Demographics
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1659 | 29,967 | — |
| 1821 | 293,112 | +878.1% |
| 1831 | 366,328 | +25.0% |
| 1841 | 388,887 | +6.2% |
| 1851 | 274,499 | −29.4% |
| 1861 | 254,796 | −7.2% |
| 1871 | 246,030 | −3.4% |
| 1881 | 245,212 | −0.3% |
| 1891 | 219,034 | −10.7% |
| 1901 | 199,166 | −9.1% |
| 1911 | 192,177 | −3.5% |
| 1926 | 172,690 | −10.1% |
| 1936 | 161,349 | −6.6% |
| 1946 | 148,120 | −8.2% |
| 1951 | 141,867 | −4.2% |
| 1956 | 133,052 | −6.2% |
| 1961 | 123,330 | −7.3% |
| 1966 | 115,547 | −6.3% |
| 1971 | 109,525 | −5.2% |
| 1979 | 114,019 | +4.1% |
| 1981 | 114,766 | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 115,184 | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 110,713 | −3.9% |
| 1996 | 111,524 | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 117,446 | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 123,839 | +5.4% |
| 2011 | 130,638 | +5.5% |
The county has experienced perhaps the highest emigration out of Ireland. In the 1840s-1880s, waves of emigrants left the rural townlands of the county. Initially triggered by the Great Famine and then in search of work in the newly industrialising United Kingdom and the United States, the population fell considerably. From 388,887 in 1841, the population fell to 199,166 in 1901. The population reached a low of 109,525 in 1971 as emigration continued. Emigration slowed down as the Irish economy began to expand in the nineteen nineties and early two thousands.Consequently, the population of Mayo increased from 110,713 in 1991 to 130,638 in 2011.
Read more about this topic: County Mayo