% Literate

This field contains literacy data, calculated, wherever possible, on the basis of non-literates, 15 years of age and over. Literacy is defined in the UN Demographic Yearbook (from which most of the post-World War II data are extracted) as "ability both to read and to write". While this is not an entirely adequate definition, it is unrealistic to assume that the caliber of most reporting agencies could sustain a more precise one. Indeed, for the limited amount of pre-World War I literacy data that is included in the file, overall reliability must be assessed with extreme caution.