The earliest point where scientists can make reasonable estimates for the population of global regions is around 10,000 years before the Common Era (or 12,000 years ago). Estimates suggest that Asia has consistently been the most populated continent, and the least populated continent has generally been Oceania (although it was more heavily populated than areas such as North America in very early years). Population growth was very slow, but an increase can be observed between most of the given time periods. There were, however, dips in population due to pandemics, the most notable of these being the impact of plague in Eurasia in the 14th century, and the impact of European contact with the indigenous populations of the Americas after 1492, where it took almost four centuries for the population of Latin America to return to its pre-1500 level. The world's population first reached one billion people in 1803, which also coincided with a spike in population growth, due to the onset of the demographic transition. This wave of growth first spread across the most industrially developed countries in the 19th century, and the correlation between demographic development and industrial or economic maturity continued until today, with Africa being the final major region to begin its transition in the late-1900s.
Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE
(in 1,000s)
*Data beyond 2000CE is inconsistent as the studies use different geographical boundaries.
**Commonwealth of Independent States: the former-Soviet states of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia (withdrew in 2008), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Does not include the former-Soviet states of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Turkmenistan, or Ukraine.
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History Database of the Global Environment. (December 31, 2007). Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE (in 1,000s) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 08, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/
History Database of the Global Environment. "Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE (in 1,000s)." Chart. December 31, 2007. Statista. Accessed December 08, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/
History Database of the Global Environment. (2007). Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE (in 1,000s). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 08, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/
History Database of the Global Environment. "Estimated Population of Each Continent from 10,000bce to 2000ce (in 1,000s)." Statista, Statista Inc., 31 Dec 2007, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/
History Database of the Global Environment, Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE (in 1,000s) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/ (last visited December 08, 2024)
Estimated population of each continent from 10,000BCE to 2000CE (in 1,000s) [Graph], History Database of the Global Environment, December 31, 2007. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1006557/global-population-per-continent-10000bce-2000ce/