📜 A long story
Finland, 1800 → today
Finland grew from 800,000 in 1800 to 5.6 million; a newborn can expect 50.1 more years of life than in 1805, and output per person is 34× 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 800,000 people lived in Finland.
1900
2.64 million people.
3.3× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1849.
1950
4.01 million people.
1.5× the 1900 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1950.
2023
5.6 million people, the latest year in this series.
1.4× 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?
1805
In 1805, a newborn in Finland could expect to live 31.8 years, on average.
1900
41.8 years.
+10 years since 1805
Passed 40 years in 1845 (no data between 1835 and 1845, so it may have happened earlier).
1950
64.2 years.
+22 years since 1900
Passed 50 years in 1921.
Passed 60 years in 1946.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 17 years between 1914 and 1918 (49.7 years → 32.9 years).
2023
81.9 years, the latest year in this series.
+18 years since 1950
Passed 70 years in 1970.
Passed 80 years in 2010.
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, Finland produced about Int$1,210 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$2,660.
2.2× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1896.
1950
Int$6,780.
2.5× the 1900 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1948.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 35% between 1913 and 1918 (Int$3,370 → Int$2,180).
2022
Int$40,700, the latest year in this series.
6× the 1950 level
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 1965.
Reached 20 times the 1800 level in 1987.
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?
1860
In 1860, fossil fuels and industry in Finland emitted about 0.021 t of CO₂ per person.
1900
0.2 t.
11× the 1860 level
Reached twice the 1860 level in 1863.
Reached 5 times the 1860 level in 1896.
Reached 10 times the 1860 level in 1899.
1950
1.6 t.
7.2× the 1900 level
Reached 20 times the 1860 level in 1908.
Reached 50 times the 1860 level in 1934.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 96% between 1913 and 1918 (0.6 t → 0.024 t).
2024
5.3 t, the latest year in this series.
3.3× 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 Finland had spent 0.1 years in school, on average.
1900
1.2 years.
+1 years since 1870
1950
3.9 years.
+2.8 years since 1900
Passed 2 years in 1920.
2015
10.9 years, the latest year in this series.
+7 years since 1950
Passed 4 years in 1955.
Passed 6 years in 1975.
Passed 8 years in 1980.
Passed 10 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).