The first census in the USSR. USSR population by years: censuses and demographic processes
Censuses - The procedure for registering residents of Russia, conducted in order to obtain statistical information about the economy and the lives of citizens.
Strict statistics was necessary to understand the overall picture in the country. After all, it was necessary to make decisions on the construction of schools, accounting for military personnel, and solve the issue with small nations.
To the great regret of family history scholars, 1920s census questionnaires containing personal information about their ancestors were almost all destroyed because they were considered a secret. Based on the peculiarities of filling out the questionnaires, it is impossible to get information from the results of the census of the USSR that would shed light on the composition of the family, or to give the birth dates of relatives. The main information that can be gleaned: information about the household, the data of the homeowner.
1920 censuses
Even before the official creation of the USSR, it was necessary to resolve economic issues; the issue of food was acute. After the end of World War I and the Civil War, many households fell into disrepair, and numerous labor losses on the fronts hit agriculture and industry. At the same time, the process of transition from a community to a collective economy was gaining momentum. Formed artels, communes and more.
The census manual specified that the population takes questions warily personal, even though the information is needed solely for statistics. Therefore warn all scribes to be persistent when obtaining reliable information. The population could not talk about professional skills and real age, since they could be picked up by mobilization.
At the same time, measures were taken to administratively-territorial redistribution of areas, the borders of the provinces changed.
In 1920 there was two censuses conducted simultaneously, which differed in orientation: the All-Russian Agricultural Census and the All-Russian, which in fact did not cover areas where the fighting was still taking place (Crimea, the North Caucasus, the Far East and some other regions did not enter).
1920 Agricultural Census
Agricultural census was held in the fall of 1920, at the end of agricultural work, to clarify the situation in agriculture. The 1920 census questions in the courtyard card were identical to Agricultural. census of 1916 - 1917 (). Filled in as the main form settled household list and courtyard card.
The obligatory task of the census was to collect information about peasant farms, which divided into categories: cooperative state farms, rural societies, agricultural cartels, communes, other enterprises. ()
You can not compare the statistics of 1916 and 1920 with each other. Since the administrative-territorial redistribution, military operations in the regions did not allow to take into account the same territories. Significant changes have occurred in the household structure.
1920 All-Russian Census
In the All-Russian Census of August 1920 special attention paid to the national question (based on the results revealed the ethnographic composition of the population of the regions and the country as a whole), the professional occupations of citizens. Be sure to clarify participation in wars, as well as physical injuries, mental health. Thus, the effect of war on the state of the working part of the population was analyzed.
In addition, there were standard For each census, the items are: data of the householder (name, gender, age, literacy, place of birth and length of stay in a particular place, occupation). In the cities there were several questionnaire forms: a personal slip, a courtyard sheet and apartment cards.
The census also took into account the activities of enterprises.
Statistical collections of results censuses were compiled and published in 1923, and then in 1928. The census covered approximately 70% of the country's population.
Cards with personal information were preserved in the archives, however, no one keeps statistics and you can only find out about the safety of this data directly in the archive (regional and regional). Some cards could go to local history museums.
All-Union Census of the Urban Population of 1923
In March 1923 during the week a census was carried out covering the population, which is not engaged in agriculture, but industry and trade. The information from the 1920 census was taken into account. This included not only urban residents, but also urban-type settlements, industrial towns and villages (if the census of 1920 indicates more than 2,000 inhabitants), resort areas and settlements where more than 500 residents were in the previous census, and less than half of the inhabitants were employed agriculture.
For the survey, the forms already verified in previous censuses were used: apartment card, personal leaflet and family list.
Personal sheet filled in personally, consisted of 12 points. In addition to the standard general issues they asked about work (place, time), the unemployed were asked about the profession, the reason and how long they could not find work, for students they noted information about the study method and scholarships. A mandatory question is whether it relates to agriculture.
Family list (family card). By analogy with the previous census, complete information was written only about the owner. His households were listed in relation to the head of the family, indicated age, marital status, income.
Thus were collected statistics on classes and professions, previously this was not. The entire population was divided into categories: employees, owners, dependents and the unemployed, workers, domestic workers, and others.
Information received and about living conditions in apartments. For example, most of the apartments were one-room apartments, and kitchens were also used for living, as there were large families. We found out that on average 1 person in a city had 6 square meters of living space.
Collections with the results of the census were published in 1926. The statistical information obtained as a result of the census was interesting to researchers, but it was incomplete. As a result, it was decided to conduct another census in 1926.
1926 All-Union Census
In this census was completely the entire territory of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is taken into account, except for the territory of Turkmenistan (it was approximately estimated at 30 thousand people and added to the census). The entire population of the USSR amounted to almost 147 million people.
Census 1926 was held in December, but in some areas of Central Asia and the Far North, due to the remoteness and large dispersion of the population, the census stretched for almost a year (they began to rewrite there earlier).
