📜 A long story
Austria, 1800 → today
Austria grew from 3 million in 1800 to 9.13 million; a newborn can expect 47.6 more years of life than in 1870, and output per person is 23× its 1820 level, adjusted for inflation.
Told with long-run reconstructions, not the yearly series used elsewhere on the site: each chapter names its source. Scroll to move through the years.
☺ Chapter 1 · Population
How many people live there?
1800
In 1800, about 3 million people lived in Austria.
1900
5.98 million people.
2× the 1800 level
1950
6.94 million people.
1.2× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1901.
2023
9.13 million people, the latest year in this series.
1.3× the 1950 level
Long-run series: before 1950, reconstructions by HYDE and Gapminder, filled in between benchmark years by those sources. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates.
✚ Chapter 2 · Life expectancy
How long do people live?
1870
In 1870, a newborn in Austria could expect to live 34.4 years, on average.
1901
42 years.
+7.6 years since 1870
Passed 40 years in 1901 (no data between 1891 and 1901, so it may have happened earlier).
1950
64.8 years.
+23 years since 1901
Passed 50 years in 1931 (no data between 1911 and 1931, so it may have happened earlier).
Passed 60 years in 1947 (no data between 1931 and 1947, so it may have happened earlier).
2023
82 years, the latest year in this series.
+17 years since 1950
Passed 70 years in 1964.
Passed 80 years in 2006.
Long-run series: before 1950, historical estimates (Riley, Clio Infra, Human Mortality Database), only for years they cover. Dashed stretches are years without data.
◎ Chapter 3 · GDP per person (PPP)
How much is produced per person?
1820
In 1820, Austria produced about Int$1,940 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$4,590.
2.4× the 1820 level
Reached twice the 1820 level in 1890.
1950
Int$5,910.
1.3× the 1900 level
The sharpest fall in the data: down 59% between 1941 and 1945 (Int$6,720 → Int$2,750).
2022
Int$43,800, the latest year in this series.
7.4× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1820 level in 1960.
Reached 10 times the 1820 level in 1976.
Reached 20 times the 1820 level in 2006.
Long-run series (Maddison Project) in 2011 international dollars: adjusted for inflation, so not the same unit as today’s PPP figure. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates. Dashed stretches are years without data.
❦ Chapter 4 · CO₂ per person
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
1807
In 1807, fossil fuels and industry in Austria emitted about 0.1 t of CO₂ per person.
1900
4.6 t.
86× the 1807 level
Reached twice the 1807 level in 1822.
Reached 5 times the 1807 level in 1839.
Reached 10 times the 1807 level in 1846.
Reached 20 times the 1807 level in 1857.
Reached 50 times the 1807 level in 1880.
1950
3 t.
35% lower than in 1900
The sharpest fall in the data: down 95% between 1913 and 1919 (9.3 t → 0.5 t).
2024
6.2 t, the latest year in this series.
2× the 1950 level
Long-run series: fossil CO₂ emitted within each country’s borders (Global Carbon Budget); early estimates are less certain. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates. Dashed stretches are years without data.
☕ Chapter 5 · Years of schooling
How long do people go to school?
1870
In 1870, people aged 15–64 in Austria had spent 2.3 years in school, on average.
1900
3.7 years.
+1.4 years since 1870
1950
5.9 years.
+2.2 years since 1900
Passed 4 years in 1905.
Passed 6 years in 1935.
2015
10.3 years, the latest year in this series.
+4.4 years since 1950
Passed 8 years in 1990.
Passed 10 years in 2010.
Long-run series (Lee & Lee, Barro & Lee) for people aged 15–64, every 5 years until 2015: a different age group than today’s figure (25 and older).