Population, long-run history: compare countries

See Population, long-run history for up to four countries side by side.

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Population, long-run history by country

Annual, Persons, thousands

Source: Maddison Project Database 2023

Population, long-run history: latest observations by country
Date	United States	Germany	South Africa	Syria
Dec 31, 1999	279,040	81,439	46,257	15,930
Dec 31, 2000	282,162	81,474	46,958	16,329
Dec 31, 2001	284,969	81,534	47,820	16,730
Dec 31, 2002	287,625	81,595	48,480	17,132
Dec 31, 2003	290,108	81,566	48,951	17,534
Dec 31, 2004	292,805	81,473	49,478	17,942
Dec 31, 2005	295,517	81,354	50,054	18,423
Dec 31, 2006	298,380	81,190	50,667	19,252
Dec 31, 2007	301,231	81,009	51,339	20,493
Dec 31, 2008	304,094	80,781	52,077	21,221
Dec 31, 2009	306,772	80,500	52,862	21,542
Dec 31, 2010	309,327	80,301	53,682	22,050
Dec 31, 2011	311,583	80,292	54,518	22,458
Dec 31, 2012	313,878	80,443	55,356	22,258
Dec 31, 2013	316,060	80,663	56,215	20,901
Dec 31, 2014	318,386	81,000	57,075	19,318
Dec 31, 2015	320,739	81,704	57,947	18,272
Dec 31, 2016	323,072	82,366	58,830	17,669
Dec 31, 2017	325,122	82,674	59,715	17,327
Dec 31, 2018	326,838	82,923	60,595	17,601
Dec 31, 2019	328,330	83,110	61,469	18,440
Dec 31, 2020	331,512	83,178	62,355	19,241
Dec 31, 2021	332,032	83,213	62,900	20,226
Dec 31, 2022	333,288	83,811	63,382	20,985

Source: Bolt, J. and van Zanden, J.L. (2024), Maddison style estimates of the evolution of the world economy: A new 2023 update, Journal of Economic Surveys, 1-41, DOI 10.1111/joes.12618. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. The original sources are listed on each page.

All data sources

Original sources of these estimates

GDP pc: 2008 - 2022: Total Economy Database the Conference Board for all countries included in TED. Otherwise UN national accounts statistics

United States

1650 - 1790: McCusker, John J., ‘Colonial Statistics’, Historical Statistics of the United States: Earliest Time to the Present, in S. B. Carter, S. S. Gartner, M. R. Haineset al. New York, Cambridge University Press. V-671.
1790 - 1870: Sutch, R. (2006). National Income and Product. Historical Statistics of the United States: Earliest Time to the Present, in S. B. Carter, S. S. Gartner, M. R. Haineset al. New York, Cambridge University Press III-23-25.
1800-1830: Prados de la Escosura, L. (2009). “Lost Decades? Economic Performance in Post-Independence Latin America,” Journal of Latin America Studies 41: 279–307. (updated data)
1820-1950: GDP movement from Maddison (1995a), amended for 1820–70 to include income of the indigenous population (taken to be $400 per capita in 1820 and 1870).

Germany

1500-1850: Pfister, U. (2022). Economic Growth in Germany, 1500–1850. The Journal of Economic History, 82(4), 1071–1107
1850-1950: Hoffmann, Grumbach and Hesse, op. cit., pp. 454-5.

South Africa

1700–1900 (Cape Colony): Fourie, J. and Van Zanden, J.L. (2013). GDP in the Dutch Cape Colony: the Nationals Accounts of a Slave-Based Society, South African Journal of Economics, vol. 81 (4): 467 - 490

Syria

1820, 1870, 1913, 1950: Pamuk, S. (2006), Estimating Economic Growth in the Middle East since 1820, The Journal of Economic History, vol 66, no. 3, pp. 809 - 828