The highest density in Spain
With more than 2.1 million inhabitants, the Canary Islands represent "only" 4.51% of the Spanish population, but at the same time, the Canary Islands occupy "only" 1.5% of the Spanish territory. And it is this limited space that is the first characteristic of the structuring of its population: an archipelago subject to a high density of just over 283 inhabitants per km², about three times higher than the national average. Most of the population is concentrated in the two islands with provincial capitals, Tenerife and Gran Canaria. These have always been the most populated, as they have benefited from inter-island immigration, from the smaller islands to the larger ones, and nowadays they account for more than 80% of the total population of the archipelago (almost 43% for Tenerife and 40% for Gran Canaria). In 2021 Tenerife had more than 972,000 inhabitants, Gran Canaria more than 853,000, Lanzarote more than 152,000, Fuerteventura more than 122,000, La Palma 86,800, La Gomera more than 22,000 and El Hierro more than 11,000. And that same year, the city of Las Palmas reached the largest number of inhabitants (over 378,000), followed by Santa Cruz de Tenerife (over 208,000). In terms of birth rate and population pyramid, things have changed a lot in recent decades. The strong population growth of the 1960s led in the 1980s to a rather young population pyramid, in which 50% of the population did not reach the age of 30. This situation is very different today. While 25 years ago the Canary Islands had the second highest fertility rate in Spain, the archipelago now has an average rate of 0.97 children per woman. This decline is explained, as in Spain, by the delay in the age of first child, the economic crisis and the lack of real family policies. Like the rest of Spain, the Canary Islands see a future marked by the aging of the population, especially in the westernmost islands: La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro, also considered the poorest islands of the archipelago.
Emigration and immigration
They are part of the DNA of the Canary Islands, which boast a culture that bears the trace of multiple foreign influences. Historically, three main types of contributions can be distinguished. The Guanche aboriginal culture, which although fought against by the Spanish conquerors, has left its mark in crafts, sports (Canarian wrestling), festivals (Virgen de la Candelaría or Rama de Agaete), cuisine ( gofio) and the way places, fauna and flora are named. The European influence was mainly Spanish, especially Andalusian and Galician, and Portuguese, and to a lesser extent Italian, Belgian, British and French. It is found in the folkloric dances and music using the timple and acclimatizing the Andalusian seguidillas or malagueñas, in the architecture and, of course, in the fiestas or romerías, which became signs of the "canariedad". Finally, Latin American culture, especially Cuban and Venezuelan, has influenced the language, the cuisine, giving the famous "papas arrugadas" and the musical folklore, integrating musical rhythms such as the bolero into its repertoire. Today, the Canary archipelago records an annual average of 50,000 new residents. They are divided into three groups. More than half of them come from the Iberian Peninsula, attracted to the Canary Islands by the job opportunities in tourism and construction. The second group is made up of northern Europeans, mainly Germans and British, who aspire to live in a sunnier environment. Some work in tourism, others retire there. Finally, North Africans, sub-Saharan Africans and Eastern Europeans make up the third, more invisible and less easily quantifiable pole of immigration. The record figure of 36,000 arrivals in 2006 via illegal immigration from pateras has officially fallen to an average of 3,000 per year. Although Spain is now one of the major entry points for immigration into Europe, it is now the Mediterranean route that is most frequented.
Intonations and whistle
Canary Islanders speak Spanish with a much more lilting accent than that of the peninsula, adopting the rapid rhythm of the Andalusians and sometimes recalling that of South America. As in these accents, the "s" is almost elided and replaced by an aspiration ([h]), almost imperceptible, especially at the end of the word. Thus you will not say muchas gracias but mucha gracia and prefer buena tarde to the usual buenas tardes. In Tenerife, you will hear about the village of Mahca, while reading Masca on the map. The "g" is also weakly pronounced, especially in front of a "u". And although it is less noticeable, vowels are also sometimes pronounced differently, with close vowels (o and u, e and i) often being confused. Another discreet but real heritage is that of the Guanches, who passed on to the conquistadores a vocabulary related to goat breeding ("goat" is said baifo and not cabrito) or to other agricultural activities (a goro is a stone enclosure), to the designation of an animal (the perenquén is the characteristic lizard of Gran Canaria) or to a local plant, the tabaiba. Note that some archaic Castilian expressions are still used: "the day before yesterday" is said antier and not antes de ayer), as well as words with other meanings(luz meaning light, but also electricity). Finally, you may have the opportunity to hear the silbo, a whistled language specific to La Gomera, but also practiced in El Hierro, the only pre-Hispanic language preserved, but now adapted to the Spanish language (26 sounds of Castilian in 6 sounds of silbo, with multiple variations). Integrated into schooling since 1999, it was included in 2009 in the Intangible Heritage of UNESCO and would be practiced by about 22,000 people. In 2019, it was honored at the Cannes Film Festival with the presentation of the film La Gomera directed by Corneliu Borumboiu, which presents its learning and new uses.
