Biggest country in the world by population and land mass
Which is the biggest country in the world by population and land mass? We all know that Nigeria is the most populated country in Africa. What about the whole planet?
Largest country in the world
According to Worldometers (http://www.worldometers.info), the planet has a total of 195 independent countries plus several dependent and autonomous territories as well as areas with no self-government.
It is curious to know that out of these 195 countries, Africa has the biggest amount of counties totaling 54. The second biggest continent is Asia (it has 48 countries) followed by Europe (44 countries), the Caribbean and Latin America (33 countries), and Oceania (14 countries). The Northern part of America accounts the least amount of countries – 2.
Every country has its own territory or land mass. Besides, every territory has its own population – the number of people who live and work there.
While it is comparatively easy to measure the country’s territory, it is not as easy to count every population. Why? Some countries don’t share their total population reports, and international agencies have to consider only estimates.
Our post is based on the world’s population information from open sources such as WorldStats, Worldofmeters, and Wikipedia. These are estimates for 2018, but they help us picture the whole image of our planet in terms of total inhabitants, thus we can figure out which is the largest country in the world by the number of their citizens.
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Most populated country in the world
Based on the most recent 2017 and 2018 information, the world accounts approximately 7.6 billion people. Of course, these are rounded off figures, but we can look at the biggest country in the world based on its estimated number of citizens.
We should note that different territories collect and share details about their population at different times, this is the main reason why the exact numbers are not available. When some countries do not conduct a census for 20-40 years, it is hard to rely on the accuracy in facts. Still, different sources agree with our list of the most populated countries.
Let’s look at them.
1. China
For many years in a row, China is considered the largest country in the world by population that keeps growing year after year. The number of citizens increased by over 11 percent in the last 18 years changing from over 1.2 billion (statistics from 2000) to over 1.4 billion (data from 2018).
2. India
This country is closely following China, step by step. Its population grows even quicker than the Chinese nation. India had slightly over 1 billion people back in 2000, its 2018’s estimates show over 1.35 billion people, this growth is close to 35 percent!
3. United States of America
The USA has been in the third place for many years. Of course, its population keeps growing, but the total estimates are far from Indian and Chinese results. The country had approximately 282 million people 18 years ago, in 2000. Its today’s population is over 326 million people.
P.S. Nigeria is currently the 7th in the ranking of the most populated country in the world. With its 195 million people, our country follows Pakistan, Brazil, Indonesia, the USA, India, and China.
READ ALSO: Largest country in Africa by size and population
Largest country by land mass
This ranking is easier and more accurate than the list of top 3 most populated country in the world because modern land mass change rarely in the 21st century.
We want to list four countries that have the most total area out of 195 world’s territories.
1. Russia
While this country cannot boast the biggest population on our planet, it is the proud largest country by area. The Russian Federation covers over 17 million square kilometers. It has 14 neighbours (countries it borders on), but no other country can say it has the biggest land mass on the planet. At the same time, Russia doesn’t have the largest water area, but the sum of its land plus water is still overwhelming if compared to others.
2. Canada
Having the total area of over 9.9 million square kilometers, Canada comes the second as the biggest country in the world by land mass. While its total sum of land plus water territories makes it number two, the country has more water area than Russia. Besides, it is a winner when it comes to measuring countries’ coastline because its shoreline is the longest in the whole globe measuring over 202 thousand kilometers.
3. The USA
The country that became a real dream for millions of people from all across the globe, the USA comes third when it comes to both population and total land area. Its territory covers over 9.8 million square kilometers.
4. China
This most populated country on the planet also has the land mass of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers. Just like Russia, China also borders on 14 other countries. Besides, it is definitely the biggest territory in Asia.
P.S. Nigeria comes 31st according to the UNS data.
Now you know the name of the biggest country in the world by population and land mass. It is not the same country, and still, two territories are present in both rankings as most populated and one of the largest countries by area.
It is China and the USA. Having the most estimated people on the planet, China also comes fourth by its land mass, and the United States of America takes the proud 3rd place in both rankings.
READ ALSO: The biggest state in Nigeria by land mass
Source: Legit.ng
