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Inuit Natality Rhythms in the Central Canadian Arctic

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2008

Richard G. Condon
Richard G. Condon
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, USA
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Summary

Seasonal variation in human natality is examined over a period of several decades for an isolated Inuit settlement in the central Canadian Arctic. The results substantiate earlier reports of the existence of a birth season in the first half of the year. The 2-decade period coinciding with the gradual concentration of the regional population into the settlement experienced a temporary disruption of this traditional rhythmic pattern. Family planning has been introduced in the modern period, yet birth seasonality is even more pronounced than during previous decades. Both planned and unplanned births occur predominantly in the first half of the year, indicating the paramount importance of behavioural and social responses to extreme seasonal variation.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , April 1982 , pp. 167 - 177
Copyright
Copyright © 1982, Cambridge University Press

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