Definition of List of countries by population

This is a list of countries ordered according to population. The list includes and ranks sovereign states and self-governing dependent territories. Figures are based on the most recent estimate or projection by the national census authority where available and generally rounded off. Other figures are based on the 2007 mid-year estimate by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs – Population Division. Because the figures are not collected at the same time in every country, or with the same level of accuracy, the resulting rankings may be misleading. For comparison purposes, some non-sovereign entities are included in this list, although only sovereign territories are ranked.