Demographics

The city proper (Comune di Milano) has a population of 1,303,437 inhabitants (2006). Between 1991 to 2001, the city proper has lost 113,084 inhabitants (8.3 percent) mostly due to suburban sprawl and expulsion of population from the inner city centre, which is now almost fully dedicated to offices and commerce. The population of the urban area, that coincides with the Province of Milan, is estimated as of 2006 to be 3,884,481. Finally, the official population of the Milan Metropolitan area counts over 7.4 millions residents, the largest in Italy. As of 2006, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 292,204 foreign-born immigrants live in Milan Urban Area, equal to 7.6% of total population.