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Italian Nonmarital Fertility Ratio: Components of an Unexpected Rise

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  • Ester Fanelli

    (Brown University)

Abstract

While barely 10% of Italian births were to unmarried mothers in 1999, by 2019 this figure reached 34%. A similar change had occurred decades before in other European countries, but in Italy, a country known for its religiosity and strong attachment to familial values, this substantial and rapid increase was uncertain and even surprising. Analyzing Census data from 2001 to 2019, I decompose this rise into increased nonmarital fertility, decreased marital fertility, and change in the fraction of women married and unmarried. I show that between 2001 and 2011, the rise in the Nonmarital Fertility Ratio (NFR) mainly reflected the increased nonmarital fertility, while between 2011 and 2019, the rise reflected both the growth in the fraction of women who were unmarried and a decline in marital fertility. Shifts in population composition of reproductive age women over time, such as the higher proportion of older women or the higher fraction of foreign women, did not explain these changing patterns. Patterns of nonmarital fertility differed across regions, with earlier and faster adoption in Northern and Central Italy. These demographic patterns are consistent with a generational shift in attitudes towards a greater acceptance of nonmarital births.

Suggested Citation

  • Ester Fanelli, 2023. "Italian Nonmarital Fertility Ratio: Components of an Unexpected Rise," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(5), pages 1-21, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:poprpr:v:42:y:2023:i:5:d:10.1007_s11113-023-09825-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s11113-023-09825-8
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