Turkey’s population grew to 83.15 million last year, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) today.
Official figures show the population increased by 1,151,115, or 1.39%, in 2019, a slight decrease from the previous year, when the population had risen by 1.47%.
The population is evenly split between males (41,721,136, or 50.2%) and females (41,433,861, or 49.8%).
Trends show the increasing popularity of urban living. In 2019, nearly 93% of the population resided in Turkey’s cities and large towns, as opposed to small towns and villages, which where down from 7.7% of the population in 2018 to 7.2% last year.
The country’s largest city remains Istanbul, with 15,519,267 people, accounting for 18.66% of Turkey’s population. The capital Ankara is the second largest city with 5,639,076 residents, followed by Izmir (4,367,251), Bursa (3,056,120), and Antalya making up the top five with 2,511,700 people.
TÜİK graphic showing Turkey’s population growth (in millions) 2007-2019
Turkey’s smallest cities by population size are Tunceli (84,660 people), Bayburt (84,843), Ardahan (97,319) and Kilis (142,490).
The TÜİK data for 2019 makes no reference to the number of people newly arrived in Turkey, or how many have migrated abroad. Nor does it mention the number of refugees and its impact on the total population figures.
Top image: crowd on a busy Istanbul street in rush hour, 2018. Photo © jokerpro / iStock
