| . | Ancient Egyptian Demography |
Modern Japanese Demography |
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| Population |
There are no statistics and numbers are based on educated guesswork
Pre-Dynastic period - 4000 B.C. 350 thousand
Old kingdom - Between 1 and 2 million inhabitants
New kingdom - 5 million inhabitants according to James Henry Breasted
Ptolemaic period - Josephus Flavius gives a count 7.5 million people
| 127 million
Population has recently decreased because of falling birth rates
Assuming current birth and death rates and no major change in immigration policies, the 2007 population of 127 million will decline to 100 million in 2050, and 64 million in 2100
The general concern on a shrinking population in the next 50 years puts a strain in Japanese economic growth and social stability
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| Life Expectancy |
Farmers - based on skeletal evidence 30 years
Nobility - better fed and performed less strenuous labor than the lower classes, life expectancy reached well into the sixties and eighties.
Women - the arduous task of bearing children resulted in a lower life expectancy compared to their male counterparts for all social classes |
male: 78.67 years
female higher expectancy: 85.56 years
Japanese are among the longest living ethnic groups in the world
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| Infant and Maternal Mortality |
A very high 50% mortality rate, not because Egypt was more dangerous than other countries.
But this rate prevailed for most of ancient human history.
The papyrus of Ani suggests a 3 year breast-feeding period for children, this was one of the best ways to maintain a healthy infant under poor sanitary conditions that prevailed. In addition to the transfer of antibodies through mother's milk, breast-feeding also offered protection from food-born diseases |
Medical Advances - 2.8 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Fertility rate |
6 to 7 children born/woman
Pregnancy was very important to ancient Egyptians
Images and symbols of fertility were of great importance
In Egyptian households of all classes, children of both sexes were valued and wanted
The birth of a child was a time of great joy
| 1.23 children born/woman
Many Japanese youth are preferring not to marry or have families
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| Causes of Death |
Although ancient Egyptian medicine was relatively advanced,
the best doctors of antiquity were mostly powerless against many diseases that can be cured today.
Malnutrition - Egyptian food lacked certain vitamins and proteins essential to health
Viruses and epidemics which had no cure in ancient times, such as malaria and smallpox
Attacks by wild animals, such as scorpions and crocodiles were a great danger.
Gastrointestinal disorders were common under poor sanitary conditions
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Diseases associated with old age
Uncurable heart diseases, cancer and accidents
Suicide
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