For the survey was used personal leaflet with standard questions already applied earlier. In cities filled family cards indicating, in addition to standard questions, the duration of marriage and housing conditions. For the rural population there were owned statements and courtyard cards.
By the way, in instructions for scribes definitions were indicated, for example, of whom to consider urban residents. Information about the workers' settlements of over 2,000 people was taken from the results of the 1923 census.
The peculiarity of accounting for this census was that all the information had to be entered for the date: on the night of December 16-17. Therefore, censuses who died after midnight of the census, spent the night in a particular apartment, but did not live in it permanently, were away or on a night shift on the night of the census, etc., were especially taken into account. Only permanent population(i.e. by registration), family cards indicated temporarily absent person at work or due to illness (if in the hospital).
This census allowed create a complete picture social life population, to compile a statistical table on the main and additional occupations and professions of residents (by industry), gave the concept of class stratification of society and the demographic situation in the country. That allowed us to build adequate plans for the development of many areas of life: industry, construction.
Collections with census results were published gradually from 1927 to 1929, and full results in 1933.
Census cards of the 1926 All-Union Population Census of 1926 have been preserved in some archives; more accurate information can be obtained directly from the archive.
You will be interested in other genealogy articles.
The first Soviet census was carried out in 1920 in a civil war and devastation. The census covered only 72% of the country's population, since military operations were still ongoing in a number of regions of the country. In 1923, a census was carried out in cities and urban-type towns simultaneously with a census of industrial and commercial enterprises.
The 1920 census program, adopted after discussion by its broad scientific community at the 2nd All-Russian Statistical Conference, was significantly wider than the 1897 census program. The personal sheet, which was the main form of the census, contained 18 questions, and with sub-questions, of which some were of independent significance, about 30. Questions characterized the composition of the population by gender, age, marital status and marital status, mother tongue, and for the first time - by nationality, place of birth. Literacy, the level of general and special education, the distribution of occupations that provide a livelihood, the professions and sectors of employment, and a number of characteristics were also found out.
The total population of the country according to the 1920 census with additional estimates for territories not covered by the census amounted to 136.8 million people, including the urban population - 20.9 million, or 15.3%. Compared to the beginning of 1917. the population declined by 6.7 million. Approximately 2 million of this number are emigrated from the country, the remaining 4.7 million are the demographic losses from the civil war, the famines and epidemics caused by it, as well as the reduction in the birth rate.
A large number of people moved from cities where there was a shortage of food to the countryside. The size of the urban population decreased by 4.9 million people compared to the beginning of 1917, and its share in the entire population from 18.0% to 15.3%. World and civil war changed the sexual structure of the population. If according to the census of 1897, men accounted for 49.7%, then according to the census of 1920 - 47.7% of the population.
The second Soviet, the first All-Union population census was carried out as of December 17, 1926. They were carefully prepared for it. Census issues were discussed at the 2nd All-Union Statistical Conference (February 25 - March 3, 1925) and at the All-Union Congress of Statisticians (February 1-7, 1926). The main census forms were a personal slip and a family card (the latter only in cities). The personal sheet contained basically the same questions as in the 1920 census and included 14 questions, and about 30 with sub-questions, including about gender, age, marital status, ethnicity and mother tongue, literacy, place of birth and the duration of permanent residence at the census site, the presence of physical disabilities, serious injuries and mental illness. A whole group of questions with sub-questions was devoted to the description of the main and secondary occupations, social status, profession and place of work. For those without classes, sources of livelihood were found out. For the unemployed, questions were asked about the duration of unemployment and about the previous occupation. The last requirement at that time was of considerable importance: the 1926 census showed the presence of about 1 million unemployed in the country.
The family card contained more than 20 questions designed to characterize the size and composition of the family, as well as its living conditions. The census provided the richest materials for studying the life of a Russian family, many of which have not lost interest in themselves today.
The 1926 census materials were published in 56 volumes. This publication was and remains the richest publication of the results of the census in the Soviet period in the history of our country. Based on the materials of this census, a balance of the national economy was developed, current calculations of the population size and composition for the years following the census were carried out, demographic forecasts were made, and mortality tables of the USSR population for 1926-1927 were built.
The total population of the USSR, according to the census of 1926, amounted to 147,028 thousand people, with subsequent correction for under-accounting, 148 530 thousand people.
In addition, “there were many families with two wives - registered and actual, but both of them energetically proved to the counters that they were the real ones. On the other hand, many women with children living on alimony or their own labor wanted to sign up “girls,” the Penza-based Young Leninist quotes from the newspapers of the time.
Some women came to the census bureaus to complain to the enumerators that they did not enter them on the cards as wives. Sick questions were also about the age of women and living space.
In addition, natives with several wives hid them from fear of persecution. And the Tatars answered questions about their marital status: “Single, but there is a woman,” the “Truth from 1926” reported.
A census of street children in Moscow showed that they live at night on boulevards, in trash cans, under stairs in porches, by the Chinese Wall, in tram pavilions, in railway cars. In sawdust, on the heaps of the station, they even arrange caves, Pravda notes.
