We let you look at total population in two ways.
Firstly, population density: which areas had the most people? Density is calculated as the number of people per hectare, and we have measured areas from a modern digital map of the local authorities rather than relying on the doubtful acreages given in historical reports. Secondly, growth rates: where was population rising fastest, or declining? We also look at the ratio of men to women.
This theme also covers people's ages. From 1851 onwards, the census has provided very detailed statistics of age structure, giving numbers of males and of females in each 5-year age band. However, we simplify this here to three broad age groups: Children (0-14), Working Age (15-64) and the Elderly (over 65).
Over the last 150 years, Our population has clearly aged. However, mortality decline in the late 19th century was mainly due to the reduction of very high infant mortality rates: the presence or absence of large number of infants dying before their first birthday had little effect on overall age structures. During the twentieth century, declining fertility and improved life expectancy in later life significantly changed age structures.
Our detailed statistics are held in structures called nCubes, which you can think of as tables with one dimension, or with two ... or with twenty. Their dimensions are defined by the variables each nCube combines, and each variable is made up of categories. These nCubes are available at national level for this theme:
|Available nCubes||Period covered||Variables
(number of categories)
|Total Population||1801 to 2001||
|Population Change||1811 to 2001||
|Redistricted Age & Sex Structure||1851 to 2001||
Age in five-year bands to age 85 (19)
|Grouped Age Structure||1851 to 2001||
Age in three broad bands
|Fertile Age||1851 to 2001||
Ages grouped by fertility (3)
|Area (hectares)||1801 to 2001||