Marriage in urban Albania (during the first half of the twentieth century)

This article analyses the marriage pattern in urban Albania, based primarily on the data of the Albanian Population Census of 1918. Age at marriage and the factors influencing nuptiality among the urban population are analysed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. The analyses show that the marriage pattern in urban Albania was similar to Laslett's Mediterranean set, while rural areas displayed an age at marriage for both men and women which was characteristic of the marriage pattern East of the Hajnal line. Albanian cities showed a higher age at marriage for both men and women than villages. The difference in age at marriage between urban and rural areas was noticeably higher for men, while the age at marriage for women showed smaller differences. An explanation for these differences in the age at marriage was found in a combination of traditional marital behaviour and demographic issues, which broadened or narrowed the marriage field, thus directly influencing the age at marriage.     

Household structures in Albania in the early 20th century

This article attempts to shed light on household structures in Albania based on the census of 1918. Quantitative data enable the investigation of patterns of household formation and marriage in a region where such research previously has been missing. The results confirm eastern European marriage patterns for women but not for men in Albania. Northern Albania lies in the core zone of the Balkan patriarchy and joint family households have prevailed in rural Albania, despite a tendency toward frequent divisions of households among brothers. Most important, there existed a great variety of types of households in different villages in Albania in 1918.     

Migration as family strategy: Rural-urban labor migration in India during the twentieth century

"The article analyzes the role of families in processes of rural-urban migration in India in the twentieth century. It shows that the continuous circular form of this migration should be explained as a consequence of rural family strategies. Already established kinship relations or marriage opportunities in the future act as a centripetal force, drawing the labor migrants back to their communities time and again. In addition, the article shows how labor migration is informed by economic and cultural considerations which determine the socioeconomic behavior of men and women."     

Marriage patterns among Lutherans from the parish of Trzebosz in the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century

The aim of this study is to characterize marriage patterns in a rural parish of Trzebosz in the borderland between Greater Poland (Wielkopolska) and Silesia in the years 1855–1913. A total of 343 data on marriages were gathered from the parish registers. The percentage of Lutheran–Catholic marriages was calculated. The distribution of age at marriage by martial status was assessed. The intensity of endogamy and exogamy was calculated as well as the coefficients of exogamy and biological polygamy. The annual rhythm of marriages was determined. In Trzebosz mixed marriages accounted for 3.94% in 1855–1899 and 14% in 1900–1913. The average age of brides and grooms was 25.36 and 26.22 years, while of widows and widowers they were 37.26 and 42.35 years, respectively. The average age of brides and grooms declined over time. In 1855–1899 the levels of endogamy and exogamy outside the parish were 19% and 81%, respectively. In 1900–1913 exogamy outside the parish decreased to 62%, while endogamy increased to 37%. The average mating distances for all marriages and exogamous ones were 24 and 42 km, respectively, in 1855–1899, while for 1900–1913 the respective figures were 7.4 and 8.7 km. The coefficient of exogamy declined from 0.78 in 1855–1899 to 0.67 in 1900–1913, while the coefficient of biological polygamy grew from 1.19 to 1.30 between those periods. The religious factor, apart from an economic strategy, shaped the annual rhythm of marriage. The outflow of the parishioners from Trzebosz in the early 20th century led to its ageing.     

Household structures in urban Albania in 1918

This article intends to shed further light on urban household structures in Albania as far less is known about them compared with rural households. The population census of 1918, which was forgotten for decades, is used for this purpose and proves to be a very valuable source. After a look at the theoretical framework of household formation patterns in this region and at comparative studies in other countries of the region, the size and composition of households in Albania are analysed and differences within the urban population recognised. These urban households were smaller and less complex than rural households in Albania. This investigation into the lives of urban dwellers regarding their living jointly with other members of the household adds to the picture of households frequently being divided between brothers. Nevertheless, multiple-family households also existed in an urban environment and more so in Albania than in neighbouring countries. One can find many differences within the urban population concerning the size and complexity of their households, but a higher status tended to be necessary to increase the complexity of the household. The different economic and spatial environment in cities made living in a multiple-family household more difficult to achieve and therefore richer rather than poorer people more usually lived in such constellations.     

Household structures in Albania in the early 20th century

This article attempts to shed light on household structures in Albania based on the census of 1918. Quantitative data enable the investigation of patterns of household formation and marriage in a region where such research previously has been missing. The results confirm eastern European marriage patterns for women but not for men in Albania. Northern Albania lies in the core zone of the Balkan patriarchy and joint family households have prevailed in rural Albania, despite a tendency toward frequent divisions of households among brothers. Most important, there existed a great variety of types of households in different villages in Albania in 1918.     

