Demographics of Iraq

Demographics of Iraq
Population pyramid of Iraq in 2020
Population	46,118,554 (2024)
Growth rate	2% (2022 est.)
Birth rate	34.23 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Death rate	3.9 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Life expectancy	73.18 years
• male	71.3 years
• female	75.15 years
Fertility rate	3.25 children born/woman (2022 est.)
Infant mortality rate	19.62 deaths/1,000 live births
Net migration rate	-0.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years	35.90% (2024)
15–64 years	60.44% (2024)
65 and over	3.66% (2024)
Sex ratio
Total	1.01 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
At birth	1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15	1.04 male(s)/female
65 and over	0.65 male(s)/female
Nationality
Nationality	Iraqi
Major ethnic	Arabs
Minor ethnic	Kurds Yazidis Shabaks(?) Other Kurds Turks Armenians Afro-Arabs Assyrians Doms Others
Language
Official	Arabic and Kurdish
Spoken	Languages of Iraq

The Iraqi people (Arabic: العراقيون; Kurdish: گه‌لی عێراق; Syriac: ܥܡܐ ܥܝܪܩܝܐ) are people originating from the country of Iraq.^[1]

Iraqi Arabs are the largest ethnic group in Iraq,^[2] followed by Iraqi Kurds, then Iraqi Turkmen as the third largest ethnic group in the country.^[3][4] Studies indicate that Mesopotamian Arabs, who make up the overwhelming majority of Iraq's population, are genetically distinct from other Arab populations in the Arabs of the Arabian peninsula.^[5][6]

The population was estimated to be 46,118,554 in 2024^[7] Turkmens (3 million), Assyrians (0.5 million), Yazidis (500,000), Armenians, Marsh Arabs, and Shabaks (250,000). Other minorities include Mandaeans (3,000), Roma (50,000) and Circassians (2,000).^[8] The most spoken languages are Mesopotamian Arabic, Kurdish, Assyrian Syriac and Iraqi Turkmen dialects. The percentages of different ethno-religious groups residing in Iraq vary from source to source due to the last Iraqi census having taken place over 30 years ago. A new census of Iraq was planned to take place in 2020,^[9] but this was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[10] It was rescheduled to November 2022^[11][12] but was postponed again with an "electronic national population census" planned in the last quarter of 2023.^[13]

A new national census was held on 20 and 21 November 2024, with a total number of 120,000 field researchers who executed the census in all governorates on the set date.^[14] The detailed results were announced on 24 February 2025. Which showed that the Iraqi population has risen to about 46 million and 118 thousands. With 101 Male for every 100 Female.^[15]