Smoothed frequency curve

The frequency is the number of times an event occurs within a given scenario. Cumulative frequency is defined as the running total of frequencies. It is the sum of all the previous frequencies up to the current point. It is easily understandable through a Cumulative Frequency Table.

Cumulative Frequency is an important tool in Statistics to tabulate data in an organized manner. Whenever you wish to find out the popularity of a certain type of data, or the likelihood that a given event will fall within certain frequency distribution, a cumulative frequency table can be most useful. Say, for example, the Census department has collected data and wants to find out all residents in the city aged below 45. In this given case, a cumulative frequency table will be helpful.

Cumulative Frequency Curve

A curve that represents the cumulative frequency distribution of grouped data on a graph is called a Cumulative Frequency Curve or an Ogive. Representing cumulative frequency data on a graph is the most efficient way to understand the data and derive results.

There are two types of Cumulative Frequency Curves (or Ogives) :

• More than type Cumulative Frequency Curve
• Less than type Cumulative Frequency Curve