Households and families

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Purpose and history
These statistics illustrate households, families and also personal characteristics regarding household and family. New concepts and definitions were introduced in 2008 to replace the previously produced household and family statistics. The concepts in the statistics used up to 2007 are not comparable to the present ones. Files on household and family statistics from 1980 to 2007 have a comparability that is satisfatory on most points, but are not comparable to 2008 and onwards.

Description of Contents
The statistics on households and families describe the total population living in Denmark. Statistics are produced with three different kinds of units: households, families and persons. The statistics describe these units on household and family-related variables (e.g. type of family, size of familiy, type of household). The basis for the statistics consists solely of CPR data on sex, age, martital status, references to spouses and parents, and address specification. The address data form the basis of the division into households, municipalities and regions.

Statistical Concepts
Households are defined as address households, i.e. each address at which persons are registered in the Central Population Register constitutes a household which consists of all the persons registered at the address. The group of persons in a household consists of one or more families. A household and a family may consist of a single person.

Families can be divided in three main types. Families consisting of couples, families of single persons and families consisting of a child not living with its parents. For families of couples or single persons the family can include one or more children below the age of 25 years living with the parent(s).

Children are defined as persons who are under the age of 18, who have never been married, who do not have children by themselves and who are not parts in cohabiting couples (cf. below). If a child has a parent reference number to at least one adult person in the same household, the child is living at home, and if not the child is a cjild not living at home.

Young persons of 18-24 years who fulfill the conditions for being a child living at home, except for the age condition, are counted as children living at home. They are included in the parents' families.

All persons who are not children are adult persons. Every adult person who is not part af a couple is a single person. There are four types of couples:
1. Married couples. The two persons have spouse reference numbers to each othes.
2. Registered partnerships. The partners refer to each others in the CPR register in the same way as married persons.
3. Consensual unions. The two persons who have at least one joint child regardless of the age ef the child, and regardless of where the child lives and wheter he/he lives.
4. Cohabiting couples: A cohabiting couple consists of two persons of opposite sex with no joint children, but possibly with separate children. The two persons have an age difference of less than 15 years, they are not from the same family of origin as far as the reference numbers show and there are no other adult persons living at the address. Persons down to the age of 16 can be regarded as cohabiting.

Variables:
The following variables can be attached to persons:
Sex, age, marital status, municipality and region, type of family, status in family, type of household, number of persons in the family, number of children in the family and in the household, and information on whether the person lives in the same household as his/her father and/or mother.

The following variables can be attached to families:
Municipality and region, type of family, number of persons, and children in the family.

The following variables can be attached to households:
Municipality and region, type of household, number of persons and of children living in parental home,

Classifications:
In the tables which are published annually the most important classifications for persons are: sex, age, type of family, the person's status in the familiy, number of children in the family, municipality and, for children, information on which of the parents the child lives with. For families the most frequently used classifications concern family type and size, number of children, municipality and region.

Statistical measures:
A comprehensive description of the methods in Danish can be found in Population and Elections (Statistical News (Statistiske Efterretninger)). A shorter description in English can be found in the annual publication Vital Statistics (Befolkningens Udvikling).

  Read more about the statistics on 'Household and family statistics' in our Declarations of contents

Releases

Last updated:	18 February 2010
Scheduled releases:	18 February 2011 for the period 1 January 2011

Contact

Dorthe Larsen
Telephone:	+ 45 39 17 33 07
Email: