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Socioeconomic status and physical stature in 19th-century Bavaria

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  • Lantzsch, Jana
  • Schuster, Klaus

Abstract

We present analyses of 19th-century Bavarian conscript records, which cover the whole male population at age 21 and which are unusually rich in content. They include not only occupations of the conscripts, but that of the parents alike, and also the wealth of the conscripts, other family characteristics and their diseases at the time of the conscription. This enables us to investigate the relationship between the conscripts' and the parents' socioeconomic status as well as their effects on the height of the conscripts. Overall, the conscripts' occupations match that of their parents rather well, and deviations can mainly be attributed to their young age. However, we also find significant height differences between the occupational groups of the conscripts even after controlling for the parents' occupations. This could be caused by a reverse effect of height on occupational advancements, but as conscripts doing manual work are generally shorter than those with non-manual occupations irrespective of their rank, we assume that the working conditions of the adolescents and young men actually influenced their growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Lantzsch, Jana & Schuster, Klaus, 2009. "Socioeconomic status and physical stature in 19th-century Bavaria," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 46-54, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ehbiol:v:7:y:2009:i:1:p:46-54
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Zehetmayer, Matthias, 2010. "An Anthropometric History of the Postbellum US, 1847-1894," Munich Dissertations in Economics 12321, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
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    8. Wolter Hassink & Bas van Leeuwen, 2014. "A note on height and surnames: the role of networks," Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 579-587, October.
    9. Hector Garcia-Montero, 2022. "Height, Nutritional and Economic Inequality in Central Spain, 1837–1936," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-18, March.
    10. Rafael Dobado-Gonzáles & Héctor García-Montero, 2012. "Neither So Low Nor So Short: Wages and Heights in Bourbon Spanish America from an International Comparative Perspective," Working Papers 0014, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    11. Böckerman, Petri & Johansson, Edvard & Kiiskinen, Urpo & Heliövaara, Markku, 2010. "The relationship between physical work and the height premium: Finnish evidence," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 414-420, December.
    12. Linares-Luján, Antonio M. & Parejo-Moruno, Francisco M., 2022. "Short men in poor lands: The agrarian workers from southwestern Spain in anthropometric perspective," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 47(C).
    13. Ramon Ramon-Muñoz & Josep-Maria Ramon-Muñoz, 2015. "Height and Industrialisation in a City in Catalonia during the Nineteenth Century," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2015/334, University of Barcelona School of Economics.

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    Height Germany Bavaria 19th century;

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