Of São Tomé and Príncipe's total population, about 131,000 live on São Tomé and 6,000 on Príncipe. All are descended from various ethnic groups that have migrated to the islands since 1485. Six groups are identifiable: The Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe is a tiny two- island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, distanced 140 kilometers from one another, and situated about 250 and 225 kilometers, respectively, off the northwestern coast of Gabon. ...

• Mestizo, or mixed-blood, descendants of African slaves brought to the islands during the early years of settlement from Benin, Gabon, Congo, and Angola (these people also are known as filhos da terra or "sons of the land");
• Angolares, reputedly descendants of Angolan slaves who survived a 1540 shipwreck and now earn their livelihood fishing;
• Forros, descendants of freed slaves when slavery was abolished;
• Servicais, contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde, living temporarily on the islands;
• Tongas, children of servicais born on the islands; and
• Europeans, primarily Portuguese.

In the 1970s, there were two significant population movements--the exodus of most of the 4,000 Portuguese residents and the influx of several hundred São Toméan refugees from Angola. The islanders have been absorbed largely into a common Luso-African culture. Almost all belong to the Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, or Seventh-day Adventist Churches, which in turn retain close ties with churches in Portugal. Mestizo (Brazil Portuguese. ... The Republic of Benin is a nation of western Africa, formerly known as Dahomey. ... The Gabonese Republic, or Gabon, is a nation of west central Africa. ... Republic of the Congo (light green) Democratic Republic of the Congo (dark green) Congo is a name shared by two neighbouring countries in Africa, usually distinguished either by using their full official names or adding their capitals: The Republic of the Congo is often known as Congo-Brazzaville. It is... Angola is a country in southwestern Africa bordering Namibia, Congo-Kinshasa, and Zambia, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean. ... Angola is a country in southwestern Africa bordering Namibia, Congo-Kinshasa, and Zambia, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean. ... Forro is a Creole language based in Portuguese spoken in São Tomé and Príncipe. ... Mozambique is also the name given to a style of music from the 1960s, an advanced rumba by Peyo el AfroCán Mozambique is a country in Southern Africa, bordering South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. ... Cape Verde (Portuguese: Cabo Verde) is a republic located on an archipelago of the North Atlantic Ocean, off the western coast of Africa. ... The Kingdom of Tonga is an archipelago in the southern Pacific Ocean, about a third of the way between New Zealand and Hawaii. ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... The Portuguese people are an ethnic group with that is primarily associated with the Portuguese language and the country of Portugal. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA), colloquially referred to as the Adventists, is an evangelical Protestant Christian denomination that grew out of the prophetic Millerite movement in the United States during the middle part of the 19th century. ...

Demographics of São Tomé and Príncipe, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands.

Population: 159,883 (July 2000 est.) Headquartered in Rome, Italy, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations programs seek to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living; to improve the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of food and agricultural products; to promote rural development; and, by these means, to eliminate hunger. ...

Age structure:
0-14 years: 48% (male 38,588; female 37,624)
15-64 years: 48% (male 37,216; female 39,959)
65 years and over: 4% (male 2,961; female 3,535) (2000 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.16% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 42.98 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 7.76 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -3.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 50.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.25 years
male: 63.84 years
female: 66.7 years (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.08 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Nationality:
noun: São Toméan(s)
adjective: São Toméan

Ethnic groups: mestico, angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), forros (descendants of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese)

Religions: Christian 80% (Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, Seventh-Day Adventist)

Languages: Portuguese (official)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 73%
male: 85%
female: 62% (1991 est.)

See also: São Tomé and Príncipe