Demographics of Sudan

In Sudan's 1993 census, the population was calculated at 30 million. No comprehensive census has been carried out since that time due to the Second Sudanese Civil War. Estimates of Sudan, including the population of South Sudan, ranged from 37 million (United Nations) to 45 million (CIA). Since the secession of South Sudan in July 2011, the current population of Sudan is estimated to be about 46 million. The population of metropolitan Khartoum (including Khartoum, Omdurman, and Khartoum North) is growing rapidly and ranges from six to seven million, including around two million displaced persons from the southern war zone, as well as western and eastern drought-affected areas.

Overview

The majority of the population in Sudan are the indigenous Nubian inhabitants of the Nile Valley. The majority of ethnic groups of Sudan fall under Arabs, and the minority being other African ethnic groups such as the Beja, Fur, Nuba, and Fallata. When counted as one people Sudanese Arabs are by far the largest ethnic group in Sudan, however African ethnic groups are a large minority if counted as one group. They are almost entirely Muslim; while the majority speak Sudanese Arabic; some other Arab tribes speak different Arabic dialects like Awadia and Fadnia and Bani Arak tribes who speak Najdi Arabic; Bani Hassan, Al-Ashraf, Kinanah and Rashaida who speak Hejazi Arabic. In addition, Arab tribes like the Baggara and other Darfurians, both who speak Chadian Arabic. Sudanese Arabs of northern and eastern parts descend primarily from migrants from the Arabian Peninsula. Additionally, a few pre-Islamic Arabian tribes existed in Sudan from earlier migrations into the region from Western Arabia, although most Arabs in Sudan are dated from migrations after the 12th century. The vast majority of Arab tribes in Sudan migrated into the Sudan in the 12th century.

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Population size and structure

Achieving good counts of the population is difficult in Sudan, because conducting a census has been difficult due to various conflicts and wars in the southern, eastern and western regions of Sudan over the past few decades. The government of South Sudan (led by the former SPLM resistance movement) has in the past accused Sudan of deliberately manipulating the census in oil-rich regions such as the Abyei district, on the border between Sudan and South Sudan. The population count is a determining factor for the share of wealth and power each part of Sudan receives after the secession of South Sudan (See: Naivasha Agreement). Another complication is the Southern Sudanese refugees present in the north, whose citizenship in Sudan after the secession of South Sudan is now in question. 250,000 refugees from Syria live in Sudan.

Age structure

Population Estimates by Gender and Age Group (01.VII.2016) (Unrevised data.):

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2020) (Data refer to national projections.):

Vital statistics

The vital statistics below do not include South Sudan.

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Ethnic groups

Sudan is a country characterized by its cultural and ethnic diversity. Various ethnic groups contribute to the rich tapestry of Sudanese society. The major ethnic groups in Sudan include Sudanese Arabs, Nubians, Zaghawa, and Beja, among others.

Sudanese Arabs form the largest ethnic group in Sudan, comprising approximately 45-60% of the population. They are predominantly Muslim and speak Arabic. Nubians, another significant ethnic group, have their origins in the Nubia region along the Nile River. They have a distinct cultural heritage and are known for their architectural achievements.

The Zaghawa, also known as Beri or Gimi, are an ethnic group with a presence in Sudan, Chad, and other neighboring countries. They have a pastoralist lifestyle and are known for their cattle herding and camel breeding skills.

Additionally, Sudan is home to diverse ethnic groups such as the Fur, Beja, Nuba, Fula, Nubian people, and a small community of Domari people known by outside groups as "Gypsies". These groups have unique cultural expressions, languages, social structures, and religious practices, contributing to the cultural mosaic of Sudan.

It is important to note that Sudan's demographics have undergone changes, particularly with the secession of South Sudan in 2011. South Sudan was home to many sub-Saharan African ethnic groups. As a result, Sudan's ethnic landscape has evolved, and South Sudan became an independent nation.

The 1956 census of Sudan, the only census to collect information on ethnic identity, found 39% of the population identified as Arab, 30% as one of the southern ethnic groups, 13% as one of the western ethnic groups, 6% as Beja, 6% as Nuba, 3% as Nubian, and 3% as foreigners/other. North Sudan and South Sudan were still one country at the time of the census.

Languages

The most widely spoken languages in Sudan are:

Arabic language:
1. Sudanese Arabic.
2. Najdi and Hejazi Arabic, (mainly in mid-north and mid-east regions).
3. Chadian Arabic in western region, (mainly spoken by Baggara and various Arabized African tribes).
Nubian language in far north, (mainly spoken by Nubians of Mahas, Dongola and Halfa).
Beja language known as Bedawit in far east alongside Red sea, (mainly spoken by the Beja people, mainly the Hadandawa, Ababda and Bisharin).

Before 2005, only Arabic was the official language. In the 2005 constitution, Sudan's official languages became Arabic and English:

Article 8:

All indigenous languages of Sudan are national languages and shall be respected, developed and promoted.
Arabic is a widely spoken national language in Sudan.
Arabic, as a major language at the national level and English shall be the official working languages of the national government and the languages of instruction for higher education.
In addition to Arabic and English, the legislature of any sub-national level of government may adopt any other national language as an additional official working language at its level.
There shall be no discrimination against the use of either Arabic or English at any level of government or stage of education.

The working constitution of the post-2019 Revolution transitional period specifies no national language.

Religion

In Sudan, 97% of the population adheres to Islam, with the overwhelming majority being adherents of the Sunni branch and the Maliki school of Islamic jurisprudence. The remainder of the population follows either animist and indigenous beliefs or Christianity, especially in Khartoum and in southern regions of the country bordering South Sudan.

Christians in Sudan who are refugees or immigrants from the south belong to various churches including the Roman Catholic Church, small Melkite and Maronite communities in the north, as well as Anglicans followers in the Episcopal Church of Sudan and the recently formed Reformed Episcopal Church. There are significant but long-established groups of Coptic Orthodox and Greek Orthodox Christians in Khartoum and other northern cities.

There are also Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox communities in Khartoum and eastern Sudan, largely made up of refugees and migrants from the past few decades. Other Christian groups with smaller followings in the country include the Africa Inland Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Sudan Church of Christ, the Sudan Interior Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Sudan Pentecostal Church, the Sudan Evangelical Presbyterian Church (in the North).

Religious identity plays a role in the country's political divisions. Northern and western Muslims have dominated the country's political and economic system since independence. The NCP draws much of its support from Islamists, Salafis/Wahhabis and other conservative Arab Muslims in the north. The Umma Party has traditionally attracted Arab followers of the Ansar sect of Sufism as well as non-Arab Muslims from Darfur and Kordofan.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) includes both Arab and non-Arab Muslims in the north and east, especially those in the Khatmia Sufi sect.