Arctic CircleTropic of CancerEquatorTropic of CapricornAntarctic CircleGreat
LakesLake
TiticacaS O U
T H
PACIFIC
OCEAN
ATLANTIC
OCEAN
ARCTIC
OCEANNew YorkChicagoLos AngelesMexico CityBogotáLimaRio de JaneiroSão PauloBuenos AiresSantiagoPhiladelphiaMiamiBelo HorizontePeople have lived on Earth for two million years. For
most of that time, the population has remained small,
as the number of births has roughly equalled the
number of deaths. Improved medicine and health care,
better sanitation, improved farming methods producing
more and better food, and less physical work have all
led to fewer infant deaths and more people living
longer. This has caused a massive increase
in population over the last 150 years.
Today, the world’s population is nearly
7 billion, and is rising at the rate
of about one million a week.
Top five biggest cities and
populations:
Tokyo, Japan 33.8 million
Seoul, South Korea
23.9 million
Mexico City, Mexico
22.9 million
New Delhi, India 22.4 million
Mumbai, India 22.3 million
Country with smallest population:
Vatican City 826
Most densely populated country:
Monaco
16,477 people per sq km
(42,840 people per sq mile)
Least densely populated country:
Greenland
0.026 people per sq km
(0.067 people per sq mile)
Country with highest birth rate:
Niger
52 per 1,000 population
Country with lowest birth rate:
Japan
7 per 1,000 population
Country with highest death rate:
Swaziland
31 per 1,000 population
Country with lowest death rate:
United Arab Emirates
2 per 1,000 population
Country with the highest
life expectancy:
Andorra (83)
Countries with the lowest
life expectancy:
Swaziland (32)
Richest country (highest GNP*):
United States $10,207 billion
Poorest country (lowest GNP*):
Tuvalu US$21 million*GNP = Gross National ProductWORLD POPULATION 3
The world’s 6.9 billion
people are not evenly
distributed around the
planet, but concentrated
in areas where the
climate is suitable and
the land habitable.
This concentration of
people is measured
by population
density, which is the
average number of
people living in each
square kilometre.Population
4 SOWETO TOWNSHIP, SOUTH AFRICA
An estimated two million people live in Soweto. Originally little more
than tin shacks for mine workers, better suburbs have gradually grown,
but overcrowding, poverty, and crime are still major problems.POPULATION1 MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY
A busy street in a large European city, such as Amsterdam in the
Netherlands, shows just how multiracial most cities and countries now
are. Immigration, international travel, trade, and tourism have all
contributed to this great change.