According to the CBS data, 43.2% of the population is secular, with 12.8% defined as “traditional,” 11.3% “religious,” and 10.1% ultra-Orthodox. Another 22.1% define themselves as “traditional but not very religious.”
Heading into the new year, Israel’s Jewish population numbers 6.74 million, or 74.2% of the total population. The Arab population numbers 1.91 million, or 21% of the population. Another 4.8%, or just over 440,000 Israelis, made aliyah under the Law of Return but are not listed as Jewish by the Interior Ministry’s Population Administration.
Since Rosh Hashanah 2018, Israel’s population grew by 184,000 (2.1%), a growth rate that has remained fairly stable in recent years. This past year also saw an all-time high birth rate for Israel, with 196,000 babies born. The average Israeli woman gives birth to 3.09 children.
According to the numbers, Israel also has one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world, approximately 3 out of every 1,000 births.
A total of 45,000 Israelis died this year. Women live longer, on average, than men, with the average life expectancy for women in Israel reaching 84.8, compared to 80.9 for men. The most common cause of death in Israel? Cancer: This past year, 25.2% of Israelis who died succumbed to the disease. Heart disease, which claimed 14.8% of Israeli deaths this past year, was the second-most common cause of death.
The CBS listed 2,587,100 households and families in Israel, with an average number of 3.28 members. Some 2 million households are defined as “traditional” families (a mother, a father, and children), while the rest are made up of unmarried partners (including same-sex couples).