demography

American  

[dih-mog-ruh-fee] / dɪˈmɒg rə fi /

noun

1. the science of vital and social statistics, as of the births, deaths, diseases, marriages, etc., of populations.

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demography British  

/ dɪˈmɒɡrəfɪ /

noun

1. the scientific study of human populations, esp with reference to their size, structure, and distribution

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demography Cultural  

1. The quantitative study of human populations. Demographers study subjects such as the geographical distribution of people, birth and death rates, socioeconomic status, and age and sex distributions in order to identify the influences on population growth, structure, and development.

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Other Word Forms

• demographer
  noun
• demographist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of demography

First recorded in 1875–80; demo- + -graphy

Explanation

Do you know the population growth rate of your city? The education levels of everyone on your block? Then you're a fan of demography, the branch of sociology that studies human behavior by analyzing statistical information. The word demography comes from two ancient Greek words, demos, meaning "the people," and graphy, meaning "writing about or recording something" — so literally demography means "writing about the people." Like many branches of the sciences, demography began in the 19th century, when the general craze for cataloging information about the world really took off (think Darwin.) A common related word is demographics, referring to the raw statistical data that's used for analysis.

Example Sentences

“Africa is entering a period of truly staggering change,” said Edward Paice, the director of the Africa Research Institute in London and the author of “Youthquake: Why African Demography Should Matter to the World.”

From Seattle Times • Oct. 29, 2023

"Demography is not destiny. The key is to get these and other nations to focus like a laser beam on 'coping mechanisms'."

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2023

"We have reached a stage where the working-age population has never been older," said Julien Bérard-Chagnon, senior analyst with Statistics Canada's Centre for Demography.

From Reuters • Apr. 27, 2022

Demography does not determine election outcomes, but it does shape the political landscape, if not always in predictable ways.

From Washington Post • Aug. 16, 2021

Demography, dē-mog′ra-fi, n. vital and social statistics, as applied to the study of nations and races.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various

Related Words

• anthropology