Myanmar - Population in largest city

The value for Population in largest city in Myanmar was 5,421,806 as of 2021. As the graph below shows, over the past 61 years this indicator reached a maximum value of 5,421,806 in 2021 and a minimum value of 1,591,991 in 1960.

Definition: Population in largest city is the urban population living in the country's largest metropolitan area.

Source: United Nations, World Urbanization Prospects.

See also:

Year Value
1960 1,591,991
1961 1,624,220
1962 1,657,148
1963 1,690,743
1964 1,725,067
1965 1,759,991
1966 1,795,671
1967 1,832,074
1968 1,869,267
1969 1,907,110
1970 1,945,773
1971 1,985,219
1972 2,025,522
1973 2,066,526
1974 2,108,415
1975 2,151,153
1976 2,194,819
1977 2,239,246
1978 2,284,636
1979 2,330,946
1980 2,378,261
1981 2,426,402
1982 2,475,586
1983 2,525,975
1984 2,578,093
1985 2,631,138
1986 2,685,351
1987 2,740,680
1988 2,797,228
1989 2,854,783
1990 2,913,603
1991 2,973,636
1992 3,034,990
1993 3,097,437
1994 3,161,257
1995 3,226,392
1996 3,292,962
1997 3,360,716
1998 3,429,961
1999 3,500,632
2000 3,572,860
2001 3,646,374
2002 3,721,504
2003 3,798,183
2004 3,876,550
2005 3,956,312
2006 4,037,829
2007 4,121,025
2008 4,206,054
2009 4,292,595
2010 4,381,041
2011 4,471,308
2012 4,563,564
2013 4,657,462
2014 4,753,425
2015 4,851,365
2016 4,951,323
2017 5,053,341
2018 5,157,461
2019 5,243,989
2020 5,331,800
2021 5,421,806

Development Relevance: A metropolitan area includes the urban area, and its satellite cities plus intervening rural land that is socio-economically connected to the urban core city, typically by employment ties through commuting, with the urban core city being the primary labor market. According to the United Nations' definition, a metropolitan area includes both the contiguous territory inhabited at urban levels of residential density and additional surrounding areas of lower settlement density that are also under the direct influence of the city (e.g., through frequent transport, road linkages, commuting facilities etc.). Explosive growth of cities globally signifies the demographic transition from rural to urban, and is associated with shifts from an agriculture-based economy to mass industry, technology, and service. For the first time ever, the majority of the world's population lives in a city, and this proportion continues to grow. One hundred years ago, 2 out of every 10 people lived in an urban area. By 1990, less than 40 percent of the global population lived in a city, but as of early 2010s, more than half of all people live in an urban area. By 2030, 6 out of every 10 people will live in a city, and by 2050, this proportion will increase to 7 out of 10 people. About half of all urban dwellers live in cities with between 100,000-500,000 people, and fewer than 10% of urban dwellers live in megacities (a city with a population of more than 10 million, as defined by UN HABITAT). Currently, the number of urban residents is growing by nearly 60 million every year. By the middle of the 21st century, the urban population will almost double, reaching 6.4 billion in 2050. Almost all urban population growth in the next 30 years will occur in cities of developing countries. By the middle of the 21st century, it is estimated that the urban population of developing counties will more than double, reaching almost 5.2 billion in 2050. In high-income countries, the urban population is expected to remain largely unchanged over the next two decades, reaching to just over 1 billion by 2025. In these countries, immigration (legal and illegal) will account for more than two-thirds of urban growth. Without immigration, the urban population in these countries would most likely decline or remain static. In principle, cities offer a more favorable setting for the resolution of social and environmental problems than rural areas. Cities generate jobs and income, and deliver education, health care and other services. Cities also present opportunities for social mobilization and women's empowerment. Poverty is growing faster in urban than in rural areas. According to UN one billion people live in urban slums, which are typically overcrowded, polluted and dangerous, and lack basic services such as clean water and sanitation.

Limitations and Exceptions: Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverage. There is no consistent and universally accepted standard for distinguishing urban from rural areas, in part because of the wide variety of situations across countries. Most countries use an urban classification related to the size or characteristics of settlements. Some define urban areas based on the presence of certain infrastructure and services. And other countries designate urban areas based on administrative arrangements. Because of national differences in the characteristics that distinguish urban from rural areas, the distinction between urban and rural population is not amenable to a single definition that would be applicable to all countries. For example, in Botswana, agglomeration of 5,000 or more inhabitants where 75 per cent of the economic activity is non-agricultural is considered "urban" while in Iceland localities of 200 or more inhabitants, and in Peru population centers with 100 or more dwellings, are considered "urban." In the United States places of 2,500 or more inhabitants, generally having population densities of 1,000 persons per square mile or more are considered "urban". Estimates of the world's urban population would change significantly if China, India, and a few other populous nations were to change their definition of urban centers. According to China's State Statistical Bureau, by the end of 1996 urban residents accounted for about 43 percent of China's population, more than double the 20 percent considered urban in 1994. In addition to the continuous migration of people from rural to urban areas, one of the main reasons for this shift was the rapid growth in the hundreds of towns reclassified as cities in recent years. Because the estimates of city and metropolitan area are based on national definitions of what constitutes a city or metropolitan area, cross-country comparisons should be made with caution. To estimate urban populations, UN ratios of urban to total population were applied to the World Bank's estimates of total population.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. The indicator is calculated using World Bank population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects. The United Nations Population Division and other agencies provide current population estimates for developing countries that lack recent census data and pre- and post-census estimates for countries with census data. The cohort component method - a standard method for estimating and projecting population - requires fertility, mortality, and net migration data, often collected from sample surveys, which can be small or limited in coverage. Population estimates are from demographic modeling and so are susceptible to biases and errors from shortcomings in the model and in the data. Because the five-year age group is the cohort unit and five-year period data are used, interpolations to obtain annual data or single age structure may not reflect actual events or age composition. Countries differ in the way they classify population as "urban" or "rural." Typically, a community or settlement with a population of 2,000 or more is considered urban, but national definitions are most commonly based on size of locality. Eurostat defines urban areas as clusters of contiguous grid cells of 1 km2 with a density of at least 300 inhabitants per km2 and a minimum population of 5,000. Further it defines high-density cluster as contiguous grid cells of 1 km2 with a density of at least 1,500 inhabitants per km2 and a minimum population of 50,000. The population of a city or metropolitan area depends on the boundaries chosen. For example, in 1990 Beijing, China, contained 2.3 million people in 87 square kilometers of "inner city" and 5.4 million in 158 square kilometers of "core city." The population of "inner city and inner suburban districts" was 6.3 million and that of "inner city, inner and outer suburban districts, and inner and outer counties" was 10.8 million. (Most countries use the last definition.)

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Environment Indicators

Sub-Topic: Density & urbanization