Access to marriage and reproduction among migrants in Antwerp and Stockholm. A longitudinal approach to processes of social inclusion and exclusion, 1846–1926

Abstract

A longitudinal approach is used to describe and explain processes of social inclusion and exclusion among different groups of migrants in Antwerp and Stockholm (1846 -1926), in terms of access to marriage and reproduction. In this way we want to get a better idea about the factors which facilitated or hampered the social inclusion of migrants upon arrival in two different Western European port cities. The results of the discrete time event history analyses show that social inclusion of migrants was easier in Antwerp and became easier over time, while in Stockholm it was more difficult and became even more complicated over time. This finding might be interpreted as the result of greater societal openness in Antwerp, as the Belgian port-city's economic success depended largely upon foreigners and international trade. Higher odds for social inclusion in Antwerp might also have been related to differences in the chances of finding an urban niche, which in turn might have been a result of disparities in economic and demographic growth. Most likely it was a combination of differences in the local opportunity structure and the level of societal openness. Furthermore, it was found that region and place of birth, age at arrival, historical time period, and, in the case of Stockholm, gender and social class had an important impact on the chances of successful inclusion.

The impact of parental death on the timing of first marriage: Evolutionary versus social explanations (The Netherlands, 1850–1940)

“…Young women were overrepresented in cities because there was a strong demand for female domestic servants, which attracted migration from the countryside (Bras 2003). Research on 19 th century Netherlands and Belgium has shown that migration was generally associated with marriage at a later age for both men and women (Oris 2000;Puschmann et al 2014;Störmer et al 2017;Suanet and Bras 2010). These findings support the argument that migrants needed time to adapt to their new environment and therefore tended to marry later.…”

Spatial and Social Distance at the Onset of the Fertility Transition: Sweden, 1880–1900

“…However, long-distance migrants might have also been selected for their ambition and risk tolerance and may therefore have been more receptive to changes in conditions that made shifting from quantity to quality investments in children appealing (Creighton et al 2012). Because long-distance migrants were heavily clustered in densely populated locations, migrants in these contexts may have had greater incentives to reduce their number of offspring because they may have been less able to rely on their own property or local family networks of support (Creighton et al 2012; Puschmann et al 2014). All these factors may have increased the likelihood that long-distance migrants were among the pioneers of the process.…”

Educational heterogamy during the early phase of the educational expansion: Results from the university town of Tartu, Estonia in the late 19th century

“…It has been found that migrants generally were disadvantaged in the urban marriage market, since urban-born individuals preferred to marry within their own group (Van de Putte 2003). Migrants usually faced adaptation problems, which made finding a partner difficult, although this may have varied depending on the country (Puschmann et al 2014).…”