Key Issue #1-Where is the World's Population Distributed?

We, as human beings, are not evenly distributed across Earth. People are spread around the world in certain regions and concentrated areas. Some geographers use density to examine population spread and others focus on concentration. Geographers study demography, the type of people that live in an area to view the effects of globalization and overpopulation. Globalization, the international relationships between areas can lead to overpopulation, where too many people occupy a small area. Many of Earth's major population centers are overpopulated.

Literally, four regions hold two thirds of the world's population. East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Western Europe.
  • East Asia-Holds 1/5 of the population of the world. Many of the people of this region are clustered in large cities and by the exterior areas of the country with many more in rural areas.
  • South Asia-Holds 1/5 of the population of the world. India alone contains more than 3/4 or the South Asian population. Most people are rural farmers and do not live in urban areas.
  • Southeast Asia-A half billion people live in this region of the world, spread across many islands that dot the Pacific and Indian oceans.
These 3 Asian population areas make up over 50% of the world's total population and live on less than 10% of the overall land area. The last major region is:
  • Europe-1/9 of the world's people live in this area consisting of Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and European Russia. Unlike the Asian areas, 3/4 of Europes people live in urban areas and less than 20% farm.
The largest Western hemisphere population center is along Eastern North America. Almost all of this area is clustered in urban areas and extends through the United States and Canada.


This map of the world, called a Cartogram, is based on population, not land area

How is it Measured?
 Population Density can be measured in several ways. It is used to show how many people occupy a certain area and is a great technique for showing which regions are better for people.

  • Arithmetic Density-Total number of people divided by total land area. This is the actual definition of population density. It is the easiest to obtain and clearest to measure.

  • Phsiological Density-Number of people supported by a unit of arable land.

  • Agricultural Density-Ratio of the number of farmers to the amount of arable land.


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