Only earthquakes of magnitude 6 or above are included, unless they resulted in significant damage or casualties, or were notable for some other reason.

In total, there were 16 magnitude 7.0+ earthquakes this year, 6 of them were in Indonesia.

Most of the deaths were caused by a devastating tsunami that spread across the Indian Ocean.

Japan was hit by a magnitude 6.6 earthquake, which caused 68 deaths and $28 billion in damage, making it the sixth costliest earthquake in history.

Population increase, habitation spread, and advances in earthquake detection technology all contribute to higher earthquake numbers being recorded over time.