Families in the War: the Impact of First World War on the Demographic Behaviour in the Rural World of Transylvania
Families in the War: the Impact of First World War on the Demographic Behaviour in the Rural World of Transylvania

Summary/Abstract: In the aftermath of First World War, waged between 1914 and 1918, terrible loss and enormous casualties, massive destruction were followed by drastic social, economic, and cultural mutations, as well as significant changes in the international relations. Transylvania, a province now located in the central part of Romania, also endured the devastations of the “Great War”, whose ruin, desolation, and tragedies could be seen everywhere. The present research aims at investigating the impact of the four years of armed conflict on the demographic behaviour of the people in rural Transylvania. As many of the complex issues caused by war also affected rural households, we conducted an explorative case study on the families of Budeşti village (Bistriţa- Năsăud County). The available sources, preserved in Bistriţa-Năsăud Record Office of the National Archives (Collection of Civil Registries; Collection of Ethnic Group Registries of Năsăud County; Budeşti Greek-Catholic Parish Registry, Nominal Census) and in the archives of Budeşti Village Hall (Civil Registry), enabled us to understand the demographic impact of the war, and the way in which the family and people of the Transylvanian village responded to the difficult challenges of the age.

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