Population questions in certain cities in Forgotten Realms

[superdeluxe]

Hello,

I had some wondering questions about populations in certain cities in the Forgotten Realms.

For Example, in 2nd Edition Forgotten Realms and accesories, the population of Suzail is 129,000. But in the 3rd edition, it is 45,000. I tried looking up what happened, but I have not found a reason why the city lost more than 2/3rds of its population.

Same with Eversult in the Dragon Coast, in the Forgotten Realms Adventure hardbound, it lists the population at 80-90k. But in 3rd edition it is 9k.

Any help between the discrepncies?

 

[Dandu]

If you're wondering how he eats and breathes
And other science facts
Then repeat to yourself, "It's just a show
I should really just relax!"

 

[jefgorbach]

Unspoken significant population shift to outlying communities, foreign lands as residents sought to escape unrecorded localized Recession, crop failure, whatnot ... much like the 2010 Census shows happened in Ohio, Michigan, and other Rust Belt states which were torpedoed the past few years (and still rapidly sinking).