In the year 1901 Australia's population was at an extreme low of less than 4 million. It has slowly but steadily increased by 1 million every 10 years until the year 1961, when the population grew from 11 million to 13 million ( up by 2 million ).
It is continuing to grow at this rate. Some of the reasons for this are increased immigration, better hospitals (because of recent medical breakthroughs several cures and treatments have been found, increasing people's life spans and birth rates), and better living conditions.
Distribution - It is evident that Australia's population distribution is very limited in certain areas. It is also evident that nearly the whole eastern coastal line is densely populated. Most of Australia's population is concentrated into 2 wildly separated coastal regions. By far the largest of these, in terms of area and population, lies in the southeast and east. The smaller of the two regions is the southwest of the continent. In both coastal regions the population is concentrated in urban centers, particularly the state and capital territories.
Ethnic Composition - In the 1996 Australian census, 3.9 million of Australia's population of 18.5 million had been born overseas in one of 200 different countries. Another 3.8 million had one or both parents born overseas. 2.6 million spoke a language other than English. 679.2 thousand people migrated to Australia in 1901 and came from the UK and Ireland. Other countries made up less than 40 thousand people. In 2000, this trend has remained with the majority of immigrants arriving from the UK and Ireland. Australia has adopted the customs of many of the other countries and is now one of the world's best multicultural societies.
Age - In 1901 35% of people were aged between 0-14 years compared to 21%in 2001. Australians between 15-64 years have remained fairly stable. They comprised 61% of all Australians in 1901 and 67% in 2001. 4%of all Australians in 1901 were aged 65+ but by 2001 this had grown to 12%. Like most developed countries the population of Australia is experiencing changes in its age composition with a significant increase of the older age groups in proportion to the population. This is referred to as population aging. While people aged 65+ have had an increase in their percentage rate, people between 0-14 have had a drop. This is partly due to the drop in fertility rates, with 1.7 births per woman, a number that is expected to drop even further.
Overall Summary
Australia's changing demography is also felt in its ethnic compositions. In 1901 nearly all of Australians immigrants came from the UK and Ireland. In 2001 people from the UK and Ireland were still the majority of immigrants, but several other countries have also increased their migration. The population distribution of Australia has generally been spread up and down the eastern coastal lines. In the eastern coastal region the population is concentrated in urban centers, mainly around Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. Age is another change, that is, the number of elderly people has risen by an exceptionally large percentage; while people between 15-64 have remained roughly around the same and people between 0-14 have decreased slightly. This may be because of a drop in fertility rates as stated previously.
