📜 A long story
Brazil, 1800 → today
Brazil grew from 2.5 million in 1800 to 211 million; a newborn can expect 46.8 more years of life than in 1900, and output per person is 17× its 1800 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 2.5 million people lived in Brazil.
1900
18.1 million people.
7.2× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1827.
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1883.
1950
53.4 million people.
3× the 1900 level
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 1916.
Reached 20 times the 1800 level in 1948.
2023
211 million people, the latest year in this series.
4× the 1950 level
Reached 50 times the 1800 level in 1982.
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?
1900
In 1900, a newborn in Brazil could expect to live 29 years, on average.
1950
48.5 years.
+20 years since 1900
Passed 40 years in 1945 (no data between 1940 and 1945, so it may have happened earlier).
2023
75.8 years, the latest year in this series.
+27 years since 1950
Passed 50 years in 1953.
Passed 60 years in 1976.
Passed 70 years in 2001.
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?
1800
In 1800, Brazil produced about Int$867 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$874.
about the same as in 1800
The sharpest fall in the data: down 26% between 1891 and 1893 (Int$1,150 → Int$850).
1950
Int$2,240.
2.6× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1943.
2022
Int$14,600, the latest year in this series.
6.5× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1970.
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 1995.
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?
1856
In 1856, fossil fuels and industry in Brazil emitted about 0.029 t of CO₂ per person.
1900
0.1 t.
4.4× the 1856 level
Reached twice the 1856 level in 1865.
Reached 5 times the 1856 level in 1894.
1950
0.4 t.
2.9× the 1900 level
Reached 10 times the 1856 level in 1950.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 61% between 1913 and 1918 (0.3 t → 0.1 t).
2024
2.3 t, the latest year in this series.
6.2× the 1950 level
Reached 20 times the 1856 level in 1958.
Reached 50 times the 1856 level in 1977.
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.
☕ Chapter 5 · Years of schooling
How long do people go to school?
1870
In 1870, people aged 15–64 in Brazil had spent 0.1 years in school, on average.
1900
0.6 years.
+0.42 years since 1870
1950
2.1 years.
+1.5 years since 1900
Passed 2 years in 1950.
2015
7.7 years, the latest year in this series.
+5.6 years since 1950
Passed 4 years in 1985.
Passed 6 years in 2000.
Passed 8 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).