Jeanne Cilliers
Researcher
The transmission of longevity across generations: The case of the settler Cape Colony
Author
Summary, in English
Evidence on long-term multigenerational dynamics is often inadequate as large datasets with multiple generations remain very uncommon. We posit that genealogical records can offer a valuable alternative. Rather than exploring the intergenerational transmission of socioeconomic status, we rely on birth and death dates of eighteenth and nineteenth century settlers in South Africa's Cape Colony to estimate the intergenerational transmission of longevity. We find that there is a positive and significant association between parents’ and offspring's life duration, as well as between siblings. Although these correlations persist over time, the coefficients are relatively small. While the effect of grandparents’ longevity on that of grandchildren is insignificant, the cousin correlations suggest that inequality in longevity might persist across more than two generations. We suggest that family and environmental factors shared by cousins, beyond grandparental longevity, can explain these results.
Publishing year
2014
Language
English
Pages
105-119
Publication/Series
Research in Social Stratification and Mobility
Volume
35
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
JAI Press
Topic
- Economic History
Keywords
- intergenerational mobility
- longevity
- Historical data
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1878-5654