People 
   Sri Lanka 
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Population: 

19,742,439 (2003 est.) 
note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of yearend 2000, approximately 65,000 were housed in 131 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2003 est.) 

Age structure: 

0-14 years: 25.2% (male 2,543,336; female 2,431,223) 
15-64 years: 67.9% (male 6,518,145; female 6,890,424) 
65 years and over: 6.9% (male 641,708; female 717,603) (2003 est.) 

Median age: 

total: 28.7 years 
male: 27.7 years 
female: 29.7 years (2002) 

Population growth rate: 

0.83% (2003 est.) 

Birth rate: 

16.12 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 

Death rate: 

6.46 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 

Net migration rate: 

-1.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) 

Sex ratio: 

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female 
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) 

Infant mortality rate: 

total: 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births 
female: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) 
male: 16.45 deaths/1,000 live births 

Life expectancy at birth: 

total population: 72.62 years 
male: 70.09 years 
female: 75.29 years (2003 est.) 

Total fertility rate: 

1.9 children born/woman (2003 est.) 

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 

less than 0.1% (2001 est.) 

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 

4,800 (2001 est.) 

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 

250 (2001 est.) 

Nationality: 

noun: Sri Lankan(s) 
adjective: Sri Lankan 

Ethnic groups: 

Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1% 

Religions: 

Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999) 

Languages: 

Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8% 
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population 

Literacy: 

definition: age 15 and over can read and write 
total population: 92.3% 
male: 94.8% 
female: 90% (2003 est.)