Forum Membership.

[Peregrinopaul]

Just curious. How many members does the Forum have?
Is there any data on the country of origin?

 

[Turga]

The statistics on the start page:

 

[Bradypus]

The statistics on the start page:

I had a conversation with @ivar about member numbers when I last visited Santiago in January. He pointed out that people do not generally ask for their accounts to be deleted when they stop visiting the forum. So the number of active members is really far smaller than the listed total which is almost everyone who has ever signed up with an account in the past.

 

[TravellingMan22]

I had a conversation with @ivar about member numbers when I last visited Santiago in January. He pointed out that as people do not generally ask for their accounts to be deleted when they stop visiting the forum the number of active members is far smaller than the listed total which is almost everyone who has ever signed up with an account in the past.

I always assume that posts are overwhelmingly from USA / Canadian folks.. maybe >90% judging by language and timing of points. Not that I would post anything contentious but I would definately do it based on EST and PCT when most of the mods are having a well earned sleep!

 

[Bradypus]

Not that I would post anything contentious but I would definately do it based on EST and PCT when most of the mods are having a well earned sleep!

One of the factors that @ivar considers when inviting people to become moderators is their time zone!

 

[ivar]

Most people that visit never sign up, just read. About 1500-2000 members sign in each day.

Here are total numbers (signed in + just visiting)

 

[TravellingMan22]

One of the factors that @ivar considers when inviting people to become moderators is their time zone!

Sure. Can’t leave all is ‘out of control Europeans’ on BST/CEST to ‘run riot’ unmonitored. It would be chaos! !!

 

[Tassie Kaz]

Don't forget us Antipodeans either...we lurk & freely type away while ye Northerners slumber!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

@Turga's post gives the number of members to be 103,151 and the number of posts to be 1,099,587 or an average of about 10 posts per member. But of course many members exceed that number. Last December we kept our eyes open for the millionth post and determined that it was made by @mspath. She had a very good shot at being that poster as she had written about 1% of all the posts up to that point.

See thread https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/post-number-1-million-on-the-forum.77915/

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I got curious. The 20 members who are credited with the most messages posted make up a bit less than 0.02% of the membership but about 17% of the posts.

Edit: Using the numbers posted above by @Turga.

 

[henrythedog]

Don't forget us Antipodeans either...we lurk & freely type away while ye Northerners slumber!

Oh no you don’t (pantomime season is approaching). @dick bird

 

[C clearly]

I always assume that posts are overwhelmingly from USA / Canadian folks.. maybe >90% judging by language and timing of points.

I don't have any numbers to support my impression, but I don't think the USA/Canadians make up anywhere near that percentage.

 

[M2ME]

I got curious. The 20 members who are credited with the most messages posted make up a bit less than 0.02% of the membership but about 17% of the posts.

Edit: Using the numbers posted above by @Turga.

The “usual suspects”

 

[Peregrinopaul]

I always assume that posts are overwhelmingly from USA / Canadian folks.. maybe >90% judging by language and timing of points.

I would agree with "overwhelmingly" (as an impression), though perhaps not such a high percentage. Why is this so? After all this is not a North American Forum. It's founded by a (very) northern European who lives in Spain.

 

[trecile]

@C clearly has created a poll asking where the members are from here:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/hands-up-where-are-forum-members-from.83844/

 

[Arctic_Alex]

I got curious. The 20 members who are credited with the most messages posted make up a bit less than 0.02% of the membership but about 17% of the posts.

Edit: Using the numbers posted above by @Turga.

So then it is similar to how wealth is distributed on this planet!
Really unfortunate that it is not the same people

 

[GraemeHall]

The fact that it's an English language forum skews these data somewhat.

 

[Bristle Boy]

Oh no you don’t (pantomime season is approaching). @dick bird

I'm still laughing three hours later.

 

[TravellingMan22]

I don't have any numbers to support my impression, but I don't think the USA/Canadians make up anywhere near that percentage.

Sure who knows. It feels that way to me. I guess I am probably talking ‘posts’ not posters, but it feels overwhelmingly that way to me. Happy for it to be that way as interacting with folks from very different cultures is a major plus! I m struggling to think of much more than 10 very regular
European posters and similar AU/NZ- I could be way off tho.

 

[Former member 104756]

Sure who knows. It feels that way to me. I guess I am probably talking ‘posts’ not posters, but it feels overwhelmingly that way to me. Happy for it to be that way as interacting with folks from very different cultures is a major plus! I m struggling to think of much more than 10 very regular
European posters - I could be way off tho.

You're right @TravellingMan22 - who knows? As an aside, I doubt that forum members, active or otherwise, are representative (by nationality or any other measure) of people walking the various Camino paths at any given time. That's just my feeling from what I have seen on the forum compared to who I have met on the Way. And even if they were, active members is a sub-set and active members who post frequently another sub-set, and members who respond to a poll another sub-set ... and so on. I do agree that there's something to be appreciated by seeing other perspectives. I particularly appreciate the input of forum members who I gather are from countries, cultures and backgrounds far removed from my own.

