How has Gibraltar's population changed since the first census in 1753?

Short answer

Gibraltar's civilian population has grown from about 1,800 at the earliest surviving census in 1753 to 37,936 in 2022, the highest ever recorded. Growth came in bursts, driven by trade, war and migration.

Detailed answer

The earliest surviving census of the whole civilian population dates from 1753, four years after Gibraltar gained a civilian administration. It recorded 414 British, 597 Genoese, 572 Jews, 185 Spaniards and 25 Portuguese.

Usually-resident population over time

• 1753: 1,816
• 1777: 3,201
• 1814: 10,136
• 1834: 15,002
• 1891: 19,100
• 1901: 20,355
• 1931: 17,405
• 1951: 20,845
• 1970: 24,672
• 2001: 27,495
• 2012: 32,194
• 2022: 37,936

The population trebled between 1787 and 1814. During the Napoleonic Wars Gibraltar was the only European port open to British goods, which drew a large trading population, much of it from Genoa. Yellow fever epidemics in the early 1800s, including a severe outbreak in 1828, cut numbers sharply.

Genoese fishermen also shaped the population. By 1878 up to 1,840 fishermen of the Genoese fleet were based at Catalan Bay during the season, and some stayed on to form the permanent village.

Numbers barely grew between 1871 and 1931. The Census report puts this down to overcrowding, limited building space and strict residence permits, with some families moving to the neighbouring town of La Linea for cheaper rents.

No census was taken in 1941 because most civilians had been evacuated during the Second World War. The 1970 Census was brought forward a year after Spain closed the frontier in 1969. Since 2012 the population has grown by about 1.6% a year, and 43% of all the growth between 1970 and 2022 came in that last decade.