Population and Demographics

Eritrean society is ethnically heterogeneous. The largest ethnic group are the Tigrinya who comprise up to 50% of the population, whilst the Tigre people make up another 31.4%. The rest of the population is comprised of the smaller populations of the Saho, Nara, Hedareb, Beja, Afar, Bilen, Kunama, and the Rashaida. Each nationality speaks a different native tongue, but typically, many of the minorities speak more than one language.

The Kunama are one of the earliest settled peoples in Eritrea. They adopted rain-fed agriculture and settled into communal villages in the 'lowlands' of Eritrea. In contrast, the most recent addition to the nationalities of Eritrea is the Rashaida, who came to Eritrea in the 19th century from the Arabian Coast. The Rashaida typically do not intermarry, are nomadic, and number approximately 61,000 - less than 1% of the population.

The Jebertis are Muslim Tigrinyas who consider themselves a separate ethnicity; however, in Eritrea ethnicity is determined by language and so they are not officially recognised as separate from the Tigrinya.

There are also minorities of Italians and Ethiopian Tigrayans. Neither is generally given citizenship unless through marriage or having it conferred upon them by the State.