📜 A long story
Colombia, 1800 → today
Colombia grew from 1.21 million in 1800 to 52.3 million; a newborn can expect 48.7 more years of life than in 1900, and output per person is 15× 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 1.21 million people lived in Colombia.
1900
4.04 million people.
3.3× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1856.
1950
11.8 million people.
2.9× the 1900 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1919.
2023
52.3 million people, the latest year in this series.
4.4× the 1950 level
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 1951.
Reached 20 times the 1800 level in 1977.
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 Colombia could expect to live 29 years, on average.
1950
48.3 years.
+19 years since 1900
Passed 40 years in 1944 (no data between 1940 and 1944, so it may have happened earlier).
2023
77.7 years, the latest year in this series.
+29 years since 1950
Passed 50 years in 1953.
Passed 60 years in 1967.
Passed 70 years in 1996.
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, Colombia produced about Int$942 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$1,090.
1.2× the 1800 level
1950
Int$3,430.
3.1× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1923.
2022
Int$14,500, the latest year in this series.
4.2× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1969.
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 2005.
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 Colombia emitted about 0.004 t of CO₂ per person.
1900
0.023 t.
5.7× the 1856 level
Reached twice the 1856 level in 1862.
Reached 5 times the 1856 level in 1866.
Reached 10 times the 1856 level in 1871.
Reached 20 times the 1856 level in 1886.
1950
0.6 t.
27× the 1900 level
Reached 50 times the 1856 level in 1935.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 91% between 1902 and 1910 (0.032 t → 0.0029 t).
2024
1.8 t, the latest year in this series.
2.8× 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.
☕ Chapter 5 · Years of schooling
How long do people go to school?
1870
In 1870, people aged 15–64 in Colombia had spent 0.3 years in school, on average.
1900
0.9 years.
+0.53 years since 1870
1950
2.4 years.
+1.5 years since 1900
Passed 2 years in 1925.
2015
9.8 years, the latest year in this series.
+7.4 years since 1950
Passed 4 years in 1975.
Passed 6 years in 1990.
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).