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Roots of gender equality: the persistent effect of beguinages on attitudes toward women.

Authors :
Frigo, Annalisa
Roca Fernández, Èric
Source :
Journal of Economic Growth; Mar2022, Vol. 27 Issue 1, p91-148, 58p
Publication Year :
2022

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the historical roots of gender equality. It proposes and empirically assesses a new determinant of gender equality: gender-specific outside options in the marriage market. In particular, enlarging women's options besides marriage—even if only temporarily—increases their bargaining power with respect to men, leading to a persistent improvement in gender equality. We illustrate this mechanism focusing on Belgium, and relate gender-equality levels in the 19th century to the presence of medieval, female-only communities called beguinages that allowed women to remain single amidst a society that traditionally advocated marriage. Combining geo-referenced data on beguinal communities with 19th-century census data, we document that the presence of beguinages contributed to decrease the gender gap in literacy. The reduction is sizeable, amounting to a 12.3% drop in gender educational inequality. Further evidence of the beguinal legacy is provided leveraging alternative indicators of female agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
13814338
Volume :
27
Issue :
1
Database :
Complementary Index
Journal :
Journal of Economic Growth
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
155378785
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10887-021-09198-7