Height and inequality in Spaina long-term perspective

  1. Antonio D. Cámara 1
  2. José Miguel Martínez-Carrión 2
  3. Javier Puche 3
  4. Josep-Maria Ramon-Muñoz 2
  1. 1 Universidad de Jaén
    info

    Universidad de Jaén

    Jaén, España

    ROR https://ror.org/0122p5f64

  2. 2 Universidad de Murcia
    info

    Universidad de Murcia

    Murcia, España

    ROR https://ror.org/03p3aeb86

  3. 3 Universidad de Zaragoza
    info

    Universidad de Zaragoza

    Zaragoza, España

    ROR https://ror.org/012a91z28

Show affiliations +
Journal:
Revista de Historia Económica = Journal of Iberian and Latin American Economic History

ISSN: 0212-6109

Year of publication: 2019

Issue Title: Inequality and well-being in Iberian and Latin American regions since 1820. New approaches from anthropometric history

Year: 37

Issue: 2

Pages: 205-238

Type: Article

DOI: 10.1017/S0212610919000089 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Revista de Historia Económica = Journal of Iberian and Latin American Economic History

Abstract

This article analyses the evolution of nutritional inequality in Spain among cohorts born between 1840 and 1964. With male height data (N = 358,253), the secular trend of biological well-being and intergenerational anthropometric inequalities are studied based on the coefficient of variation, height percentiles and socioeconomic categories (students, literate non-students and illiterate). The results reveal that the nutritional inequalities were very large in the mid-19th century. Anthropometric inequalities diminished among those born between 1880 and 1919 and increased again, although only moderately, from the cohorts of the 1920s. From the 1930s there was a cycle of sustained increase in height. Despite nutritional improvement, the data suggest that nutritional inequalities increased during the Franco regime, affecting the low-income population segments particularly.

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