Research on the Family in the Towns of the Prussian Partition in the 19th and at the Beginning of the 20th Centuries. The Present State of Research and Its Prospects

The article deals with the problem of demographic changes that take place in the families living in towns of the Prussian partition in the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th. The most important populational parameters have been presented; on the basis of these parameters it is possible to observe trends and the directions of changes, which are part of a much wider, pan-European process of demographic transformation. The research has been carried out on the basis of the information concerning a few towns of the Prussian partition (Toruń, Poznań, Gdańsk, Elbląg, Starogard, Chojnice, Chełmża).A special attention has been paid to a decreasing age of newlyweds, disappearing barriers for mixed (interfaith) marriages, loosening of social and professional requirements, and weakening of the territorial barrier while choosing the spouse. The fact worth noticing is that the interval between the day of birth and the day of baptism was longer than before.Other facts that are of interest are: a decrease of the rate of birth/mortality, as well as of the coefficient of births and deaths at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Another sphere that has been researched is the value of infant mortality, quite high in the 19th century and slowly diminishing afterwards. A combination of civilisational processes, mental changes of human beings and changes in their customs had a decisive impact on the shape and size of the family. It was the beginning of essential transformations, which are still taking place now and keep influencing the demographic situation of the population.The article also contains a proposal of further demographic research on the Jewish family in the towns of the Prussian partition, because that subject is often omitted. In the end, some new directions of research have been suggested and an introductory literature has been given, too