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Historic(al) Map Porn @mander.xyz
AbuTahir @lemm.ee

family types of europe, what family type is better to have?

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64866073

Absolute Nuclear (Light Yellow)
Definition: A family structure consisting only of parents and their children, with no extended relatives living together. Once children marry, they form their own independent households.

Regions: Predominantly in the UK, Ireland, and parts of Scandinavia. This reflects a cultural emphasis on individualism and early independence.

Egalitarian Nuclear (Orange)
Definition: Similar to the absolute nuclear family, but with more equality in inheritance and gender roles between spouses. Children still leave to form independent households, but there’s less rigid hierarchy within the family.

Regions: Found in Spain, Portugal, southern France, and parts of Italy. This structure aligns with Mediterranean cultural norms of balanced familial roles.

Stem Family (Light Blue)
Definition: A family where one child (usually the eldest son) remains in the parental home with their spouse and children, while other siblings leave to form their own households. The stem family ensures the continuity of the family estate.

Regions: Common in central Europe, including Germany, Austria, and parts of France. This reflects a tradition of preserving family property through one heir.

Incomplete Stem Family (Gray)
Definition: A variation of the stem family where the designated heir might not always stay with the parents, or the system is less rigid. Extended family involvement is limited compared to a full stem family.
Regions: Seen in parts of central and eastern Europe, like Poland and Hungary. This indicates a transitional family structure between stem and nuclear models.

Communitarian (Dark Blue)
Definition: A family structure where multiple generations live together, often with brothers and their families sharing a household. Inheritance is typically divided equally among siblings, and communal living is emphasized.

Regions: Predominantly in southern Italy, parts of the Balkans, and eastern Europe, including Finland. This reflects a collectivist culture prioritizing extended family unity.

11 comments

  • It wasn't really hard to find the source and some background about this map, I literally typed only "family types in europe map" in ddg, and found some more info:

    An old reddit thread with some interesting related discussion

    Full resolution uncropped map:

    Source of the map is this opinion article: https://archive.nytimes.com/opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/17/family-ties-3/

    Research conducted in 2007 [6] paints a pretty strange, and surprisingly tenacious, set of borders across Western Europe. Its subject? “An often overlooked institution, the family”: some academics had “noted strong patterns of family structure, with clear regional variations and persistence over time and linked them to significant social and economic outcomes.”

    The research considered family types based on two criteria. One, the relationship between parents and children. If children flee the nest at an early age, the family type can be said to be “liberal.” If they stay at home and under the authority of their parents long into adulthood, even after having married themselves, the relationship can be classified as “authoritarian.” Second criterion: the relationship among siblings. If they are treated equally (in inheritance law, for example), the relationship is classified as “equal,” but if one child is favored (the firstborn son, say), the relationship is “unequal.”

    Combining the criteria results in five distinct family types:

    • The “absolute nuclear” family type is both liberal and unequal. Children are totally emancipated, forming independent families of their own. The inheritance usually goes to one child, often a son.
    • The “egalitarian nuclear” family type is both liberal and equal. Children are as emancipated and independent as in the previous type, but equal division of the inheritance encourages stronger parent-children relations before the passing of the parents.
    • The “stem” family type is both authoritarian and unequal. Several generations live under one roof, with one child marrying to continue the line. The other children remain unmarried at home, or leave to get married.
    • The “incomplete stem” family is as above, but with slightly more equal inheritance rules — an intermediate with the last family type.
    • The “communitarian” family is both authoritarian and equal. All sons can marry and bring their wives into the ancestral home. The family inheritance is divided equitably among all children.

    According to the researchers, these five family types could help explain the regional disparities in family size, education and wealth across Western Europe. Interestingly, the distribution of the types is almost completely at odds with the modern borders of Europe.

    So the "legend" in the post is not exactly the same as the one from the research.

11 comments