Fertility

After analyzing my family's fertility history it is safe to say that it is pretty similar to most parts of the demographic transition model with some minor differences. To begin, my great grandmother from my maternal side gave birth to 6 children who were all born in Switzerland. The time span of these births was between 1932 and 1942. All of the children were born in a rural town of Switzerland called Zernez. My great-grandmother and grandfather owned a farm and because of this they made the children work too. One of the children died at the young age of 17 due to disease. Stage 2 in the demographic transition model demonstrates a society in which the birth rate is high while the death rate is declining due to improvements in healthcare. The demographic transition at this time and place in Switzerland was in stage 2 because the rural lifestyle constituted for more children since work was significantly needed and disease was prevalent. 

When looking at my paternal ancestry, my great-grandmother had 8 children who were all born in El Salvador. The span of these births was from 1930 to 1946. All of the children were born in an industrial part of El Salvador in cities near the capital. The demographic transition at this time in most of El Salvador was stage 2. Although there is still a way larger amount of children being born, my history differs a little from the transition model because all of the children survived to an old age and they also experienced a more urbanized society rather than rural. Despite this they still didn't receive a good education and worked with their parent's at a very young age. My paternal great-grandparents most likely had a lot of children because they believed that some may not survive through childhood. Overall, both my maternal and paternal  ancestry match the demographic transition of stage 2 because a stage 2 society emphasizes high birth rates, rural society, death due to disease, and no education. 

Moving on to my grandmother's ancestry from my mom's family, she only had two children. My mom's older brother was born in 1965 and my Mom was born in 1967. They were both born in New Jersey, USA. Although they were both born in America, they were raised in Switzerland because my grandma moved back to her hometown after my mother was born. A stage 3 society consists of a declining birth rate along with a low death rate, due to the shift of agricultural economies to industrial economies. The town in Switzerland at this period in time had moved onto a stage 3 society and this was demonstrated through the emphasis on industrial jobs for working adults and education for kids. 

My grandmother from my dad's side of the family also came to the U.S., specifically California, to give birth to her two children. My dad's sister was born in 1965 and my dad was born in 1972. My grandmother also decided to move back to El Salvador after she gave birth to my dad and they lived there until my dad was 8 years old. They then came back to California to live permanently due to the Salvadoran Civil War. Although they fled the conflict, it was voluntary and they were not considered refugees. Since my dad mostly grew up in California, he was experiencing a stage 3 society that was transitioning to stage 4 society. A stage 4 society refers to service sector work taking place, as well as a low birth rate and low death rate. Most of the population at this time in Los Angeles were also working industrial jobs and children were required to have an education. Other factors that also support the new stage 4 transition society is that my grandmother only decided to have 2 children and they went to school while she worked at a clothing manufacturer company. I would also say that my grandmother in Switzerland was similar to the demographic transition of stage three because my mother and her brother had access to an education while my grandmother worked an industrial job. 

For the last analyst, when reviewing my mom's choice of fertility, she chose to have four children who were all born in California. The oldest was born in 1999 and the youngest in 2007. We grew up in a stage 4 society where there was very minimal farming and we went to school while our parents worked at jobs in the city. The only difference from the stage 4 society that my family demonstrated was a large birth rage since they had more than 2 kids.

When I start my own family, I hope to have around 4 to 6 kids. My parents have definitely influenced me in this decision since I grew up with a lot of siblings. I enjoyed spending time with them (even though I wanted a sister) and I know I would have felt lonely if I didn't have any siblings growing up. I also know I will enjoy hanging out with them when I am older because we could have big family parties and my children will always have cousins that they can hang out with.