Shrinking Korea
This is the text version of the interactive 3D documentary. 한국어
Contents · Chapter 3 What changes
The pyramid flips
The base shrinks and the top grows — 1970 → 2072
The thick band moves up
Every year, everyone born in the same year moves up one step. The thick band of people born around 1970 has climbed to about age 50 by 2023. Meanwhile, the bottom kept getting narrower. Children under 15 fell to 11%.
Why?People keep getting older as usual, but fewer new babies are being born.
View in 3D →An upside-down pyramid
By 2072 the shape turns over. It is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. People 65 and older become 47% of everyone. The population falls from 51.7 million to 33.2 million.
Why?From 2024 on, the numbers are not today’s picture — they are calculated from assumptions about how many babies will be born. This is called a projection.
Go furtherThis screen shows the medium scenario of the UN World Population Prospects 2024. The UN also calculates what happens if women have on average 0.5 more children (high) or 0.5 fewer (low). Statistics Korea’s own projection uses different assumptions, so its numbers differ a little.
View in 3D →