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Per the discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Countries#Assistance requested with SYNTH issue in country demographic articles, all of these articles contain a table of demographic data broken down by county or region, along with a column labeled, "Equivalent country" or "Comparable country", where the GDP (or HDI) of a given region or county is compared with the GDP/HDI of some other country in the world; for example, in the "Sweden" article, the county of "Stockholm" was compared to the GDP of the Dominican Republic, as the two apparently have a similar GDP. However, this country-comparison column is WP:Original research, because no source contains this comparison; it is an invention of the Wikipedia editor who added the column.

Here is a (non-exhaustive) list of articles that may need attention for WP:SYNTH issues of this type:

Article list[edit]

August 2022[edit]

211 articles from 2022
  1. checked box Comparison between Indian states and countries by GDP (PPP)
  2. checked box Demographics of Pakistan
  3. checked box Economy of Indonesia
  4. checked box List of administrative divisions of Greater China by Human Development Index
  5. checked box List of administrative divisions of Myanmar by Human Development Index
  6. checked box List of administrative divisions of Vietnam by Human Development Index
  7. checked box List of administrative units of Pakistan by Human Development Index
  8. checked box List of Algerian regions by Human Development Index
  9. checked box List of Argentine provinces by Human Development Index
  10. checked box List of Armenian provinces by Human Development Index
  11. checked box List of Australian states and territories by Human Development Index
  12. checked box List of Austrian states by Human Development Index
  13. checked box List of Belgian provinces by Human Development Index
  14. checked box List of Bolivian departments by Human Development Index
  15. checked box List of Brazilian federative units by gross regional product
  16. checked box List of Brazilian states by life expectancy
  17. checked box List of Brazilian states by literacy rate
  18. checked box List of Bulgarian provinces by GDP
  19. checked box List of Bulgarian regions by Human Development Index
  20. checked box List of Cambodian provinces by Human Development Index
  21. checked box List of Canadian provinces and territories by gross domestic product
  22. checked box List of Canadian provinces and territories by Human Development Index
  23. checked box List of Canadian provinces and territories by life expectancy
  24. checked box List of ceremonial counties in England by gross value added
  25. checked box List of Chinese administrative divisions by GDP
  26. checked box List of Chinese administrative divisions by GDP per capita
  27. checked box List of Chinese administrative divisions by population
  28. checked box List of cities in Argentina by population
  29. checked box List of cities in China by life expectancy
  30. checked box List of Colombian departments by Human Development Index
  31. checked box List of Costa Rican provinces by Human Development Index
  32. checked box List of counties of Albania by Human Development Index
  33. checked box List of counties of Kenya by GDP
  34. checked box List of Croatian counties by Human Development Index
  35. checked box List of Cuban provinces by Human Development Index
  36. checked box List of Czech regions by GDP
  37. checked box List of Czech regions by Human Development Index
  38. checked box List of Danish regions by Human Development Index
  39. checked box List of departments of Benin by Human Development Index
  40. checked box List of departments of Haiti by Human Development Index
  41. checked box List of departments of the Republic of the Congo by Human Development Index
  42. checked box List of districts in Tamil Nadu by Human Development Index
  43. checked box List of districts of Belize by Human Development Index
  44. checked box List of districts of Bhutan by Human Development Index
  45. checked box List of districts of Botswana by Human Development Index
  46. checked box List of districts of Kosovo by Human Development Index
  47. checked box List of districts of Lesotho by Human Development Index
  48. checked box List of districts of Sierra Leone by Human Development Index
  49. checked box List of districts of West Bengal
  50. checked box List of Ecuadorian provinces by Human Development Index
  51. checked box List of Eritrean regions by Human Development Index
  52. checked box List of Ethiopian regions by Human Development Index
  53. checked box List of federal subjects of Russia by GDP per capita
  54. checked box List of federal subjects of Russia by Human Development Index
  55. checked box List of Finnish regions by GDP
  56. checked box List of Finnish regions by Human Development Index
  57. checked box List of French regions and overseas collectivities by GDP
  58. checked box List of French regions and overseas departments by GRP per capita
  59. checked box List of French regions by Human Development Index
  60. checked box List of Gabonese provinces by Human Development Index
  61. checked box List of Georgian regions by Human Development Index
  62. checked box List of German states by GRP
  63. checked box List of German states by GRP per capita
  64. checked box List of German states by Human Development Index
  65. checked box List of Ghanaian regions by Human Development Index
  66. checked box List of governorates of Egypt by Human Development Index
  67. checked box List of Governorates of Iraq by Human Development Index
  68. checked box List of Greek regions by Human Development Index
  69. checked box List of Guyanese regions by Human Development Index
  70. checked box List of Honduran departments by Human Development Index
  71. checked box List of Hungarian counties by GDP
  72. checked box List of Hungarian regions by Human Development Index
  73. checked box List of Indian states and union territories by GDP
  74. checked box List of Indian states and union territories by GDP per capita
  75. checked box List of Indian states and union territories by Human Development Index
  76. checked box List of Indonesian provinces by GDP
  77. checked box List of Indonesian provinces by GRP per capita
  78. checked box List of Iranian provinces by Human Development Index
  79. checked box List of Irish regions by Human Development Index
  80. checked box List of islands of the Comoros by Human Development Index
  81. checked box List of Italian regions by GRP per capita
  82. checked box List of Italian regions by Human Development Index
  83. checked box List of Japanese prefectures by GDP per capita
  84. checked box List of Japanese prefectures by Human Development Index
  85. checked box List of Jordanian governorates by Human Development Index
  86. checked box List of Liberian counties by Human Development Index
  87. checked box List of local government areas of the Gambia by Human Development Index
  88. checked box List of Malaysian states by Human Development Index
  89. checked box List of Mauritanian regions by Human Development Index
  90. checked box List of Mexican states by GDP
  91. checked box List of Mexican states by Human Development Index
  92. checked box List of Mongolian provinces by GDP
  93. checked box List of municipalities of East Timor by Human Development Index
  94. checked box List of Namibian regions by Human Development Index
  95. checked box List of Nepalese provinces by Human Development Index
  96. checked box List of Nigerian states by Human Development Index
  97. checked box List of Norwegian counties by GDP
  98. checked box List of Norwegian regions by Human Development Index
  99. checked box List of Philippine provinces and regions by Human Development Index
