Deadliest Incidents In History

Ethiopian Famine — Ethiopia

Drought combined with conflict and government policy produced a famine that became a defining global humanitarian emergency.

Great Chinese Famine — China

The Great Chinese Famine (Chinese: 三年大饥荒; lit. 'three years of great famine') was a famine that occurred between 1959 and 1961 in the People's Republic of China (PRC). Some scholars have also included the years 1958 or 1962. It is widely re

Holodomor — Ukraine

The Holodomor, also known as the Ukrainian famine, was a massive man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine from 1932 to 1933 that killed millions of Ukrainians. The Holodomor was part of the wider Soviet famine of 1930–1933 which affected the major

Great Bengal famine of 1770 — Bangladesh

The Great Bengal famine of 1770 struck Bengal and Bihar between 1769 and 1770 and affected some 30 million people, which was about one third of the current population of the area. It occurred during a period of dual governance in Bengal. T

Soviet famine of 1932–1933

The Soviet famine of 1930–1933 was a famine in the major grain-producing areas of the Soviet Union, including Ukraine and parts of Russia (Kazakhstan, North Caucasus, Kuban, Volga region, the southern Urals, and western Siberia). Major fac

North Korean famine — North Korea

The North Korean famine (Korean: 조선기근), dubbed by the government as the Arduous March (고난의 행군), was a period of mass starvation together with a general economic crisis from 1994 to 1999 in North Korea. During this time there was an increase

Bengal famine of 1943 — Bangladesh

The Bengal famine of 1943 was a famine during World War II in the Bengal Province and Orissa Province of British India. An estimated 800,000–3.8 million people died, in the Bengal region (present-day Bangladesh and West Bengal), from starva

Upper Doab famine of 1860–1861

The Doab famine of 1860–1861 was a famine in India that affected the Ganga-Yamuna Doab in the North-Western Provinces, large parts of Rohilkhand and Awadh, the Delhi and Hissar divisions of the Punjab, all in British India, then under Crown

Chinese famine of 1942-43 — China

The Henan famine of 1942–1943 (Chinese: 河南大饑荒) occurred within the context of the Second Sino-Japanese War and resulted from a combination of natural and human factors. Anthony Garnaut put the death toll to be "well under one million", prob

Tenmei famine — Japan

The Great Tenmei famine (天明の大飢饉, Tenmei no daikikin) affected Japan during the Edo period. The famine was the deadliest one during the early modern period in Japan. It is considered to have begun in 1782 and lasted until 1788. It was named

Famine in Czech lands (1770-1772)

Famine in Somalia — Somalia

The 1992 famine in Somalia resulted from a severe drought and devastation caused by warring factions in southern Somalia, primarily the Somali National Front, in the fertile inter-riverine breadbasket between the Jubba and Shebelle rivers.

Kyōhō famine — Japan

The Kyōhō famine (享保の大飢饉, Kyōhō no daikikin), was a famine on the Japanese island of Kyushu during the reign of Emperor Nakamikado in the Edo period. It is estimated that 12,172-169,000 people died from starvation. The famine, named after t

Ruzagayura famine

The Ruzagayura famine (lit. 'search and find little') was a major famine which occurred in the Belgian mandate of Ruanda-Urundi (modern-day Rwanda and Burundi) during World War II. It led to numerous deaths and a huge population migration o

Yōwa famine — Japan

The Yōwa famine (養和の飢饉, Yōwa no kikin), was a famine which affected Japan at the end of Heian period. It began in 1180, and lasted until 1182. It was named after the Yōwa era (1181–1182), during the reign of Emperor Antoku. The shogunate

Hongerwinter — Netherlands

The Dutch famine of 1944–1945, also known as the Hunger Winter (from Dutch Hongerwinter), was a famine in the German-occupied Netherlands during World War II. The famine impacted the people in the densely populated and urbanized western pro

Finnish famine of 1866–1868 — Sweden

The Finnish famine of 1866–1868 was the last famine in Finland, and (along with the subsequent Swedish famine of 1867–1869) the last major famine in Northern Europe. In Finland, the famine is known as "the great hunger years", or suuret näl

Mist Hardships

Laki (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈlaːcɪ] ) or Lakagígar ([ˈlaːkaˌciːɣar̥], Craters of Laki) is a volcanic fissure in the western part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland, not far from the volcanic fissure of Eldgjá and the small village of

Nyasaland Famine 1949 — Malawi

The Nyasaland famine of 1949 was a famine that occurred in the Shire Highlands in the Southern Province of Nyasaland (now Malawi) and also in a part of the Central Province in 1949. Its effects extended into the early part of 1950. The imme

Chinese famine of 1928–1930 — China

The Chinese famine of 1928–1930 occurred as widespread drought hit Northwestern and Northern China, most notably in the provinces of Henan, Shaanxi and Gansu. Mortality is estimated to be within 6 million, including deaths from famine-relat

Great Irish Famine — Ireland

The Great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger (Irish: an Gorta Mór [ənˠ ˈɡɔɾˠt̪ˠə ˈmˠoːɾˠ]), the Famine and the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1852. It constituted a major histori

Russian famine of 1601–1603 — Russia

The Russian famine of 1601–1603, Russia's worst famine in terms of proportional effect on the population, killed perhaps two million people: about 30% of the Russian people. The famine compounded the Time of Troubles (1598–1613), when the T

1879 Irish Famine — Ireland

The Irish famine of 1879 was the last main famine in Ireland. Unlike the earlier Great Famines of 1740–1741 and 1845–1852, the 1879 famine (sometimes called the "mini-famine" or an Gorta Beag) caused hunger rather than mass deaths and was l

2006 Horn of Africa food crisis

In 2006, an acute shortage of food affected the countries in the Horn of Africa (Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia), as well as northeastern Kenya. The United Nations's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimated on January 6, 2006, that

Turnip Winter

The Turnip Winter (German: Steckrübenwinter, pronounced [ˈʃtɛkʁyːbn̩ˌvɪntɐ]) of 1916 to 1917 was a period of profound civilian hardship in Germany during World War I, named for the resulting use of turnips as a famine food. The Turnip Winte

Central Kenya famine of 1899 — Kenya

The famine in central Kenya in 1899 is regarded as a devastating catastrophe in Kenyan history. It spread rapidly from 1898 in the central region of the country around Mount Kenya after several consecutive years of low rainfall. The prevale

1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia — Ethiopia

A widespread famine affected Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985. The worst famine to hit the country in a century, it affected 7.75 million people (out of Ethiopia's 38–40 million) and left approximately 300,000 to 1.2 million dead. 2.5 million peo

Russian famine of 1921

The Russian famine of 1921–1922, also known as the Povolzhye famine (Russian: Голод в Поволжье 'Volga region famine'), was a severe famine in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic that began early in the spring of 1921 and lasted