Population Change In Europe vs Arab World 1990-2022

Map created by @mmjukicThe map above displays total population change from 1990 to 2022 across various European and Arab countries.

The colors represent different rates of population growth or decline, with green shades indicating growth and red shades indicating decline.

Significant Growth in the Arab World:
- Countries in the Arab world, such as Iraq (+151.4%), Saudi Arabia (+127.5%), and Egypt (+94.1%), have seen substantial population increases.
- Interestingly, Israel’s population also more than doubled during this time.
Population Decline in Eastern Europe:
- Eastern European countries like Ukraine (-28.9%), Bosnia (-28.9%), Latvia (-28.6%) and Bulgaria (-25.3%) have seen drastic population decreases. This decline is common across many post-Soviet and Balkan states, which often face emigration, low birth rates, and aging populations.
Moderate Growth in Western and Northern Europe:
- Western European countries like the UK (+16.9%), France (+17.1%), and Spain (+22.4%) show moderate population growth, driven by a mix of migration and stable birth rates.
- Scandinavian countries, such as Norway (+31%) and Sweden (+22.1%), have also seen population increases.
- Finally the small countries of Iceland (+52%), Ireland (+45.7%) and Switzerland (+31.3%) have seen the largest increase in Western and Northern Europe due to their extremely strong economies during this time.
Outliers:
- Portugal (+4%) and Italy (+3.9%) have shown minimal growth compared to their Western European counterparts, which could indicate aging populations and lower immigration levels.
- Russia has a minor population decrease of -3%, though it is still notable given its large population base.

While much of Europe, especially in the east, faces population decline, the Arab world shows strong growth, which can be attributed to higher fertility rates, younger populations, and regional migration.