World population milestones went unnoticed until the 19th century, since there was no reliable data on

global population In demographics, the world population is the total number of humans currently living. It was estimated by the United Nations to have exceeded 8 billion in November 2022. It took over 200,000 years of human prehistory and history for the ...

dynamics. It is estimated that the population of the world reached Old estimates put the global population at 9 billion by 2037–2046, after 8 billion and 10 billion by 2054–2071, after 9 billion, with alternative scenarios ranging from a low of 7.4 billion to a high of more than 10.6 billion by the 2050s and beyond, however these milestones are likely to be reached far sooner. * * * * * Projected figures vary depending on underlying statistical assumptions and which variables are manipulated in projection calculations, especially the fertility variable. Long-range predictions to 2150 range from a population decline to 3.2 billion in the 'low scenario', to 'high scenarios' of 24.8 billion. One scenario predicts a massive increase to 256 billion by 2150, assuming fertility remains at 1995 levels.

Global billionth milestones

There is no estimation for the exact day or month the world's population surpassed the one and two billion marks. The days of three and four billion were not officially noted, but the International Database of the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

places them in July 1960 and April 1974 respectively.

Five billion

The Day of Five Billion, 11 July 1987, was designated by the

United Nations Population Fund The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, is a UN agency aimed at improving reproductive and maternal health worldwide. Its work includes developing national healthcare strategies ...

as the approximate day on which the

world population In demographics, the world population is the total number of humans currently living. It was estimated by the United Nations to have exceeded 8 billion in November 2022. It took over 200,000 years of human prehistory and history for the ...

reached five billion. Matej Gašpar from

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

, Croatia (then

SR Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Social ...

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yug ...

), was chosen as the symbolic 5-billionth person alive on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

. The honor went to Zagreb because the

1987 Summer Universiade The 1987 Summer Universiade, also known as the XIV Summer Universiade, took place in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia. It involved participants from 111 countries and over 6,000 individual sportspersons and members of teams. Infrastructural cha ...

was taking place in the city at the time.

Six billion

The

designated 12 October 1999 as the approximate day on which the

reached six billion. It was officially designated " The Day of Six Billion". Demographers do not universally accept this date as being exact. In fact, there has been subsequent research which places the day of six billion nearer to 18 June or 19 June 1999. The International Programs division of the United States Census Bureau estimated that the world population reached six billion on 21 April 1999. United Nations Population Fund spokesman Omar Gharzeddine disputed the date of the Day of Six Billion by stating, "The U.N. marked the '6 billionth' ersonin 1999, and then a couple of years later the Population Division itself reassessed its calculations and said, actually, no, it was in 1998." On the Day of Six Billion,

UN Secretary-General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-ge ...

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (; 8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder ...

was in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina to monitor the

Dayton Agreement The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords ( Croatian: ''Daytonski sporazum'', Serbian and Bosnian: ''Dejtonski mirovni sporazum'' / Дејтонски мир� ...

. At midnight he went to Koševo Hospital, where Adnan Mević, born at 12.01 am, was named the symbolic 6 billionth concurrently alive person on

. He is the first son of Fatima Mević and Jasminko Mević and weighed 3.5 kg.World UN chief welcomes six billionth baby
/ref>

Seven billion

The "

Day of Seven Billion The Day of Seven Billion, 31 October 2011, is the day that was officially designated by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) as the approximate day on which the world's population reached seven billion people. while the Population Division of the United Nations suggested 31 October 2011, and the latter date was officially designated by the

(UNFPA) as the approximate day on which the world's population reached seven billion people.World Population Prospects, the 2008 Revision Frequently Asked Questions
Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat updated 10 November 2010. Retrieved 26 January 2011 United Nations Secretary General

Ban Ki-moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...

spoke at the United Nations building in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

on this milestone in the size of world population, and promoted the website 7 Billion Actions. Ban Ki-moon did not choose a symbolic seven billionth baby, but several groups proposed candidates: Nargis Kumar of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, Danica May Camacho of

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and Wattalage Muthumai of

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Eight billion

The "

Day of Eight Billion The Day of Eight Billion, marked at 8:00 a.m. UTC+0 on 15 November 2022, was designated by the United Nations as the approximate day when the world population reached eight billion people. It follows the Day of Seven Billion, which w ...

" was targeted by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division to be on 15 November 2022. Among babies born that day who were symbolically named as the world's eight billionth by various government agencies were: Vinice Mabansag (

Tondo, Manila Tondo is a district located in Manila, Philippines. It is the largest in terms of area and population of Manila's sixteen districts, with a Census-estimated 631,313 people in 2015 and consists of two congressional districts. It is also the seco ...

, Philippines); Damián Ferrera (

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 (Distrito Nacional) , websi ...

, Dominican Republic); and Arpi Kocharyan (

Tsovinar, Armenia Tsovinar ( hy, Ծովինար) is a village in the Gegharkunik Province of Armenia, located to the south of Lake Sevan. Toponymy The name "Tsovinar" is derived from Tsovinar, the Armenian goddess of water, sea, and rain. Historical heritag ...

National and regional population

National or subnational governments have sometimes made similar designations based on the date estimated by a demographic agency. Some national milestones relate to

citizen Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

s rather than

resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...

s. Commentators in countries with high

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

have pointed out that a population milestone may be reached by an immigrant rather than

natural increase In Demography, the rate of natural increase (RNI), also known as natural population change, is defined as the birth rate minus the death rate of a particular population, over a particular time period. It is typically expressed either as a number ...

References

{{Population

Milestones A milestone is a marker of distance along roads. Milestone may also refer to: Measurements *Milestone (project management), metaphorically, markers of reaching an identifiable stage in any task or the project *Software release life cycle state, s ...