Labor division in an upland economy: workforce in a seventeenth-century transhumance system

Figures & data

Figure 1 Age distibution of men and women in Orsa Parish, December 31, 1687. Note: Total population was 2328 people. The ages of 13 people could not be determined. Data Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:1 (1680s–1690s), AI:2 (1685–1694), AI:3 (1690–1700), AI:4 (1701–1716).

Table 1 Households in Orsa Parish, December 31, 1687.

	Only women	Widow w. children	Married couples	Others	Total or Average
Number of Households	69	88	326	16	499
Percent of all households	13.8	17.6	65.3	3.2	100
Number of people	128	332	1816	52	2328
Percent of all people	5.5	14.3	78.0	2.2	100
Household size	1.8	3.7	5.6	3.2	4.7
Average age	46.0	26.8	24.0	28.4	25.7
Average age men	–	16.1	20.9	27.0	20.3
Average age women	46.0	34.7	26.6	25.0	30.0

Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

Figure 2 Age distribution of herders in Orsa Parish, 1687 to 1692. Note: Total number of herders in the figure is 966. It was not possible to determine the ages of 374 of the total number (1340) of herders. Data Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

Table 2 Herders in Orsa Parish, 1687 to 1692.

	Statistics	1687	1688	1689	1690	1691	1692	1687–1692
Daughters	Number	75	83	83	70	76	55	442
	Percent of all herders	30	33	34	33	35	34	33
	Average age	15	16	17	18	18	17	17
Wives	Number	43	50	54	45	56	41	289
	Percent of all herders	17	20	22	21	25	25	22
	Average age	50	51	49	48	50	48	49
Relatives	Number	52	51	47	33	34	26	243
	Percent of all herders	21	20	19	16	15	16	18
	Average age	45	46	47	48	51	52	47
Maids	Number	73	66	61	65	54	41	360
	Percent of all herders	29	26	25	31	25	25	27
	Average age	33	36	38	38	47	42	38
Men	Number	6						6
	Percent of all herders	2	–	–	–	–	–	–
	Average age	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Total	Number	249	250	245	213	220	163	1340
	Percent of all herders	99	99	100	101	100	100	100
	Average age	32	34	34	34	37	35	34

Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

Figure 3 Age distribution of daughters as herders in Orsa Parish, 1687 to 1692. Note: Total number of daughters in the figure is 397. It was not possible to determine the ages of 45 of the total number (442) of daughters who were herders. Data Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

Figure 4 Age distribution of maids as herders in Orsa Parish, 1687 to 1692. Note: Based on 99 maids out of 360. Data Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

Table 3 Yearly change of herders between 1687 and 1692 in percent of all changes.

Change of herder	Average yearly change 1687–1692 (percent)
Maid to Maid	35.3
Maid ⇔ Spouse	14.1
Maid ⇔ Relative	7.0
Maid ⇔ Daughter	5.1
Total maids	61.5
Daughter to Daughter	8.7
Daughter ⇔ Spouse	13.1
Daughter ⇔ Relative	2.8
Spouse ⇔ Relative	3.7
New^a	7.6
Others	2.6
Total	100

Source: Uppsala landsarkiv [Uppsala Regional Archive], Orsa kyrkoarkiv [Orsa Church Archive]: Husförhörslängd [Catechetical Examination Register]: AI:2 (1685–1694).

a For some years, new households with herders were added to the herder list.