Sufi religious teachers succeeded in converting many Bengalis to Islam, even before the arrival of Muslim armies from the west. About 1200 AD, Muslim invaders established political control over the Bengal region. This political control also encouraged conversion to Islam. Since then, Islam has played a crucial role in the region's history and politics, with a Muslim majority emerging, particularly in the eastern region of Bengal.
Urbanization in Bangladesh is proceeding rapidly, and it is estimated that only 30% of the population entering the labor force in the future will be absorbed into agriculture, although many will likely find other kinds of work in rural areas. The areas around Dhaka and Comilla are the most densely settled. The Sundarbans, an area of coastal tropical jungle in the southwest and last wild home of the Bengal Tiger, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts on the southeastern border with Burma and India, are the least densely populated.
Population: 129,194,224 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years:
36% (male 24,055,675; female 22,918,354)
15-64 years:
60% (male 39,924,040; female 37,992,459)
65 years and over:
4% (male 2,342,134; female 1,961,562) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.59% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 25.44 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 8.73 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.77 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
1.19 male(s)/female
total population:
1.05 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 71.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
60.16 years
male:
60.4 years
female:
59.91 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.85 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Bangladeshi(s)
adjective:
Bangladesh
Ethnic groups: Bengali 98%, Biharis 250,000, tribals less than 1 million
Religions: Muslim 88.3%, Hindu 10.5%, other 1.2%
Languages: Bangla (official), English
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
38.1%
male:
49.4%
female:
26.1% (1995 est.)
Reference
Much of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.