Povijesni prilozi, Vol. 35 No. 50, 2016.
Original scientific paper
The Society of Southern Baranja in 18th Century Registers
Dubravka Božić Bogović
Abstract
This paper uses quantitative, analytical, and descriptive methods in order to extract data from the registers of the baptized, married, and deceased in the Roman-Catholic parishes of southern Baranja during the 18th century, identifying some specific elements of social history. The analysis includes those demographic indicators that depended on social structures and customs, such as seasonal and daily arrangements of weddings, the age structure, the marital status of the bridal couple, and their illegal children.
The analysis of data from the registers of the Roman-Catholic parishes in southern Baranja during the 18th century has shown that, despite the fact that these documents are standardized and limited in content, they do help us understand certain social elements and aspects of social history and history of everyday life. Since the intention was to gain some fresh insights into the society of southern Baranja, the author has included those demographic data that are under an obvious influence of social and cultural factors, primarily those related to the contraction of marriages and foundations of families, as well as those linked to the origin of residents and certain aspects of public morality and religious life, particularly when referring to specific social groups. In order to establish whether ethnical identity influenced the analysed phenomena, the author has analysed data for the German and Croatian populations alike, separately yet compared whenever possible.
In the 18th century, the society of southern Baranja showed some typical pre-transitional traits, among others an early age of marriage contraction, which has been established for both populations alike. Another feature has been the prevalence of conservative marriage policies, which implied going beyond marriages that were the first or second for both parties, as well as a relatively small age difference and a somewhat higher age in men than in women, including the fact that bridegrooms were older than brides as a rule. Nevertheless, these norms could be ignored when required in order to secure sustenance for children or the family in general. The position of women in the society of southern Baranja followed the general pattern of the patriarchal societies, meaning that their role was reduced to reproduction, household care, and family life. As for the social structure, it corresponded to those of late feudalism, where the social elite consisted of a thin layer of noble and district officials, while the society was predominantly agricultural, with a small number of artisans and an even smaller number of merchants. No significant differences could be established between the German and Croatian populations. Nevertheless, there were some, and it can be presumed that they resulted from a difference in family structures and status, since the Germans were generally free colons, while the Croats were tied to the noble estates. Generally speaking, the society in 18th-century Baranja was rural, traditional, and relatively closed, which is confirmed by the negligent number of illegal children and the fact that marriages were contracted primarily within one’s community and ethnical group. Nevertheless, many of these features are also typical of most Croatian or European communities in the 18th century, which means that Baranja generally followed the mainstream Croatian and European demographic trends.
Keywords
registers; social history; southern Baranja; 18th century
Hrčak ID:
167118
URI
Publication date:
29.8.2016.
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