In statistics, a statistical population is a set of entities concerning which statistical inferences are to be drawn, often based on a random sample taken from the population. For example, if we were interested in generalizations about crows, then we would describe the set of crows that is of interest. Notice that if we choose a population like all crows, we will be limited to observing crows that exist now or will exist in the future. Probably, geography will also constitute a limitation in that our resources for studying crows are also limited. A graph of a bell curve in a normal distribution showing statistics used in educational assessment, comparing various grading methods. ... In mathematics, a set can be thought of as any collection of distinct things considered as a whole. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with inferential statistics. ...
Population is also used to refer to a set of potential measurements or values, including not only cases actually observed but those that are potentially observable. Suppose, for example, we are interested in the set of all adult crows now alive in the county of Cambridge, and we want to know the mean weight of these birds. For each bird in the population of crows there is a weight, and the set of these weights is called the population of weights.
Sampling is that part of statistical practice concerned with the selection of individual observations intended to yield some knowledge about a population of concern, especially for the purposes of statistical inference. ... A graph of a bell curve in a normal distribution showing statistics used in educational assessment, comparing various grading methods. ... A sample is that part of a population which is actually observed. ...
In biology, plant and animal populations are studied, in particular, in a branch of ecology known as population biology, and in population genetics.
Populate, as a verb, means the process of populating a geographic area, as by procreation or immigration.
Population transfer is a term referring to a policy by which a state forces the movement of a large group of people out of a region, most frequently on the basis of their ethnicity or religion.