The Population of the Roman Empire at the Death of Augustus

According to Bruce W. Frier’s estimate, on which the first map below is based, the population of the Roman Empire around 14 CE was about 45.5 million people. This figure includes both the directly ruled provinces and several client kingdoms that were already closely integrated into the Roman political system and were annexed soon afterward.

The population distribution shows that Anatolia and Italy were the two largest regions by population. According to Frier’s estimate, Anatolia had about 8.3 million people, while Italy had about 7 million. Together, these two regions accounted for roughly 33.4% of the empire’s population at the time of Augustus’ death.

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Figure 1: Population of the Roman Empire by region, c. 14 CE. Based on Bruce W. Frier’s population estimates; visualization by the author.

The second map below shows population density, also based on Frier’s calculations. In this comparison, the Danube region appears as one of the least densely populated parts of the empire. This may help explain why many Roman emperors, over several centuries, supported the creation of new colonies and the settlement of military veterans in the Danubian provinces.

Italy, by contrast, had a relatively high population density compared with other European regions of the empire. This was likely connected to its dense urban network and the unusually large role of cities in the Italian peninsula.

In Frier’s calculation, Egypt appears as the most densely populated region. This result is partly shaped by the way the territory is defined. The calculation focuses mainly on the Nile Valley, where the overwhelming majority of Egypt’s population lived, rather than on the full territorial area of Roman Egypt. In my view, this makes Egypt slightly different from the other regions in the comparison. Other provinces also included mountains, drylands, forests, and other low-fertility areas with much lower population density. For this reason, I include an alternative calculation in the final map.

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Figure 2: Population density of the Roman Empire by region, c. 14 CE. Based on Bruce W. Frier’s population and regional area estimates; visualization by the author.

After including a broader territorial area, Egypt no longer appears as the most densely populated region. Instead, the first place goes to Greater Syria, a region that roughly corresponds to the Mediterranean part of the Middle East and historically had a high population density. Italy comes second in this comparison. As the center of the empire, it had a high level of urbanization, supported in part by food imports from other regions.

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Figure 3: Population density with adjusted Egyptian territory. Density figures follow Bruce W. Frier’s estimates for all regions except Egypt, where density was recalculated using a broader territorial area.