Gigi Santow, born in Sydney, Australia, in 1950. Ph.D. from the Australian National University, Canberra. Formerly Professor of Demography at Stockholm University.
Fellow (1 September 2001 – 30 June 2002)
During the 2001/02 NIAS year I commenced work with Michael Bracher on a major study of the historical demographic transition, the process whereby a situation of high and approximately compensating death and birth rates gives way to a new equilibrium situation of low death and birth rates. We investigated the demographic development of the parish of Skellefteå, northern Sweden, from the middle of the eighteenth century to the end of the nineteenth century using a collection of family-reconstitution data compiled and computerized by the Demographic Data Base of Umeå University.
Without the hospitality of NIAS during this year we doubt that we would ever have been emboldened to embark on this intensive study. Freedom from most other duties, and the leisure to work largely uninterruptedly on our project, created the basis for ongoing work. In addition, the superb library resources enabled us to read widely on and around our subject.