Population by Country in 1900

At the turn of the 20th century, the global population included around 1.65 billion people, as compared to the nearly 8.5 billion people of today. Here’s a closer look at which countries had the largest populations back in 1900, as well as a few factors that influenced population distribution at the time.

Highlighted Countries

China

In 1900, China was home to around 400 million people, making it by far the country with the largest population. Much of this population lived in China’s rural agricultural regions at the time. Food production, efficient distribution of resources, and similar problems were issues for China at the time due to its large population.

India

In 1900, India had a diverse population of around 287 million people living there, bringing it soundly into second place behind China. Like China and many other Asian countries at the time, India was heavily involved in agriculture.

Russia

In 1900, Russia was still part of the large, expansive Russian Empire, along with multiple other countries. The Russian Empire supported a population of over 147 million people and faced common challenges related to factors like social unrest and the advent of modernization.

United States

In 1900, the United States population was just over 76 million people strong. The turn of the 20th century was also a time of major growth for the U.S. due to factors like industrialization and ongoing immigration from other countries.

Germany

The German population in 1900 was about 56 million people. Like the United States, Germany was evolving rapidly at this time, thanks to powerful forces like industrialization.

Additional countries that were quite populous in 1900 include but are not limited to Japan, the United Kingdom, Australia, and numerous countries across Africa and Latin America.

Factors Influencing National Population in 1900

In 1900, agriculture and access to related technologies were huge contributing factors to world populations. The better the access to technology and modern techniques, the easier it was for a nation to yield enough food to support a large population. Additional examples include:

• Urbanization: Many industrialized nations underwent extensive urbanization throughout the late 18th century with many people moving from rural areas to city centers like Tokyo or New York to pursue industrial work by 1900.

• Immigration: In 1900, millions of immigrants from countries around the world journeyed to nations like the United States or Australia to pursue unique chances to start new lives.

• Fertility and Mortality: In 1900, better medical care contributed to both higher birth rates and lower death rates, fueling population growth in many countries.