Meaning and Usage
"人口" (じんこう) means "population" and is commonly used to talk about the number of people living in a city, town, country, or region. It is a noun and appears frequently in news, statistics, and everyday conversation about demographics.
Common Contexts
You will often hear "人口" when discussing topics like population size, growth, decline, or density. For example, "人口が増える" means "the population increases," and "人口密度" means "population density."
Collocations and Patterns
- 人口が多い: to have a large population
- 人口が少ない: to have a small population
- 人口密度: population density
- 人口減少: population decline
- 人口増加: population increase
These collocations are useful for discussing social and economic issues.
Register and Nuance
"人口" is a neutral, formal word suitable for both spoken and written Japanese. It is often used in news reports, academic contexts, and formal discussions.
Common Mistakes
Learners sometimes confuse "人口" with "人口" (the same kanji but read differently in other contexts) or with "人" (person). Remember "人口" specifically refers to the number of people in a place, not an individual person.