Families and Households, Tenants and Lodgers: Cohabitation in an Early Modern Swedish Town, Linköping 1750–1800

Abstract

This article explores household sizes, household structures, and patterns of cohabitation in a Swedish town (Linköping) during the second half of the eighteenth century. The analyses reveal discrepancies between different sources, tax records, and census records, indicating that it was sometimes difficult also for contemporary authorities to establish the exact number of households and to which household each individual belonged. However, this study can establish a long-term decline in household sizes. Furthermore, increasing complexities in terms of household structures and cohabitation patterns can be established.