Population: 293,047,571 (July 1991), growth rate 0.7% (1991)

Birth rate: 17 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Infant mortality rate: 23 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth: 65 years male, 74 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate: 2.4 children born/woman (1991)

Nationality: noun--Soviet(s); adjective--Soviet

Ethnic divisions: Russian 50.78%, Ukrainian 15.45%, Uzbek 5.84%, Belorussian (Byelorussian) 3.51%, Kazakh 2.85%, Azeri 2.38%, Armenian 1.62%, Tajik 1.48%, Georgian 1.39%, Moldovan 1.17%, Lithuanian 1.07%, Turkmen 0.95%, Kirghiz 0.89%, Latvian 0.51%, Estonian 0.36%, other 9.75%

Religion: Russian Orthodox 20%, Muslim 10%, Protestant, Georgian Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Roman Catholic 7%, Jewish less than 1%, atheist 60% (est.)

Language: Russian (official); more than 200 languages and dialects (at least 18 with more than 1 million speakers); Slavic group 75%, other Indo-European 8%, Altaic 12%, Uralian 3%, Caucasian 2%

Literacy: 98% (male 99%, female 97%) age 15 and over can read and write (1989)

Labor force: 152,300,000 civilians; industry and other nonagricultural fields 80%, agriculture 20%; shortage of skilled labor (1989)

Organized labor: the vast majority of workers are union members; official unions are organized within the General Confederation of Trade Unions (GCTU) and still operate within general guidelines set up by the CPSU and Soviet Government; a large number of independent trade unions have been formed since President Gorbachev came to power; most are locally or regionally based and represent workers from one enterprise or a group of enterprises; there are a few independent unions that claim a nationwide following, the most prominent of which is Independent Miners Trade Union set up by the country's coal miners

NOTE: The information regarding Soviet Union on this page is re-published from the 1991 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Soviet Union People 1991 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Soviet Union People 1991 should be addressed to the CIA.