HOME

 

Europe

France

Ukraine

England

Poland

Austria

Netherlands

Portugal

Spain

Germany

Azia

Egypt

Cyprus

Turkey

India

Sri-Lanka

China

Japan

Africa

Tunisia

Kenya

Tanzania

Zambia

Botswana

Europe - part of the world, forming together with Asia continent Eurasia. An area of ​​about 10 million sq km. Population of 732 million people. The Atlantic and Arctic oceans and seas. The island of about 730 thousand sq. km. On the peninsula for about one quarter of Europe (Kola, Scandinavian, Iberian, Apennine, Balkan, etc.).

The average height of about 300 meters, maximum - 5642 m (Mount Elbrus). The highest mountain in Western Europe - Mont Blanc (4807 m). Dominated by plains (large - Eastern European, Middle Eastern, Middle and Nizhnedunayskaya, the Paris Basin), mountains cover about 17% of the (major - the Alps, the Carpathians, the Pyrenees, the Apennines, the Ural Mountains, the Scandinavian mountains, the mountains in the Balkan peninsula). Active volcanoes are in Iceland and the Mediterranean.

Most parts of the temperate climate (in the West - Ocean in the east - continental, with snow and frost in winter), on the northern islands - the subarctic and arctic in Southern Europe - Mediterranean. The islands of the Arctic, Iceland, Scandinavian mountains, the Alps - glaciation (an area of ​​over 116 thousand sq. km.) The main rivers are the Volga, Danube, Ural, Dnepr, Don, Pechora, Kama, Oka, White, Dniester, Rhine, Elbe, Vistula, Tahoe, the Loire, the Danube, Oder. Largest lakes Ladoga, Onega, Chud, Venera, Balaton, Geneva.

On Arctic islands and along the coast of the Arctic Ocean - Arctic desert and tundra, to the south - tundra, taiga, mixed and deciduous forests, forest-steppe, steppe, subtropical Mediterranean forests and shrubs in the south-east - semi-desert.

In Europe are (completely or partially) the 50 states. These are Austria, Albania, Andorra, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Vatican, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Denmark, Ireland, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, part of Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russian Federation (about 2/3 of Europe), Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, part of Turkey, Ukraine, Finland, France, Croatia, Czech Republic Switzerland, Sweden, Estonia, Yugoslavia (including Serbia and Montenegro).

It should be borne in mind that since the traditional geographic borders of Europe and Asia are considered Caucasian ridge and the Straits, the inclusion of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Cyprus in the list of European countries is based primarily on political, economic and cultural considerations, and is not unique.

Europe is usually divided into North and South, East and West, and Central. This division is rather arbitrary, especially since there are effective not only a purely geographical, and political factors. Some countries, depending on the "angle" may rank as the different groups of states.

In Soviet times, the division of Europe into East and West was often politically motivated - to Eastern Europe includes the GDR, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Albania, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union - the country's socialist, or, as they were called "the people's democracy." For Western Europe includes all other states. While Spain, Portugal, southern France, Italy, Malta, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey also called Southern Europe, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland - Northern.

So now, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, to Central Europe are Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the former Yugoslavia, Romania, Hungary, Austria, and sometimes the Baltic countries. To Eastern Europe - a part of the Russian Federation, Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. To Western Europe - the UK, Ireland, France, Germany and other substances Some sources maintained the old division.

By early 2003, Europe's population was about 814 million people, of which 803.5 million - people in countries belonging to the Council of Europe. The share of the European population in the world continues to decline due to the low birth rate. It is expected that this trend will continue in the coming years.

Population growth depends on factors such as fertility, mortality and international migration. Thus, changes in these rates determine the overall population in the future and affect his age and sex. All participating countries had passed the different phases of the demographic development, having come to a situation where the birth rate below replacement level, and the mortality rate is low.

In some European countries, especially in transition, these demographic changes have caused zero population growth. In many Western European countries have a negative index of natural population growth, due to higher mortality than the birth rate, offset only immigration.

In all European countries, except for Turkey, the level of total fertility is below replacement level. There is also a tendency to become pregnant at a later age with subsequent decrease in the number of families with three or more children and an increase in the number of families with 1-2 children.

The main features of the marriage is the decreasing number of marriages, the increase in the divorce rate and the emergence of new types of union, such cohabitation. There is also more frequent childbearing outside marriage. In some countries (Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Estonia and the former German Democratic Republic), the figure is more than 50% of the total fertility rate.

In the last few decades has essentially decreased mortality. In most European countries, the rate of decline was greater among the elderly, where life expectancy has increased significantly. In general, the western, northern and southern Europe, people are living longer. Infant mortality is falling across Europe. Figure is about 5 to 1 thousand live births in Western Europe, but higher - in eastern Europe. In Romania, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the Caucasus region, infant mortality is 10-20 per 1 thousand live births.

Population aging in Europe is more acute than in other continents. It is predicted that the event "demographic revolution" will continue in the coming years and the proportion of elderly in the total population will increase to what society will have to adapt. Active aging of the population, or the concept of "society for all ages" - an important topic of discussion among government officials, affecting issues such as work and pensions, material well-being, family structure and intergenerational transmission. Rather, the discussion of these problems exacerbated by the fact that the aging of the population is becoming more pronounced.

