UCDP Battle-Related Deaths Dataset Codebook:Version 5.0-2014
June 2014

Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP)
Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University

This version compiled and updated by Therése Pettersson (2014)
Replacing the earlier version by Ralph Sundberg (2010)

This codebook presents the variables in the UCDP Battle-related Deaths Dataset, and clarifies
the definitions and methods, and provides explanations concerning the treatment of thesources consulted. The document focuses specifically on the coding of estimates for battlerelated deaths, published since 2005 in the Human Security Report (Oxford: OxfordUniversity Press). The UCDP Battle-related Deaths Dataset project was developed withsupport from the Human Security Report Project, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver,Canada.

When using the data, please refer to it with its correct name: the UCDP Battle-related
Deaths Dataset with the correct version number, and provide the URL for the UCDP
website.

The UCDP Battle-related Deaths Dataset
The definition of conflict inclusion in this dataset follows the UCDP definition of armed
conflict. More information about the definitions and coding rules is available in theUCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset 1946-2013 Codebook (version 4-2014)1
A. ConflictID
The unique identifier of all conflicts, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
B. DyadID
The unique identifier of a dyad in a conflict, as given in the UCDP Dyadic Dataset. In theconflict version of this dataset, DyadID is a string variable where the different dyad-IDs areseparated by a comma (‘,’)
C. Year
The year of observation.
D. LocationInc
The name of the country/countries whose government(s) has a primary claim to the object indispute (the incompatibility), as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
E. SideA
The name of the country/countries of Side A in a conflict. Always the government side in
intrastate conflicts, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
F. SideA2ndSideA2nd lists all states that enter a conflict with troops to actively support side A in thedyad. By definition, only independent states can be a secondary warring party in conflict. A
secondary warring party on side A shares the position in the incompatibility with Side A inthe conflict. SideA2nd does not need to meet the 25 battle-related deaths criterion to be
included in the dataset; an active troop participation is enough.
SideA2nd is a string variable, where the different names are separated by a comma (‘,’).

1

For more information about the UCDP/PRIO Dataset, see Gleditsch et al. (2002)

G. SideB
The name of the country or opposition organization(s) of side B in a conflict, as given in theUCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
H. SideBID
Side B ID is the unique identifier of the actor on side B in the conflict. For government
actors, the Gleditsch & Ward (2007) country codes are used. For non-state actors, the ID istaken from the UCDP Actor Dataset (http://www.pcr.uu.se/research/ucdp/datasets/).
IDs for the state(s) on side A, as well as on SideA2nd and SideB2nd are found in GWNOA,GWNOA2nd and GWNOB2nd.
I. SideB2ndSideB2nd lists all states that enter a conflict with troops to actively support side B in thedyad. By definition, only independent states can be a secondary warring party in conflict. A
secondary warring party on side B shares the position in the incompatibility with Side B inthe conflict. SideB2nd does not need to meet the 25 battle-related deaths criterion to be
included in the dataset; active troop participation is enough.
SideB2nd is a string variable, where the different names are separated by a comma (‘,’).
J. Incompatibility
A general coding of the conflict issue, if the conflict is an incompatibility over government
or over territory, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
Incompatibility over territory is coded as 1, and incompatibility over government as 2.
K. TerritoryName
The name of the territory over which the conflict is fought, provided that theincompatibility is over territory, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
L. BdBestThe UCDP Best estimate for battle-related deaths in the conflict/dyad in the given year.
M. BdLow
The UCDP Low estimate for battle-related deaths in the conflict/dyad in the given year.
N. BdHighThe UCDP High estimate for battle-related deaths in the conflict/dyad in the given year.

