Alberto Sanz Gimeno

La caída de la mortalidad en la infancia en la España interior, 1860-1960. Un análisis de las causas de muerte

The causes of the decline of mortality, which have affected Western Europe during the last three centuries, have focussed the attention of most of the literature on historical demography during the last years. Our paper deals with the childhood mortality decline in a sample of villages in Central Spain from 1860 to 1960. We analyse the decline of childhood mortality by age and by groups of infectious diseases (food and water borne, airborne, infectious by vectors and other infectious diseases). Finally we point out a multi-causal approach to the decline of mortality examining some of the factors involved in the process.

Estructuras internas de la mortalidad de la infancia (0-4 años) en la España del siglo XX

En el campo de la Demografia Historica son cada vez mas las investigaciones que centran su atencion en la evolucion de la mortalidad a la hora de explicar y razonar el crecimiento de la poblacion europea en los dos ultimos siglos. Los trabajos pioneros sobre el tema han abordado los factores que determinaron el incremento demografico iniciado a «finales del siglo XVII o principios del XVIII Yque ha proseguido hasta la actualidad» (McKeown, 1976: 1). El aumento de la poblacion alcanza su punto clave en las postrimerias del siglo XIX y en los primeros anos del xx con el proceso de la Transicion Demografica, en el que se produce un importante cambio estructural en las variables demograficas que intervienen en el crecimiento demografico: la natalidad y la mortalidad2•

FACTORS RELATED TO INBREEDING COMPONENTS FROM ISONYMY IN AN URBAN POPULATION: ARANJUEZ (SPAIN)

An isonymic analysis has been carried out using a sample of 1529 reconstituted families residing during 1870-1964 in Aranjuez, an urban area situated south of Madrid, Spain. The random, non-random and total-components inbreeding coefficients from isonymy were obtained and the various combinations of surnames compared in order to infer the patri- or matrilocal pattern of residence. Throughout the period studied the random component of inbreeding (F(r)) has not changed, in contrast to the non-random component (F(n)), thus suggesting the latter could be responsible for the reduction of total inbreeding. Using several methodological approaches (biplot analysis, alpha, nu and percentage of immigrants) the predominance of the immigration of grooms was interpreted in terms of Aranjuez as a matrilocal pattern of residence. From this study it can also be concluded that surnames provided by reconstituted families are good estimators of inbreeding and migration.