World War II was the deadliest military conflict in history. Over 60 million people were killed, which was over 2.5% of the world population. The tables below give a detailed country-by-country count of human losses.
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World War II fatality statistics vary, estimates of total dead ranging from 50 million to over 70 million.[1] The sources cited in this article document an estimated death toll in World War II of 62 to 78 million, making it the deadliest war in world history in absolute terms of total dead but not in terms of deaths relative to the world population.
When scholarly sources differ on the number of deaths in a country, a range of war losses is given, in order to inform readers that the death toll is disputed. Civilians killed totaled from 40 to 52 million, including 13 to 20 million from war-related disease and famine. Total military dead: from 22 to 25 million, including deaths in captivity of about 5 million prisoners of war.
Recent historical scholarship has shed new insight into the topic of Second World War casualties. Research in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union has caused a revision of estimates of Soviet war dead.[2] Estimated USSR losses within postwar borders now stand at 26.6 million.[3] In August 2009 the Polish Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) researchers estimated Poland's dead at between 5.6 and 5.8 million.[4]
The German Army historian Dr. Rüdiger Overmans published a study in 2000 that estimated German military dead and missing at 5.3 million.[5] War dead totals in this article for the British Commonwealth are based on the research of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.[6] Casualties listed here include about 4 to 12 million war-related famine deaths in China, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, India that are often omitted from other compilations of World War II casualties.[7][8]
Some nations in World War II suffered disproportionally more casualties than others. This is especially true regarding civilian casualties. The following chart gives data on the number of dead for each country, along with population information to show the relative impact of losses. Military figures include battle deaths (KIA) and personnel missing in action (MIA), as well as fatalities due to accidents, disease and deaths of prisoners of war in captivity. Civilian casualties include deaths caused by strategic bombing, Holocaust victims, Japanese war crimes, population transfers in the Soviet Union, other War Crimes and deaths due to war related famine and disease. Compiling or estimating the numbers of deaths caused during wars and other violent conflicts is a controversial subject. Historians often put forward many different estimates of the numbers killed during World War II.[9] The distinction between military and civilian casualties caused directly by warfare and collateral damage is not always clear cut. For nations that suffered huge losses such as the U.S.S.R., China, Poland, Germany and Yugoslavia, our sources can give us only the total estimated population loss caused by the war and a rough estimate of the breakdown of deaths caused by military activity, crimes against humanity and war related famine. The footnotes give a detailed breakdown of the casualties and their sources, including data on the number of wounded where reliable sources are available.
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The estimated breakdown for each Soviet Republic of total war dead is as follows
Soviet Republic | Population 1940 | Military Dead | Civilian Dead | Total | Deaths as % 1940 Pop. |
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Azerbaijan | 3,270,000 | 210,000 | 90,000 | 300,000 | 9.1% |
Armenia | 1,320,000 | 150,000 | 30,000 | 180,000 | 13.6% |
Belarus | 9,050,000 | 620,000 | 1,670,000 | 2,290,000 | 25.3% |
Estonia | 1,050,000 | 30,000 | 50,000 | 80,000 | 7.6% |
Georgia | 3,610,000 | 190,000 | 110,000 | 300,000 | 8.3% |
Kazakhstan | 6,150,000 | 310,000 | 350,000 | 660,000 | 10.7% |
Kyrgyzstan | 1,530,000 | 70,000 | 50,000 | 120,000 | 7.8% |
Latvia | 1,890,000 | 30,000 | 230,000 | 260,000 | 13.7% |
Lithuania | 2,930,000 | 25,000 | 350,000 | 375,000 | 12.7% |
Moldova | 2,470,000 | 50,000 | 120,000 | 170,000 | 6.9% |
Russia | 110,100,000 | 6,750,000 | 7,200,000 | 13,950,000 | 12.7% |
Tajikistan | 1,530,000 | 50,000 | 70,000 | 120,000 | 7.8% |
Turkmenistan | 1,300,000 | 70,000 | 30,000 | 100,000 | 7.7% |
Uzbekistan | 6,550,000 | 330,000 | 220,000 | 550,000 | 8.4% |
Ukraine | 41,340,000 | 1,650,000 | 5,200,000 | 6,850,000 | 16.3% |
Unidentified | - | 165,000 | 130,000 | 295,000 | |
Total USSR | 194,090,000 | 10,700,000 | 15,900,000 | 26,600,000 | 13.7% |
Included in the above figures of total war dead are the victims of the Holocaust
Some scholars maintain that the definition of the Holocaust should also include the other victims persecuted and killed by the Nazis.[25][26][27][28][29] Using this definition, the total number of Holocaust victims is between 11 million and 17 million people.[30]
Jewish Holocaust deaths
Included in the above figures of total war dead are the Jewish victims of the Holocaust.