O. TypeOfConflict
The UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset identifies four different types of conflict:extrasystemic (1), interstate (2), internal (3) and internationalized internal (4). See theUCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset codebook for specific definitions of the four types.
P. BattleLocation
The name of the country/countries in which battle-related deaths that can be related to theincompatibility have been recorded.
BattleLocation is a string variable, where the different countries are separated by a comma(‘,’).
Q. GWNoAThe Gleditsch and Ward country code of SideA (see UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset
codebook for list of countries and codes).
R. GWNoA2nd
The Gleditsch and Ward country code of the state/states supporting SideA (see UCDP/PRIO
Armed Conflict Dataset codebook for list of countries and codes).
S. GWNoBThe Gleditsch and Ward country code of SideB (see UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset
codebook for list of countries and codes).
T. GWNoB2nd
The Gleditsch and Ward country code of the state/states supporting SideB (see UCDP/PRIO
Armed Conflict Dataset codebook for list of countries and codes).
U. GWNoLoc
The Gleditsch and Ward country code of the country in which the incompatibility is located(see UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset codebook for list of countries and codes).
V. GWNoBattle
The Gleditsch and Ward country code of the country/countries in which battle-related
deaths relating to the incompatibility have been recorded (see UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict
Dataset codebook for list of countries and codes).
W. Region
Identifies the region of the location. The following regions are given in the UCDP/PRIO
Armed Conflict Dataset; Europe (1), Middle East (2), Asia (3), Africa (4), and theAmericas (5).

X. Version
Identifies the version of the dataset.

Definition of Armed Conflict
The Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP) defines an armed conflict as a contested
incompatibility that concerns government and/or territory over which the use of armed
force between two parties, of which at least one is the government of a state, has resulted in
at least 25 battle-related deaths in one calendar year.
The separate elements of this definition are defined as follows.
(a) Incompatibility that concerns government and/or territory. The incompatibility must
concern government and/or territory and it refers to the stated generally
incompatible positions of the parties. An incompatibility that concerns government
refers to the type of political system, the replacement of the central government or
the change of the composition of the current government. An incompatibility thatconcerns territory refers to the status of a territory, for example, the change of thestate in control of a certain territory (interstate conflict), secession or autonomy(intrastate conflict).
(b) Use of armed force. This refers to the use of arms by the military forces of the parties
resulting in at least 25 deaths in a year. Arms are defined as any material means ofcombat, for example, manufactured weapons as well as sticks, stones, fire, water, andso on.
(c) Party. This refers to the government of a state or an opposition organization oralliance of opposition organizations. The government of a state is the party
controlling the capital of a state. An opposition organization is any non-governmentalgroup which has announced a name for the group and its political goals and has used
armed force to achieve them.
(d) State. A state is an internationally recognized sovereign government controlling a
specified territory or an internationally non-recognized government controlling a
specific territory which is not disputed by an internationally recognized sovereign
government, which previously controlled the same territory.

Definition of Battle-related Deaths
Battle-related deaths refer to those deaths caused by the warring parties that can be directly
related to combat2. This includes traditional battlefield fighting, guerrilla activities (e.g. hitand-run attacks/ambushes) and all kinds of bombardments of military bases, cities andvillages etc. Urban warfare (bombs, explosions, and assassinations) does not resemble what
happens on a battlefield, but such deaths are considered to be battle-related. The target for
the attacks is either the military forces or representatives for the parties, though there isoften substantial collateral damage in the form of civilians being killed in the crossfire,
indiscriminate bombings, etc. All fatalities – military as well as civilian – incurred in suchsituations are counted as battle-related deaths.

Sources
The data presented by UCDP is based on information taken from a selection of publicly
available sources, printed as well as electronic. The sources include news agencies, journals,
research reports, and documents of international and multinational organizations and NGOs.
This includes documents of the warring parties (governments and opposition organizations)when such sources are available, since they serve as a crucial complement when identifying
statements about the parties’ incompatible positions. Global, regional and country-specificsources are used for all countries.
Both the independence and the transparency of the sources are deemed crucial. Each sourceis judged according to the context in which it is published, that is, according to the potential
interests of the source in misrepresenting political or violent events. Since most sources aresecondary sources, UCDP attempts to trace reports back to the primary source in order todecide whether they are reliable. In cases of biased sources or in situations where there isunreliable information, the events are normally only included in the high estimate.
Little information on the exact number of deaths in conflict is usually available, and media
coverage varies considerably from country to country. It is important to emphasize that thefatality estimates given by UCDP is based on publicly accessible sources. Due to the lack ofavailable information, it is possible that there are more fatalities than the UCDP highestimate, but it is very unlikely that there is fewer than the UCDP best estimate. One
2Battle-related deaths, which concern direct deaths, are not the same as war-related deaths, which includes both direct aswell as indirect deaths due to disease and starvation, criminality, or attacks deliberately directed against civilians only
(one-sided violence).

