Gabon has a population (2001 estimate) of 1,221,175. The overall population density is 5 persons per sq km.Some 54 % of the people live in urban areas. Much of the nation’s interior is uncolonised.

All of Gabon's 40 or so ethnic groups, except the few thousand Pygmies, speak Bantu languages and, on that basis, can be classified into 10 larger groups.The Myene group,though only a small part of the population today, has played an valuable role in the history of the nation as a result of its location along the northern coasts. The Fang, who belong to the larger Ewondo or Pahouin group also found in southern Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, account for one-third of the population; they live north of the Ogooué River. The largest groups south of the Ogooué are the Sira,the Nzebi and the Mbete; these groups together form close to half the population. Less numerous peoples include the Benga and Seke in the far northwest, the Kota and Teke in the east,and the Vili along the far southern coast.