration rate
Urbanization
Sex ratio
Infant mortality rate
Life expectancy at birth

Ethnic groups

Definition: age 10 and over can read and write
Total population: 73.55%