Migration Systems in Nineteenth-Century North-Western Portugal: The Case of Vila do Conde

Abstract

SummaryThis article aims to identify migration systems in north-western nineteenth-century Portugal to contribute to the understanding of the puzzle that is Portuguese migration dynamics. Through the analysis of the passport and parish registers from the concelho of Vila do Conde, it was possible to determine three systems, the Atlantic, the Lisbon, and the local. The occurrence and characteristics of the systems varied according to socio-economic contexts, both in the sending and receiving areas, and also according to the emigrants’ life cycles.