important caveat is that the precision of the numbers belies the uncertainty of the estimates;
while UCDP estimates are based on aggregated totals of all incidents recorded in our sources,
we acknowledge that numerous events are not reported in the media. Figures are revised
retroactively each year as new information becomes available.
In addition to deciding the level of reliability of available sources, the project strives to
identify the existence of censorship. Thus, other sources than regular news sources must be
used to establish what is occurring in a country. Documents and reports issued byinternational and multinational organizations and NGOs are consulted for this purpose.

Methods
The data on armed conflicts are compiled by calendar year. They include data on conflict
location, type of incompatibility, year the incompatibility was formed, year the warring
party began its use of armed force, warring parties, secondary support, negotiations, andbattle-related deaths during the year.
The data on battle-related deaths constitute the largest part of the data collection. The
Factiva news database (previously known as the Reuters Business Briefing)3 is indispensablefor the collection of general news reports. The UCDP retrieves all reports which contain
information about individuals killed or injured. Each news report is then read by UCDP staff,
and every event that contains information about individuals killed is coded manually into anevents dataset. For every event, the following information is recorded: the date of the event,
the reporting source, the primary source, the actors involved, where the event took place,what occurred, and an estimate of fatalities. Ideally, these individual figures are corroborated
by two or more independent sources. These fatalities are later aggregated into a low, high,and best estimate for every calendar year.
The aggregated figures are also compared to total figures that appear in official documents,
special reports and the news media. This serves as a contribution to clarify the context inwhich events occur, thus facilitating proper interpretation of the reporting in publishedsources.

3

Factiva is a news and information service database which contains over 35,000 sources.

Best, Low and High Estimate of Battle-related Deaths
The general rule for UCDP’s estimation of battle-related deaths is moderation. All battlerelated deaths have to be verified in one way or another, and all estimates reported are basedon UCDP expertise of each particular conflict. As a general rule, all figures are disaggregatedas far as possible and any figures that are not trustworthy are disregarded in the coding
process. Due to the great uncertainty of reports from conflict areas, the project provides
three estimates concerning battle-related deaths for each year.

(a) Best estimate. The UCDP Best estimate consist of the aggregated most reliable numbers
for all battle-related incidents during a year. If different reports provide different estimates,
an examination is made as to what source is most reliable. If no such distinction can be made,
UCDP as a rule include the lower figure given.
(b) Low estimate. The UCDP Low estimate consists of the aggregated low estimates for all
battle-related incidents during a year. If different reports provide different estimates and ahigher estimate is considered more reliable, the low estimate is also reported if deemedreasonable.
(c) High estimate. The UCDP High estimate consists of the aggregated high estimates for all
battle-related incidents during a year. If different reports provide different estimates and alower estimate is considered more or equally reliable, the high estimate is also reported ifdeemed reasonable. If there are incidents when there is some uncertainty about what parties
have been involved, these are also included in the high estimate.

Missing data problems
The missing data code is -99. In v.5-2014 there is one case of missing data when it comes tobattle-related deaths, namely Syria in 2013. Due to a series of problems connected tocollecting data from Syria, only a low estimate is reported for 2013. See Themnér &Wallensteen (2014) for a more in-depth discussion on the case of Syria.

References:Gleditsch, Nils Petter; Peter Wallensteen; Mikael Eriksson: Margareta Sollenberg & HåvardStrand, 2002. ”Armed Conflict 1946-2002, A New Dataset”, Journal of Peace Research 39(5): 615-637.

Themnér, Lotta & Peter Wallensteen, 2014 “Armed Conflicts 1946-2013”, Journal of Peace

Research 51 (4)