In the nationwide census China conducted in 1953, the ethnic minority population
in China was found to be 34.0138 million. This was the first time China
calculated its ethnic minority population in its history of several thousand
years. Before that, no complete statistics was made of China’s ethnic minority
population.
The census in 2000 was the largest of its kind in Chinese history. The census
results show that China’s ethnic minority population reached 104.4907 million,
an increase of 2.07 times over that of 1953. During this period, the population
of China’s mainland increased by 1.15 times over the level of 1953 on average
and the Han population on China’s mainland was up by 1.10 times over that
of 1953.
The growth rate of China’s ethnic minority population far exceeded the average
growth rated of the national population and of the Han population over the
past 50 years.
There were different changes in the absolute number of increase in the ethnic
minority population and in its average annual growth rate .
From 1953 to 2000 the net increase in China’s ethnic minority population was
70.4769 million people, 207.18% of the country’s ethnic minority population
in 1953.
To be more specific, in the 1953-1964 period, China’s ethnic minority population
increased from 34.0138 million to 39.8839 million. However, its ratio in
the country’s population dropped from 5.89% to 5.77%. The drop was caused
by the fact the ethnic minority population increased more slowly than the
nation’s population as a whole. But according to the “70 rule,” with this
growth rate, the country’s ethnic minority population could double in a
period of only 49 years. The increase in the ethnic minority population
in this period was attributed to the “population boosting” policy adopted
by the newly founded People’s Republic of China to reverse the decline in
the ethnic minority population. In the 1964-1982 period, the ethnic minority
population increased to 66.4343 million and its ratio in the nation’s population
increased to 6.62%. The net increase in the ethnic minority population was
26.5504 million. This was not only an all time high but also accounted for
37.68% of the total net increase in the population in the 1953-2000 period
and 78.06% of the nation’s ethnic minority population in 1953. The main
reason for the population boom in this period was the country's continued
“population boosting” policy. Another important factor was that after 1978
the Chinese government restored and implemented its ethnic policy, and there
was an upsurge in restoring the ethnic minority status.
In the 1982-1990 period, the country’s ethnic minority population hit 90.5672
million, accounting for 8.01% of China’s total population. The increase
of the ethnic minority population in this period was extraordinarily rapid.
Although the net number of increase in the population (24.1329 million)
in this period was slightly smaller than that of the 1964-1982 period, the
average annual number of increase was as high as 3.0166 million, 104.52%
higher than that of the year of the last census. In particular, the average
annual growth rate was as high as 3.95%, which was not only 2.45 percentage
points higher than the nation’s average growth rate (1.50%) but also 1.07
percentage points higher than that of the last census. This considerable
increase was rare in the history of world population. This was exactly an
important characteristic of the changes in the ethnic minority population
on China’s mainland. There were two factors affecting the increase of the
ethnic minority population in this period. One was natural, and the other
was social, which means the social behavior of changing one’s ethnic status,
which led to the increase or decrease of the population of some ethnic groups.
To meet some citizens’ demand to clarify their ethnic status, the government
issued in 1981 the Circular Concerning the Policy on Restoring or Correcting
the Ethnic Status. According to the circular,” Anyone of an ethnic minority
who failed to correctly report his real ethnic status for any reason and
who applies to restore his ethnic status can have his ethnic status restored
regardless of his age. Wedlock children of people of different ethnic groups
may have their ethnic status determined by their parents if they have not
reach the age of 18 or determine their ethnic status on their own if they
are 18 or older.” All this means that the policy of ethnic equality won
popular support among all ethnic groups.
In the 1990-2000 period, China’s ethnic minority population and its proportion
in the country’s total further increased to 104.4907 million and 8.41% respectively.
The average annual population increase was 1.3388 million people, 804,200
people more than the 1953-1964 period. The average annual growth rate was
1.38% (as compared to 0.91% for the country as a whole). With this growth
rate, the population could double in a period of only 43 years. It is worth
pointing out that the population growth in this period was basically natural
because almost all those who wanted to change their ethnic status had done
so.
The latest census also shows that there has been an uneven development of
the population of China’s ethnic minorities. This is mainly manifested in
the difference in the population of the ethnic minorities and in the increase
of their population.
1. There is a great difference in the population of ethnic minorities. The
number of ethnic minorities with a population of over 1 million increased
from 10 in 1953 to 18 in 2000. The number of ethnic minorities with a population
of over 10 million increased from one (the ethnic Zhuang) in 1982 to two
(the ethnic Man) in 2000. The population of the Hui, Miao and Uygur ethnic
groups is quickly approaching 10 million. However, there are at least 20
ethnic minorities with a population of less than 50,000. Eight of them have
a population of less than 10,000. The Lhoba ethnic group in China has the
smallest population (2,905). The Zhuang ethnic group, the ethnic minority
with the largest population in China, has a population of 16.18 million,
which is 5,550 times that of the population of the Lhoba ethnic group, the
ethnic minority with the smallest population in China (for details, please
refer to Table 1).
2. There is a great difference in population increase. Since 1949, the Chinese
government has taken many positive measures for developing the population
of the ethnic minorities. As a result, the average annual population growth
rates of the country as a whole and of the Han ethnic group were 1.63% and
1.57% respectively, but the rate for ethnic minorities was 2.40%. The population
of most ethnic minorities had a faster growth rate and developed further.
However, there is a difference in the population growth rates of ethnic
minorities.
Notes.
1.The population under A was determined by a sample survey of 1% of China’s
households in 1982.
2.The population under B was calculated in accordance with the natural increase
of the population under A.
3.The population under C was calculated in accordance with the natural increase
of the population under D.
4.The population under D was the result of the 1990 census.
5.D-A is the newly increased population from 1982 through 1990.
About the author:
Zhang Tianlu, Han, was born in 1927. He is an expert of China’s ethnic minority
population. Zhang is specialized in the research in the ethnic minority
population at the Institute of Population Economics of Capital University
of Business and Economics. He is a council member of the Chinese Society
of Demography and the chairman of the Committee for the Research of the
Ethnic Minority Population. Zhang published 11 books and 110 articles and
is regarded as a founder of ethnic demography in China.
