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Sources disagree as to the current population of Eritrea, with some proposing numbers as low as 3.6 million and others as high as 6.7 million. Eritrea has never conducted an official government census.File:Eritrea Population 1950-2021 Forecast 2022-2032 UN World Population Prospects 2022.svg|thumb|300px|Population, fertility rate and net reproduction ratenet reproduction rateThe nation has nine recognized ethnic groups. Of these, the largest is the Tigriniya, who make up around 50% of the population; the Tigre people, who also speak a Ethiosemitic language, constitute around 30% of residents. Most of the rest of the population belong to other Afro-Asiatic-speaking communities of the Cushitic branch. Additionally, there are a number of Nilo-Saharan-speaking ethnic minorities and other smaller groups.BOOK, Minahan, James, Miniature empires: a historical dictionary of the newly independent states, 1998, Greenwood Publishing Group, 0-313-30610-9, 76,weblink "The majority of the Eritreans speak Semitic or Cushitic languages of the Afro-Asiatic language group. The Kunama, Baria, and other smaller groups in the north and northwest speak Nilotic languages.", The two most followed religions are Christianity (47%-63% of the total population) and Islam (37%-52%).WEB, 2015-04-02, Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2050,weblink live, 2021-05-12, Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project, en-US,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20150404142344weblink">weblink 2015-04-04, WEB, Eritrea,weblink 2022-10-19, United States Department of State, en-US, WEB, Eritrea,weblink 2023-06-01, CIA World Factbook,

Ethno-linguistic groups

{{further|Languages of Eritrea}}(File:Ethno-Demography of Eritrea.png|thumb|400px|Ethno-Demography of Eritrea){{Pie chart|thumb = right! RegionENCYCLOPEDIA, Mark, Juergensmeyer, Wade Clark, Roof, Encyclopedia of Global Religion, SAGE Publishing, Los Angeles, 2011, 978-0-7619-2729-7, Eritrea, Becky, Hsu, 354–355,weblink 2020-10-22, Google Books, ! colspan="1" align="center" | Christians (63%)! colspan="1" align="center" | Muslims (36%)%! colspan="1" align="center" | Other (1%)| Maekel Region, ዞባ ማእከል| 97%| 3%| 1%| Debub region, ዞባ ደቡብ| 96%| 3%|

Demographic statistics

Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2022.

