Historical Censuses; Numbers from the Dutch Providing access to the Dutch Population census of 1971 drs. L.J.G. Schreven

Structure Censuses in the Netherlands A very short history Digitising the 1971 census Approach, difficulties and solutions and state of affairs Census digitisation projects in the Netherlands Different projects in past, present and future

Censuses in the Netherlands A very short history

Censuses 1795 – 1889 YearCensus st integral Dutch population census (French rule) st general population census (Royal Decree 1828) nd general population census rd general population census th general population census th general population census th general population census (Census Act 1879) th general population and occupation census

Censuses 1899 – 1971 YearCensus th general population, occupation and housing census (1st by Statistics Netherlands) th general population, occupation and housing census th general population, occupation and housing (1919) census th general population, occupation and housing census th general population, occupation and housing census 1956 Housing census th population census th general population, occupation and housing census (Census Act 1970)

Main census objectives 1.To determine the size of the population on a fixed point in time (statistic objective) 2.To prove the reliability of the population registers (administrative objective) 3.To examine the demographic and social- economic characteristics of the population (social objective)

The end of an era In 1971 the last general census was held. Why? Unwilling population! Causes: Deep scars left by World War 2 Fear for an all-knowing government (Big Brother) Fear for computerised data on the whole society Consequences: Public protest against the census Media attention to all issues concerning privacy policy Political pressure on Statistics Netherlands

Results A new law concerning privacy was passed in 1970 This delayed the census until Still there were some people unwilling to cooperate Opposition against censuses: (absolute figure) unwilling citizens percent unwilling (about ) 1980A census test showed an average unwillingness of 26 percent. In big urban areas this rose to almost 60 percent 1981 census was first postponed, later it was cancelled

After 1971 Register counts supplemented by random sample surveys. YearMethod 1981Register count of Population and housing; survey Labour force and housing needs 1991Register count of Population; survey Labour force and housing needs 1992 and onwardsAnnual count of housing supply 1995 and onwardsAnnual count of the population structure 1998 and onwardsAnnual household statistic 2001Virtual population census

(dis)advantages Disadvantages: regional splitting of data is impossible Advantages: costs are down and results are faster available

Summary Decennial censuses between 1829 and 1971 Privacy controversy leads to cancelling 1981 census Censuses are replaced by register counts and surveys Detailed annual statistics are introduced from the early nineties

Digitising the 1971 census Approach, difficulties and solutions and state of affairs

Approach Detailed description of the data Researching different methods of availability of data (and documentation) Manufacturing a test data file Researching the statistical security of data Preparing the digital archiving of data

Difficulties Very soon after the project got underway data problems were discovered. 1.Data were incomplete Missing labels Missing cases 2.Data were false ‘Impossible’ data

Solutions 1.Missing labels: scanning – editing – reentering 2.Missing cases: recovering ‘ancient’ data by going back to the source 3.Impossible data: reestablishing corrupt data

Metadata and documentation Metadata in (D)DDI Documentation in Portable Document Format (PDF)

Data availability: Remote Execution The data are rendered available in cooperation with Statistics Netherlands. Privacy issues restrict availability, therefore we decided to use Remote Execution. To facilitate Remote Execution a test data file was constructed, which had to be secured.

State of affairs On schedule June to September; detailed descriptions of both the data and the documentation Updating the website ( GIS component

Neighbourhood in Focus

Statline Cartographic

Summary Difficulties with data were overcome Metadata and documentation are collected A test data file was constructed to facilitate Remote Execution The website will be updated Applications for regional analyses of the data will be available through Statistics Netherlands

Census projects; past, present and future Past: Centennial census project ( ) Present: Digitising fund Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) ( , 1930, 1960 and 1971) Future: Life Courses in Context ( , 1909, 1920 and 1947)

Even more in the future? In 2005, all general population censuses will be available More in the future? NIWI hopes to participate in IPUMS-Europe.