Missing women in colonial India
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3338366 |
|---|---|
| Authors | James Fenske (0000-0001-6003-629X, Department of Economics University of Warwick Coventry UK), Bishnupriya Gupta (Department of Economics University of Warwick Coventry UK, corresponding author), Cédric Neumann (0000-0003-1364-4975, Department of Economics University of Warwick Coventry UK) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 78 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 997-1038 |
| Publication date | 2025-01-14 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Economic History Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0013-0117 • E-ISSN: 1468-0289 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/ehr.13413 |
| OpenAlex | W4406405740 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 76 |
We construct novel data on female population shares by age, district, and religion in South Asia from 1881 to 1931. Sex ratios skew male in Northern India and are more balanced in Southern and Eastern India, including Burma. Male-biased sex ratios emerge most visibly after age 10, and this is not specific to any one region, religion, or time period. Sikhs have the most male-biased sex ratios, followed by Hindus, Muslims, and Jains. The female share correlates across religious groups within districts. Evidence that sex ratios correlate with suitability for wheat and rice is weaker than suggested by the existing literature
Archaeology · Colonialism · Geography · Political science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Culture, Economy, and Development Studies · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · History · Migration and Labor Dynamics
The endangered sex
A Population History of India
The Emergence of an Industrial Labor Force in India
Beliefs about Gender
Do Women Shy Away From Competition? Do Men Compete Too Much?
The ‘reversal of fortune’ thesis and the compression of history
Missing Women
The rise and fall of excess male infant mortality
Life Expectancy and Human Capital Investments
The Origins of Industrial Capitalism in India
Selective gender differences in childhood nutrition and immunization in rural India
Vidya , Veda , and Varna
India's Historical Demography
Why Do Mothers Breastfeed Girls Less than Boys? Evidence and Implications for Child Health in India
The Roots of Gender Inequality in Developing Countries
Why Are Indian Children So Short? The Role of Birth Order and Son Preference
Missing Women and the Price of Tea in China
Socio-cultural and service delivery dimensions of maternal mortality in rural central India
Ruggedness
Consumption Smoothing and Excess Female Mortality in Rural India
Epidemic Shocks and Civil Violence
Religion and Female–Male Ratios in India
Drop the Demon Dai
The Construction of a ‘Population Problem’ in Colonial India 1919–1947
Railways and cities in India
Religion and abortion
Gender gaps in technology diffusion
Women as agents of change
Reputational Consequences of Labor Coercion
Son preference and sex composition of children
On the Formation of Family Structures
Bride Price and Female Education
Women's Schooling, Home Teaching, and Economic Growth
Why Are Older Women Missing in India? The Age Profile of Bargaining Power and Poverty
Labor Mobility, Market Integration, and Wage Convergence in Late 19th Century India
Girl power
The Effect of the TseTse Fly on African Development
Kinship institutions and sex ratios in India
On the Origins of Gender Roles
Gender Differences in Preferences
Linguistic Distance and Market Integration in India
Railways, Development, and Literacy in India
May God Give Sons to All
Demographic Shocks and Women's Labor Market Participation
Origins of the Sicilian Mafia
Trade, Institutions, and Ethnic Tolerance
On the Demography of South Asian Famines Part I
Demography of brideprice and dowry
French and British Colonial Legacies in Education
Fertility Decline and Increased Manifestation of Sex Bias in India
"Explaining Asia's "Missing Women
On Kinship Structure, Female Autonomy, and Demographic Behavior in India
India's Falling Sex Ratios
Fertility Decline and Increasing Gender Imbalance in India, Including a Possible South Indian Turnaround
Female Demographic Disadvantage in India 1981-1991
Cotton Exports and Indian Agriculture, 1861-1870
Female Labor Participation and Female Seclusion in Rural India
Where have all the brides gone? Son preference and marriage in India over the twentieth century
| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |