Volume 43 - Article 18 | Pages 501–532  

The decline of patrilineal kin propinquity in the United States, 1790–1940

By Matt A. Nelson

Abstract

Background: Historical change in the availability of kin beyond the household has long interested scholars, but there has been little comparable evidence on long-run change. While generally accepted that individuals lived near kin historically, no systematic measures have been available to assess historical kin propinquity at the national level.

Methods: With the release of historical complete count United States census data from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS), a robust estimate of patrilineal kin propinquity for the United States nationally from 1790 to 1940 is calculated. Defined as the probability of non-random isonymy within an enumeration district, the estimate of patrilineal kin propinquity relies on the sequential ordering of households in the census.

Results: The United States experienced a long-run decline in patrilineal kin propinquity from nearly 50% of households in 1790 to 17% of households in 1940. The age patterns of kin propinquity show substantial variation across the life course, and regional differences demonstrate the impact of economic and demographic conditions. The decline in kin propinquity reflected urbanization and the decline of agriculture, declining kin availability, growing distance between potential kin links, and a change in preferences of living near kin.

Contribution: This is the first study to produce a systematic estimate of patrilineal kin propinquity at the national level for the United States between 1790 and 1940. Researchers can use this meaningful measure of patrilineal kin propinquity to better explain its relationships with other demographic behaviors and outcomes such as fertility, mortality, and migration choices.

Author's Affiliation

• Matt A. Nelson - University of Minnesota Twin Cities, United States of America EMAIL

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

The formal demography of kinship V: Kin loss, bereavement, and causes of death
Volume 49 - Article 41    | Keywords: bereavement, causes of death, competing risks, kin loss, kinship, matrix models

Union formation and fertility amongst immigrants from Pakistan and their descendants in the United Kingdom: A multichannel sequence analysis
Volume 48 - Article 10    | Keywords: assimilation, fertility, life course, migrants, sequence analysis, union formation, United Kingdom

Solo living in the process of transitioning to adulthood in Europe: The role of socioeconomic background
Volume 48 - Article 3    | Keywords: cross-national comparison, Europe, leaving home, life course, living alone, trajectories, transition to adulthood

Spatial heterogeneity in son preference across India’s 640 districts: An application of small-area estimation
Volume 47 - Article 26    | Keywords: census, India, model-based small-area estimation, National Family Health Surveys (NFHS), son preference

The formal demography of kinship IV: Two-sex models and their approximations
Volume 47 - Article 13    | Keywords: female fertility, kinship, male fertility, matrix models, sex ratio, two-sex models