Population and Demographics

Thailand's population is relatively homogeneous. More than 85% speak a Thai language and share a common culture. This core population includes the central Thai (33.7% of the population, including Bangkok), Northeastern Thai or Lao (34.2%), northern Thai (18.8%), and southern Thai (13.3%).

Up to 14% of Thai are of significant Chinese heritage, but the Sino-Thai community is the best integrated in Southeast Asia. Malay-speaking Muslims of the south comprise another significant minority group (2.3%). Other groups include the Khmer; the Mon, who are substantially assimilated with the Thai; and the Vietnamese. Smaller mountain-dwelling tribes, such as the Hmong and Mein, as well as the Karen, number about 788,024.

Thailand is also home to a significant number of registered foreigners from Asia, Europe and North America, as well as an estimated several hundred thousand illegal immigrants. Thailand's population is so large, however, that they still form an insignificant percentage of the total population.

The population is mostly rural, concentrated in the rice-growing areas of the central, northeastern, and northern regions. However, as Thailand continues to industrialize, its urban population - 31.1% of total population, principally in the Bangkok area - is growing.

Thailand's highly successful government-sponsored family planning program has resulted in a dramatic decline in population growth from 3.1% in 1960 to around 0.5% today. Life expectancy also has risen, a positive reflection of Thailand's efforts at public health education. However, the AIDS epidemic has had a major impact on the Thai population. Today, over 570,000 Thais live with HIV or AIDS - approximately 1.5% of the population. An aggressive public education campaign in the early 1990s has helped to reduce the number of new HIV infections from 150,000 to 25,000 annually.

Facts and Figures

• Population: 65,068,149
• Age Structure:
  • 0-14 years: 21.6% (male 7,195,750/female 6,870,858)
  • 15-64 years: 70.1% (male 22,547,238/female 23,092,881)
  • 65 years and over: 8.2% (male 2,437,640/female 2,923,782)
• Median Age:
  • Total: 32.4 years
  • Male: 31.6 years
  • Female: 33.2 years
• Population Growth Rate: 0.663%
• Birth Rate: 13.73 births/1,000 population
• Death Rate: 7.1 deaths/1,000 population
• Net Migration Rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
• Sex Ratio:
  • At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  • Under 15 years: 1.047 male(s)/female
  • 15-64 years: 0.976 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.834 male(s)/female
  • Total population: 0.979 male(s)/female
• Infant Mortality Rate:
  • Total: 18.85 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Male: 20.13 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Female: 17.51 deaths/1,000 live births
• Life Expectancy at Birth:
  • Total population: 72.55 years
  • Male: 70.24 years
  • Female: 74.98 years
• Total Fertility Rate: 1.64 children born/woman
• HIV/AIDS:
  • Adult prevalence rate: 1.5%
  • People living with HIV/AIDS: 570,000
• Ethnic Groups:
  • Thai 75%
  • Chinese 14%
  • Other 11%
• Religions:
  • Buddhist 94.6%
  • Muslim 4.6%
  • Christian 0.7%
  • Other 0.1%
• Languages:
  • Thai
  • English (secondary language of the elite)
  • Ethnic and regional dialects
• Literacy:
  • Total population: 92.6%
  • Male: 94.9%
  • Female: 90.5%