A new database on human mortality and morbidity, and civil evacuations arising from volcanic activity is presented. The aim is to quantify the human impacts of volcanic phenomena during the 20th Century. Data include numbers of deaths, injuries, evacuees and people made homeless, and the nature of the associated volcanic phenomena. The database has been compiled from a wide range of sources, and discrepancies between these are indicated where they arise. The quality of the data varies according to the source and the impacts reported. Data for homelessness are particularly poor and effects from ashfall and injuries appear to be under-reported. Of the 491 events included in the database, ∼53% resulted in deaths, although the total death toll of 91,724 is dominated by the disasters at Mt Pelée and Nevado del Ruiz. Pyroclastic density currents account for the largest proportion of deaths, and lahars for the most injuries incurred. The Philippines, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia, as a region, were the worst affected, and middle-income countries experienced greater human impacts than low or high-income countries. Compilation of the database has highlighted a number of problems with the completeness and accuracy of the existing CRED EM-DAT disaster database that includes volcanic events. This database is used by a range of organisations involved with risk management. The new database is intended as a resource for future analysis and will be made available via the Internet. It is hoped that it will be maintained and expanded.