Demographics of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha


are British Overseas Territories in the south Atlantic Ocean.

Saint Helena

When Saint Helena was discovered in the 16th century the island was uninhabited. With almost 10,000 inhabitants at the 1901 census, the highest number of residents was reached. However, this number included almost 6,000 Boer prisoners of war. Excluding the prisoners of war, the highest population in the twentieth century was reached in 1987. The population gradually decreased thereafter and reached 4,000 in 2024, mainly descended from Africans, Mixed race African and Europeans, British settlers, East India Company employees and indentured labourers from the South Asian sub-Continent, East Indies, Madagascar and China.
The language spoken in Saint Helena is English.
The people of Saint Helena are Saint Helenians ; the demonym being Saint Helenian.
A census in February 2016 recorded a population of 4,534 on the island. This compares with a figure of 4,257 recorded in 2008 and a figure of 5,157 recorded in 1998. The fall between 1998 and 2008 can be explained mostly by emigration, especially since 2002 when the islanders were granted full British citizenship. The main diasporas are to the United Kingdom, South Africa and more recently to the Falkland Islands, as well as on Ascension Island. The population density, based on the 2016 figure, is 37.3 persons per km2, or 95.3 per sq mile.
The island of Saint Helena is administratively divided into eight districts, each with a community centre. The districts also serve as statistical subdivisions. The island is a single electoral area, sending twelve representatives to the Legislative Council.
District
balance
Area
km2		Area
sq mi		Pop.
1998		Pop.
2008		Pop.
2016		Pop./km2
2016
Alarm Forest5.42.128927638370.4
Blue Hill36.814.21771531584.3
Half Tree Hollow1.60.61,140901984633.2
Jamestown3.91.5884716629161.9
Levelwood14.85.737631636925.0
Longwood33.412.996071579023.6
Sandy Bay16.16.225420519312.0
Saint Paul's11.44.490879584374.0
People aboard RMS St. Helena––149171183–
Yachts in Harbour––20913–
Total123.347.65,1574,2574,34935.3

Age structure

Population by Sex and Age Group :
Age groupMaleFemaleTotal%
Total2 2472 1924 439100
0–494881824.10
5–91091122214.98
10–14117962134.80
15–1983921753.94
20–2492831753.94
25–29112892014.53
30–341071072144.82
35–391191512706.08
40–441011312325.23
45–491581503086.94
50–542051954009.01
55–591711793507.88
60–642051863918.81
65-691741453197.19
70-741671573247.30
75-791381062445.50
80-8460641242.79
85-893031611.37
90-94521260.59
95-990880.18
100+0110.02
Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPer cent
0–1432029661613.88
15–641 3531 3632 71661.18
65+574533110724.94

Age range Ratio male/female
at birth1.049
0-141.04
15-641.04
65+0.94
Total1.02

Vital statistics

Births and deaths

Life expectancy

By 2010 estimates, life expectancy at birth for the total population is 78.6 years.

Infant mortality

The infant mortality rate is 16.98 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Ethnicity

According to the CIA World Factbook, 50% of the population of Saint Helena Island are African Saint Helenians, while Chinese Saint Helenians and White Saint Helenians make up 25% each. However, the possibility of clear-cut categorical divisions between ethnicities on present day St Helena, as reflected by these statistics, is disputed. Most Saint Helenians today are multiracial, similar to the Cape Coloureds.
Ascension has no civilian population, while Tristan da Cunha has a white population descended primarily from the British Isles or from the Falkland Islands.

Religion

The majority of St. Helenians are Anglican. Other religions in St. Helena include : the Baháʼí Faith, the Baptist church, Buddhism, Roman Catholicism, and Seventh-day Adventism.
According to the statistics in the 2014 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses, Saint Helena has the highest proportion of Jehovah's Witnesses of any country or territory in the world: one person in thirty-five, using an estimated population of 4,000 for St Helena and a count of 118 members.
In Tristan da Cunha, Christianity is the main religion, with the largest denominations being Anglican and Roman Catholic.
DenominationResident population Percentage
Anglican276563.2
Jehovah's Witness1673.8
Baptist1002.3
Roman Catholic962.2
New Apostolic721.6
Seventh Day Adventist851.9
Salvation Army882.0
Islam160.4
Baháʼí100.2
Other200.5
Not Stated4299.8
Doesn't have a faith3959.0
'''Saint Helena

Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha

has a population of around eight hundred inhabitants, with the majority being Saint Helenians, located in Georgetown on the west coast of the island, with another small settlement, Two Boats, located in Ascension's interior.
Tristan da Cunha has a population of about three hundred inhabitants, mainly located in the Edinburgh of the Seven Seas settlement on Tristan's North Coast.

Nationality

The citizens of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha hold British Overseas Territories citizenship. On 21 May 2002 they were granted access to full British citizenship by the British Overseas Territories Act 2002, and there is a special Saint Helena passport issued to them.