Demographic Conditions and Multi-generation Households in Chinese History. Results from Genealogical Research and Microsimulation

The large multi-generation household has been a popular subject in the study of Chinese social history. This study compares outcomes of computer micro-simulation with results from genealogical research, and is particularly concentrated on the potential pattern of multi-generation co-residence in the past. On the basis of such a comparison, questions concerning the impact of demographic conditions on the formation and composition of large multi-generation households, the change in lifetime residential experiences of each individual, and the use of genealogical records in the study of Chinese social demographic history are also examined.