📜 A long story
Netherlands, 1800 → today
The Netherlands grew from 2 million in 1800 to 18.1 million; a newborn can expect 42.4 more years of life than in 1850, and output per person is 12× 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 million people lived in the Netherlands.
1900
5.14 million people.
2.6× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1880.
1950
10.1 million people.
2× the 1900 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1950.
2023
18.1 million people, the latest year in this series.
1.8× 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?
1850
In 1850, a newborn in the Netherlands could expect to live 39.8 years, on average.
1900
48.5 years.
+8.7 years since 1850
Passed 40 years in 1851.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 9.2 years between 1851 and 1859 (40.1 years → 30.9 years).
1950
71.4 years.
+23 years since 1900
Passed 50 years in 1902.
Passed 60 years in 1923.
Passed 70 years in 1948.
2023
82.2 years, the latest year in this series.
+11 years since 1950
Passed 80 years in 2007.
Long-run series: before 1950, historical estimates (Riley, Clio Infra, Human Mortality Database), only for years they cover.
◎ Chapter 3 · GDP per person (PPP)
How much is produced per person?
1800
In 1800, the Netherlands produced about Int$4,180 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$5,310.
1.3× the 1800 level
1950
Int$9,560.
1.8× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1926.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 52% between 1939 and 1944 (Int$8,840 → Int$4,220).
2022
Int$49,700, the latest year in this series.
5.2× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1973.
Reached 10 times the 1800 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?
1846
In 1846, fossil fuels and industry in the Netherlands emitted about 1 t of CO₂ per person.
1900
2.9 t.
3× the 1846 level
Reached twice the 1846 level in 1880.
1950
5.1 t.
1.8× the 1900 level
Reached 5 times the 1846 level in 1927.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 70% between 1913 and 1917 (4.5 t → 1.3 t).
2024
6.3 t, the latest year in this series.
1.2× the 1950 level
Reached 10 times the 1846 level in 1970.
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 the Netherlands had spent 2.9 years in school, on average.
1900
3.5 years.
+0.52 years since 1870
1950
6.1 years.
+2.7 years since 1900
Passed 4 years in 1920.
Passed 6 years in 1950.
2015
11.7 years, the latest year in this series.
+5.6 years since 1950
Passed 8 years in 1970.
Passed 10 years in 1985.
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).