Israel’s population is projected to cross the 7 million mark this month, reaching 7,006,000. The Central Bureau of Statistics ,in its latest report, said Israel’s population, the end of December 31, 2005, numbered 6,986,300 a figure which reflected an annual growth rate of 1.7%.
That rate of growth caused Israel’s population to increase by almost 20,000, thereby crossing the 7 million mark.
The statistics revealed that 76% of Israel’s population is Jewish (5.32 million) and 20% Arab (1.4 million). A further 4% (300,000) were of other religious denominations (most of whom have family ties with Jewish people).
Israel’s population reached 1,000,000 in 1949, one year after the establishment of the state. It grew to 4,000,000 by 1982 and crossed the 6 million mark in 1998.
The latest populations projections have increased Israel’s size to that of a medium sized European state. Israel’s population is now larger than Denmark and Slovakia (which each populations of 5.5 million), Ireland and Lithuania (3.9 million people each), Finland (5.2 million), and Norway (4.5 million).
The population of Israel is now almost equivalent in size to that of Switzerland (7.5 million), Austria (8.1 million), Bulgaria (8.4 million) and Sweden (8.9 million).
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on February 27, 2006