The then "fists" were afraid of the census in the same way as modern entrepreneurs. Here is what Pravda wrote about it in 1926: “The kulak groups try to use the census in their interests and whisper poisonously:“ Here they’ll rewrite, take all the idle things into account - yes, they will tax and fuck ... ”But their voice is weak, no one not listening to them. "
But the representatives of the lower strata of society were extremely honest. As the newspapers noted, in some houses in the column "main profession" the respondents wrote "thief-recidivist" or "prostitute". And homeless children said so: "a poor singer," "a poor musician," or simply a "thief." Such was the colorful portrait of the socialist society of the NEP era.
In preparation for the 1926 census outstanding statistics V.G. Mikhailovsky and O.A. Kvitko developed scientific principles that formed the basis of both this and the following censuses. The 1926 census was distinguished not only by a well-thought-out method of obtaining information, but also by the wealth of data collected, especially about the social composition of the population and about families.
1937 census. Current estimates of the population that produced planning authoritieswere very different from real trends. According to their calculations, the country's population was growing rapidly, which should have indicated a corresponding increase in living standards, and at the beginning of 1933 amounted to 165.7 million, and by the end of 1937 it was expected that it would amount to 180.7 million people. These figures were announced from the highest rostrum, and therefore it was required that reality be consistent with them.
But the 1937 census totaled only 162,039 thousand people (with a recent correction for under-accounting - 162,739 thousand). As a result, the government declared this census to be unsuccessful, defective, its leaders were accused of sabotage, intentional underestimation of the population. Many of them were arrested and died in the Gulag, and some were shot. In the 1950s, they were all rehabilitated.
The census revealed the terrible consequences of the famine of 1932-1934, when the country lost about 7 million people. In the press, however, this information was not reflected in any way. Soviet newspapers did not write about the mass death of the population, that the population was "significantly rejuvenated." “Pravda” noted: “The very first impressions of the counters, who conducted a preliminary round of the population, make it possible to draw some conclusions. One can feel that in recent years our country has significantly rejuvenated. From all over the country they report an abundance of children.”
Secondly, this census showed that in an atheistic country, the majority of the population was a believer. "The question to the counters was extremely troublesome: the believer or the unbeliever. Unexpectedly, this item turned out to be the most difficult and" capricious "for both the meter and the population," Pravda wrote.
More recently, already in the 90s, a significant part of the 1937 census materials were found in archives. A group of researchers analyzed them, made the necessary calculations and showed that the underestimation was small, only 700 thousand people, or 0.43% . In many countries, under-registration of censuses within 5% is considered acceptable.
Since the results of the 1937 census were not accepted by the government, a new population census was appointed, which took place in 1939 (as of January 17). Now it was expected (according to Gosplan forecasts) that the population of the Union would be 170 million people. Mindful of recent repressions after the 1937 census, statisticians tried very hard to reach the indicated (literally) figure, to prevent the "underestimation" of the population. As a result of all efforts, the census showed a population of 170 557 thousand people (subsequently, after correction for a double count and registration, it turned out that a more real figure was 168 871 thousand)
The Second World War prevented the completion of the processing of the 1939 census. After the war ended, the question arose of conducting another census in order to assess the damage caused by the war.
Only after Stalin's death in 1953 was the next census planned, which was carried out in 1959 (as of January 15). On the main program issues, the 1959 census was not much different from the 1939 census. The census list contained only 15 questions.
At the same time, the results of the 1959 census aroused great scientific resonance, perhaps the greatest in comparison with all previous censuses in our country. The census served as a powerful incentive scientific research not only in demography, but also in economics, sociology and other social sciences. To a considerable degree this was also due to the fact that the 1959 census was carried out a little more than 2 years after the landmark XXth CPSU Congress, when the country thawed after the Stalin winter and social sciences came to life. The results of the 1959 census gave everyone good food for the mind.
It should also be noted that the significant expansion from the mid-1950s seems completely random. official statistical publications: reference books, yearbooks, etc., mainly general economic, but also demographic.
The next regular All-Union population census was carried out in 1970 as of January 15. The 1970 census census form contained 18 questions, i.e. slightly more than in the previous census. Additions dealt with population migration issues. The innovation of the 1970 census. there was also the use of the selective method, in which 100% of the country's population answered 11 questions on the census questionnaire, and only 25% of the population collected information on the remaining 7 questions (the survey was conducted in every fourth dwelling). Then, the information collected in this way was distributed according to certain rules to the entire population. The use of the selective method saves financial resources and human resources.
The materials of the 1970 census were published in 7 volumes (the total volume of the pages of which was approximately the same as in 16 small volumes of the publication of the results of the 1959 census). Along with the publication, 10 volumes of the results of the census with the stamp “For official use” were published.
