Theme: england plan: Toponymy History Governance Geography

Population
Main article: English people
See also: English diaspora, Cornish people, and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom

The metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties, colour-coded to show population

Population of England and Wales by administrative areas. Their size shows their population, with some approximation. Each group of squares in the map key is 20 % of total number of districts.
With over 53 million inhabitants, England is by far the most populous country of the United Kingdom, accounting for 84% of the combined total.^[11][169] England taken as a unit and measured against international states has the fourth largest population in the European Union and would be the 25th largest country by population in the world.^[170] With a density of 424 people per square kilometre, it would be the second most densely populated country in the European Union after Malta.^[171][172]
The English people are a British people.^[173] Some genetic evidence suggests that 75–95% descend in the paternal line from prehistoric settlers who originally came from the Iberian Peninsula, as well as a 5% contribution from Angles and Saxons, and a significant Scandinavian (Viking) element.^{[174][175][176]} However, other geneticists place the Germanic estimate up to half.^[177][178] Over time, various cultures have been influential: Prehistoric, Brythonic,^[179] Roman, Anglo-Saxon,^[180] Viking (North Germanic),^[181] Gaelic cultures, as well as a large influence from Normans. There is an English diaspora in former parts of the British Empire; especially the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.^{[nb 4]} Since the late 1990s, many English people have migrated to Spain.^[186][187]

2009 estimates of ethnic groups in England^[188]
In 1086, when the Domesday Book was compiled, England had a population of two million. About 10% lived in urban areas.^[189] By 1801, the population was 8.3 million, and by 1901 30.5 million.^[190] Due in particular to the economic prosperity of South East England, it has received many economic migrants from the other parts of the United Kingdom.^[173] There has been significant Irish migration.^[191] The proportion of ethnically European residents totals at 87.50%, including Germans^[192] and Poles.^[173]
Other people from much further afield in the former British colonies have arrived since the 1950s: in particular, 6% of people living in England have family origins in the Indian subcontinent, mostly India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.^[173][192] 2.90% of the population are black, from Africa and the Caribbean, especially former British colonies.^[173][192] There is a significant number of Chinese and British Chinese.^[173][192] In 2007, 22% of primary school children in England were from ethnic minority families,^[193] and in 2011 that figure was 26.5%.^[194] About half of the population increase between 1991 and 2001 was due to immigration.^[195] Debate over immigration is politically prominent;^[196] 80% of respondents in a 2009 Home Office poll wanted to cap it.^[197] The ONS has projected that the population will grow by nine million between 2014 and 2039.^[198]
England contains one indigenous national minority, the Cornish people, recognised by the UK government under the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in 2014.^[199]
Language
Further information: English language in England
See also: English language, History of the English language, and Cornish language