Leningrad Region, population: number, employment and demographic indicators

Demographic indicators - one of the most important criteria for assessing the welfare of the regions. Therefore, sociologists closely monitor the number and dynamics of the population not only in the country as a whole, but also in its individual subjects. Consider what the population of the Leningrad region is, how it is changing and what are the main demographic problems of the region.

Geography of the Leningrad Region

The region is located in the north-west of the Russian Federation. The area of the region is almost 84 thousand square kilometers. By this indicator, it ranks 39th in the country. The region is located on the East European Plain, there are no mountains, but there are a lot of different reservoirs. There are 9 rivers running through the territory of the region, there are 13 large lakes, the diseased part of the land is swampy and poorly suited to people's lives. The location near the coastline is the reason for the Atlantic-continental climate, with mild winters and cool summers, in the region around the year there is a lot of precipitation. This weather weakly contributes to agriculture. This contributed to the fact that throughout the history of their existence, the territories were poorly populated by people. There are few large settlements in the region. The cities of the Leningrad Region, whose population exceeded the figure of 50 thousand, can be counted on the fingers: there are only 7 of them.

History of the settlement of the Leningrad Region

The first sites of people on the territory of the modern Leningrad region date back to the times of the Mesolithic. In the first millennium BC on the ground, which is today known as the Leningrad Region, the population begins to lead a sedentary lifestyle. People were engaged in cattle breeding, hunting, gathering, they were representatives of the Finno-Ugric tribes. In the 6th century AD, Slavs come to this territory, which are settled along the rivers Luga, Oredezha and near the lakes. But while the settlement was very fragmented. With the development of the Novgorod state, the number of residents of the future Leningrad region is growing. Here, defense fortifications are built against the raids of northern tribes. At the end of the 15th century these lands were annexed to the Moscow kingdom, then a more systematic settlement begins. Part of the territory departs as a result of the military actions of Sweden, and a large migration of Scandinavians is added to the Slavs. In the 18th century, after the return of the Russian lands, Peter the First began building a new capital here, which led to a surge of new people coming from all over the Russian Empire and the departure of many Swedes and their descendants. Later in the territory of the Leningrad region, there were almost no significant events affecting the migration of the population, except for the deportation of the Finnish population in 1929 from the annexed Karelian lands. After the Second World War, these lands are actively being developed, new settlements are emerging, the number of inhabitants is increasing.

Administrative-territorial division of the Leningrad region

Before the revolution, five provinces were located on the territory of the modern Leningrad region: St. Petersburg, Pskov, Cherepovets, Murmansk and Novgorod. Later, the system of territorial division undergoes various changes. In Soviet times 17 districts and 19 cities of regional subordination were allocated here. Since 2006, a new, two-tier system of administrative division of the subjects of the Russian Federation has been introduced. In the Leningrad region, one city district and 17 municipalities, 61 towns and 138 villages were allotted. At the same time, St. Petersburg is a district of federal subordination and, despite its organic connection with the region, exists separately from it in the administrative sense. Therefore, it is worthwhile to consider the residents of the region and the population of St. Petersburg.

Leningrad region throughout its history had to go through numerous changes in administrative division. New units appeared, some disappeared, there were periodic renaming. The population of the Leningrad region is used to the fact that they periodically have to change their addresses.

Total population

The history of observations of the number of inhabitants in Russia begins even during the Tatar-Mongol invasion. However, separate information on various subjects, including the Leningrad region, appeared only in Soviet times. Due to the fact that the region has changed its borders several times during the years of Soviet power, there is no unambiguously reliable figure about the number of residents. Today, the total population of the Leningrad Region is 1,778,890 people (according to statistics for 2016).