The following figures are from The Columbia Guide to the Holocaust.[52]
Country | Pre War Jewish population | Low Estimate | High Estimate |
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Austria | 191,000 | 50,000 | 65,000 |
Belgium | 60,000 | 25,000 | 29,000 |
Czech Republic(Bohemia & Moravia) | 92,000 | 77,000 | 78,300 |
Denmark | 8,000 | 60 | 116 |
Estonia | 4,600 | 1,500 | 2,000 |
France | 260,000 | 75,000 | 77,000 |
Germany | 566,000 | 135,000 | 142,000 |
Greece | 73,000 | 59,000 | 67,000 |
Hungary(borders 1940)[53] | 725,000 | 502,000 | 569,000 |
Italy | 48,000 | 6,500 | 9,000 |
Latvia | 95,000 | 70,000 | 72,000 |
Lithuania | 155,000 | 130,000 | 143,000 |
Luxembourg | 3,500 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
Netherlands | 112,000 | 100,000 | 105,000 |
Norway | 1,700 | 800 | 800 |
Poland | 3,250,000 | 2,700,000 | 3,000,000 |
Romania(Borders 1940) | 441,000 | 121,000 | 287,000 |
Slovakia | 89,000 | 60,000 | 71,000 |
Soviet Union(Borders 1939) | 2,825,000 | 700,000 | 1,100,000 |
Yugoslavia | 68,000 | 56,000 | 65,000 |
Total | 9,067,000 | 4,869,860 | 5,894,716 |
Roma losses by country
Included in the figures of total war dead are the Roma victims of the Nazi persecution, some scholars include the Roma deaths with the Holocaust.
The following figures are from The Columbia Guide to the Holocaust.[54]
Country | Pre War Roma population | Low Estimate | High Estimate |
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Austria | 11,200 | 6,800 | 8,250 |
Belgium | 600 | 350 | 500 |
Czech Republic(Bohemia & Moravia) | 13,000 | 5,000 | 6,500 |
Estonia | 1,000 | 500 | 1,000 |
France | 40,000 | 15,150 | 15,150 |
Germany | 20,000 | 15,000 | 15,000 |
Greece | ? | 50 | 50 |
Hungary | 100,000 | 1,000 | 28,000 |
Italy | 25,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
Latvia | 5,000 | 1,500 | 2,500 |
Lithuania | 1,000 | 500 | 1,000 |
Luxembourg | 200 | 100 | 200 |
Netherlands | 500 | 215 | 500 |
Poland | 50,000 | 8,000 | 35,000 |
Romania | 300,000 | 19,000 | 36,000 |
Slovakia | 80,000 | 400 | 10,000 |
Soviet Union(Borders 1939) | 200,000 | 30,000 | 35,000 |
Yugoslavia | 100,000 | 26,000 | 90,000 |
Total | 947,500 | 130,565 | 285,650 |
Included with total war dead are victims of Japanese war crimes
The deaths of 400,000 civilians deported during the Soviet annexations in 1939–40 are included with World War II casualties.[62][63]
Russian sources list Axis Prisoner of war deaths of 580,589 in Soviet captivity[64] However some western scholars estimate the total at between 1.7 and 2.3 million.[65]
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Germany
USSR
British Commonwealth
U.S.
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The Commonwealth War Graves Commission Annual Report 2009-2010[114] is the source of the military dead for the British Empire The war dead totals listed in the report are based on the research by the CWGC to identify and commemorate Commonwealth war dead. The statistics tabulated The Commonwealth War Graves Commission are representative of the number of names commemorated for all servicemen/women of the Armed Forces of the Commonwealth and former U.K. Dependencies, whose death was attributable to their war service. Some auxiliary and civilian organizations are also accorded war grave status if death occurred under certain specified conditions. For the purposes of C.W.G.C. the dates of inclusion for Commonwealth War Dead are 03/09/1939 to 31/12/1947.