Russian Socio-Economic Variables
History of Data
The Socio-economic data for European Russia were compiled by Erna Harm, Ansley Coale's research assistant. There are two files, one containing data for 1897 (with some comparison variables as of 1926) and one containing data for 1959 (with some comparison variables as 1970). These two files represent only a small amount of the information compiled and tabulated by Erna Harm.
Some time in the early 1980's, Beverly Harris transferred the two socio-economic data files, as well as all of the other data and tabulations compiled by Erna Harm, onto tape. The two socio-economic files were the only files with any documentation. 19 other files essentially had no documentation, other than internal labels and notes provided by Erna Harm. In 1994, Barbara Vaughan moved the data from tape to the OPR Unix archive. She also prepared a brief description of the contents of the 19 undocumented files.
Contents of Data
The socio-economic data file for 1897 contains 48 variables for 50 provinces. Variables include urbanization, distributions by religion and nationality or ethnic origin, and occupation. The data file for 1959 contains 21 variables for 81 oblasts. Variables include education, collectivization, rural residence and distribution by nationality or ethnic group.
The 19 miscellaneous files contain a wealth of material as well as bibliographic references; some of the files contain summaries that could be made into data files without much trouble. Most of them are tabulations with headings and footnotes and are probably best used in printed form. Although the socioeconomic data are for European Russia only, the 19 other files contain information for all areas of the former Russian Empire and the former Soviet Union.
Availability of Data and Codebooks
The socioeconomic data and codebooks, as well as these notes, are available online.
You can click here for a file list.
The codebooks can be viewed online:
The 19 miscellaneous files, along with a brief description of their contents, are available online. The description can be viewed by clicking here. People at OPR can find the data in the directory /home/archive/data/eufert, in the file russmisc.zip.
Key Reference
Coale, Ansley J.; Anderson, Barbara; and Harm, Erna. Human Fertility in Russia since the 19th Century. Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Press, 1979.
