📜 A long story
Singapore, 1800 → today
Singapore grew from 30,000 in 1800 to 5.79 million; a newborn can expect 29.6 more years of life than in 1950, and output per person is 57× its 1870 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 30,000 people lived in Singapore.
1900
212,200 people.
7.1× the 1800 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1854.
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1889.
1950
1.01 million people.
4.8× the 1900 level
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 1909.
Reached 20 times the 1800 level in 1932.
2023
5.79 million people, the latest year in this series.
5.7× the 1950 level
Reached 50 times the 1800 level in 1958.
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?
1950
In 1950, a newborn in Singapore could expect to live 54.1 years, on average.
2023
83.7 years, the latest year in this series.
+30 years since 1950
Passed 60 years in 1955.
Passed 70 years in 1975.
Passed 80 years in 2005.
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?
1870
In 1870, Singapore produced about Int$1,420 per person, in 2011 prices.
1900
Int$2,210.
1.6× the 1870 level
1950
Int$3,570.
1.6× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1870 level in 1922.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 41% between 1929 and 1932 (Int$3,320 → Int$1,950).
2022
Int$80,300, the latest year in this series.
22× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1870 level in 1971.
Reached 10 times the 1870 level in 1981.
Reached 20 times the 1870 level in 1994.
Reached 50 times the 1870 level in 2017.
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?
1950
In 1950, fossil fuels and industry in Singapore emitted about 1.9 t of CO₂ per person.
2024
9.2 t, the latest year in this series.
4.9× the 1950 level
Reached twice the 1950 level in 1970.
Reached 5 times the 1950 level in 1972.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 87% between 1964 and 1966 (2 t → 0.3 t).
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.