World Population

World population

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Jump to:navigation, search Population density(people per km²) by country, 2006Population by region as a percentage of world population (1750–2005)The term

world population

commonly refers to the total number of livinghumansonEarthat a given time. As of 9 July 2009 (UTC), the Earth's populationis estimated by the United States Census Bureauto be 6.77 billion.

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The world population has been growingcontinuously since the end of theBlack Deatharound 1400.

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There were also short termfalls at other times due to plague, for example in the mid 17th century.

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Thefastest rates of world population growth(above 1.8%) were seen briefly during the 1950sthen for a longer period during the 1960s and 1970s (seegraph

). According to population projections, world population will continue togrowuntil around 2050. The 2008 rate of growth has almost halved since its peak of 2.2% per year, which was reached in 1963.World births have levelled off at about 134-million-per-year, since their peak at 163-million in the late 1990s, and are expected to remain constant. However, deaths are onlyaround 57 million per year, and are expected to increase to 90 million by the year 2050.Since births outnumber deaths, the world's population is expected to reachabout 9 billion by the year 2040.

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Contents

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2.3 Years for Population to Double

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3 Distribution

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4 The world's most populous nations

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5 Ethnicity

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6 Demographics of youth

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7 Forecast

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8 Predictions based on population growth

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9 Number of humans who have ever lived

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[edit] Population figures

A dramatic population bottleneck is theorized for the period around 70,000 BCE(see Toba catastrophe theory). After this time and until the development of agriculture, it isestimated that the world population stabilized at about one million people whosesubsistence entailed hunting and foraging, a lifestyle that by its nature ensured a low population density. It is estimated that over 55 million people lived in the combinedeastern and western Roman Empire(300–400 AD).

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ThePlague of Justinian caused Europe's populationto drop by around 50% between 541 and the 700s.

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TheBlack Death pandemic in the 14th century may have reduced the world's population from an estimated 450 million to between 350 and 375 million in 1400.

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At the founding of the Ming dynasty in 1368,China's population was reported to be closeto 60 million, and toward the end of the dynasty in 1644 it might have approached 150million.

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New crops that had come to Asia from the Americas via the Spanish colonizersin the 16th century contributed to the population growth.

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Encounters between Europeanexplorers and populations in the rest of the world often introduced local epidemics of extraordinary virulence. Archaeological evidence indicates that the death of 90 to 95% of the Native American populationof the New Worldwas caused byOld World diseases such as smallpox, measles, and influenza.

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Over the centuries, the Europeans haddeveloped high degrees of immunity to these diseases, while the indigenous peoples hadno such immunity.

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During theAgricultural andIndustrial Revolutions, thelife expectancy of children increased dramatically.

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The percentage of the children born in London who died beforethe age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730-1749 to 31.8% in 1810-1829.

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Europe’s