Interesting cases during the 1970 census were written by Evening Moscow. In the Baku village of Barzav, the right to first answer the questions of the census takers was granted to 165-year-old Shirali Mislimov. He turned out to be the oldest resident of the USSR. In the column about the year of birth there was an entry: "1805th". According to the newspaper, "the elder of mountains was happy to answer the question about the source of livelihood. The pension that the state pays allows Mislimov to live in abundance. In his house built by fellow countrymen, a blue TV screen shines every evening."
The next regular population census took place 9 years later, in 1979, as of January 17. The census form consisted of 16 questions (11 in the solid part of the census and 5 in the selective, 25 percent). The questions in the entire census were basically the same as in the previous census of 1970, although some of them had important editorial changes. In the sample part, there was no question of underemployment in the year preceding the census, and two questions about migration. But a new question was asked, addressed to women, about the number of children born. There was also an important technical innovation: the census form was combined with a technical information carrier. A significant part of the answers to the questions of the census form (in 12 out of 16 questions) was written on it not in words, as was done in previous censuses, but was applied to the census forms in the form of marks with a pencil specially made for this purpose, and the census forms themselves were then entered into electronic reading devices. Labels on the sheets were made directly during the census, which significantly increased the workload of the census takers. But at the stage of processing the census forms, labor costs, working hours and the number of errors that inevitably arise when manually copying information from census forms to development forms were significantly reduced. There were a number of programmatic and methodological changes in the wording of some issues. In particular, the wording of the question of age was changed (the date of birth was introduced along with the traditional number of years old, the marital status was now fixed in four categories: married, never married, widowed and divorced (or separated). It opened up new possibilities for studying and predicting marriage. The results of the 1979 census were published in a single volume, the suitability of which is even doubtful even for propaganda work, and even more so for any other more serious work. 10 volumes were published The census provided extensive information on changes in the composition of the population, which were subsequently widely used, with a total of 262.4 million people.
The next and last All-Union population census took place exactly 10 years later, in 1989, as of January 12. It was significantly different from the previous census in its methodological qualities. First of all, for the first time after the 1926 census, it was a census not only of the population, but also of its living conditions. In this regard, the number of questions in the census form has significantly increased, from 16 to 25 (18 questions are devoted to the population, 7 more to housing conditions). As in the censuses of 1970 and 1979, the selective method was used, a quarter of the population was interviewed for the whole range of questions, while three quarters of the population answered 5 less questions, i.e. on 18 questions. The questions were basically the same as in the 1979 census; additional questions related to population migration. The 1989 census materials were published over several years in a small volume rather unsystematically. Initially, 5 issues of short results were published, containing really brief data on the number and distribution of the population of the USSR and Union republics, on the age, sex, marriage, and national composition of the population, their level of education, and family composition.
A population census is a scientifically organized operation of collecting data on the size and composition of a population, summarizing, evaluating, analyzing and publishing demographic, economic and social data about the entire population living at a given point in time in a country or a clearly limited part of it.
The history of the census in Russia has several periods during which the census takers were interested in completely different issues.
The beginning of population accounting in Russia was laid by the Kiev and Novgorod principalities in the 9th century. Accounting was carried out with fiscal goals, that is, for tax assessment.
From the second half of the 13th century, during the Mongol-Tatar yoke, population counts were carried out in individual Russian principalities to determine the size of tribute. The same goals were pursued by censuses in the Transcaucasus in the 70s of the XIII century.
Accounting at that time was economic: it was taken into account for taxation of a house or “smoke”, then in the 14th century it became an object of taxation landproductively used on the farm - plow (later - a quarter, tithe). A so-called plow letter was compiled, the results of the descriptions were recorded in scribe books. In the XVII century, the yard became the unit of taxation, and the main census form was the backyard census.
In 1718, Peter the Great issued a decree that ordered "to take fairy tales from everyone (give a one-year term), so that the truthful would bring how many people have masculine souls in that village." Lists compiled in this way ("fairy tales") were collected only three years later, and then over the next three years were subjected to verification - "revisions". Since then, population surveys in Russia have come to be called "tax audits" or simply "audits." Such audits were carried out for almost a century and a half, right up to the abolition of serfdom. In total, ten audits have passed in Russia, the last in 1857-1860. These revisions lasted for several years and were very inaccurate, since they did not take into account the actual number of inhabitants, but only the “registered” from taxable estates, i.e. people on the lists for paying taxes (tax). The landowners were in no hurry to submit another revision "tale", so many of the dead were considered alive.
After the abolition of serfdom, censuses began to be carried out in individual cities and even entire provinces, however, many of them were state-run police "populations," in which householders simply collected information about the number of residents not even living, but registered in their houses.
Census form of the 1989 All-Union Population Census (continuous census)
1989 All-Union Population Census Fact Sheet
Census in Russia - collection, generalization, study and dissemination of demographic, economic and social data relating as of a certain time to all persons in Russia and on the territory of its former state entities.
Census history
Population accounting in the XIII-XVI centuries. Scribal books
Many documents have been preserved that allow you to recreate the atmosphere in which the censuses were conducted, depict portraits of the census takers, and find out the attitude of the population towards the censuses. According to them, you can imagine how the population was counted in Russia in the 17th century.
