Demographics
According to 2011 data, the city has a population of 1,204,685 and the whole Capital Municipality of 1,291,591.
The ratio of women per 1,000 men was 1,102. The birth rate per 1000 people was 12.3 per mille and steadily increasing in the last 5 years, the death rate reaching 12.1 per mille and decreasing. The natural growth rate during 2009 was 0.2 per mille, the first positive growth rate in nearly 20 years. The considerable immigration to the capital from poorer regions of the country, as well as urbanisation, are among the other reasons for the increase in Sofia's population. 4.8 people of every one thousand were wedded in 2009 (only heterosexual marriage is possible in Bulgaria) and the infant mortality rate was 5.6 per 1,000, down from 18.9 in 1980.
According to the 2011 census, Sofia's population was made up of 96.4% ethnic Bulgarians; among minority communities, about 18,300 (1.6%) officially identified themselves as Roma, 6,500 (0.6%) as Turkish and 1.4% belonged to other ethnic groups or did not self-declare.
The unemployment is lower than in other parts of the country — 2.45% of the active population in 1999 and declining, compared to 7.25% for the whole of Bulgaria as of 1 July 2007. The large share of unemployed people with higher education, 27% as compared to 7% for the whole country, is a characteristic feature of the capital.
Sofia was declared capital in 1879. One year later, in 1880, it was the fifth-largest city in the country after Plovdiv, Varna, Ruse and Shumen. Plovdiv remained the most populous Bulgarian town until 1892 when Sofia took the lead.
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