	DATE = 2023-02-09,	Tigrinya people>Tigrinya|value1 = 50|color1 = Red	Tigre people>Tigre|value2 = 30|color2 = Green	Saho people>Saho|value3 = 4|color3 = Cyan	Afar people>Afar|value4 = 4|color4 = Yellow	Kunama people>Kunama|value5 = 4|color5 = Violet	Bilen people>Bilen|value6 = 3|color6 = Maroon|label7 = Other|value7 = 5|color7 = Grey}}Eritrea's population comprises nine recognized ethnic groups, most of whom speak languages from the Ethiopian Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family. The East African Semitic languages spoken in Eritrea are Tigre, Tigrinya, and the newly recognized Dahlik. Other Afro-Asiatic languages belonging to the Cushitic branch are also widely spoken in the country. The latter include Afar, Beja, Blin, and Saho.In addition, languages belonging to the Nilo-Saharan language family (Kunama and Nara) are spoken as a mother tongue by the Kunama and Nara Nilotic ethnic minorities that live in the north and northwestern part of the country. The Rashaida speak Arabic, while there are also a number of Italians who speak their native Italian language. Afro-Asiatic communities Semitic speakers Tigrinya File:Traditional Eritrean dance.jpg|thumb|A Tigrigna traditional dance.]]The majority of the Tigrinya inhabit the highlands of Eritrea; however, migration to other parts of the country has occurred. Their language is called Tigrinya. They are the largest ethnic group in the country, constituting about 50% of the population. The predominantly Tigrinya populated urban centers in Eritrea are the capital Asmara, Mendefera, Dekemhare, Adi Keyh, Adi Quala and Senafe, while there is a significant population of Tigrinya in other cities including Keren, and Massawa.They are 92% Christians, (of which 90% are of the Eritrean Orthodox faith, 5% Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic (whose mass is held in Ge'ez as opposed to Latin), and 5% belonging to various Protestant and other Christian denominations, the majority of which belong to the (Lutheran) Evangelical Church of Eritrea). Tigre File:Traditional Eritrean dancing.jpg|thumb|Traditional Tigre dance]]The Tigre reside in the western lowlands in Eritrea. Many also migrated to Sudan at the time of the Ethiopian-Eritrean conflict and lived there since. They are a nomadic and pastoralist people, related to the Tigrinya and to the Beja people. They are a predominantly Muslim nomadic people who inhabit the northern, western, and coastal lowlands of Eritrea, and constitute 30% of the country's population. Some also inhabit areas in eastern Sudan. 95% of the Tigre people adhere to the Islamic religion Sunni Islam, but there are a small number of Christians among them as well (often referred to as the Mensaï in Eritrea). Their language is called Tigre. Rashaida The Rashaida are one of Eritrea's nine recognized ethnic groups. They represent around 1% of the population of Eritrea. The Rashaida reside in the northern coastal lowlands of Eritrea and the northern eastern coasts of Sudan. They are predominantly Muslim and are the only ethnic group in Eritrea to have Arabic as their communal language, specifically the Hejazi dialect. The Rashaida first came to Eritrea in the 19th century from the Arabian Coast.WEB, Alders, Anne,weblink the Rashaida, 2006-06-07, 2006-07-09,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20060709094430weblink">weblink dead, Jeberti The Jeberti people in Eritrea trace descent from early Muslim adherents. The term Jeberti is also locally sometimes used to generically refer to all Islamic inhabitants of the highlands.JOURNAL, Abbebe, Kifleyesus, L'Homme: Revue française d'anthropologie,weblink Jeberti Women Traders' Innumeracy: Its Impact on Commercial Activity in Eritrea, January 2009, 189, 59, 10.4000/lhomme.21986, 27 February 2015, The Jeberti in Eritrea speak Arabic and Tigrinya.BOOK, Facts On File, Incorporated, Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East, 2009, Infobase Publishing, 978-1438126760, 336,weblink They account for about 8% of the Tigrinya speakers in the nation. Cushitic speakers Afar According to the CIA, the Afar constitute 4% of the nation's population. They live in the Debubawi Keyih Bahri Region of Eritrea, as well as the Afar Region in Ethiopia, and Djibouti. They speak the Afar language as a mother tongue, and are predominantly Muslim. Afars in Eritrea number about 600,000 individuals, the smallest population out of the countries they reside in. In Djibouti, there are about 780,000 group members, and in Ethiopia, they number approximately 2,100,000. Saho The Saho represent 4% of Eritrea's population. They principally reside in the Debubawi Keyih Bahri Region and the Northern Red Sea Region of Eritrea. Their language is called Saho. They are predominantly Muslim, although a few Christians known as the Irob live in the Debub Region of Eritrea and the Tigray region of Ethiopia. Bilen The Bilen in Eritrea represent around 3% of the country's population. They are primarily concentrated in the north-central areas, in and around the city of Keren, and south towards Asmara, the nation's capital. Many of them entered Eritrea from Kush (central Sudan) in the 8th century and settled at Merara, after which they went to Lalibela and Lasta. The Bilen then returned to Axum in Ethiopia's Tigray Province, and battled with the natives; in the resulting aftermath, the Bilen returned to their main base at Merara. The Bilen include adherents of both Islam and Christianity. They speak the Bilen language as a mother tongue. Christian adherents are mainly urban and have interbred with the Tigrinya who live in the area. Muslim adherents are mainly rural and have intermingled with the adjacent Tigre. Beja The Beja in Eritrea, or Hedareb, constitute 2% of local residents. They mainly live along the north-western border with Sudan. Group members are predominantly Muslim and communicate in Hedareb as a first or second language. The Beja also include the Beni-Amer people, who have retained their native Beja language alongside Hedareb. Nilo-Saharan communities Kunama According to the CIA, the Kunama constitute around 4% of Eritrea's population. They mainly live in the country's Gash Barka Region, as well as in adjacent parts of Ethiopia's Tigray Region. Many of them reside in the contested border village of Badme. Their language is called Kunama. Although some Kunama still practice traditional beliefs, most are converts to either Christianity (Roman Catholic and Protestant) or Islam. Nara The Nara represent 2% of the nation's population. They principally reside along the south-western border with Sudan and Ethiopia. They are generally Muslim, with a few Christians and some practising their indigenous beliefs. Their language is called Nara. Other communities Italians A few monolingual Italian Eritreans remain. As of 2008, they were estimated at 900 people, down from around 38,000 residents at the end of World War II. Religion File:Regions of Eritrea.svg|thumb|Regions of Eritrea 1. Maekel 2. Anseba 3. Gash-Barka 4. Debub 5. Northern Red Sea 6. Southern Red Seapoly 167 182 163 205 179 211 184 203 176 179 Maekel Regionpoly 167 182 176 179 118 108 118 50 59 85 53 133 Anseba Regionpoly 163 205 167 182 53 133 19 258 91 276 135 239 147 206 Gash-Barka Regionpoly 184 203 179 211 147 206 135 239 153 254 221 248 225 226 189 200 Debub Regionpoly 176 179 184 203 189 200 225 226 221 248 271 259 279 220 200 159 155 21 118 50 118 108 Northern Red Sea Regionpoly 279 220 271 259 419 388 442 361 319 241 Southern Red Sea RegionPeople in Eritrea practice various religions. According to the Pew Research Center (2010), 62.9% of the population are Christian, mostly followers of Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo, and to a lesser extent, Roman Catholicism, with the second-largest religion being Muslims.WEB,weblink Table: Christian Population as Percentages of Total Population by Country, 19 December 2011, Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project, 31 May 2015, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120107191939weblink">weblink 7 January 2012, In general, most local residents who adhere to Christianity live in the Maekel and Debub regions, whereas those who follow Islam predominantly inhabit the Anseba, Northern Red Sea, Southern Red Sea and Gash-Barka regions. A few adherents of traditional faiths can also be found, particularly in the lowlands.{| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:1em auto;"