Officials in the Central Bureau of Statistics report that Israel is passing the 8 million residents mark, quite a jump from the population of 806,000 when the state was founded in 1948. Since February 2012, Israel grew by an additional 145,000 people, bringing the number of residents classified as Jews to six million.
According to the statistics the state grew almost 10 fold in its almost 65 years of existence. In another 12 years, 2025, the population is expected to reach 10 million.
The Jews make up 75.3% of the population, Arabs 20.5%.
· 72% of the Jews living in Israel today were born here as opposed to 35% in 1948.
· The non-Jewish immigrants from the FSU making up 4.2% of the population.
· There are 220,000 registered foreign workers in Israel today.
· 160,000 babies were born in 2012.
· 40,000 people died in 2012.
· 22,000 new immigrants arrived in 2012.
· The number of Israelis deciding to move to another country dropped by 35% in 2012, to 7,200.
· The natural growth rate is 1.8% annually, a combination of births and aliyah.
When the nation was established, only Tel Aviv-Jaffa boasted over 100,000 residents. Today there are 14 cities with a population exceeding 100,000, of which six have over 200,000. This includes Yerushalayim, Tel Aviv/Jaffa, Rishon L’Tzion, Ashdod, Petach Tikvah, and Haifa.
Number of Residents over the years (rounded off):
1948: 800,000
1953: 1,670,000
1963: 2,430,000
1973: 3,340,000
1983: 4,120,000
1993: 5,330,000
2003: 6,750,000
2013: 8,000,000
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
The more important figures aren’t collected, and perhaps are uncollectable: How many Shomer Shabbos? How many persons of Jewish descent who are not Jews according to halacha?
You will forgive me if I take these stats with a HUGE grain of salt. If these numbers are to be believed then Israel has a HIGHER population growth rate than INDIA! Sorry, not buying it.
Also, the bureau doesn’t factor out yordim.
If you were born in Israel and emigrated any time since 1990, then you are still counted in the population statistics. The ministry of immigration and absorption estimates that number at about 1 million. Pew Research center puts the number in the US alone and between 600 and 750 thou.
If one made aliyah and then left (which about 75% do, either to “greener pastures” or your country of origin) then you are still counted in the population statistics.
Here is, to me, the whackiest statistical trick they use: The CHILDREN of yordim, born OUTSIDE of Israel also get counted (as they are granted automatic citizenship).
So, factor out native born expats, now the Jewish population is 5 mill, not 6. Factor out Oilim who left, that’s probably another 300 thou less. Now we’re at 4.7 mil. Factor out children born outside EY and now we’re probably down to 4.5 mil. I don’t even waht to think about how much more the numbers are watered down as per akuperma — how many are not even halachicly Jewish (like 60% plus of the Russians (as per OU).
The Satmar crew, so sorry you had to hear these bad in your opinion news.
Wonderful news – Baruch Hashem – Ken Yirbu ,
Love to hear our Jewish Brothers & Sisters multiplying and increasing in Israel.
akuperma, you and I are both fully shabbos and we both find distaste in witnessing Jews violate shabbos in front of our eyes…. but what type of question is that “How many are shomer shabbos?!” If you want the truthful answer of how many Jews in the world are shomer shabbos, we are a needle in a haystack…. posing the question won’t create friendly terms with the non-observant.
jewishforida, we see often in the torah how HASHEM counts the jews after a mageifa(plague) which shows that the ones left who were not sinful are the ones who need to be counted. worrying about the chilonims’ unfriendliness towards us should not our concern.