South Africa’s population
South Africa is home to 63 million people. About 81.7% of them are black, 8.5% coloured, 2.6% Indian/Asian and 7.2% white. Find out more about birth, death, age, HIV, migration and other population trends.
The languages of South Africa
South Africa has 12 official languages and a multilingual population fluent in at least two. IsiZulu and isiXhosa are the largest languages. English is spoken at home by under 9% of the population, two-thirds of them not white.
The provinces and ‘homelands’ of South Africa before 1996
Before South Africa became a democracy in 1994, apartheid divided the country into four large provinces for white people, and 10 small unsustainable “homelands” for black people.
The 16 June 1976 Soweto students’ uprising – as it happened
It took one day for young South Africans to change the course of the country’s history. The day was 16 June 1976. Here is an hour-by-hour account of the 1976 Soweto students’ uprising.
Map: Distribution of South Africa’s population groups
The distribution of South Africa’s population groups reveals the country’s history. Find out more with these maps of where black, coloured, Indian and white South Africans live today, according to the 2011 census.
Animation: How long do South Africans live?
This is an animation to break your heart. In any unequal society, the privileged live long lives and everyone else much shorter lives.
The quick guide to South Africa
Key facts on South Africa’s currency, time, geography, population, languages, provinces, government and education.
What languages do black, coloured, Indian and white South Africans speak?
Nearly a third of black South Africans speak isiZulu as a first language, and 20% speak isiXhosa. Three-quarters of coloured people speak Afrikaans, and 86% of Indian South Africans speak English. Sixty percent of white people speak Afrikaans, and 30% speak English.
Infographic: Census counts of South Africa’s population
South Africa has held three official censuses in its recent democratic history: in 1996, 2001 and 2011. The censuses have revealed both a growing population – from 41 million to 52 million – and a significant shift in the country’s racial profile.
The people of South Africa by age, sex and race
Black men have the shortest lives, and white women the longest. Find out more about the country’s population structure with this infographic charting the realities of age, race and sex in South Africa.
Infographic: South Africa’s population in 2024
In 2024 South Africa had a population of 63 million. Black people were the majority at 51.5 million – 81.7% of the total. There were 5.3 million coloured people (8.5%), 4.5-million white people (7.2%) and 1.6-million Indian/Asian people (2.6%).
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