Demographics
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1861 | 2,402,000 | — |
| 1871 | 2,520,000 | +4.9% |
| 1881 | 2,660,000 | +5.6% |
| 1901 | 2,914,000 | +9.5% |
| 1911 | 3,102,000 | +6.5% |
| 1921 | 3,343,000 | +7.8% |
| 1931 | 3,509,000 | +5.0% |
| 1936 | 3,697,000 | +5.4% |
| 1951 | 4,346,000 | +17.6% |
| 1961 | 4,761,000 | +9.5% |
| 1971 | 5,059,000 | +6.3% |
| 1981 | 5,463,000 | +8.0% |
| 1991 | 5,630,000 | +3.1% |
| 2001 | 5,702,000 | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 5,834,000 | +2.3% |
| Source: ISTAT 2001 | ||
The region, with a population of over 5.8 million inhabitants, is divided in five provinces: Naples, Benevento, Avellino, Caserta and Salerno. Over half of the population is resident in the province of Naples, where there is a population density of 2,626 inhabitants per km2. Within the province, the highest density can be found along the coast, where it reaches 13,000 inhabitants per km2 in the city of Portici, one of the most densely populated cities on the planet. The region, which was characterised until recently by an acute contrast between internal and coastal areas also under the economic aspect, in the last decade has shown an improvement thanks to the development of the provinces of Benevento and Avellino. At the same time, the provinces of Naples, Caserta and in part Salerno, have developed a variety of activities connected to advanced types of services.
Unlike central and northern Italy, in the last decade the region of Campania has not attracted large numbers of immigrants. The Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated in January 2007 that 98,052 foreign-born immigrants live in Campania, equal to 1.7% of the total regional population. Part of the reason for this is in recent times, there have been more employment opportunities in northern regions than in the Southern Italian regions.
Read more about this topic: Campania