 

[TravellingMan22]

You're right @TravellingMan22 - who knows? As an aside, I doubt that forum members, active or otherwise, are representative (by nationality or any other measure) of people walking the various Camino paths at any given time. That's just my feeling from what I have seen on the forum compared to who I have met on the Way. And even if they were, active members is a sub-set and active members who post frequently another sub-set, and members who respond to a poll another sub-set ... and so on. I do agree that there's something to be appreciated by seeing other perspectives. I particularly appreciate the input of forum members who I gather are from countries, cultures and backgrounds far removed from my own.

Yes 100% agree with every word.

 

[Owenmc]

I always assume that posts are overwhelmingly from USA / Canadian folks.. maybe >90% judging by language and timing of points. Not that I would post anything contentious but I would definately do it based on EST and PCT when most of the mods are having a well earned sleep!

I have been doing various Camino's since 2007, ( most years than other than COVID!) I also have impression that most contributers on this forum are from North America (I'm from Ireland) What intrigues me is that on all my Camino's I have only ever met one American, girl from Texas and two Canadians. Odd

 

[Arctic_Alex]

I have been doing various Camino's since 2007, ( most years than other than COVID!) I also have impression that most contributers on this forum are from North America (I'm from Ireland) What intrigues me is that on all my Camino's I have only ever met one American, girl from Texas and two Canadians. Odd

Similar but not as extreme in my personal statistics. Very few from North America, almost more from South America. Some asians and heaps of Europeans. I wonder if that might be connected to preferred seasons. I am usually on the path early in the year, spring, before the first big wave of pilgrims arrives.

 

[Bradypus]

I wonder if that might be connected to preferred seasons. I am usually on the path early in the year, spring, before the first big wave of pilgrims arrives.

I think the timing must be important. I walked from SJPDP in January this year. According to the SJPDP pilgrim office figures for January, February and March there were nearly equal numbers of Koreans and Americans recorded. But my experience over the walk was that about 1/3 or more of my fellow pilgrims were Korean, only two were Canadian and none at all were from the US.

 

[Former member 104756]

I think the timing must be important. I walked from SJPDP in January this year. According to the SJPDP pilgrim office figures for January, February and March there were nearly equal numbers of Koreans and Americans recorded. But my experience over the walk was that about 1/3 or more of my fellow pilgrims were Korean, only two were Canadian and none at all were from the US.

View attachment 159431

I agree it really depends on the timing - and the path. A few weeks ago we were at the pilgrims' dinner in Roncesvalles. We were about 20 around the table. A sprinkling of Belgian, Italian, French, Brazilian, Russian (living in US), French Canadian, Japanese, one Australian (me) and 6 pilgrims from South Korea. With such a percentage it was easy to assume the Korean pilgrims were travelling as a group - but they weren't. They were each walking solo and had met just the day before in SJPP. Some said they found it funny and surprising that there were so many of them starting the same day. It was a fun dinner despite, or maybe because of, some language challenges!

 

[Molly Cassidy]

I think the timing must be important. I walked from SJPDP in January this year. According to the SJPDP pilgrim office figures for January, February and March there were nearly equal numbers of Koreans and Americans recorded. But my experience over the walk was that about 1/3 or more of my fellow pilgrims were Korean, only two were Canadian and none at all were from the US.

View attachment 159431

It may also be to do with accommodation choices.

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

I have been doing various Camino's since 2007, ( most years than other than COVID!) I also have impression that most contributers on this forum are from North America (I'm from Ireland) What intrigues me is that on all my Camino's I have only ever met one American, girl from Texas and two Canadians. Odd

That’s an interesting point, odd that I’d not thought of that before. Personally I’ve only done two short Caminos, both this year, but whilst I met 4 North Americans- two Canadians, two Americans- I met mainly Europeans, several Irish, a Palestinian couple and a couple of Asians. Oh, and one Brit.
And it was nothing to do with the season either - one was spring, the second summer.
The only fellow forum member ( to the best of my knowledge) was one of the Irishmen.

 

[Owenmc]

I think the timing must be important. I walked from SJPDP in January this year. According to the SJPDP pilgrim office figures for January, February and March there were nearly equal numbers of Koreans and Americans recorded. But my experience over the walk was that about 1/3 or more of my fellow pilgrims were Korean, only two were Canadian and none at all were from the US.

View attachment 159431

I would tend to walk most years in late April to early May. The people I met varied with the route in my experience. In order of greater nos, On the Frances, French, Spanish, German , Dutch, Irish and Australian. On the Portuguese, portuguese, Spanish, french, German and Dutch. On the Norte, Spanish, French and one Canadian. On the Tunnel route, French couple. (Quiet route !) Primativo, Spanish, French, German and a few from UK. Not very scientific survey impressions only.