List of countries ranked by ethnic and cultural diversity level

Last updated April 30, 2024

This is a list of countries ranked by ethnic and cultural diversity level, as per Fearon's analysis.

Methodology

The lists are commonly used in economics literature to compare the levels of ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious fractionalization in different countries.^[1]^[2]

Fractionalization is the probability that two individuals drawn randomly from the country's groups are not from the same group (ethnic, religious, or whatever the criterion is). In Fearon's analysis, only groups containing over one percent of the country's population were considered. This limit made Papua New Guinea an outlier; as none of its thousands of groups included more than one percent of the population, it was considered to have zero groups and thus have a perfect fractionalization score of 1.

The two lists have been described by Alesina and Ferrara as follows:^[1]

Fearon ^[3] and Alesina et al.^[4] have compiled various measures of ethnic heterogeneity which try to tackle the fact that the difference amongst groups manifests itself in different ways in different places. The two classifications are constructed differently. Alesina et al.^[4] do not take a stand on what ethnicity (or language or religion) are more salient than others and adopt the country breakdown suggested by original sources, mainly the Encyclopædia Britannica. Fearon^[3] instead is trying to construct the 'right list' of ethnic groups which 'depends on what people in the country identify as the most socially relevant ethnic groupings'. This approach has the advantage of being closer to what the theory would want and the disadvantage of having to make judgement calls (or adopt others' judgement calls) about what is the 'right list'.

List based on Fearon's analysis

In the Fearon list, ethnic fractionalization is approximated by a measure of similarity between languages, varying from 1 = the population speaks two or more unrelated languages to 0 = the entire population speaks the same language.^[3] This index of cultural diversity is biased towards linguistic variations as opposed to genetic diversity and other variations.

