Book Chapter

Household formation and marriage: different patterns in Serbia and Albania?

Gruber, S.
In: Fauve-Chamoux, A., Bolovan, I. (Eds.): Families in Europe between the 19th and 21st centuries: from the traditional model to contemporary PACS, 229–248
Romanian Journal of Population Studies Supplement/2009
Cluj-Napoca, Cluj University Press (2009)

Abstract

This paper investigates whether there are different historical household formation and marriage patterns in Serbia and Albania or whether they are the same. The male age at marriage was higher in Albania and they married over a longer time period during their life as Serbian men. Multiple family households were of a similar proportion in rural areas in both countries, but they contained many more cousins in Albania than in Serbia. Almost all Serbian households divided in each generation, while Albanian households divided less often. Albanian cities had clearly higher percentages of multiple family households than Serbian cities. Proportions unmarried were quite similar as was the average household size in both countries. The conclusion is that there are more indicators for different patterns than indicators for only one pattern.
Keywords: Albania, Yugoslavia, household, marriage
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