The census was conducted primarily by the forces of scribes and clerks who served in Moscow orders - the central authorities responsible for a particular section of government affairs. The most senior clerks occupied important administrative posts, the rest was the responsibility of drafting numerous executive papers.
“The noble state,” wrote Academician M. N. Tikhomirov, “relied heavily on this ordering company, which, it must be said, the people hated burningly. They made it possible to change the order documents, they produced various kinds of red tape, which in the 17th century, even in the tsarist documents, was called "Moscow red tape" ... The clerks were often ruined during the uprisings, sometimes they died. Since the 17th century they had a very poetic name - “nettle seed”. ” (Tikhomirov M.N. Russian state of the XV-XVII centuries. M., 1973).
To conduct a census in a particular county, a scribe and several of his assistants, scribes, were sent there, who were divided into "old" (senior) and young. The scribe’s work was complicated and required special knowledge. The trip was expected to be long, and they were seriously preparing for it.
First of all, the scribe was provided with a Punishment - instructions on how to conduct a census. In addition, “seasoning books” were handed over to him — copies of materials from previous descriptions of the area to which the scribe was sent. As “reference” during the census of 1676-1678, for example, census books of 1646 were used. It is clear that the "seasoning books" served as a great help for the scribe - they were both a kind of guide to the area, and a model for compiling new books, and, finally, a means of comparing the results with the data of past years, and, therefore, a control tool.
Catherine II carried out a number of reforms, abolitions and transformations, including statistics. The features of the instrument of public knowledge began to appear in it. A new type of statistical work appeared, aimed at obtaining a variety of statistical data on the state of socio-economic life - the so-called cognitive statistics arose.
After the abolition of serfdom in 1861 in some cities and even entire provinces of the Russian Empire, population surveys began to be carried out. They aimed to prepare for the first General Population Census, which was planned to be carried out on a scientific basis. The revisions practiced since the time of Peter the Great gave very inaccurate information about the population and took into account only the “attributed” from taxable estates. The imperfection of these revision tales served, among other things, as the basis for the plot of Gogol's “Dead Souls”. The question of changing census methods was very acute at that time. Meanwhile, the majority of the population censuses conducted in certain cities and even entire provinces were state police “populations,” in which householders simply collected information about the number of residents not even living, but registered in their houses. There were at least 200 such local censuses, but many of them were not published, and some are unknown except for the census year. Later they switched to scientifically organized censuses, which were regularly held in Moscow (1871, 1882, 1902, 1912), St. Petersburg (1862, 1863, 1864, 1869, 1881, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1915) and other cities.
On December 12, 1871, the first one-day population census in Moscow was conducted under the direction of the statistician M. A. Sablin. In Moscow, it was decided to conduct a census after a successful attempt in St. Petersburg. In June 1870, the Moscow Mayor appealed to the Governor General, Prince V. A. Dolgorukov, with a request to allocate 6 thousand rubles in silver for a one-day census. The prince found the census useful, and the money was released. However, another 6 thousand rubles were spent on the final development of the census. To conduct the citywide event, a commission was organized, which included many high-ranking officials, including the secretary of the statistical committee, M. A. Sablin. Together with the famous Zemstvo statistician V.I. Orlov, Sablin contributed to the establishment of a statistical office at the Moscow Law Society. This department served as a unifying center for Russian zemstvo statistical work. Census mechanism. The first stage of the census was to collect information about the houses - this was done by the police. Their responsibilities included the delivery of house leaflet forms to homeowners and their return to the Statistical Committees. Listing of apartments should have greatly facilitated the rewriting of their tenants. This work was carried out from the end of October and in November, since this time was considered the most favorable. The census itself was outlined for December. Moscow was divided into 19 sections, and the main performer was assigned to each. The census procedure itself took place without the participation of the police. In the period from December 5 to 12, the counters themselves brought and collected census forms, and entered into "relations" only with the homeowners and their attorneys, and they entered the apartments only in case of emergency. In total, in the Moscow census of 1871, 997 enumerators were involved, of which: students - 759 people, officials - 152 people from the Border Chancellery, the Control Chamber, the Duma, the Chancellery of the Governor General and the Treasury, 7 gymnasium students, 7 students of technical schools, 4 seminarians and 58 private individuals. All census takers were given the strictest instructions, in which some excerpts are especially interesting: “To re-enter the shelters before the overnight ones leave. To visit them, in order to avoid trouble, certainly with the police, but without entering her into the rooms without special need (violence, scandals, etc.). " Paragraph 4 said: “the enumerator is required to give the most helpful courtesy to those people whom he will turn to for census matters; "at the first hint of the impossibility of filling