Ethnic, linguistic and religious fractionalization (2003)^[4]
Country	Ethnic fractionalization	Linguistic fractionalization	Religious fractionalization
Afghanistan	0.769300	0.614100	0.271700
Albania	0.220400	0.039900	0.471900
Algeria	0.339400	0.442700	0.009100
American Samoa	0.000000	0.173300	0.639500
Andorra	0.713900	0.684800	0.232600
Angola	0.786700	0.787000	0.627600
Antigua and Barbuda	0.164300	0.106300	0.684000
Argentina	0.255000	0.061800	0.223600
Armenia	0.127200	0.129100	0.457600
Aruba	0.000000	0.388900	0.410700
Australia	0.092900	0.334900	0.821100
Austria	0.106800	0.152200	0.414600
Azerbaijan	0.204700	0.205400	0.489900
Bahamas	0.422800	0.185500	0.681500
Bahrain	0.502100	0.434400	0.552800
Bangladesh	0.045400	0.092500	0.209000
Barbados	0.142300	0.092600	0.693400
Belarus	0.322200	0.466600	0.611600
Belgium	0.555400	0.540900	0.212700
Belize	0.701500	0.630300	0.581300
Benin	0.787200	0.790500	0.554400
Bermuda	0.000000	0.000000	0.711200
Bhutan	0.605000	0.605600	0.378700
Bolivia	0.739600	0.224000	0.208500
Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.630000	0.675100	0.685100
Botswana	0.410200	0.411000	0.598600
Brazil	0.540800	0.046800	0.605400
Brunei	0.541600	0.343800	0.440400
Bulgaria	0.402100	0.303100	0.596500
Burkina Faso	0.737700	0.722800	0.579800
Burundi	0.295100	0.297700	0.515800
Cambodia	0.210500	0.210400	0.096500
Cameroon	0.863500	0.889800	0.733800
Canada	0.712400	0.577200	0.695800
Cape Verde	0.417400	0.000000	0.076600
Central African Republic	0.829500	0.833400	0.791600
Chad	0.862000	0.863500	0.641100
Chile	0.186100	0.187100	0.384100
China	0.153800	0.132700	0.664300
Colombia	0.601400	0.019300	0.147800
Comoros	0.000000	0.010300	0.013700
DR Congo	0.874700	0.870500	0.702100
Congo	0.874700	0.687100	0.664200
Costa Rica	0.236800	0.048900	0.241000
Ivory Coast	0.820400	0.784200	0.755100
Croatia	0.369000	0.076300	0.444700
Cuba	0.590800	0.000000	0.505900
Cyprus	0.093900	0.396200	0.396200
Czech Republic	0.322200	0.323300	0.659100
Denmark	0.081900	0.104900	0.233300
Djibouti	0.796200	0.655800	0.043500
Dominica	0.200300	0.000000	0.462800
Dominican Republic	0.429400	0.039500	0.311800
East Timor	0.000000	0.526100	0.425400
Ecuador	0.655000	0.130800	0.141700
Egypt	0.183600	0.023700	0.197900
El Salvador	0.197800	0.000000	0.355900
Equatorial Guinea	0.346700	0.322000	0.119500
Eritrea	0.652400	0.653000	0.425300
Estonia	0.506200	0.494400	0.498500
Ethiopia	0.723500	0.807300	0.624900
Faroe Islands	0.000000	0.000000	0.314700
Fiji	0.547900	0.547900	0.568200
Finland	0.131500	0.141200	0.253100
France	0.103200	0.122100	0.402900
French Guiana	0.000000	0.115400	0.495900
French Polynesia	0.000000	0.607800	0.581300
Gabon	0.769000	0.782100	0.667400
Gambia	0.786400	0.807600	0.097000
Gaza Strip	0.000000	0.010400	0.034200
Georgia	0.492300	0.474900	0.654300
Germany	0.168200	0.164200	0.657100
Ghana	0.673300	0.673100	0.798700
Greece	0.157600	0.030000	0.153000
Greenland	0.000000	0.218800	0.459200
Grenada	0.266100	0.000000	0.589800
Guadeloupe	0.000000	0.093300	0.306900
Guam	0.000000	0.732000	0.408200
Guatemala	0.512200	0.458600	0.375300
Guinea	0.738900	0.772500	0.264900
Guinea-Bissau	0.808200	0.814100	0.612800
Guyana	0.619500	0.068800	0.787600
Haiti	0.095000	0.000000	0.470400
Honduras	0.186700	0.055300	0.235700
Hong Kong	0.062000	0.212800	0.419100
Hungary	0.152200	0.029700	0.524400
Iceland	0.079800	0.082000	0.191300
India	0.418200	0.806900	0.326000
Indonesia	0.735100	0.768000	0.234000
Iran	0.668400	0.746200	0.115200
Iraq	0.368900	0.369400	0.484400
Ireland	0.120600	0.031200	0.155000
Isle of Man	0.000000	0.000000	0.472900
Israel	0.343600	0.552500	0.346900
Italy	0.114500	0.114700	0.302700
Jamaica	0.412900	0.109800	0.616000
Japan	0.011900	0.017800	0.540600
Jersey	0.000000	0.000000	0.547900
Jordan	0.592600	0.039600	0.065900
Kazakhstan	0.617100	0.662100	0.589800
Kenya	0.858800	0.886000	0.776500
Kiribati	0.051100	0.023700	0.554100
South Korea	0.002000	0.002100	0.660400
North Korea	0.039200	0.002800	0.489100
Kyrgyzstan	0.675200	0.594900	0.447000
Kuwait	0.660400	0.344400	0.674500
