List of famines facts for kids

A famine is a terrible event where many people in a large area don't have enough food to eat. This leads to widespread hunger, sickness, and often, many deaths. Famines can happen for different reasons, like long periods without rain (droughts), wars that stop food from reaching people, or even natural disasters like volcanic eruptions that change the weather. Throughout history, famines have affected people all over the world, causing great suffering and changing societies.

Depiction of victims of the Irish Great Famine, 1845–1849

What Causes Famines?

Famines are usually caused by a mix of different problems. Sometimes, the weather is to blame. A long drought can make crops fail, meaning there's no food to harvest. Too much rain or floods can also destroy crops.

Wars are another big reason for famines. When countries are fighting, it's hard to grow food or move it to where people need it. Soldiers might destroy farms, or block roads, stopping food supplies.

Other causes include diseases that affect crops or animals, or even problems with how food is shared and managed by governments. When food prices go up a lot, poor people can't afford to buy food, even if there is some available.

Famous Famines in History

Many famines have happened throughout history. Here are some of the most impactful ones:

Ancient Times

One of the earliest recorded famines happened around 2200 BC. A big change in the global climate, called the 4.2-kiloyear event, caused droughts worldwide. This led to famines and even the collapse of some ancient civilizations.

In ancient Rome, the first recorded famine was in 441 BC. Later, around 26 BC, a famine hit the Near East, causing many deaths in places like Judea.

Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages (around 500 AD to 1500 AD), famines were common in Europe. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, between 400 and 800 AD, the population of cities like Rome dropped a lot due to hunger and diseases like the plague.

The Volcanic winter of 536 was caused by a huge volcanic eruption. It made the weather much colder around the world, leading to crop failures and widespread hunger.

In the 800s, a severe drought in Mesoamerica caused millions of Maya people to die from hunger and thirst. This led to the collapse of their civilization.

One of the worst famines in Japan's history was the Kanki famine in 1230–1231. It was caused by volcanic eruptions and led to the deaths of millions.

The Great Famine of 1315–1317 was a terrible time for Europe. Bad weather and crop failures caused millions of people to die from hunger across the continent.

Modern History

The Russian famine of 1601–1603 was one of the worst in Russia's history. It killed millions of people, including many in Moscow. The same famine also severely affected Estonia, killing about half of its population.

In the 1690s, several famines hit northern Europe. The Great Famine of Estonia (1695–1697) and the Great Famine of Finland killed a large part of the population in those countries.

The Great Bengal famine of 1770 was a devastating event in India and Bangladesh. It killed an estimated 10 million people, which was about a third of the population at the time.

The Irish Famine (1740–1741) and the later Great Famine in Ireland (1845–1849) were caused by a potato blight that destroyed the main food source for many Irish people. The Great Famine led to over a million deaths and forced millions more to leave Ireland.

20th and 21st Centuries

The Northern Chinese Famine of 1876–1879 was a huge disaster, killing millions of people in China.

During World War I, the Great Famine of Mount Lebanon (1914–1918) was caused by blockades that stopped food from reaching the area. This led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.

The Russian famine of 1921–1922 and the Soviet famine of 1932–1933 (which included the Holodomor in Ukraine) were tragic events in the Soviet Union. These famines were caused by a mix of bad harvests and government policies, leading to millions of deaths.

During World War II, the Leningrad famine (1941–1944) saw about a million people starve to death when the city was surrounded by German troops. The Bengal famine of 1943 also killed millions in India.

The Great Chinese Famine (1959–1961) was one of the deadliest famines in history. It was caused by a combination of bad weather and government policies, leading to the deaths of tens of millions of people.

More recently, famines have occurred in Africa, like the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia and the famine in Somalia, often made worse by wars and droughts. The North Korean famine (1994–1998) also caused millions of deaths.

Today, famines continue to be a problem in some parts of the world, especially in areas affected by conflict and climate change, such as the ongoing famine in Yemen and the 2024 Sudan famine.

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  Global famines history

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