Ratanakiri Province - Demographics and Towns

Demographics and Towns

As of 2008, Ratanakiri Province had a population of approximately 150,000. Its population grew by 59% between 1998 and 2008, largely due to internal migration. In 2008, Ratanakiri made up 1.1% of Cambodia's total population; its population density of 13.9 residents per square kilometer was less than one fifth the national average. About 70% of the province's population lives in the highlands; of the other 30%, approximately half live in more urbanized towns, and half live along rivers and in the lowlands, where they practice wetland rice cultivation and engage in market activities. Banlung, the provincial capital located in the central highlands, is by far the province's largest town, with a population of approximately 25,000. Other significant towns include Veun Sai in the north and Lomphat in the south, with populations of 2,000 and 3,000 respectively.

In 2008, 51.8% of Ratanakiri residents were aged 19 or younger, 29.9% were aged 20 to 39, and 18.3% were aged 40 or older; 50.6% of residents were male, and 49.4% were female. Of Ratanakiri residents aged 15 or older, 20.9% were single and had never been married, 71.6% were married, 5.1% were widowed, and 2.4% were divorced or separated. Each household had an average of 5.6 members, and most households (87.5%) were headed by men.

While highland peoples have inhabited Ratanakiri for well over a millennium, lowland peoples have migrated to the province in the last 200 years. As of 1998, various highland groups collectively called Khmer Loeu made up just more than half of Ratanakiri's population. These groups included the Tampuan (24.3%), Jarai (17.1%), Kreung (16.3%), Brou (7.0%), Kachok (2.7%), Kavet (1.9%), Kuy (0.5%), and Lun (0.1%). Ethnic Khmers made up 19.1% of the population, and ethnic Lao made up 9.6%. The remainder consisted of Vietnamese (0.7%), Cham (0.6%), and Chinese (0.3%). Since the 1998 census, migration to Ratanakiri from elsewhere in Cambodia has accelerated, which has likely increased the proportion of Khmers in the province. Though the official language of Ratanakiri (like all of Cambodia) is Khmer, each indigenous group speaks its own language. Less than 10% of Ratanakiri's indigenous population can speak Khmer fluently.