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6 Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Bangladesh
Apart from very small countries such as Singapore and Bahrain, Bangladesh is the most densely populated country in the world. The nation, at 955 persons per square km, has often been compared to Indonesia's Java.
Bangladesh is ethnically homogenous, with Bengalis comprising 98% of the population. The vast majority speak Bangla, or Bengali. The remaining two percent are Urdu-speaking, non-Bengali Muslims from other regions of India such as Bihar. A small number of tribal groups inhabit the Chittagong Hill Tracts in the southeast.
Most Bangladeshis (about 83%) are Muslims, but Hindus constitute a sizable (16%) minority. There are also a small number of Buddhists, Christians, and Animists. Bengali, an Indo-Aryan language, is written in a script similar to Devanagari. It is the official language, though English is accepted in official tasks and in (higher) education.
Bangladesh is plagued by overpopulation. In 1992, the government began promoting birth control to slow growth, but with limited success. Many are landless or forced to inhabit hazardous flood-plains, with the consequence of rampant water-borne disease. In an effort to stem the spread of pathogens like cholera and dysentery, international organizations began to promote well-drilling throughout the nation. Several years after wide-spread implementation of the programme, over a quarter of the population exhibited symptoms of arsenic poisoning. High levels of naturally occurring arsenic in the water table had not been accounted for. The effects of arsenic-tainted water still remain a problem.
7 Culture
Main article: Culture of Bangladesh
8 Political Parties
9 Miscellaneous topics
10 External links
Bangladesh
South Asian countries
zh-min-nan:Bangladesh
