Population Structure

What is population structure? Population structure is how a country is made up of people of different ages and of males and females. The common method to show the structure is through a population pyramid. This population pyramid is wide at the base, which means there are a large proportion of young people in the country. It tapers very quickly as you go up into the older age groups, and is narrow at the top. This shows that a very small proportion of people are elderly. This shape is typical of a developed country. It is narrow at the base, wider in the middle, and stays quite wide until the very top, as there is a sizable percentage of older people. Note that there are more old women than men. Italy and Japan have population structures that are of this shape.

Population structure in the UK The UK has developed to be a top-heavy population structure. In 1931, only 8% of the population were aged over 65, while 24% were under 16. The figures are now at 16% and 19% respectively. Life expectancy has increased over time. Greying Population A population structure which has the proportion of people over 65 and over is high and rising. This is cause by increasing life expectancy and can be further exaggerated by low birth rates. People are living longer because of better medical knowledge and improving conditions

Family size The total population of the UK rose from around 38 Million in 1901 to 61 Million in 2007. Individual household sizes have fallen dramatically. In the early 1900’s 4 or 5 children may of lived under the same roof. Today it is likely to just 2 children. This is because many houses consist of just 2 people. The increase in grandparents living longer can sometimes increase the size of extended family households.

Population density Population density is the number of people per unit of area usually per square kilometer or mile (which may include or exclude cultivated or potentially productive area). Commonly this may be calculated for a county, city, country, another territory, or the entire world. The following maps show how the population density has changed from 1994 to 2000.

More information can be found at; bit.ly/sNjPLc bit.ly/7MwRHE bit.ly/rtLduW bbc.in/sGqkrM bit.ly/w2XN9d Pages 120-121 in the Warn book Page 96 in the Byrne book