A Kuznets rise and a Piketty fall: income inequality in Finland, 1865–1934

Roikonen, Petri; Heikkinen, Sakari

doi:10.1093/ereh/hey032

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…However, these results are parallel with the findings from other Scandinavian countries, especially from Norway for the late nineteenth century (Bull, 2005). Moreover, it is notable that in both of these countries, income inequalities were high and increased rapidly in the latter part of the twentieth century: thus, this could be one of the reasons for the high degree of social stratification (Roikonen & Heikkinen, 2018). Also, we argue that one of the main forces favouring homogamy was the overall social decline within agrarian society: it occurred in close connection with the disparity between the amount of available land and the number of people needing land, evident since the early nineteenth century.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

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Generations, social homogamy and stratification in Finland, 1700–1910

Roikonen

Häkkinen

2018

The History of the Family

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This study analyses social heterogamy in western and southern Finland during the early stages of industrialisation, from 1700 to 1910. Marriage patterns are examined by comparing the social classes of spouses' parents, which can be understood as the social origin of the spouse. The rate of heterogamy within the freeholder class was only 19.8%, whereas it was 71.1% in the upper classes, 59.7% in the tenant class and 76.5% in the labour class. In addition, only roughly 20-30% of grooms whose fathers were landowners married brides from lower social classes. Certain individual-and family-level characteristics increased the odds of a heterogamous marriage: remarrying, age difference, being an illegitimate child or a single mother, and the first marriages of those in the labour class. Regarding macro-level variables, we found that higher rates of emigration and poor-relief recipients, along with having a larger Finnish-speaking population, led to higher levels of heterogamy. Other issues increasing the odds of heterogamy included living in the more urbanised or industrialised regions and moving to different regions. This study identified strict marriage patterns, which did not significantly change with respect to heterogamy. Nevertheless, indications exist that industrialisation and urbanisation began eroding the prevailing traditions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…6. The incomes of the freeholders are probably underestimated because of the relatively large deduction system (Roikonen & Heikkinen, 2018). 7.…”

Section: Notesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generations, social homogamy and stratification in Finland, 1700–1910

Roikonen

Häkkinen

2018

The History of the Family

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“…5 . Sources : Finland, 1865-1910(Roikonen & Heikkinen 2018), Finland, 1920(Jäntti et al 2010), Germany 1876-1880, USA 1870-1910(Lindert & Williamson 2016, other (WID database). 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 Note: Swedish and Finnish data include capital gains.…”

Section: Gini Coefficientsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Nordic Economic, Social and Political Model

Koivunen¹,

Ojala²,

Holmén³

2021

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The Nordic model is the 20th-century Scandinavian recipe for combining stable democracies, individual freedom, economic growth and comprehensive systems for social security. But what happens when Sweden and Finland -two countries topping global indexes for competitiveness, productivity, growth, quality of life, prosperity and equality -start doubting themselves and their future? Is the Nordic model at a crossroads?Historically, consensus, continuity, social cohesion and broad social trust have been hailed as key components for the success and for the self-images of Sweden and Finland. In the contemporary, however, political debates in both countries are increasingly focused on risks, threats and worry. Social disintegration, political polarization, geopolitical anxieties and threat of terrorism are often dominant themes. This book focuses on what appears to be a paradox: countries with low-income differences, high faith in social institutions and relatively high cultural homogeneity becoming fixated on the fear of polarization, disintegration and diminished social trust. Unpacking the presentist discourse of "worry" and a sense of interregnum at the face of geopolitical tensions, digitalization and globalization, as well as challenges to democracy, the chapters take steps back in time and explore the current conjecture through the eyes of historians and social scientists, addressing key aspects of and challenges to both the contemporary and the future Nordic model. In addition, the functioning and efficacy of the participatory democracy and current protocols of decision-making are debated.This work is essential reading for students and scholars of the welfare state, social reforms and populism, as well as Nordic and Scandinavian studies.

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“…Another approach to study the prevalence of poverty in historical periods is to rely on the 'national accounts' method, in which poverty estimates are derived from economic historians' reconstructions of historical prosperity and inequality (Hasell & Roser 2019). In a recent paper by Roikonen and Heikkinen (2018) income inequality in Fin-land for the years 1865-1934 was estimated based on Finnish tax statistics. This case study takes use of the underlying estimated income distribution of Finland in the 19 th and 20 th century reconstructed within the framework of the above-mentioned paper.…”

Section: Capable Longevitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although the slight heterogeneity of the data causes some problems, we believe that these estimates of income distributions are sufficiently valid to serve as basis for reconstructing historical poverty rates in Finland. A detailed description of the methodology and data sources used can be found in Roikonen & Heikkinen, 2018. In addition to valid information about distributions of income over time, a credible measure of poverty also requires setting a plausible poverty line, defined as the minimum level of income required to maintain basic living standards. For reconstructing poverty in Finland to estimate capable longevity, we decided to use needs-based poverty lines, focusing on indigence and basic human needs.…”

Section: Capable Longevitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Survival and Years of Good Life in Finland in the very long run

Reiter¹,

Lutz²

2020

Finnish Yearb Popul Res

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In this paper we apply the recently developed wellbeing indicator ‘Years of Good Life’ (YoGL) to Finland, which has the world’s longest annual demographic time series starting in 1722. We combine this with scenarios up to 2100 as developed under the SSP (Shared Socioeconomic Pathways) framework. YoGL is based primarily on the trend in life expectancy but it also considers age-specific proportions of persons above critical levels of quality of life indicators (using the Sullivan method). Since estimating these indicators for historical populations is a major challenge, the paper uses a wide array of sources to come up with a first crude estimation of how quality of life has changed in Finland over the centuries.

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A Kuznets rise and a Piketty fall: income inequality in Finland, 1865–1934

Cited by 3 publications

References 31 publications

Generations, social homogamy and stratification in Finland, 1700–1910

Generations, social homogamy and stratification in Finland, 1700–1910

The Nordic Economic, Social and Political Model

Survival and Years of Good Life in Finland in the very long run

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