out the rubrics on the sheet, the meter must offer its services, if there is a clear reluctance to enter the required information, the meter insists on the most polite way." Point 5 read: “the meter does not enter the apartment without special urgent need.” Clause 9 provided: “each counter is stocked with two pencils: ordinary and blue (or red).” Here is what information was obtained during the first Moscow population census. First of all, it is obvious that Moscow in 1871 was a city of grooms, not brides. There were 354 thousand men, and 248 thousand women. For every 100 men, there were an average of 71 women, that is, for every man, 2/3 of the women. This ratio, according to Sablin, spoke of the attractiveness of Moscow "as an industrial, commercial and mental center." The main altar attracted workers from nearby areas, merchants and youth flocked here for training. At that time, Moscow occupied a space of 60 miles, and the distribution of the population throughout the city was uneven. Most of the women per 100 men were in the Prechistensky (105 women) and Arbat (100 women) districts. And this was due to the fact that the so-called "pure population", that is, family, lived in these areas. However, in the Sretensky part was also high percent the young female population of 20–25 years old — 96 women per hundred men — but the reasons for this “crowding” are different. The fact is that in the side streets of this district there were women's workshops and houses of tolerance. A total of 66 women per 100 men were accounted for in the Yakimansky and Pyatnitsky districts, and this was due to the fact that the merchants had a very large number of clerks and a sales servant (artisans, workers, carters, and others). Most of all were deprived of the female population of the outskirts of the city - Rogozhsky, Khamovnichesky, Serpukhov, Lefortovo districts - shelters for employees and factory workers. However, in the center - the Kremlin and China's city - it also turned out to be sparse with women - only 37 per 100 men - and all because the visitors and artisans lived here. As for the child population, it is insignificant, especially the female one, since by the age of 10-15 boys were brought to Moscow to study in schools, craft establishments and factories. The female population was not exported to the capital to study. Home and boarding education received only wealthy girls. However, after 25 years, the number of the male population decreased, due to high mortality and recruitment. The population of Moscow is mostly Orthodox. Meanwhile, there were more non-Orthodox women than men. The layout is as follows. Raskolnikov: men - 2.1%, women - 3.7%; Protestants 1.8% and 2.4%; Catholics - 1.42% and 0.92%; Jews - 0.86% and 0.9%. Mohammedan in Moscow recorded 0.26%, Gregorian Armenians - 0.15%. Widows accounted for 17.69% of the total female population, while widowers accounted for only 3.3%. It is curious that 4 divorced men were registered, and 23 people were registered. Such a preponderance of divorces does not at all indicate the beginning process of emancipation. Just a significant part of single women came to Moscow to earn money: after all, in a big city it was easier to feed oneself and a child. In addition, there was a high mortality rate among the male population. And it should be noted that remarriages among men were more popular than women. Literate were 54.1% of men and 37.9% of women. The peasant population in Moscow was 52.8% of men and 29.85% of women. 3.93% of men named themselves merchants, and 5.3% named merchants. The military population accounted for 10.3% of the total population of the city.
Petersburg censuses
According to the census, 2,000 Tatars lived in St. Petersburg in 1869. At the census of St. Petersburg in 1910, there were about 3,000 Swedes, but when the First World War broke out, the Swedish parish of St. Catherine in the Russian capital numbered about 6,000 Swedes, and by that time there were 7,300 Tatars in St. Petersburg. According to the 1910 census in St. Petersburg, the surname Sokolov took seventh place in frequency of occurrence, and of all surnames formed from non-canonical names, it was second only to the Smirnovs.
Census of Vladivostok
On August 13, 1897, another census of the population ended in Vladivostok, which took place every 10 years in that century. According to the census of 1897, 28 thousand 896 people lived in the city, 24 361 of them were men and 4 535 were women. These figures show the mad popularity of brides in Vladivostok, who consequently had the opportunity to make great parties.
Census of the Ufa province
In 1865, the vast territory of the Orenburg province was divided into two independent provinces: Orenburg and Ufa.
During the census, three categories of the population were taken into account: cash, settled (permanent), and ascribed. Development was carried out mainly by the current population.
Three forms of census forms were used: Form A (for peasant farms in rural societies), Form B (for property holdings and private houses and courtyards inside villages), Form C (for urban residents).
The census program included 14 attributes: attitude to the head of the household and to the head of his family; age; floor; marital status; estate; status or rank; Place of Birth; place of registration; place of permanent residence; mark of absence or temporary residence; religion; native language; literacy and training; occupation, craft, craft, position or service (with the separation of the main and secondary occupations and the military service provision); a note was made about physical disabilities.
The writer A.P. Chekhov participated directly in this census - he led a group of counters in the Serpukhov district of Moscow province.
The results were published in two volumes of the “General Code for the Empire of the results of the development of the universal census of January 28, 1897” and separate volumes for the provinces, regions, four cities (St. Petersburg, Moscow, Odessa, Warsaw) and Sakhalin Island. The publication lasted until 1905.