Laos	0.513900	0.638200	0.545300
Latvia	0.586700	0.579500	0.555600
Lebanon	0.131400	0.131200	0.788600
Lesotho	0.255000	0.254300	0.721100
Liberia	0.908400	0.903800	0.488300
Libya	0.792000	0.075800	0.057000
Liechtenstein	0.572600	0.224600	0.334300
Lithuania	0.322300	0.321900	0.414100
Luxembourg	0.530200	0.644000	0.091100
Macau	0.000000	0.251900	0.551100
North Macedonia	0.502300	0.502100	0.589900
Madagascar	0.879100	0.020400	0.519100
Malawi	0.674400	0.602300	0.819200
Malaysia	0.588000	0.597000	0.665700
Mali	0.690600	0.838800	0.182000
Malta	0.041400	0.090700	0.122300
Marshall Islands	0.060300	0.073400	0.520700
Martinique	0.000000	0.000000	0.233600
Mauritania	0.615000	0.326000	0.014900
Mauritius	0.463400	0.454700	0.638500
Mayotte	0.000000	0.721200	0.062000
Mexico	0.541800	0.151100	0.179600
Micronesia	0.700500	0.748300	0.646900
Moldova	0.553500	0.553300	0.560300
Monaco	0.683800	0.730500	0.304700
Mongolia	0.368200	0.373400	0.079900
Morocco	0.484100	0.468300	0.003500
Mozambique	0.693200	0.812500	0.675900
Burma	0.506200	0.507200	0.197400
Namibia	0.632900	0.700500	0.662600
Nauru	0.583200	0.616100	0.619400
Nepal	0.663200	0.716700	0.141700
Netherlands Antilles	0.000000	0.250800	0.386600
Netherlands	0.105400	0.514300	0.722200
New Caledonia	0.000000	0.663300	0.546200
New Zealand	0.396900	0.165700	0.811000
Nicaragua	0.484400	0.047300	0.429000
Niger	0.651800	0.651900	0.201300
Nigeria	0.850500	0.831600	0.742100
Northern Mariana Islands	0.000000	0.775400	0.481100
Norway	0.058600	0.067300	0.204800
Oman	0.437300	0.356700	0.432200
Pakistan	0.709800	0.719000	0.384800
Palau	0.431200	0.315700	0.714700
Panama	0.552800	0.387300	0.333800
Papua New Guinea	0.271800	0.352600	0.552300
Paraguay	0.168900	0.597500	0.212300
Peru	0.656600	0.335800	0.198800
Philippines	0.238500	0.836000	0.305600
Poland	0.118300	0.046800	0.171200
Portugal	0.046800	0.019800	0.143800
Puerto Rico	0.000000	0.035200	0.495200
Qatar	0.745600	0.480000	0.095000
Réunion	0.000000	0.157800	0.195200
Romania	0.306900	0.172300	0.237300
Russia	0.245200	0.248500	0.439800
Rwanda	0.323800	0.000000	0.506600
Saint Lucia	0.176900	0.316900	0.332000
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	0.306600	0.017500	0.702800
Western Samoa	0.137600	0.011100	0.787100
San Marino	0.292700	0.000000	0.197500
São Tomé and Príncipe	0.000000	0.232200	0.186600
Saudi Arabia	0.180000	0.094900	0.127000
Senegal	0.693900	0.708100	0.149700
Serbia	0.573600	-	-
Seychelles	0.202500	0.160600	0.232300
Sierra Leone	0.819100	0.763400	0.539500
Singapore	0.385700	0.383500	0.656100
Slovakia	0.253900	0.255100	0.565500
Slovenia	0.221600	0.220100	0.286800
Solomon Islands	0.111000	0.525400	0.670800
Somalia	0.811700	0.032600	0.002800
South Africa	0.751700	0.865200	0.860300
Spain	0.416500	0.413200	0.451400
Sri Lanka	0.415000	0.464500	0.485300
Saint Kitts and Nevis	0.184200	-	0.661400
Sudan	0.714700	0.719000	0.430700
Suriname	0.733200	0.331000	0.791000
Swaziland	0.058200	0.172200	0.444400
Sweden	0.060000	0.196800	0.234200
Switzerland	0.531400	0.544100	0.608300
Syria	0.539900	0.181700	0.431000
Taiwan	0.274400	0.502800	0.684500
Tajikistan	0.510700	0.547300	0.338600
Tanzania	0.735300	0.898300	0.633400
Thailand	0.633800	0.634400	0.099400
Togo	0.709900	0.898000	0.659600
Tonga	0.086900	0.378200	0.621400
Trinidad and Tobago	0.647500	0.125100	0.793600
Tunisia	0.039400	0.012400	0.010400
Turkey	0.320000	0.221600	0.004900
Turkmenistan	0.391800	0.398400	0.232700
Tuvalu	0.162900	0.137200	0.252400
Uganda	0.930200	0.922700	0.633200
Ukraine	0.473700	0.474100	0.615700
United Arab Emirates	0.625200	0.487400	0.331000
United Kingdom	0.121100	0.053200	0.694400
United States	0.490100	0.564700	0.824100
Uruguay	0.250400	0.081700	0.354800
Uzbekistan	0.412500	0.412000	0.213300
Vanuatu	0.041300	0.579400	0.704400
Venezuela	0.496600	0.068600	0.135000
Vietnam	0.238300	0.237700	0.508000
U.S. Virgin Islands	0.000000	0.314000	0.635900
West Bank	0.000000	0.143800	0.309500
Yemen	0.000000	0.008000	0.002300
Yugoslavia	0.809200	0.606400	0.553000
Zambia	0.780800	0.873400	0.735900
Zimbabwe	0.387400	0.447200	0.736300

