Pre-transitional populations: Historical and anthropological demography

Demographic growth has not been uniform over time. Periods of expansion have alternated with others of stagnation and even decline; and the interpretation of these, even for relatively recent historical periods, is not an easy task. The numerical progress of population has been, if not dictated, at least constrained by many forces and obstacles which have determined the general direction of the path of its growth. These can be categorised as biological and environmental. The former are linked to the laws of mortality and reproduction which determine the rate of demographic growth; the latter determine the resistance which these laws encounter and further regulate the rate of growth. Biological and environmental factors affect each other reciprocally and so are not independent of one another. For the most part the mechanisms for re-establishing an equilibrium of population growth are the product of choice (fertility, nuptiality and migration) although some are automatic. The sizes of households and families have varied over time, but they seem to have been similar in different societies despite differences in the types of households. It has to be noted that the European marriage and family formation is neither universal nor is it totally unique.