Demographic systems in historic China: some new findings from recent research.

Abstract

"Up to the 1980s, studies of Chinese population history were largely confined to the examination of aggregate population figures collected at national or provincial levels. Since then, however, investigations into Chinese demographic history have entered a new stage.... This paper...provides new information on past mortality, fertility and marriage patterns. In the light of these findings, a number of widely held beliefs about the traditional Chinese demographic system are critically examined."