Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/98217 
Year of Publication: 
2013
Series/Report no.: 
Economic Growth Center Discussion Paper No. 1021
Publisher: 
Yale University, Economic Growth Center, New Haven, CT
Abstract: 
This paper presents first results from a project to reconstitute the demographic behavior of three villages in Württemberg (southern Germany) from the mid-sixteenth to the early twentieth century. Using high-quality registers of births, deaths, and marriages, and unusual ancillary sources, we improve on the family-reconstitution techniques pioneered by Louis Henry and applied to good effect by the Cambridge Group and other scholars. This paper focuses on simple, standard demographic measures, in order to provide a broad overview and support comparisons with other places. An extreme system of demographic regulation operated in these Württemberg communities until around 1870. This regulation created a two-tiered demographic system. A group of insiders were able to marry, and experienced both high marital fertility and high infant and child mortality. A second group of outsiders were prevented from marrying. Many, especially the males, left the community; those who stayed contributed to growing illegitimacy and associated levels of infant and child mortality that were even higher than for the offspring of insiders.
Subjects: 
fertility
mortality
nuptiality
European marriage pattern
institutions
community
politische Ehekonsens
Germany
Württemberg
proto-industry
JEL: 
N33
J12
J13
K0
O17
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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