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Families

Producer: Statistics Finland
Homepage: http://www.stat.fi/til/perh/index_en.html
Main topic: Population
Related topics:
Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Yes
European Statistical System (ESS): Yes

Description

Families are formed at the turn of the year from persons living in the same dwelling according to the population information system of The Digital and Population data services Agency. The statistics comprise families and families with children, and their demographic data. Families are classified into families without children, married or cohabiting couples living with children, and single-parent families. Cohabiting couples are deduced from living together. The statistics contain data on the age, language, nationality and country of birth of spouses/parents, and on the age and gender of each child living at home. Families with children are those that include children under the age of 18.

Data content

The statistics contain demographic data on all permanently resident families and families with children in Finland. They include data on the age, language, marital status, nationality and country of birth of the spouses/parents, and on the age, gender and language (defined as Finnish, Swedish, other language)of each child living at home. The data on the spouses/parents also include those on successive number of their marriage and the latest dates of marriage and divorce. In respect of registered partnerships, besides the dates of registration and annulments of registration data are also included on their possible marriages. The data on a family also indicate whether it is a reconstituted family and how many underage children of each spouse and common children of the spouses the family includes.

Individual data with identifiers must be kept undisclosed.

Classifications used

Families are classified into married couples, unmarried couples or registered partnership couples with or without children, and into single-parent families. There is no age limit on the status of child. Families with children under the age of 18 are classified as families with children. Only families with one parent and children under the age of 18 are classified as single-parent families.

Families are usually classified by number of children into families with 1, 2, 3 and 4+ children. Numbers of children aged, 0-6, 0-17 and 0-24 are used as children’s age groups.

Since 1999, nationality, country of birth and language have been classified according to ISO standards, Prior to this, Statistics Finland’s own classifications were used.

Data on families are available by diverse regional divisions based on municipalities. Data by municipal sub-region can also be provided as a charged service. The data can also be produced by regional divisions based on map co-ordinates as e.g. grid-based data.

Since the statistics of 31 December 1999, the division valid on the first day of the following year has been used as the regional division. On special order, data by municipalities merged at the turn of the year can also be supplied according to the regional division valid on the last day of the previous year before the merger.

Data collection methods and data sources

Data on families are formed from the population data received at the turn of the year from the Population Information System of The Digital and Population data services Agency. A computer program uses the real estate identifier codes of dwellings to identify individuals living in the same dwelling and deduces families by comparing the residents’ data.

Updating frequency

The datafile on families is produced annually according to the situation at the turn of the year.

Time of completion or release

The statistics are released in May of the year following the statistical reference year.

Time series

Statistics on families have been produced according to the current definitions in 1990 and from 1992 onwards.

Keywords

children, cohabition, families, families with underage children, marriage, nationality, reconstituted families, registered partnership, single-parent families

Contact information

http://tilastokeskus.fi/til/perh/yht_en.html

Additional information

info@tilastokeskus.fi


Last updated 01.07.2020