  100. checked box List of Polish voivodeships by GRP
  101. checked box List of Polish voivodeships by Human Development Index
  102. checked box List of Portuguese administrative divisions by GDP
  103. checked box List of Portuguese regions by Human Development Index
  104. checked box List of provinces and indigenous regions of Panama by Human Development Index
  105. checked box List of prefectures of the Central African Republic by Human Development Index
  106. checked box List of provinces of Angola by Human Development Index
  107. checked box List of provinces of Equatorial Guinea by Human Development Index
  108. checked box List of provinces of Kenya by Human Development Index
  109. checked box List of provinces of Laos by Human Development Index
  110. checked box List of provinces of Mozambique by Human Development Index
  111. checked box List of provinces of Papua New Guinea by Human Development Index
  112. checked box List of provinces of Rwanda by Human Development Index
  113. checked box List of provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by Human Development Index
  114. checked box List of provinces of the Netherlands by Human Development Index
  115. checked box List of regions of Afghanistan by Human Development Index
  116. checked box List of regions of Azerbaijan by Human Development Index
  117. checked box List of regions of Baltic States by Human Development Index
  118. checked box List of regions of Bangladesh by Human Development Index
  119. checked box List of regions of Barbados by Human Development Index
  120. checked box List of regions of Belarus by Human Development Index
  121. checked box List of regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Human Development Index
  122. checked box List of regions of Burkina Faso by Human Development Index
  123. checked box List of regions of Burundi by Human Development Index
  124. checked box List of regions of Cameroon by Human Development Index
  125. checked box List of regions of Eswatini by Human Development Index
  126. checked box List of regions of Guatemala by Human Development Index
  127. checked box List of regions of Guinea by Human Development Index
  128. checked box List of regions of Guinea-Bissau by Human Development Index
  129. checked box List of regions of Jamaica by Human Development Index
  130. checked box List of regions of Kazakhstan by Human Development Index
  131. checked box List of regions of Kuwait by Human Development Index
  132. checked box List of regions of Kyrgyzstan by Human Development Index
  133. checked box List of regions of Lebanon by Human Development Index
  134. checked box List of regions of Libya by Human Development Index
  135. checked box List of regions of Madagascar by Human Development Index
  136. checked box List of regions of Mali by Human Development Index
  137. checked box List of regions of Moldova by Human Development Index
  138. checked box List of regions of Mongolia by Human Development Index
  139. checked box List of regions of Montenegro by Human Development Index
  140. checked box List of regions of Morocco by Human Development Index
  141. checked box List of regions of New Zealand by Human Development Index
  142. checked box List of regions of Nicaragua by Human Development Index
  143. checked box List of regions of Niger by Human Development Index
  144. checked box List of regions of North Macedonia by Human Development Index
  145. checked box List of regions of Palestine by Human Development Index
  146. checked box List of regions of Paraguay by Human Development Index
  147. checked box List of regions of Peru by GDP
  148. checked box List of regions of Peru by Human Development Index
  149. checked box List of regions of Saudi Arabia by Human Development Index
  150. checked box List of regions of Somalia by Human Development Index
  151. checked box List of regions of South Korea by Human Development Index
  152. checked box List of regions of Switzerland by Human Development Index
  153. checked box List of regions of Tajikistan by Human Development Index
  154. checked box List of regions of Tanzania by GDP
  155. checked box List of regions of Tanzania by Human Development Index
  156. checked box List of regions of the Dominican Republic by Human Development Index
  157. checked box List of regions of the Philippines by GDP
  158. checked box List of regions of the United Kingdom by GRP
  159. checked box List of regions of the United Kingdom by GRP per capita
  160. checked box List of regions of the United Kingdom by Human Development Index
  161. checked box List of regions of Trinidad and Tobago by Human Development Index
  162. checked box List of regions of Tunisia by Human Development Index
  163. checked box List of regions of Turkmenistan by Human Development Index
  164. checked box List of regions of Uganda by Human Development Index
  165. checked box List of regions of Uruguay by Human Development Index
  166. checked box List of regions of Uzbekistan by Human Development Index
  167. checked box List of regions of Yemen by Human Development Index
  168. checked box List of Romanian counties by GDP
  169. checked box List of Romanian regions by Human Development Index
  170. checked box List of Russian federal subjects by GRP
  171. checked box List of Senegalese regions by Human Development Index
  172. checked box List of Serbian regions by GDP
  173. checked box List of Serbian regions by Human Development Index
  174. checked box List of Slovak regions by GDP
  175. checked box List of Slovak regions by Human Development Index
  176. checked box List of Slovenian regions by Human Development Index
  177. checked box List of South African provinces by gross domestic product
  178. checked box List of South African provinces by gross domestic product per capita
  179. checked box List of South African provinces by Human Development Index
  180. checked box List of South Korean regions by GDP
  181. checked box List of Spanish autonomous communities by gross domestic product
  182. checked box List of Spanish autonomous communities by Human Development Index
  183. checked box List of states and union territories of India by area
  184. checked box List of states and union territories of India by population
  185. checked box List of states of South Sudan by Human Development Index
  186. checked box List of Sudanese states by Human Development Index
  187. checked box List of Swedish counties by GDP
  188. checked box List of Swedish regions by Human Development Index
  189. checked box List of Swiss cantons by GRP
  190. checked box List of the largest country subdivisions by area
  191. checked box List of Togolese regions by Human Development Index
  192. checked box List of Turkish provinces by GDP
  193. checked box List of Turkish regions by Human Development Index
  194. checked box List of U.S. states and territories by Human Development Index
  195. checked box List of U.S. states and territories by life expectancy
  196. checked box List of Ukrainian oblasts and territories by area
  197. checked box List of Ukrainian regions by Human Development Index
  198. checked box List of Vietnamese regions by Human Development Index
  199. checked box List of Zambian provinces by Human Development Index
  200. checked box List of Zimbabwean provinces by Human Development Index
  201. checked box Provinces of Zambia
  202. checked box Ranked list of French regions
  203. checked box Ranked list of Paraguayan departments
  204. checked box Ranked lists of Chilean regions
  205. checked box Ranked lists of Spanish autonomous communities
  206. checked box Regions of Tanzania
  207. checked box Regions of Thailand
  208. checked box States of Venezuela
  209. checked box West Java
  210. checked box West Sumatra