1920 All-Russian Census
The census was carried out before the creation of the USSR, within the borders of Soviet Russia. The census was conducted under the direction of V. G. Mikhailovsky as of August 28, 1920, simultaneously with the All-Russian Agricultural Census (September-October 1920) and a brief count of enterprises. Due to territorial unrepresentation (Crimea, the Far East, mountainous regions of the North Caucasus and a number of other places where Soviet power was not established and military operations continued) the census is not considered universal.
During the census, the present population was taken into account, and in the cities also the resident population. A personal form was used as the main form. In urban areas, an apartment card and a courtyard sheet were also used. In rural areas, a settled list of households was used.
The census program included 18 attributes (special emphasis was placed on the study of occupations and professional composition): gender; age; nationality; native language; citizenship (for foreigners); Place of Birth; duration of residence at the census site; marital status; literacy; education; occupation (main and secondary); position in the fishery; place of work; profession; source of livelihood; physical disabilities; mental health participation in wars. It took into account employment in agriculture, the effects of war on it, and the ability to work by profession and to work in general.
The population of the country (with reckoning in territories not covered by the census) amounted to 136.8 million people, including urban - 20.9 million (15%).
Censuses in the USSR
First All-Union Census of 1926
The first All-Union population census was conducted as of December 17, 1926 under the leadership of V. G. Mikhailovsky and O. A. Kvitkin.
During the census, the current population was taken into account (according to personal sheets), and in the cities a family card made it possible to obtain information on the permanent population.
Three forms were used: a personal sheet, a family card (only in cities) and a proprietary statement.
The census program included 14 attributes: gender; age; nationality; native language; Place of Birth; duration of residence at the census site; marital status; literacy; physical disabilities; mental health lesson (with the allocation of the main and secondary); position in the occupation and the branch of labor; for unemployed - duration of unemployment and previous occupation; source of livelihood (for those without employment). The family card took into account the composition of the family with the allocation of married couples and their children, the duration of the marriage and living conditions.
The development of materials was completed by September 1, 1928. The census development was distinguished by detail, for the first time the family was studied in great detail. The full results were published in 1928-1933 in 56 volumes.
All-Union Census of 1937
The only time in the history of the USSR (and for the first time after 1897) the census was carried out as a one-day. That is, the population was actually recorded “before” (and not “after”) the critical date (the moment of the census).
The census took into account the current population.
For the first time, the letterhead form for 8 people was used for filling out an apartment.
The census program included 14 attributes: gender; age; nationality; native language; religion; citizenship; literacy; the name of the institution; class or course; whether he graduated from high school or high school; occupation (service); place of work; community group; is married.
It should be noted that during this census, many deviations from the original project were made (it was also supposed to take into account the permanent population, to use 28 signs) and simplified wording of the questions.
The census data did not meet the expectations of the party leadership, and therefore the information contained in it was classified. In particular, the population was 164 million, while it was estimated 170-172 million. Moreover, officially back in 1934 it was announced that the population in the USSR was 168 million. The answer to the question about religion was also irritated (personally inserted to the census by Stalin). 50% of the population called themselves believers, of the villagers - 70%. The surviving preliminary census results for a number of indicators were published only in 1990.
1939 All-Union Census
The country's population was 170.6 million people, including the urban population - 56.1 million (33%). The development of the main preliminary census materials was mechanized and carried out over a period of 15 months. The final processing of census materials was prevented by the outbreak of World War II. The incomplete development of a number of indicators was completed after the war. Most often in the press it is precisely the first (pre-war) preliminary census results that differ in some indicators from those published after the war in 1947-1949.
1959 All-Union Census1979 All-Union Census
Census Type: interview.
Characteristics in the census form: attitude to the head of the family, gender, reason and time of absence from the census place (for temporarily absent at the place of permanent residence), age, marital status, nationality, citizenship (for foreigners), mother tongue, other language of the USSR peoples, which the respondent is fluent in, education, type of educational institution (for students), source of livelihood.
Characteristics in the sample census form: place of work, occupation at this place of work, community group, duration of continuous residence at the census place, number of children born (for women).
1989 All-Union Census
The last census in the USSR was conducted on January 12, 1989. According to the latest census, the population of the Soviet Union was 286.7 million people, including the urban population of 188.8 million, or 66 percent. The population of the RSFSR was 147.4 million people. Its distinctive feature was that for the first time, along with information about the population, information was collected on housing conditions. This made it possible to obtain information on the living conditions of various socio-demographic groups of the population in all regions of the country, on the development of housing cooperation, on the degree of provision of people with housing and its improvement.
Passed from October 14 to October 25, 2014 in connection with the entry of the Republic of Crimea and the city of federal significance of Sevastopol into the Russian Federation.
2020 All-Russian Population Census
The next census in Russia is scheduled for 2020. Rosstat in June 2017 announced that, according to preliminary estimates, 50 billion rubles would be required for its implementation. Supervisor Federal Service State Survey Alexander Surinov said that serious changes to the 2010 census form will not be made, but questions will be added to allow an objective assessment of migration, including labor
According to official sources of information, the population of the USSR was constantly increasing, the birth rate was growing, and mortality was falling. Such a demographic paradise in a single country. But, in fact, it was not so simple.
