Marriage behaviour in the Alpine Non Valley from 1825 to 1923.

BACKGROUND: The study is part of a research project on the marital structure of mountain populations from the Eastern Italian Alps. Little is known about marriage patterns in this Alpine area. AIM: The aim of the study is to evaluate the extent of reproductive isolation in some communities of the Non Valley (Trentino, Italy) and to investigate its microgeographic and temporal changes over the period 1825-1923. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: 4518 microfilmed marriage records from registers of seven parishes of the Non Valley were used to analyse the following: endogamy rate, inbreeding calculated both from dispensations and from isonymy, repeating pairs of surnames in marriages, isonymic relationships. RESULTS: The results show notable variability among parishes in the levels of endogamy (40-73%), inbreeding (alpha: 1.9-4.57; Ft: 0.0073-0.019) and subdivision (RPr/RP: 0.5-1.3). The values are relatively stable over the course of a century, apart from a rise in inbreeding indicated by dispensations and a slight decrease of endogamy at the beginning of the 20th century. Isonymic relationships reflect geographic proximity between populations, with minimum changes through time. CONCLUSIONS: Variations in the level of reproductive isolation within the Non Valley are consistent with the different geographic characteristics and population sizes of the settlements. Comparison with data obtained from previous studies in the Eastern Italian Alps shows that the values of the investigated biodemographic indicators are in line with the geography and altitude of the area. The slight differences in temporal trend of endogamy and inbreeding can be correlated with different migration patterns.

Trend in menarcheal age and socioeconomic influence in Bologna (northern Italy).

Temporal variations in menarcheal age in the Bologna province (northern Italy) were investigated in a sample of 2930 women born between 1930 and 1973, examined by retrospective method. A decrease in mean menarcheal age between birth decades 1930-39 and 1950-59 was noticed. The trend was more intense in lower social classes living in extra-urban environments. This led to a disappearance in menarcheal age differences between city and province and between socioprofessional categories. From birth decade 1950-59 onwards an increase in menarcheal age is registered, and an influence of physical activity and family structure on the age of menstrual cycle onset is observed. Our results suggest that the secular trend towards earlier age at menarche has stopped in the Bologna area. We hypothesize that the recent delay in puberty could be a response to an increase in physical and psychosocial stress.

[A class of models to discriminate ancient populations under the bio-demographic aspect. The link of the "Partecipanze"]. / Una classe di modelli per differenziare popolazioni antiche nell'aspetto bio-demografico. Il vincolo delle "Partecipanze".

"The paper is concerned with the problem of discriminating two ancient populations with respect to the presence of the 'Istituto delle Partecipanze', a sort of collective property of the land, beginning in 1253 in some areas of the Emilia region. A time series analysis on the marriages registered in the last four centuries has been performed and different classes of the ARIMA models have been fitted to the data. The results give evidence to the heterogeneous development that characterizes the two populations in some aspects of the their bio-demographic history." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND FRE)

[Methodological problems in bio-demographic research. A sample study of the age at menopause]. / Problemi di metodo nella ricerca biodemografica. Un'indagine campionaria sull'eta alla menopausa.

Two methods for the analysis of age at menopause, the longitudinal, or retrospective, method and the transversal, or status quo, method, are compared. The differences between these two methods are emphasized. "The former describes an historically ended situation and estimates the probability that a woman will reach such condition at age x. The latter considers the phenomenon from the viewpoint of its composite actuality and estimates the probability that a woman of age x is undergoing menopause." The different results obtained from the application of the two methods to data sets concerning 767 and 270 women born in Bologna, Italy, between 1920 and 1945 are described (SUMMARY IN ENG AND FRE)