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On the origins of the demographic transition: rethinking the European marriage pattern

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  • Faustine Perrin

    (Lund University
    BETA, University of Strasbourg)

Abstract

Why did France experience the demographic transition first? This question remains one of the greatest puzzles of economics, demography, and economic history. The French pattern is hard to reconcile with elucidations of the process as found in other countries. The present analysis goes back to the roots of the process and offers novel ways of explaining why people started to control their fertility in France and how they did so. In this paper, I track the evolution of marriage patterns to a point before the premises of the demographic transition. I identify two distinct phases. Next, I rely on exploratory methods to classify French counties based on their discriminatory features. Five profiles emerge. I discuss these profiles through the lens of the French Revolution, one of the greatest events that ever occurred in French history, which irretrievably altered its society. In particular, the results show that the fertility transition was not as linear, but more complex than previous research had argued. They show the importance of accounting for cultural factors and for individuals’ predispositions to adapt more or less quickly to societal changes. Yet cultural factors are not all. They can help to explain the timing of the transition and the choice of methods used to control fertility, but modernity and gender equality are also needed to describe the mechanisms in play behind the process.

Suggested Citation

  • Faustine Perrin, 2022. "On the origins of the demographic transition: rethinking the European marriage pattern," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 16(3), pages 431-475, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:cliomt:v:16:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s11698-021-00237-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s11698-021-00237-2
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    Cited by:

    1. Lehmann-Hasemeyer, Sibylle & Prettner, Klaus & Tscheuschner, Paul, 2023. "The scientific revolution and its implications for long-run economic development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    2. Claude Diebolt & Magali Jaoul-Grammare & Faustine Perrin, 2022. "A Cliometric Reading of the Development of Primary Education in France in the Nineteenth Century," Working Papers of BETA 2022-02, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    3. Romane Frecheville-Faucon & Magali Jaoul-Grammare & Faustine Perrin, 2023. "Gender Inequalities: Progress and Challenges," Working Papers of BETA 2023-32, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    4. Romane Frecheville-Faucon & Magali Jaoul-Grammare & Faustine Perrin, 2023. "Gender Inequalities: Progress and Challenges," Working Papers 12-23, Association Française de Cliométrie (AFC).
    5. Youssouf Merouani & Faustine Perrin, 2023. "Myths and Biases: An Exploration of Women’s Historical Patenting Activities," Working Papers 09-23, Association Française de Cliométrie (AFC).
    6. Guillaume Blanc, 2023. "The Cultural Origins of the Demographic Transition in France," Economics Discussion Paper Series 2309, Economics, The University of Manchester.
    7. Le Bris, David & Tallec, Ronan, 2021. "The European Marriage Pattern and its Positive Consequences Montesquieu-Volvestre, 1660-1789," MPRA Paper 105324, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Youssouf Merouani & Faustine Perrin, 2022. "Gender and the long-run development process. A survey of the literature [Rethinking age heaping: A cautionary tale from nineteenth-century Italy]," European Review of Economic History, Oxford University Press, vol. 26(4), pages 612-641.
    9. David Bris & Ronan Tallec, 2023. "The European marriage pattern and the sensitivity of female age at marriage to economic context. Montesquieu-Volvestre, 1660–1789," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 17(2), pages 187-231, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Demographic transition; European marriage pattern; French revolution; Gender equality; Women empowerment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • N33 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion

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