Population: 12,010,564 (July 1989), growth rate 3.8% (1989); in addition, there are 10,500 Jewish settlers in the Golan Heights

Birth rate: 44 births/1,000 population (1989)

Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1989)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1989)

Infant mortality rate: 40 deaths/1,000 live births (1989)

Life expectancy at birth: 67 years male, 69 years female (1989)

Total fertility rate: 6.8 children born/woman (1989)

Nationality: noun--Syrian(s); adjective--Syrian

Ethnic divisions: 90.3% Arab; 9.7% Kurds, Armenians, and other

Religion: 74% Sunni Muslim; 16% Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects; 10% Christian (various sects)

Language: Arabic (official), Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian; French and English widely understood

Literacy: 47%

Labor force: 2,400,000; 36% miscellaneous services, 32% agriculture, 32% industry (including construction); majority unskilled; shortage of skilled labor (1984)

Organized labor: 5% of labor force

NOTE: The information regarding Syria on this page is re-published from the 1989 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Syria People 1989 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Syria People 1989 should be addressed to the CIA.