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References

1 2 A. Alesina, E. Ferrara (2005). "Ethnic Diversity and Economic Performance" (PDF). Journal of Economic Literature: 762–800. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
↑ Natalka Patsiurko, John L. Campbell and John A. Hall (2012). "Measuring cultural diversity: ethnic, linguistic and religious fractionalization in the OECD" (PDF). Ethnic and Racial Studies. 35 (2): 195–217. doi:10.1080/01419870.2011.579136. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 25, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
1 2 3 James Fearon (2003). "Ethnic and Cultural Diversity by Country". Journal of Economic Growth. 8: 195–222. doi:10.1023/A:1024419522867.
1 2 3 Alberto Alesina; et al. (2003). "Fractionalization". Journal of Economic Growth. 8: 155–194. doi:10.1023/a:1024471506938.

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[alesina2-1] 1 2 A. Alesina, E. Ferrara (2005). "Ethnic Diversity and Economic Performance" (PDF). Journal of Economic Literature: 762–800. Retrieved December 15, 2016.

[natsiurko-2] Natalka Patsiurko, John L. Campbell and John A. Hall (2012). "Measuring cultural diversity: ethnic, linguistic and religious fractionalization in the OECD" (PDF). Ethnic and Racial Studies. 35 (2): 195–217. doi:10.1080/01419870.2011.579136. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 25, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.

[fearon-3] 1 2 3 James Fearon (2003). "Ethnic and Cultural Diversity by Country". Journal of Economic Growth. 8: 195–222. doi:10.1023/A:1024419522867.

[alesina1-4] 1 2 3 Alberto Alesina; et al. (2003). "Fractionalization". Journal of Economic Growth. 8: 155–194. doi:10.1023/a:1024471506938.

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v t e Lists of countries by population statistics
Global	Current population United Nations Demographics of the world
Continents/subregions	Africa Antarctica Asia Europe North America Caribbean Oceania South America
Intercontinental	Americas Arab world Commonwealth of Nations Eurasia European Union Islands Latin America Middle East
Cities/urban areas	World cities National capitals Megacities Megalopolises
Past and future	Past and future population World population estimates 1 1000 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 1939 1989 2000 2005 2010 2015 Population milestones
Population density	Current density Past and future population density Person-to-arable land ratio
Growth indicators	Population growth rate Natural increase Net reproduction rate Number of births Number of deaths Birth rate Mortality rate Fertility rate Past fertility rate
Life expectancy	world Africa Asia Europe North America Oceania South America world regions past life expectancy
Other demographics	Age at childbearing Age at first marriage Age structure Dependency ratio Divorce rate Ethnic and cultural diversity level Ethnic composition Immigrant population Linguistic diversity Median age Net migration rate Number of households Religion / Irreligion Sex ratio Urban population Urbanization
Health	Antidepressant consumption Antiviral medications for pandemic influenza HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate Infant and under-five mortality rates Maternal mortality rate Obesity rate Percentage suffering from undernourishment Health expenditure by country by type of financing Suicide rate Total health expenditure per capita Total healthcare spending as % of GDP Body mass index (BMI)
Education and innovation	Bloomberg Innovation Index Education Index Global Innovation Index International Innovation Index Literacy rate Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) Tertiary education attainment World Intellectual Property Indicators
Economic	Access to financial services Development aid donors Official Development Assistance received Employment rate Irrigated land area Human Development Index by country inequality-adjusted planetary pressures–adjusted HDI Human Poverty Index Imports Exports Income equality Labour force Share of income of top 1% Number of millionaires (US dollars) Number of billionaires (US dollars) Percentage living in poverty Public sector Unemployment rate Wealth inequality
List of international rankings Lists by country

List of countries ranked by ethnic and cultural diversity level

Contents

Methodology

List based on Fearon's analysis

Related Research Articles

References