Syria Flag

Syria

Capital:
Damascus
Continent:
Asia
Largest Cities:
Aleppo, Damascus, Homs
Abbreviation:
SYR

25.6M
Total Population
57
Population Rank
139.52
Density (km²)
947.6K 4.01%
Annual Population Growth

Population of Syria

Syria's population structure shows a nearly equal male to female ratio of 1.00 to 1, with a median male age of 23.41 years old and a median female age of 24.27 years old. The highest concentration of adults under 75 years old is in the 22 and 21 year-old age groups, while the lowest concentration is in the 74 and 73 year-old age groups.

Syria Population

Data after 2022 is projected based on recent change

Syria Population Clock

Syria Population*
25,280,708
Births per Day
1,647
Deaths per Day
340
Immigrations per Day
1,155
Net Change per Day
2,462
2025 Population Change*
105,866

* As of 2/12/2025

1 birth

Every 52.5 seconds

1 death

Every 4.2 minutes

1 immigrant

Every 1.2 minutes

1 person

Every 35.1 seconds

Population by City

City
2025 Pop.
Aleppo1,602,264
Damascus1,569,394
Homs775,404
Hamah460,602
Latakia340,181
Deir ez-Zor242,565
Ar Raqqah177,636
Al Bab130,745
Idlib128,840
Douma111,864

Syria Overview

Syria, a Middle Eastern country, has a population that’s difficult to determine due to instability; the Syrian situation is among the largest humanitarian crises worldwide. Approximately 5,000 flee Syria every day. In 2012, the country had a population estimated at 22,530,746, and this number dropped to an estimated population of 22,457,336 as of September 2013. Just recently, Syria was considered a rapidly growing country in the area, growing over 2% in 2009.

Syrian Demographics

Syria is a largely Islamic country; according to the latest data from 2007, 87% of the country’s population was Muslim. Broken down, around 74% are Sunni and around 13% are Shia. There are approximately 2 million Alawi in Syria today, and representatives of this group dominate Syrian politics and the Syrian military. Syria’s current President, Bashar al-Assad, is an Alawi Shia.

The largest ethnic group (approximately 90%) in Syria is Arab, mostly classified as Levantine. Other major groups in Syria are Kurds (2 million), Syrian Turkmen (0.75-1.5 million) and Assyrians (0.9 to 1.2 million).

The median age in Syria is currently at 24.3 years while life expectancy is approximately 75.1 years of age.

Syrian Religion, Economy and Politics

Although 80% Muslim, it is also home to one of the largest Christian populations in the Middle East. According to the latest estimates, approximately 12% of the city’s inhabitants are Christian. The other two major religious groups in Syria are Christian (around 9% of the population) and Druze (3%).

In the World Happiness Report, Syria understandably ranks near the bottom of the chart in 2018, with a ranking of 150 out of 156 participating countries, with a rating of 3.46 in overall happiness on a scale of 0 to 10. Some contributing factors to this low rating include the low GDP per capita, the low social support, a lack of freedom to make choices, and of course the current instability considering the current situation.

Less than 10% of the population struggle with access to clean drinking water or improved sanitation facilities.

Literacy in Syria is only at 86.4% of the population over 15 years of age, with only 9 years expected to be dedicated to schooling.

Syria Population History

Syria was run under the Ottoman empire for centuries until the French overthrew the during World War I. Under the French, there were brief periods of autonomy until Syria gained independence in 1946, and quickly after took part in the Arab-Israeli war for nearly 2 decades. In September of 1980, the Iran-Iraq war began and Syria sided with Iran. In the US war against Iraq, Syria sided with the US against Iraq against in tradition with the rivalry between Baathist leadership in Iraq and Syria. However, Syria’s relationship with the US hasn’t remained friendly since President Bush listed Syria as one of many countries that make up an “axis of evil,” and Syria eventually ended up restoring diplomatic relations with Iraq.

The growth rate in Syria plummeted from around 3%, to under -3% around 2011 when Syria allegedly was running a covert nuclear program reactor program, which would violate peace treaties they were held under. President Assad showed began widely showing his capabilities of cruelty towards his own people around that time, killing many under the guise of restoring order. Internal conflicts became so dire, the millions of citizens sought refuge elsewhere, which was the cause of the dramatic decrease in population growth.