📜 A long story
China, 1800 → today
China grew from 330 million in 1800 to 1.42 billion; a newborn can expect 46 more years of life than in 1930, and output per person is 21× 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 330 million people lived in China.
1900
396 million people.
1.2× the 1800 level
1950
544 million people.
1.4× the 1900 level
2023
1.42 billion people, the latest year in this series.
2.6× the 1950 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1962.
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?
1930
In 1930, a newborn in China could expect to live 32 years, on average.
1950
43.8 years.
+12 years since 1930
Passed 40 years in 1949 (no data between 1942 and 1949, so it may have happened earlier).
2023
78 years, the latest year in this series.
+34 years since 1950
Passed 50 years in 1962.
Passed 60 years in 1974.
Passed 70 years in 1995.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 15 years between 1958 and 1960 (48.8 years → 33.4 years).
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, China produced about Int$926 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$972.
about the same as in 1800
1950
Int$799.
18% lower than in 1900
2022
Int$19,200, the latest year in this series.
24× the 1950 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1979.
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 2000.
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 2010.
Reached 20 times the 1800 level in 2021.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 27% between 1957 and 1961 (Int$1,200 → Int$874).
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?
1907
In 1907, fossil fuels and industry in China emitted about 0.048 t of CO₂ per person.
1950
0.1 t.
3× the 1907 level
Reached twice the 1907 level in 1923.
Reached 5 times the 1907 level in 1942.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 72% between 1942 and 1946 (0.2 t → 0.1 t).
2024
8.7 t, the latest year in this series.
60× the 1950 level
Reached 10 times the 1907 level in 1958.
Reached 20 times the 1907 level in 1959.
Reached 50 times the 1907 level in 1993.
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 China had spent 0.01 years in school, on average.
1900
0.02 years.
about the same as 1870
1950
1.8 years.
+1.8 years since 1900
2015
8.5 years, the latest year in this series.
+6.7 years since 1950
Passed 2 years in 1955.
Passed 4 years in 1970.
Passed 6 years in 1985.
Passed 8 years in 2005.
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).