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Consumption and Living Standards in Early Modern Rural Households: Probate Evidence from Southern Sweden, c. 1680-1860

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  • Falk, Marcus

    (Department of Economic History, Lund University)

Abstract

This paper presents new estimates of the material livings standards among the rural population in southern Sweden from the 1680’s up to 1865. Utilizing a newly constructed database of circa 1800 probate inventories from the benchmark periods 1680-1720, 1780-85, and 1860-65, we analyse the development of consumption patterns for rural households. We find that that all rural households, no matter their socio-economic status, diversified their composition of consumption goods with a special focus towards increased comfort, rather than household reproduction, during the second half of the eighteenth century. The most visible change was in the diversification of cooking- and dining-ware, which corresponds to a contemporary rebuilding of peasant homes to include purpose-built kitchens. This diversification and increase in comfortable consumption furthermore correspond with a diversification of household production strategies during a period of stagnant, of even decreasing, economic growth before the Swedish economic catch-up of the nineteenth century. This suggests that changes in consumption during the period were a conscious decision, likely made possible by increasing access to credit and inter-regional markets.

Suggested Citation

  • Falk, Marcus, 2023. "Consumption and Living Standards in Early Modern Rural Households: Probate Evidence from Southern Sweden, c. 1680-1860," Lund Papers in Economic History 254, Lund University, Department of Economic History.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:luekhi:0254
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Allen, Robert C., 1992. "Enclosure and the Yeoman: The Agricultural Development of the South Midlands 1450-1850," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198282969.
    2. Lindgren, Håkan, 2002. "The Modernization Of Swedish Credit Markets, 1840–1905: Evidence From Probate Records," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 62(3), pages 810-832, September.
    3. Schön, Lennart & Krantz, Olle, 2015. "New Swedish Historical National Accounts since the 16th Century in Constant and Current Prices," Lund Papers in Economic History 140, Lund University, Department of Economic History.
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    JEL classification:

    • N33 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Europe: Pre-1913

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