Household structures in urban Albania in 1918

This article intends to shed further light on urban household structures in Albania as far less is known about them compared with rural households. The population census of 1918, which was forgotten for decades, is used for this purpose and proves to be a very valuable source. After a look at the theoretical framework of household formation patterns in this region and at comparative studies in other countries of the region, the size and composition of households in Albania are analysed and differences within the urban population recognised. These urban households were smaller and less complex than rural households in Albania. This investigation into the lives of urban dwellers regarding their living jointly with other members of the household adds to the picture of households frequently being divided between brothers. Nevertheless, multiple-family households also existed in an urban environment and more so in Albania than in neighbouring countries. One can find many differences within the urban population concerning the size and complexity of their households, but a higher status tended to be necessary to increase the complexity of the household. The different economic and spatial environment in cities made living in a multiple-family household more difficult to achieve and therefore richer rather than poorer people more usually lived in such constellations.     

Poverty and the family-income cycle: Casual laborers in Amsterdam in the first half of the 20th century

Based on data collected from the files of the municipal poor relief institutions, the incomes of Amsterdam casual (dock) laborers and of their wives and children, poor relief, and other sources of income are plotted against their family cycles. The emerging patterns confirm results arrived at in American, British, and Belgian studies: Married women worked for wages mainly in the first period of the marriage, when the children were still too young to earn. For the same reason, families relied more on poor relief in this first period than later on. Only in the second and third periods could families rely (more or less) on their own labor due to the substantial contribution made by their children (from age 14). Wives of these casual laborers worked more for wages (often as charwomen) than did the wives of skilled laborers. Obviously, norms and rules about wives' responsibilities in the home were strong enough to prevent women from aspiring to substantial, or even lifetime jobs, although only a few families in this sample could survive on the males' incomes alone.     

Poverty and the family-income cycle: Casual laborers in Amsterdam in the first half of the 20th century

Based on data collected from the files of the municipal poor relief institutions, the incomes of Amsterdam casual (dock) laborers and of their wives and children, poor relief, and other sources of income are plotted against their family cycles. The emerging patterns confirm results arrived at in American, British, and Belgian studies: Married women worked for wages mainly in the first period of the marriage, when the children were still too young to earn. For the same reason, families relied more on poor relief in this first period than later on. Only in the second and third periods could families rely (more or less) on their own labor due to the substantial contribution made by their children (from age 14). Wives of these casual laborers worked more for wages (often as charwomen) than did the wives of skilled laborers. Obviously, norms and rules about wives' responsibilities in the home were strong enough to prevent women from aspiring to substantial, or even lifetime jobs, although only a few families in this sample could survive on the males' incomes alone.     

Reconsidering the southern Europe model: Dowry, women's work and marriage patterns in pre-industrial urban Italy (Turin, second half of the 18th century)

This paper aims to investigate and analyse the impact of the dowry and the endowment system on marriage and household patterns and on the labour market in 18th century Turin. At the same time it enquires into the reliability of the northern/southern Europe pattern for the study of this topic. Two points are developed. Firstly the paper shows that the dowry system coexists with a relatively high age at marriage because of the specific role played by the dowry in Turin society. Indeed, this was not a once-and-for-all established asset but was a negotiable and flexible resource that could be manipulated by the different actors concerned in the endowment. Moreover, the payment did not always take place immediately upon marriage, nor was the money quickly available. At the same time the paper examines the economic role of dowry in Ancien Régime households: by means of a juridical procedure couples could alienate this property, and use or invest it to ensure their well-being and/or their economic situation. Finally, the second part investigates the relationship between the dowry system and the participation of young girls and married women in the local labour market: their significant and crucial presence demonstrates that the dowry and its expectation was not a sufficient incentive to keep them out of the labour market.     

Legal restrictions on marriage: Marriage and inequality in the Austrian Tyrol during the nineteenth century

Under the legal restrictions on marriage in the Tyrol and Vorarlberg region of Austria between 1820 and 1920, members of the lower classes could marry only with the prior consent of the village authorities. Local and provincial politicians justified the necessity of these laws on the basis of the overpopulation and widespread impoverishment, which, they alleged, had resulted from the rise in lower-class marriages since the onset of industrialization. An analysis of the background and objectives of these legal interventions into marital behavior, however, reveals a different picture in regard to their effect and their effectiveness. The limitations on marriage affected life most profoundly in precisely those areas where people already tended to marry less often and later in life. Where changes in marital behavior did occur, they did not conflict with traditional behavior but rather resulted from the adaptation of the latter to altered living and working conditions. Thus it was material considerations that led the group of new wage-earners to delay or even forego marriage. The analysis shows that the limitations on marriage were directed less against the supposed causes of impoverishment than towards the continuation of social inequality in marriage and the stabilization of the status quo.     

