Archive

This web page provides access to statistical and analytical reports in electronic format (PDF) that have been published over the past three decades by the United Nations Population Division on urban and rural populations and the demography of selected urban agglomerations around the world. Of course, these historical reports cannot provide information on the most recent trends in urbanization; but they may be useful as background material for the estimates and projections published in the current World Urbanization Prospects.

Studies on Urbanization and the Methodology of Urban and Rural Population Projections

1969	Growth of the World's Urban and Rural Population, 1920-2000
1974	Manual VIII - Methods for Projections of Urban and Rural Population
1977	Orders of Magnitude of the World's Urban Population in History
1980	Patterns of Urban and Rural Population Growth
1995	The Challenge of Urbanization: The World's Large Cities
2001	The Components of Urban Growth in Developing Countries

Reports on Population Growth and Policies in Mega-Cities

1986	Bombay
1986	Calcutta
1986	Manila
1986	Seoul
1986	Bangkok
1987	Dhaka
1987	Madras
1988	Karachi
1988	Jakarta
1990	Cairo
1993	São Paulo

Note: * Names of cities and urban agglomerations in the titles of the reports have not been updated according to current official names. They refer to the name of the city or urban agglomeration at the time when the report was published.

Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. New York.

Disclaimer: This web site contains data tables, figures, maps, analyses and technical notes from the 2018 Revision of the World Urbanization Prospects. These documents do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.