Data provided in the official reports, show an increase in the proportion of the population of many countries of foreign origin. Also shown are the changes in the process of migration. In countries such as Italy, Portugal and Ireland to the traditionally negative net migration in the last ten years there has been a positive indicator. However, migration flows are extremely difficult to measure due to the different way of gathering: in some countries the information comes from national registers, in others - review (studies and surveys) and the Census. Ways of gathering information affect its validity. Additional difficulties arise in the light of international law, allowing, in particular, the free movement of citizens within the countries - members of the European Union.

The relationship between demographic trends and the well-being of the population has become the subject of study of a number of studies and discussions. Relationship between demographic, economic and social aspects of society is well-known - as the relationship of social policy and demographic development. Society is constantly changing, and in this regard, there are new questions concerning the welfare and population variables. Harmonized demographics - a necessary tool for analyzing and responding to these questions. Therefore attract the attention of government officials and researchers to this problem is important.

European countries differ in the geographical area and population. In the smallest in terms of population the country - San Marino - home to just 28,200 people, while in the Russian Federation there are approximately 143 million citizens. In most (twenty four) countries - members of the Council of Europe's population is less than 8 million: in 7 of them are less than 1 million people (San Marino, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Iceland, Malta, Luxembourg and Cyprus), 13 - 1 - 5 million people. In 10 countries - participants of the Council of Europe's population of 8-20 million, a 4 - 20-50 million (Romania - 22 million, Poland - 38 million, Spain - 40 million, Ukraine - 49 million) 2. More than half the countries of the Council of Europe, occurs in countries with more than 50 million people in Italy (56.3 million), France (59.6 million), the UK (60 million) and Russia (143 million). The share of the last-named countries accounted for 18%, or almost one-fifth of the total population of the Council of Europe.

In different countries, the population density (population per unit of geographical area) also varies widely. In 2003, the maximum density was noted in Malta (1257 people/km2), the Netherlands (479 people/km2), San Marino (471 people/km2) and Belgium (339 people/km2). Among the countries whose population exceeds 50 million, the most densely populated are the United Kingdom (246 people/km2) and Germany (231 people/km2). The lowest population density in the northern tip of the continent - Iceland (3 persons/km2), Russian Federation (8 people/km2), Norway (14 people/km2) and Finland (15 people/km2).

Annual population growth rate, determined by the natural increase (the difference between the number of births and the number of deaths for the year per 100 inhabitants) and net migration (the difference between the number of arrivals to the country and left its people to 100 people), and in 2002 was negative in thirteen countries. The population is declining mainly in countries with economies in transition in Georgia (-0.66%), Latvia (-0.61%), Russia (-0.6%), Bulgaria (-0.59%), Belarus (-0.53%), Estonia (-0.38%), Lithuania (-0.38%), Hungary (-0.32%), Romania (0.28%), Moldova (-0.26 %), Croatia (-0.04%), Poland (0.05%) and the Czech Republic (0.03%). A marked downward trend in population growth in Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania and Belarus, slowing the process - in the Czech Republic and Latvia. Only four countries in Europe marked the level of population growth of more than 1%, in San Marino (2.1%), Andorra (1.2%), Cyprus (1.2%) and Liechtenstein (1.0%).

In Europe overall, the rate of natural increase (births over the predominance of the number of deaths) is reduced and most of the calculated negative or positive, but tending to zero values. In 1990, three countries - Germany, Bulgaria and Hungary - the first recorded negative rates of natural increase. In 2002, this indicator has been negative in fifteen countries: Germany (-0.15%), and in countries with economies in transition - the Russian Federation (-0.65%), Bulgaria (-0.59%), Belarus ( -0.58%), Latvia (-0.53%), Estonia (-0.39%), Hungary (-0.35%), Lithuania (-0.32%), Romania (-0.27% ), Croatia (-0.24%), Moldova (-0.17%), the Czech Republic (0.15%), Slovenia (0.06%), Poland and the Slovak Republic (by -0.01% ). In most of these countries the level of natural increase of the population began to decline in 1990, and in Hungary - in 1985 in Andorra, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Finland, France celebrated positive rate of natural increase, but only in Turkey, it is relatively high ( 1.43%), although it is slowly but steadily decreasing.

Since 1990, most countries in transition level of net migration is characterized by negative values. In 2002, such was recorded in eight of them: Azerbaijan (-0.04%), Georgia (-0.67%), Latvia (0.08%), Lithuania (-0.06), Moldova (-0 , 09%), Poland (-0.03%), Romania (-0.07%) and Turkey (-0.65%) in the rest of its Weakly marked level. Although the number of immigrants to the country is not enough to offset the decline in the natural increase, this was in Slovenia, which in this respect is similar to Germany - the only West European country with a negative natural increase.

The countries with the highest positive net migration indicator located in the western and southern regions of the European continent: San Marino (1.73%), Cyprus (0.79%), Malta (0.41%), Portugal (+ 0.67%), Andorra (0.44%), Belgium (+0.4%), Luxembourg (0.59%), Switzerland (0.63%) and Liechtenstein (0.47%) . And in the list of states with positive values ​​as indicators of natural increase and net migration are: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland .

From the traditional "immigration" countries in 2002 was typical for France the lowest (0.11%), and for Norway - the highest (0.38%) rate of positive net migration, among others: Austria (+0 , 32%), Denmark (0.18%), Germany (+ 0.27%), the Netherlands (0.17%) and Sweden (0.35%). From 1990 to the said group of countries joined by Italy and Greece were previously assigned to one of the "emmigratsionnyh" and today are comparable in this respect to Germany and France.

 
Have a nice trip!

 

 

 
Hosted by uCoz