Censuses in the USSR and source demographic data
In Soviet times, seven All-Union censuses were carried out, covering the entire population of the state. The census of 1939 is “superfluous,” it was carried out instead of the census of 1937, the results of which were found to be incorrect, since only the present population was taken into account (the number of people who are in a certain settlement on the day of registration). On average, the population of the republics of the Soviet Union was recorded every ten years.
According to the general census, carried out as far back as 1897 in the then Russian Empire, the population was 129.2 million people. Only men, representatives of the taxable estates were taken into account, so the number of persons of the exorbitant estates and females is unknown. Moreover, a certain number of taxable persons hid in order to avoid the census, so that the data is underestimated.
Census of the Soviet Union 1926
In the USSR, the population was first determined in 1926. Prior to this, there was no well-established system of state demographic statistics in Russia. Some information, of course, was collected and processed, but not everywhere, and bit by bit. The 1926 census became one of the best in the USSR. All data were openly published, analyzed, forecasts were developed, and research was conducted.
The accountable population of the USSR for 1926 was 147 million. Most were rural residents (120.7 million). About 18% of citizens, or 26.3 million people, lived in cities. Illiteracy accounted for more than 56% among people aged 9-49. There were less than one million people unemployed. For comparison: in modern Russia with a population of 144 million people (of which 77 million are economically active), 4 million are officially unemployed, and almost 19.5 million do not have official employment.
The majority of the population of the USSR (according to years and statistics, demographic processes can be observed, some of which will be described in detail later) were Russians - almost 77.8 million people. Further: Ukrainians - 29.2 million, Belarusians - 47.4 million, Georgians - 18.2 million, Armenians - 15.7 million. There were also Turks, Uzbeks, Turkmens, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tatars, Chuvashs, Bashkirs in the USSR, Yakuts, Tajiks, Ossetians and representatives of many other nationalities. In a word, a truly multinational state.
The dynamics of the population of the USSR by years
It can be said that the total population of the Union grew from year to year. There was a positive trend, which, according to statistics, only World War II overshadowed. So, the population of the USSR in 1941 was 194 million people, and in 1950 - 179 million. But is everything really so rosy? In fact, demographic information (including the population of the USSR in 1941 and previous years) was classified, it even came to falsification. As a result, in 1952, after the death of the leader, demographic statistics and demography were literally a scorched desert.
But more on that later. While we observe the general demographic trends in the Land of Soviets. Here's how the population of the USSR has changed over the years:
- 1926 - 147 million people.
- 1937 - the census was declared “wrecking,” the results were seized and classified, and the workers who kept the records were arrested.
- 1939 - 170.6 million
- 1959 - 208.8 million
- 1970 - 241.7 million
- 1979 - 262.4 million
- 1989 - 286.7 million
This information is unlikely to determine the demographic processes, but there are also intermediate results, studies, and accounting data. In any case, the population of the USSR by years is an interesting field for research.
Classification of demographic data from the beginning of the 30s
The classification of demographic information has been going on since the beginning of the thirties. Demographic institutions were liquidated, publications disappeared, and repression fell upon the demographers themselves. In those years, not even the total population of the USSR was known. 1926 was the last year when statistics were collected more or less clearly. The results of 1937 did not suit the country's leadership, but the results of 1939, apparently, turned out to be more favorable. Only six years after the death of Stalin and 20 years after the 1926 census was a new record taken, according to these data, it is possible to judge the results of the Stalinist rule.
Decrease in birth rate in the USSR of times of Stalin and the prohibition of abortion
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Russia had a really high birth rate, but by the mid-1920s it had declined very significantly. The pace of declining birth rates has accelerated even further after 1929. The maximum fall depth was reached in 1934. To normalize performance, Stalin banned abortion. The years following this were marked by a slight rise in the birth rate, but insignificant and short-lived. Then comes war and a new fall.
According to official estimates, the population of the USSR grew by years due to falling mortality and increasing birth rates. With the birth rate, it is already clear that everything was completely wrong. But with regard to mortality, by 1935 it was reduced by 44% compared with 1913. But many years had to pass for researchers to get to the real data. In fact, the death rate in 1930 was not declared 16 ppm, but about 21.
The main causes of demographic disasters
Modern researchers distinguish several demographic disasters that overtook the USSR. Of course, one of them was World War II, the losses in which, according to Stalin, amounted to "about seven million." Now it is believed that about 27 million were killed in battles and battles, and this amounted to about 14% of the population. Other demographic disasters were political repression and famine.
Some events of demographic policy in the USSR
In 1956, abortion was again permitted, in 1969 a new Code of Family Laws was adopted, and in 1981 new benefits for child care were established. In the country from 1985 to 1987. an anti-alcohol campaign was carried out, which somewhat contributed to improving the population situation. But in the nineties in view of the deepest economic crisis some actions in the field of demography were practically not taken at all. The population of the USSR in 1991 was 290 million people.