Demographics of the British Empire facts for kids
By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, 23% of the world population at the time.
Contents
Population
Territorial population distribution of the British Empire (1925) British India (70.9986%) British Africa (10.6836%) United Kingdom (10.5308%) Other Asian colonies (2.9769%) British North America (2.0139%) Australasia and Pacific (1.6925%) Other colonies (1.1037%)
The following table gives the population of the British Empire and its territories, in several different time periods. The most populous territory in the empire was British India, which included what are now Pakistan and Bangladesh.
| Territories | 1814 | 1881 | 1901 | 1913 | 1925 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 16,456,303 | 34,884,848 | 41,458,721 | 45,649,000 | 47,307,000 |
| British India | 40,058,408 | 253,896,330 | 294,361,056 | 303,700,000 | 318,942,000 |
| British Africa | 128,977 | 1,526,110 | 43,000,000 | 52,000,000 | 47,993,000 |
| Other Asian colonies | 2,009,005 | 3,347,770 | 5,638,944 | 26,300,000 | 13,373,000 |
| British North America | 486,146 | 4,522,145 | 5,600,000 | 18,000,000 | 9,047,000 |
| Australasia and Pacific | 434,882 | 2,837,081 | 5,486,000 | 7,603,000 | |
| European dependencies | 180,300 | 359,403 | 650,000 | 656,000 | |
| British West Indies | 732,171 | 1,216,409 | 2,012,655 | 1,600,000 | 2,012,000 |
| Total British Empire | 61,157,433 | 305,512,568 | 400,000,000 | 447,249,000 | 449,223,000 |
Ethnicity
The empire's population was classified into white people, also referred to as Europeans, and non-white people, variously referred to as persons of color, negros and natives. The largest ethnic grouping in the empire was Indians (including what are now Pakistanis and Bangladeshis), who were classified into 118 groups on the basis of language which were amalgamated into seven "principle groups". The following table gives the population figures for white people and non-white people, in the empire and its territories, in 1814 and 1901.
| Territories | 1814 | 1901 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White people | Non-white people | White people | Non-white people | |
| United Kingdom and home dependencies | 16,636,606 | ? | 41,608,791 | ? |
| British India | 25,246 | 40,033,162 | 169,677 | 294,191,379 |
| British Africa | 20,678 | 108,299 | 1,000,000 | 33,499,329 |
| Other Asian colonies | 61,059 | 1,947,946 | ? | 5,144,954 |
| British North America | 486,146 | ? | 5,500,000 | 100,000 |
| Australasia and Pacific | 35,829 | 399,053 | 4,662,000 | 824,000 |
| British West Indies | 64,994 | 667,177 | 100,000 | 1,912,655 |
| Total British Empire | 18,001,796 | 43,155,637 | 53,040,468 | 335,672,317 |
Religion
The British authorities were primarily Protestant Christians throughout the history of the Empire.
| Religion in the British Empire (1901) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Territory | Percent | |||
| Hinduism | 52.4% | |||
| Islam | 23.7% | |||
| Christianity | 14.6% | |||
| Buddhism | 3% | |||
| Paganism and others | 6.3% | |||
| Population distribution of religions in the British Empire (1901) | ||||
The following table gives the population figures for the religions in the British Empire in 1901. The most populous religion in the empire was Hinduism, followed by Islam.
| Religion | Population | % of total population |
|---|---|---|
| Hinduism | 208,000,000 | 52.4 |
| Islam | 94,000,000 | 23.7 |
| Christianity | 58,000,000 | 14.6 |
| Buddhism | 12,000,000 | 3 |
| Paganism and others | 25,000,000 | 6.3 |
| Total British Empire | 397,000,000 | 100 |
See also
