I am trying to figure out how to make the Balkans and Anatolia have the same population growth as France and HRE until industrial age since there seems to be stagnation in demography in those regions. I apologize if my estimates are wrong. Please correct me.
Around 100-200 AD, Anatolia populated near 10M.
Around Basil I's death, the Roman(Byzantine) Empire was estimated 12M people which includes Balkans, Anatolia. HRE estimated at 5M while France 9M.
In OTL 1500s, Ottoman empire with almost the same land area as Basil I, estimated 11M while HRE, increase to 10M and France to 15m.
I was thinking of how both the Balkans and Anatolia regardless of which government(Continuation of Roman empire; or Ottomans increasing population; or another power unifying those areas) retain the same population growth as HRE and France by 1800s from Basil I's death.
If France populated 26M in 1800 and HRE around 24M, Anatolian and Balkan population combined assuming same population growth would roughly be around 42M or around 21M by 1500. For comparison purposes OTL anatolia was estimated 5M in 1800.
Is this possible with the improvement of technology from 1025 AD onward would help even if there is a difference between the geography Balkans /Anatolia vs HRE/France? Or are these wrong estimates by historian for Anatolia/Balkan population during Roman times?