Demographics of Dominica

Demographics Of Dominica

This article is about the demographic features of the population of Dominica, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Almost all Dominicans are descendants of African slaves brought in by colonial planters in the 18th century. Dominica is the only island in the eastern Caribbean to retain some of its pre-Columbian population—the Carib Indians—about 3,000 of whom live on the island's east coast.

The population growth rate is very low, due primarily to emigration to more prosperous Caribbean Islands, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada. English is the official language and universally understood; however, because of historic French domination, Antillean Creole, a French-lexified creole language, is also widely spoken. About 80% of the population is Catholic. In recent years, a number of Protestant churches have been established.