Women between a new marriage and an independent position: Rural widows in Bohemia in the first half of the nineteenth century

This article discusses the position of widowed rural women in early 19th-century Bohemia. It focuses on women who had been married to full peasant farmers, holders of smaller farmsteads or cottagers. The data collected are based on the method of family reconstruction, which made it possible to carry out an in-depth examination of the background of individual widows as well as of the factors which influenced the widows' future. Results show that in deciding whether to remarry, widows were not determined only by economic or demographic circumstances (their age). Rather, the decision depended on specific life experience of each widow. One of the crucial factors was whether a widow was entitled to managing the farmstead of her late husband and also the number and age of children in the family. Young widows under 35 remarried in 88% of the cases, which was only natural since they did not have enough time to fulfil their maternal needs — 62% of women under 35 had either no child or only one when they became widowed. By contrast, the majority of older widows (61% of widows aged 35–50) decided to manage the farm by themselves, since by entering into a new marriage they would compromise the inheritance shares of their existing children.     

Women between a new marriage and an independent position: Rural widows in Bohemia in the first half of the nineteenth century

This article discusses the position of widowed rural women in early 19th-century Bohemia. It focuses on women who had been married to full peasant farmers, holders of smaller farmsteads or cottagers. The data collected are based on the method of family reconstruction, which made it possible to carry out an in-depth examination of the background of individual widows as well as of the factors which influenced the widows' future. Results show that in deciding whether to remarry, widows were not determined only by economic or demographic circumstances (their age). Rather, the decision depended on specific life experience of each widow. One of the crucial factors was whether a widow was entitled to managing the farmstead of her late husband and also the number and age of children in the family. Young widows under 35 remarried in 88% of the cases, which was only natural since they did not have enough time to fulfil their maternal needs — 62% of women under 35 had either no child or only one when they became widowed. By contrast, the majority of older widows (61% of widows aged 35–50) decided to manage the farm by themselves, since by entering into a new marriage they would compromise the inheritance shares of their existing children.     

Household,family, and economy among wine-growing peasants: The case of lower Austria in the first half of the nineteenth century

This article discusses commercial viticulture as a peculiar form of agro-economic activity with certain analogies to proto-industry. Using cadastral surveys, parish registers, and census lists from two Lower Austrian villages, the main economic features, the household formation patterns, and the family forms of peasant wine-growers are analyzed within the broader framework of the demographic and social landscape of the Austrian Alpine provinces of the Habsburg monarchy in the nineteenth century. The prevalence of nuclear family forms, low proportions of permanent celibates and illegitimate births, highly fragmented landownership, small numbers of farm servants, and numerous lodgers are shown to be the main characteristics of this smallholder society. Due to the decline of Austrian viticulture in the first half of the nineteenth century, it underwent a process of “re-agrarianisation.”     

Women who shared a husband: Polygyny in southern Albania in the early 20th century

In Europe little attention has been paid to polygyny, though it occurred in the Balkans in the recent past. Data from an Austro-Hungarian census of two-thirds of Albania taken in 1918 give a rare opportunity to examine it. As elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean, the extent of polygyny was modest, but it was more widespread in rural areas than in towns. This article looks at polygyny in Mallakastër, one area of southern Albania. While not specifically provided for by customary law, polygyny was accommodated within it. Marriages were contracted in the same way as monogamous marriages, and both co-wives lived as part of the family. There is no direct evidence of the reasons why some marriages were polygynous. It may have been a response to childlessness in some cases, but this was neither a universal justification nor a universal explanation. It was probably also a means by which families augmented their labor supply in the absence of an institution of servants. A law enforcing monogamy in 1929 and changes that made polygyny less acceptable and less necessary have resulted in its disappearance.     

Women who shared a husband: Polygyny in southern Albania in the early 20th century

In Europe little attention has been paid to polygyny, though it occurred in the Balkans in the recent past. Data from an Austro-Hungarian census of two-thirds of Albania taken in 1918 give a rare opportunity to examine it. As elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean, the extent of polygyny was modest, but it was more widespread in rural areas than in towns. This article looks at polygyny in Mallakastër, one area of southern Albania. While not specifically provided for by customary law, polygyny was accommodated within it. Marriages were contracted in the same way as monogamous marriages, and both co-wives lived as part of the family. There is no direct evidence of the reasons why some marriages were polygynous. It may have been a response to childlessness in some cases, but this was neither a universal justification nor a universal explanation. It was probably also a means by which families augmented their labor supply in the absence of an institution of servants. A law enforcing monogamy in 1929 and changes that made polygyny less acceptable and less necessary have resulted in its disappearance.