Dynamics and density of population

Since 1926, a relatively regular statistics on the dynamics of the population in the USSR. During these years, the number of residents has changed many times. Initially, it was 2.8 million people, in 28 this figure grew (thanks to the accession of Karelia and Leningrad) to 6 million. In 1959, it was drastically reduced to 1.2 million people due to military losses and the exclusion of Leningrad from the region. During the Soviet era, the Leningrad region, whose population was growing steadily, showed good growth figures - about 1 thousand inhabitants per year. In the era of perestroika, as in the whole country, the region was marked by negative dynamics. And only in 2010 the number of people began to grow gradually. The population density in the Leningrad Region at the moment is 21.2 people per square kilometer. This is the 45th place in Russia out of 85 possible. The highest density is observed in the St. Petersburg agglomeration, the eastern part of the subject is the least populated.

Ethnic composition

On the basis of "nationality", the population of the Leningrad region begins to be analyzed only since 1959. At that time, the region was already completely Russified, the times of great ethnic diversity are a thing of the past. On average, in Soviet times, there were about 90% of the Russian population among the inhabitants of the region. In the 2000s, this figure fell slightly, to 86%, apparently due to people from Central Asia who came to work. The second place is occupied by Ukrainians - 1.8%, the third by Belarusians (around 1%), followed by small groups of different ethnic groups: Tatars, Armenians, Uzbeks, Azerbaijanis, Finns, etc.

Polo-age model

The Leningrad region, whose population is close to similar characteristics of other regions by its age-sex parameters, refers to an aging type. The number of citizens younger than working age is about 16%, and residents over working age - about 23%. In connection with the fact that the birth rate growth does not yet cover this difference, we can say that the prospects for rejuvenating the population are still very weak. Sexual distribution in the Leningrad region also generally coincides with trends throughout the country. The number of women exceeds the average number of men by 1.2. Most of the adults are married (about 55%), with widows 5 times more than widowers. Divorced women are also more numerous than men.

Demographic indicators

Fertility is the most important demographic indicator, which demonstrates the degree of prosperity of the region. Social protection of the population of the Leningrad region is a topical issue. The relevant committee notes that since 2011 on their territory the birth rate is growing, albeit at a very small pace, by about 2 people per 1000 inhabitants. But, according to the forecasts of sociologists, in the coming years, the birth rate will decrease slightly.

The second most important indicator is mortality. Several years in a row in the 21st century in the Leningrad region, there was a decrease in mortality. But since 2014, the number of deaths has begun to increase again, and it is expected that this trend will continue in the next 5 years. Thus, in the Leningrad region there is a natural decrease in the population, approximately 5 people per thousand inhabitants. Migration growth in recent years is increasing, sociologists note that quite a lot of women of childbearing age come, it allows to hope that the situation with birth rate will soon be adjusted. The largest sources of migrants - Ukraine, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova. Sociologists predict a small decrease in the number of visitors due to problems in the labor market.

Life expectancy is the third most important criterion for the well-being of the region. How are things with him in the subject of the Russian Federation? The average life expectancy in the Leningrad Region is 70.2 years: women live about 75 years, men - 64 years.

All these data allow us to say that the Leningrad region, whose population is gradually aging, is keeping within the general tendencies of Russia. The region can not yet move to a productive youth type, and there are many socio-economic reasons for this.

Population distribution

Today, the main population of the districts of the Leningrad Region lives in cities. According to statistics, the urban population is 1,142,400 people, and the rural population is 636,500 people. At the same time, most of the residents settle closer to St. Petersburg, where you can find a better paying job. The settlements of the region, by Russian standards, are mostly of small size. In the Leningrad region there are 31 cities with more than 10 thousand people, and there is not one where more than 100 thousand people were registered.

Employment

According to the data of social protection services, in 2016 the employment of the population of the Leningrad Region is kept within the framework of all-Russian indicators, but there are differences. Unemployment is 4.6 percent, which is slightly lower than across the country. There are forecasts that this indicator will already grow to 5.1% in the near future due to economic difficulties in the country.

The structure of employment is as follows: 21% of the population work in the manufacturing industry, 11% of the region's residents work in trade, 9% in construction and transport, 8% in education, 7% in healthcare and agriculture. In general, the structure of employment corresponds to the average for Russia, but in the region the hospitality industry is poorly developed, which could increase the number of jobs.