The Cultivation of the Soil as a Moral Directive: Population Growth, Family Ties, and the Maintenance of Community Among the Old Order Amish.

In this paper, we take the position that Old Order Amish culture is largely maintained by the ability of individual Amish families to establish their children on farms. In the past, the norms of family farming, hard work, and high fertility have been in balance with the ecological environment of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The implications for the Amish lifestyle of ever-increasing populations pressure and higher land prices are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]