This point shapefile depicts point symbols with name attributes for populated areas worldwide, including some smaller towns in sparsely inhabited regions. LandScan derived population estimates are provided for 90% of cities. Those lacking population estimates are often in sparsely inhabited areas. Population totals account for the "metropolitan" population rather than its administrative boundary population. Regional significance was favored over population census in determining the selection of places. These data are represented at 1:50,000,000 scale. This layer is part of the Natural Earth Collection (v.2.0.0). Natural Earth is a public domain map dataset available at 1:10, 1:50 and 1:110 million scales. Featuring tightly integrated vector and raster data, with Natural Earth you can make a variety of visually pleasing, well-crafted maps with cartography or GIS software.