Populations (in thousands)
Year Pop. ±% p.a.
1960 11,635 —
1970 14,952 +2.54%
1980 19,380 +2.63%
1990 24,167 +2.23%
2000 28,466 +1.65%
2010 31,894 +1.14%
2011 32,245 +1.10%
2012 32,597 +1.09%
2013 32,950 +1.08%
2014 33,304 +1.07%
2015 33,656 +1.06%
Morocco has a population of around 35,276,786 inhabitants. According to the CIA, 99% of residents are Arab Berber, with the remaining 1% comprising other groups.
It is estimated that 41% to 80% of residents have Berber ancestral origins. A sizeable portion of the population is identified as Haratin and Gnawa (or Gnaoua), West African or mixed race descendants of slaves, and Moriscos, European Muslims expelled from Spain and Portugal in the 17th century.
According to the 2014 Morocco population census, there were around 84,000 immigrants in the country.
Of these foreign-born residents, most were of French origin, followed by individuals mainly from various nations in West Africa and Algeria. There are also a number of foreign residents of Spanish origin.
Some of them are descendants of colonial settlers, who primarily work for European multinational companies, while others are married to Moroccans or are retirees. Prior to independence, Morocco was home to half a million Europeans; who were mostly Christians.
Also prior to independence, Morocco was home to 250,000 Spaniards. Morocco’s once prominent Jewish minority has decreased significantly since its peak of 265,000 in 1948, declining to around 2,500 today.
Morocco has a large diaspora, most of which is located in France, which has reportedly over one million Moroccans of up to the third generation. There are also large Moroccan communities in Spain (about 700,000 Moroccans), the Netherlands (360,000), and Belgium (300,000).
Other large communities can be found in Italy, Canada, the United States, and Israel, where Moroccan Jews are thought to constitute the second biggest Jewish ethnic subgroup.