June 2024[edit]

Please check the box after fixing any SYNTH issue.

Methodology[edit]

The tables usually involve four columns, of which the fourth is a "comparable country" column. Generally, the fix involves three things:

  1. Remove the header cell which contains the term Comparable country (or similar expression like Equivalent country etc.) and the source reference included with it.
  2. Certain cells occupy the whole row, that is, they span the whole width of the table. If the table is four columns, you'll find something like | colspan="4" The "4" needs to be changed to "3" (or whatever one less than the previous number of table columns would be).
  3. In rows that have an individual cell in the last column (i.e., not a colspan), the cell needs to be removed. Typically it contains a country name template (like {{NAM}}) or a flag (like {{flag|GER}}), sometimes a flag icon (like {{flagicon|FRA}}). It may be preceded by a rowspan (when two adjacent rows have the same country name in the last column), or by a style statement; these need to be taken into account. The last cell in a table is always followed by a new row delimiter (|-, usually by itself, but could have a style attribute), so you can look for a country or flag template, followed by |- on the next line.

If you normally use the source editor, try the Visual Editor, which has tools for removing columns from tables.

Some "comparable" expressions: Comparable country, Comparable countries, Comparable economy, Equivalent country, Country similar in area, Country/Indian state, Country comparison, Countries of comparable size, Comparable entity/-ies.

Find candidates[edit]

These are all list articles, so you can search for "List of" along with some of the other strings frequently seen, like, "List of * by Human Development Index", or "List of * by GDP", and so on.

You can also target just list articles that have tables in them, plus the string "comparable country" or "equivalent country" that appears in the header of the column that normally should be deleted, like this (ideally, all of these links should show no search results):

Note that if an "insource" search returns a result for an article, but upon viewing it, there doesn't appear to be such a column, you should investigate further. The article may contain the table embedded within html hidden comment delimiters, those columns should be removed as well. This was the case, for example, in List of Indonesian provinces by GDP, through revision 1105861293‎ of 22 August 2022.

As of 1 September 2022, all three searches above come up empty, so it may be that all articles are repaired, or at least, any that are left don't fit the pattern.