In the year 1800, approximately five percent of the world's population lived in urban areas of 10,000 people or more. At this time, the world's population was just under one billion people, and the industrial revolution was in its early stages in Western Europe and North America. As industrialization spread across the world, urbanization rates rose accordingly. In 2021, the global urbanization rate was approximately 56 percent.
Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800
*Figures chosen for display purposes, the source gives estimate ranges as follows:
China: 3-4%
Europe: 8-9%
Eastern Europe: 4%
**The source gives separate figures for Europe, Eastern Europe, and Russia; it is unclear whether there is any overlap between these figures, but it is possible that they are separate, and the figure for Europe refers to Western Europe only. A separate source (Maddison, 2006) gives an urbanization rate of 12.3% for Western Europe in 1820.
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Brill. (December 1, 2009). Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved October 02, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/
Brill. "Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800." Chart. December 1, 2009. Statista. Accessed October 02, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/
Brill. (2009). Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: October 02, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/
Brill. "Share of The Population Living in Towns of More than 10,000 People in Selected Countries or Regions in The Year 1800." Statista, Statista Inc., 1 Dec 2009, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/
Brill, Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/ (last visited October 02, 2024)
Share of the population living in towns of more than 10,000 people in selected countries or regions in the year 1800 [Graph], Brill, December 1, 2009. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1304710/urbanization-global-1800/
