Methods

Terms used in the record

Short definitions for fields on country pages. Linked concept pages remain the fuller views.

Population state

The current annual-change class in this release: growing, near stationary, declining, or sustained decline. It is not a forecast and is not a judgment about the country.

Current run / since

The start of the present uninterrupted spell in that state. “Since YEAR” means every later year in the qualifying series still meets the same rule. It is not the first time the series ever touched the condition.

Fertility / TFR

Period total fertility rate: the births a woman would have if current age-specific rates held through her life. It is not “the average family has X kids,” and it is not completed cohort fertility.

World population rank

Position among the 237 countries and areas in this Register, largest population first, for the displayed year.

Regional population rank

The same ordering, limited to the UN region printed on the country page. The universe is that region, not the world.

Population

De facto residents as of 1 July in the displayed year, from UN World Population Prospects 2024. Source thousands are converted to whole people for display.

Annual change

Total population change in the displayed year, including births, deaths, net migration, and WPP adjustments. A negative figure is a loss, not a global claim.

Natural change

Births minus deaths in the same year. It excludes migration.

Migrant share

International migrants as a share of population from the UN International Migrant Stock 2024 match, when one exists.

Peak population / series maximum

The year the source series reaches its highest population. A later declining or growing run can start in a different year. A 2100 figure can mean the series is still rising at the end of the release, not that a peak is established.

Deaths exceed births

Natural decrease: deaths greater than births. Public “since” uses the current run, not the first-ever year in the series.

Working-age peak

The year the 15–64 population reaches its series maximum in this release.

Support ratio

People aged 15–64 per person aged 65+. Small-population records suppress the ratio when the older count is too small to be stable.