Population 424,569 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure
0-14 years: 34% (male 73,017; female 69,538)
15-64 years: 61% (male 132,188; female 128,260)
65 years and over: 5% (male 10,033; female 11,533) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate 0.83% (1997 est.)

Birth rate 23.2 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate 5.83 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate -9.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years : 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate 28.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
total population: 70.32 years
male: 67.78 years
female: 72.99 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate 2.64 children born/woman (1997 est.)

Nationality
noun: Surinamer(s)
adjective: Surinamese

Ethnic groups Hindustani (also known locally as "East Indians"; their ancestors emigratedfrom northern India in the latter part of the 19th century) 37%, Creole (mixedwhite and black) 31%, Javanese 15.3%, "Maroons" (their African ancestors werebrought to the country in the 17th and 18th centuries as slaves) 10.3%, Amerindian2.6%, Chinese 1.7%, white 1%, other 1.1%

Religions Hindu 27.4%, Muslim 19.6%, Roman Catholic 22.8%, Protestant 25.2% (predominantlyMoravian), indigenous beliefs 5%

Languages Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo (Surinamese,sometimes called Taki-Taki, is native language of Creoles and much of theyounger population and is lingua franca among others), Hindustani (a dialectof Hindi), Javanese

Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93%
male: 95%
female: 91% (1995 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Suriname on this page is re-published from the 1997 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Suriname People 1997 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Suriname People 1997 should be addressed to the CIA.